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Frommer's Costa Rica 2010 (Frommer's Color Complete Guides) |  | Author: Eliot Greenspan
Publisher: Frommers
Category: Book
List Price: $21.99
Buy New: $12.20
as of 9/8/2010 13:41 CDT details
You Save: $9.79 (45%)
New (24) Used (8) from $12.00
Seller: indoobestsellers
Rating:  28 reviews
Media: Paperback
Edition: Pap/Map
Pages: 528
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.1 x 1.1
ISBN: 0470482176
Dewey Decimal Number: 917.286045
EAN: 9780470482179
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| • | ISBN13: 9780470482179 | | • | Condition: New | | • | Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed |
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Amazon.com Review
Discover The Best of Coasta Rica
Content from Frommer's Costa Rica 2010 First coming to the attention of international travelers in the mid-1990s, Costa Rica is currently—and consistently— one of the hottest vacation and adventure-travel destinations in Latin America, with over two million visitors each year. Despite the boom in vacationers, Costa Rica remains a place rich in natural wonders and biodiversity, where you can still find yourself far from the maddening crowds. The country boasts a wealth of unsullied beaches that stretch for miles, small lodgings that haven’t attracted hordes of tourists, jungle rivers for rafting and kayaking, and spectacular cloud- and rainforests with ample opportunities for bird-watching and hiking. In addition to the country’s trademark eco- and adventure-tourism offerings, you will also find luxury resorts and golf courses, plush spas, and some truly spectacular boutique hotels and lodges. Having lived in Costa Rica for more than 18 years, I continue to explore and discover new spots, adventures, restaurants, and lodgings—and my “best of” experiences keep on coming. In this chapter I’ve selected the very best of what this unique country has to offer. These places and experiences are covered in greater detail elsewhere in the book; this chapter is merely meant to give you an overview of the highlights so that you can start planning your own adventure.
Costa Rica's Top Destinations by Category
The Best of Natural Costa Rica | 
The Best Beaches | 
The Best Adventures | 
The Best Bird Watching | 
The Best Luxury Hotels and Resorts | 
The Best After-Dark Fun |
Product Description
NEW FULL-COLOR GUIDE!
Completely updated every year, Frommer's Costa Rica features gorgeous color photos of the lush rain forest, the amazing array of wildlife, and the spectacular beaches that await you. Personally researched by a longtime resident, it's the only truly up-to-date guide that gives you such in-depth coverage of this fast-changing country, with recommended accommodations in every price category. You'll visit rugged wilderness preserves and sleepy beach towns, spectacular orchid gardens and mineral hot springs at the foot of a steaming volcano. There are adventures here to suit all ages and abilities: swooping from treetop platform to treetop platform on a canopy tour, taking a dip in a jungle swimming hole, spotting playful spider monkeys as you hike through lush foliage, windsurfing on Lake Arenal, or watching endangered sea turtles nest on the beach. With Frommer's in hand, you'll experience the wonder of Costa Rica's amazing biodiversity, as we point out the best places to see hundreds of unique, colorful species of animals and plants. You'll even get a color fold-out map!
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 28
 Well written guide by an Expat living in Costa Rica January 21, 2010
K. Salinger (Bay Area, California)
18 out of 18 found this review helpful
Costa Rica is one of my very favorite destinations and I likely own just about every flavor of review book on the area. While my husband has always been a big fan of the Frommers series I've always had others that I felt were more current and offered the information I value most when traveling. However I have been very impressed with the 2010 edition of the Frommers for Costa Rica and can honestly say that at present it is my favorite guide book for this area.
Typically I've been the type to gravitate more towards the Moon books which offers more of the "off the beaten path" type information on things to do, see, places to stay and where to eat. They tended to present a more local flavor and not focus so heavily on the more touristy spots. The one drawback to the Moon series is that it can occasionally get rambly and doesn't seem to update it's information as frequently as it should.
This latest edition of the frommers offers the same point of view that I've always sought in the Moon books, yet it is very current. I compared the commentary in the book with my own experiences when traveling in the area and found that I agreed with most everything the author wrote as far as destinations, great places to eat, nice places to stay, best places to visit, etc. Granted, I've never lived in Costa Rica and I've not been to every area of interest in the Country, but on the areas I know well the author is right on.
We are heading to Costa Rica again in a couple of weeks and are taking in a few new destinations and sights, so I will then see if my experiences and the commentary in the guide continue to align. (Update post-trip below...)
All-in-all, whether going to Costa Rica for the first time or on a return visit I feel this guide is a great resource. The information is current, seems very unbiased, and offers a great selection of places to stay and things to do if you're seeking ideas for your trip.
UPDATE: We returned from our trip a few days ago and I can say my initial impressions of this guide book were right on. This is indeed a great guide for both new and return visitors. The information provided was very accurate. Those activities, hotels and restaurants both recommended and not recommended were in-line with our own impressions, making the guide a great resource for both pretrip planning and in-country last minute plans as well. This is a great Costa Rica guide and I highly recommend it.
Varied perspectives makes this book fun December 30, 2009
FlyingPolarBear (Fullerton, CA USA)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I opened the page to a sidebox: "No trip to Costa Rica would be complete without at least one monkey sighting." Then on the it describes the capuchin monkey, howler monkey, the elusive spider monkey, and the rare endangered squirrel monkey. Flipping to the beginning of the book, I land on "The best views" starting with The Summit of Irazu Volcano. In the same chapter you will find the best adventures and the best moderately priced hotels. The topic takes a serious feel in the section Common Ailments: Tropical Illnesses with discussion of dengue fever and dietary red flags. But the photo of the dolphin quickly takes the attention away toward the beautiful. The book is filled with useful tips that only the experienced traveler would know: "Because Drake Bay is so remote, I recommend that you have a room reservation and transportation arrangements before you arrive." It goes on to say that a flashlight and rain gear are absoultely essential in Drake Bay. While some other travel books are just compiled reference on touristy sights and lodging, this Frommers Guide frames this information around highly refined tips & tricks. Page 505 shows a little drawing of a Sally Lightfoot Crab. I have some of these in my marine reef aquarium. I look forward to seeing these critters in their natural habitat. This Frommers Guide is a must-have in your Costa Rica bound luggage. That is, if you can find your destination: "Although there are often street addresses and building numbers for locations in downtown San Jose, they are almost never used.."
