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I'm posting here because you all know how great our area is and that means that you might be able to give me advice on a vacation location that is different enough from our area to be worth seeing. It's just me and my wife (although our daughter might meet us) and I'm hoping not to spend a fortune. I don't mind driving but I don't love driving. Driving to Atlanta is about as far as I like to drive in one day. Just want to see something different and maybe do something different. I'm thinking about the mountains in NC but I really have no idea where or what. So, any good ideas?
How about Breaks Interstate Park - VA and KY border. It is called the Grand Canyon of the South. They have a lodge, cabins, cottages, and a campground. They have hiking, biking, horseback riding, geocaching, bird watching, paddle boats, canoes, fishing, swimming, white water rafting, golf, restaurant, museum, and gift shop.
Another option is the Blue Ridge Mountains in NC or GA. My parents and brother and sister in law have gone there a few times. They rent a cabin. They said I would never make the ride because I get car sick and the winding roads up and down the mountain wouldn't please me. But they enjoy the relaxation every time the go.
Kewl! Please keep them coming...I'm going to show your ideas to my wife when she gets home tonight. That was my assignment for today...figure out what we can do and, well, that's not my 'thing'! This is a big help! Bring it on...
Here's my review that I posted on Tripadvisor. The only thing I wouldn't recommend on our trip is the white water rafting:
This is a review of our eight day trip to Costa Rica. We stayed at the Bosque Del Mar in Playa Hermosa and we did all of our tours with Vargas Tours. I would rate both the hotel and the tour company as excellent. Please check out our review on Tripadvisor and all of our pictures on Facebook.
Prior to traveling to Costa Rica I emailed Lupita, the owner of Vargas Tours. She was very prompt with emails and we spoke on the phone several times prior to our visit. We left our home in Sarasota county at around 5am in order to be at the Tampa, FL airport by 9am for our Spirit Airlines flight. We flew out of Tampa Airport and had a one hour layover in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Once we boarded the plane we had to wait on the runway for over an hour for other planes to take off. When we landed in San Jose, Costa Rica we waited another hour or so for our luggage to be unloaded from the plane. I had scheduled for Vargas Tours to pick us up and transport us to Playa Hermosa, a more than four hour drive. I was nervous that they might not wait or think we weren’t coming. Manny, one of the drivers from Vargas Tours, was waiting right where Lupita said he would be waiting. We all jumped in the van and headed off. All of us were hungry after our long flight and Manny stopped at a quaint little beach restaurant on the way to our hotel. We ate lunch and headed on to our hotel.
We reached our hotel around 5pm. The hotel is just beautiful and perfect for nature lovers. The pictures on Tripadvisor don’t convey the beauty of the place. The reception area and restaurant is all out doors and intertwined with the native trees, vines and vegetation. They used native woods and stone to build the small beachfront hotel. Lush tropical foliage was surrounding the entire hotel-beautiful setting.
Once we arrived at the hotel we decided to check out the grounds. The beach is a black sand beach and very beautiful. Both sides of the beach have high volcanic mountains. There were several stray and local dogs that would come to visit on the beach. My animal lover 12 year old was in heaven with all of the dogs. She named everyone and spent a lot of time petting and feeding them. The waves were perfect-not too big but big enough to have fun playing in.
The next morning we had the Miravalles Tour scheduled but Lupita called and said due to all the rain it might be better to do the Rincon de la Vieja Tour ( which was almost identical to the tour we had scheduled but in a different place). Vargas Tours picked us up at our hotel promptly at the scheduled time and we had Steven as our tour guide. There were two other families that went with us and on the way to the Rincon Steven told us about Costa Rica. Once we arrived at Rincon we made a bathroom stop and quickly suited up for our canopy zip line tour. That was a lot of fun and we did about 12 zips through the jungle. After that we changed into our bathing suits and did the mountain slide. Which is a man made slide that winds down the entire length of the mountain. You put an inner tube around you and slide down it. The kids had a blast and did it several times. The water was very refreshing. After lunch we changed back into dry clothes and had lunch at the onsite restaurant. The food was served buffet style and was very good-Lots of fresh fruits and veggies. While doing the zip lining and water slide the company had a photographer who would snap pictures of your family. They came out great and I purchased several of them. Due to the rain they thought it was not safe to do the scheduled horseback riding to the hot springs so we rode by tractor there. When we arrived we changed back into our suit and jumped in the hot springs. Then we all sat in the natural sauna and the most fun of all was painting ourselves with the natural mud. Then we washed off and jumped back in the warm waters of the springs. The scenery was amazing and the day was perfect. I would recommend this tour to anyone of any age.
The next day was spent hanging at the hotel and exploring. We walked as far south on the beach as possible and found hundreds of tiny hermit crabs, neat shells and pretty birds.
