tiffwilhelm

We are planning to stay a month on the Osa peninsula in July. Before we head back to San Jose to depart in August, we were hoping to spend a couple of nights at some hot springs in Arenal near the volcano. Does anyone know how many hours drive from Puerto Jimenez to Arenal? is it just one day? Also, is it possible to hire a driver/car to transport 2 adults and 3 children this distance? (I'd prefer not to rent and drive myself if that is possible)
Thanks!

volcanogirl

It's such a short flight from PJ back to San Jose - have you considered flying on Nature Air or Sansa and then just going from SJO to Arenal? A driver from SJO to Arenal would run you around $140.

tiffwilhelm

That is a thought. We are flying in to SJO and hiring a car and driver for $400 to take a family of 5 to the Osa Peninsula. I was under the impression that a round trip flight for 5 of us would cost over $1000 between SJO and PJM. So, I thought maybe hiring cars would be the way to go.

Do you happen to know how much a one way ticket PJM to SJO is?

volcanogirl

Last time I checked Nature Air, it was about $75 per person one way. I believe Sansa was charging $95. Sometimes you can get "loco" fares that are really cheap. I've seen fares as low as fifteen dollars. It would just be such a long day of driving, that my personal preference would be to fly it. I believe there's also an Osa Shuttle so you might check on that if you want to save $.

tiffwilhelm

Gee, thanks Volcanogirl! You are very helpful!

volcanogirl

No problem, t - shillmac, tully, and hipvirgochick know a lot about the Osa. They can probably give you some good advice as well.

tully

I may be a little off but I'm guessing PJ - Arenal would run 10 hours give or take. Maybe 11 hours. You could always drive down and fly back up (to San Jose) then take a transger or Interbus to Arenal.

You'll have a car once you get to the Osa I'm assuming?

tiffwilhelm

I'm trying not to have a car once I get to the Osa. We are staying at a tree house and exploring the surroundings. I will cab into PJ or Bus once a week or so for supplies. We'll see how it goes. But it sounds like there is enough hiking, swimming and exploring to do without a car if we can help it.

Jim_Boo

That is a long drive! According to the route planner from www.yourtravelmap.com it should take around 11 hours! I wouldn' drive that in one day. You will pass many beautiful locations, if you still have time I would plan one or two stops.

volcanogirl

Nature Air lists the drive time as 8 hours, but seems like it would be longer than that to me. Flight time is less than an hour - about 50 minutes.

tiffwilhelm

This all sounds like great advice. My husband will have to get over his aversion to small airplanes!

On another note, do you all think that we should even attempt a trip up to the Arenal area with the three kids after spending a month in the bush? I feel like I'm trying (too hard?) to make this second part of the trip work.

hipvirgochick

I think if you have enough days it's well worth it to head up to Arenal as well. It's a great area with a lot to see and do. Maybe after being "in the wild" for a month you might like some of the choices they offer there. May not be your style, but I'm sure the kids would love a few nights at Los Lagos.

volcanogirl

I agree with hip - it's a neat area - the chance to see the volcano is pretty cool. On a good day, you might see lava streaming down the side or hear some good rumbles. There are also natural hot springs that the kids would enjoy. There's a great waterfall hike you can do with swimming at the bottom. I think it would be a hit!

shillmac

$1000 sounds like a lot, I know, but if you pay $400 for your transportation to the Osa from SJO, you can expect to pay a little more than that all the way back up to Arenal. That's almost $1000 right there! And it is true, you'll pass places you wish you could stop and explore for a couple of days! All that time you'll spend on the road, 20 hours or more, gee that's a lot of vacay time in the car. I'd spend the extra and book it all on domestic air, and grab an extra day of vacation in the process! I have never been too crazy about small planes (don't really care for large ones), but have learned to enjoy the adventure and relax a little bit. The flying is part of the fun!