Skip the Potholes – Monteverde/Montezuma, Costa Rica

A few years ago, when a Costa Rican presidential candidate made reference to his past success at halving the number of potholes in the country (in itself an indication of how much of an issue the road conditions are), the opposition retorted: “of course there are half as many potholes—every two small ones grew into one big one.”Alternative transport in Costa Rica makes even more sense once you’ve had some experience of the roads. If you can take a shortcut, do it.

Here are two great shortcuts between popular spots:

Arenal to Monteverde
The roads to the area around the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve are notorious for being some of the worst in the country. Many travellers combine it with a visit to the area around La Fortuna, at the base of Arenal Volcano. With a pesky active volcano and massive forest reserve in the way, the options for getting between the two are all pretty dire and involve lost teeth and sore bums. An excellent way to avoid the bumpy 3 ½ hour drive is to go by horseback. The views are excellent, it’s more adventurous than a bus and the only pollution comes from the back end of your horse. Plus, it’s eminently Costa Rican—this is cowboy country, don’t ya know. [See caveat re. route below.]
Montezuma to Jacó and beyond
At the tip of the Nicoya peninsula on the northwest coast is the ex-hippie hangout of Montezuma (nickname Montefuma; fumar = to smoke), a groovy little beach hangout that still has a love-in feel to it. Problem is, if you want to go anywhere south along the coast, you need to take a road northeast…to a ferry…then get to the bus station…to a bus that finally heads south along the Interamerican highway.

Look and a map and it’s obvious: the most sensible route is a straight line—by boat. Speedboats from Montezuma turn what could be a 4-5 hour slog to Jacó into a 1-hour tanning session. Bonus: you may get dolphins joining you for the ride.

There are a few outfits that do the Arenal to Monteverde ride but beware: there have been stories of dangerous routes along steep mountain paths, inferior equipment and horses that are less than…umm, fit.

Particularly if you are a novice rider, consider the lakeside route used by Desafio Adventure Co. which starts with a boat trip across Lake Arenal, and then takes an easy and scenic route that won’t have you fearing for your life. [Note that the ride doesn’t go all the way to Monteverde—at the end there is a pickup and you drive the rest of the way. Trust me, it’s worth it.] www.desafiocostarica.com

Both Zuma Tours and Cocozuma both run a couple of boats a day between Montezuma and Jacó (technically Herradura beach, just north of Jacó) for about $30/person one-way. Both have offices on Montezuma’s main street, on either side of El Sano Banana hotel and restaurant.