Very Informative - Loved It! December 30, 2009
Eclectic Booklover (US)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
We are considering a vacation to Costa Rica sometime in 2010. Since it would be our first trip to this country, I thought this travel guide might be a perfect way to learn more about the country and its culture, it's history, the beaches, hotels etc.
The book is divided into sections:
* The Best of Costa Rica (beaches, hotels, ecolodges and wilderness resorts, B&Bs, best family resorts, places for adventure,nature, and more.
* Costa Rica in Depth: The history of the country past and present, culture, architecture and eating and drinking
* Trip Planning: when to go, calendar of events,getting there and around once you are there, wedding planning, health and safety accommodations , suggested itineraries etc.
* Separate sections about San Jose, Guanacaste (The Gold Coast), Puntarenas and the Nicoya Peninsula, The Northern Zone: Mountain Lakes, Cloud Forest and a volcano.
* Central Pacific Coast (Where the Mountain Meets the Sea, The Southern Zone The Caribbean Coast
* Fast facts guide; Spanish terms and phrases and Costa Rican wildlife info.
Also included is a foldout map plus detailed maps throughout the book, hundreds of color photos, reviews of hotels and restaurants, shopping and nightlife, as well as trip planning ideas for once you are there. The only thing that I was a bit disappointed in was not the book itself, but that many of the featured hotels only had one or two star ratings, even most of the very expensive resort hotels were only 3 stars, so we really need to do a bit more research and talk with people who have traveled here before. RECOMMENDED
Convenient, comprehensive, handsome and intuitive. January 5, 2010
Greg (Brooklyn Park, Mongolia)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I used an earlier version of this Frommer's guide to Costa Rica when I visited there a few years ago, and found it to be the most useful of the three guides I used to plan my trip. When I received the 2010 edition I did a quick comparison between it and the earlier edition to see what might be added or subtracted from my itinerary if I were to plan the same trip today using the newer guide. I find that for our particular trip, not much would have changed, but the updates to a few newer attractions, to pricing, and so forth were welcome.
To my mind the most useful and outstanding feature of Frommer's Costa Rica guide is the advice on how best to spend one week (if that is all the time you have) in the country. The recommendations are very good, from the San Jose arrival and departure to how to make a big triangle of travel within the center of the country that enables you to see key sights and experience some culture as well as environmental diversity (that includes the coast and the rainforest).
Costa Rica is a wonderful experience, and certainly was one of the most important trips I've ever taken, but a guide is essential to getting the most out of it. Planning and preparedness are seldom more important than they are when visiting a country with crime and corruption issues and most importantly, incredibly bad roads. Frommer's goes some distance to underscore just how awful the roads are, but it can't be underscored enough. Plan for your travel to be inconvenienced by wash-outs, monstrous potholes, unbelievable traffic patterns, and the like. The pull-out map that comes included with the Frommer's Costa Rica 2010 guide will be invaluable to you as you plan your travel routes, and most especially, when you plan alternate routes if your initial plans prove unworkable.
One bonus with Frommer's guides is the exquisite color photography with which the books are amply illustrated. While the photos used tend to draw on the best and prettiest a location has to offer (I didn't see any pictures of the razor wire used to protect shops and nicer residences in downtown San Jose, for example), when you're trip is over, the book acts as keepsake of your adventure, reminding you (as this one did me) of your journey. Every few pages there is the equivalent of a postcard, and that's not only handy in helping you decide where you want to go, it turns out those images make a wonderful souvenir of where you've been, as well.
A good value, and I would say a practically essential purchase if you're serious about a trip to the truly magical Costa Rica.
Ah, Costa Rica, Some Day I'm Going and I'm Taking Frommer's Along January 8, 2010
Maggie Mae (Memphis, Tennessee)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
San Jose, Guanacaste, Puntarenas and so very much more, it's all Costa Rica and it all reeks of adventure. I've never been, but someday I'm going. I used to travel a lot, but for the last few years I've been stuck in one place, however I'm still a traveller at heart, albiet an armchair one and if you're going to travel in your heart from your chair, you can't go wrong with Frommer's. Don't get me wrong, Frommer's are an excellent choice to take with you when you really go. I know, I have, but they are also great to have around the home when you want to dream a little, much better, for me anyway, then wishing from a catalog.
This book starts out giving you the best of Costa Rica, briefly mentioning beaches, resorts, hotels, places where you can see nature and just sort of have your own little adventure. Then it goes into Costa Rica in depth. Frommer's gives you separate sections on Guanacaste (the Gold Coast), San Jose, The Northern Zones mountains and lakes and more. You'll really learn about the country, plus you'll learn a tiny bit of Spanish, not really enough to get you by (I have traveled in Spanish speaking countries and believe me, if you learn a bit of their language, the people will go out of their way to help you).
This book is great armchair reading and it'll put you right into Costa Rick in your mind, so that when you really go, you'll be better prepared. Some people, especially older people, take tour busses. My suggestion, take Frommer's instead, get out among the people, meet them and have an experience you'll never forget.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 28
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