Transfer to La Fortuna, Arenal National Park
Our transfer to La Fortuna was a bit longer than expected. The minibus had to make several stops before arriving at our hotel ‘Tabacon Grand Spa Thermal Resort’, close to the Arenal National Park. The driver had to drop off a couple at a spot where he had never been before. Result, we ended up in the wrong place. However, that was not our biggest problem :-). During the ride we also had to endure a 2.5 hours continuous conversation between 2 ladies. I normally do not mind that people talk, but 2.5 hours without a break? It was more than I could take :-).
As tired as I was from the trip, as happy I was when we arrived at the hotel. Tabacon Grand Spa Thermal Resort was the perfect place to relax ! I had already been there as a day tourist in 2009 and I had always hoped to return one day. That day had now come and we were not disappointed. The rooms were beautiful but the best part of the hotel was the proximity to the hot springs. The hotel guests were able to visit the pools during their stay as well as the Shangri-La Gardens, located at the top of the Tabacon springs, which were adult & guest only.
We changed our clothing and we started the discovery of the different pools with highly mineralised water. Each of them had a different temperature. The pebbles in the water were not so comfortable but luckily we had brought our water sandals with us! I have to say that a visit to the hot springs when it is dark is quite special. All paths were lit and the atmosphere was cosy. Of course it was not the best moment to look for wildlife but for that we would have time the next day.
Visit of the Arenal Hanging Bridges
After an early breakfast, we had reserved a trip to the suspension bridges and in the afternoon we were going participate to a guided walk in the Arenal National Park.
It was a very intense day with fantastic weather! Unfortunately we did not see many animals but the visit was interesting enough because of the explanation given by the guide. We said afterwards that it was an activity that we could have done better on our own because in the group there was too much noise and this scares off the wildlife.
The moving bridges went smoothly and I didn’t really suffer from my fear of heights …
Around noon we returned to the hotel. We decided to go straight to the hot springs area and have lunch in the Shangri-La garden area. Koen enjoyed the hot water while I went on a little safari to spot as much wildlife as possible. And l was so lucky ! There were many iguanas and lizards in the rainforest garden.
After I had taken enough pictures, we went up to the Shangri-La gardens for a light lunch. The latter appeared a bit bigger than expected because the daily special came with soup and dessert.
From this place we could see the Arenal volcano without clouds. A clear sky was not very frequent the last days, so we were very fortunate.
Visit of the Arenal National Park
At 3 pm a walk in the Arenal National Park was scheduled. It was quite a climb to get to a point where we were able to admire the volcano. To get there, we had to walk through secondary rainforest (new rainforest), long grasses and then lava rocks. We saw more animals, including 2 very poisonous snakes.
The walk, that took 2.5 hours, was great. Highly recommended! But again, it was something that we could have easily done on our own. However, I doubt that we then would have spotted the snakes :-).
The walk was a round trip so getting lost was not an option. We were happy that we had put on our walking shoes since some parts of the walk needed that. Also, one should not forget to take enough water because the activity was hot and sweaty from start to finish.
The next morning we packed our bags and then we went for breakfast. For the remaining time, until our transport to Monteverde arrived, we went back to the Shangri-La gardens. We enjoyed our last moments in the hot springs and had a light lunch before leaving.
Very pleased with our two days in La Fortuna, we left for the next leg of our trip : Monteverde.