Day three I had scheduled to go white water rafting down the Colorado River. Manny picked us up at our hotel at the scheduled time and we headed out. On the way to water rafting he spotted monkeys in a tree and asked our driver Brandon to pull over so we could take pictures. He does a perfect monkey call and was able to get them to “talk”. He also took a stick and tapped on the trunk of the tree which caused them to run around in the branches. It was pretty neat to see.
Once at the rafting spot we check in at the office headed down to the place where we would launch. There were five of us and each person had their own guide to go in their own kayak. Manny followed us down the path and took pictures of us heading down the river. This was what I thought was going to be class I and II rapids. Which I thought would be fine for my six year old going along on the trip. I quickly learned this was not the case. About five minutes after launching we ran into some pretty big rapids and I began to get a little concerned that this would be more than what I thought we signed up for. My kids 17, 12, and 6 all seemed to be OK with it so I continued. My husband is in excellent physic shape so I wasn’t too worried for him. About 30 minutes into the trip we came to a waterfall that was around a 7’ drop. I began to panic and really wanted the whole rafting trip to end. My husband went down first, then the three kids and last I went down. When I went down I slammed into a huge rock face first and scrapped the entire side of my body. My little one fell out of the boat and thank God one of the guides was there to catch her. About half way through the rafting tour we stopped at a place to swim and jump off of a rope. While there the main guide put Rosary beads on. I knew this was not a good sign. A little farther down there was another big drop and the nose of my boat got stuck under a rock and I had to use my legs and push to get out of it. On the same drop my husband got stuck for over 10 minutes. He was in the front of the boat, both he and his guide lost their paddles and his guide jumped out of the boat and left him wedged under the rock. My husband jumped out as well a few minutes later. My middle daughter hit the same rock and flew out of the boat and began to travel downstream. One of the guides caught her as she traveled downstream. Right after this the trip was over. I could not have been happier. I would not recommend this trip to anyone and certainly not anyone with children. If you are a very experienced white water rafter you might want to give it a go. If you do decide to try it out get Furming (sp?) as a guide. He was a native and about 20 years old. My oldest daughter had him and had very few issues. The kids said they liked it but I don’t think actually realized the danger in it.
Since we couldn’t do the horseback riding the day before due to the rain Lupita suggested we do it at this location. After having lunch at the onsite restaurant we headed over to where Jimmy, the local cowboy, kept the horses. He quickly matched all of us up with the perfect horse. We rode for about an hour through the beautiful country side. The kids really enjoyed this and I was much happier with this than the rafting. I would highly recommend this to any one of any age.
Today we decided to check out the Arenal Volcano. This is Costa Rica’s most active volcano and one of the ten most active volcanoes in the world. It’s located about 3 hours from our hotel. On the way to the volcano we stopped at a little convenient store. The entire place was made out of native woods from Costa Rica. The kids picked up some ice cream and we headed on our way. As we were arriving it began to rain. When we pulled in the parking lot our guide, Steven, spotted a sloth hanging from the branches above. It just looked like a big ball of hair hanging in the branches. The each of the kids bought a necklace made of a coconut at the gift shop. We all had to don our rain ponchos because it continued to rain. We went through an enclosure that housed the butterflies and there was another that had bright colored frogs. While walking through the rainforest a large tree fell and blocked our path so we had to go another way. As we made our way down the path we came to a small shack with an Indian man selling masks and wall hangings that he and his family made. We all sat and listened to his presentation while Steven translated. I found it very interesting. I bought a little purse for Iris and Willow bought some wall art. The hike lasted maybe an hour at best. I actually thought we’d be hiking for a longer time but it worked out because my middle daughter was getting a headache and was hungry.
After the hike we headed back into town and had lunch at one of the local restaurants. On the way there I tried to take pictures of the volcano and my camera stopped working. When we reached the restaurant I asked Steven if there were any camera shops around. He located one a few blocks down and we both walked down and I bought a new camera. He translated everything for me since they only spoke Spanish and I don’t speak Spanish very well. He really went out of his way to make sure things went well and I had a camera to take pictures with-again excellent customer service with Vargas.
After lunch we headed over to the hot springs. This place was amazing. It had small little pools of natural spring water coming down from the mountains. The pools were different temperatures and they had a swim up bar. The place is on the mountain and has a great view of the volcano from all of the pools and the restaurant. We stayed at the springs for a few hours, then took showers and changed into our clean clothes we brought.
We stayed until evening and ate out on the open deck. The food was buffet style and very good. While eating we saw the volcano erupt a few times. We headed out at about 7pm and got back to the hotel at exactly 10 pm. We got stopped by the police on the way back and Steven spoke with them. Apparently they were asking where we were coming from and where we were going. He said that sometimes people sneak over the boarders and they just like to make sure everyone is legal.
I would highly recommend this tour for anyone of any age. It is very laid back but it is a long day if you have little ones. Our six year old held up fine.
We were all pretty beat from a long day and are looking forward to the Palo Verde river boat tour and Guptil pottery tour tomorrow. That is a half day tour so we should be back to spend a half day on the beach at the hotel.
This morning we ate breakfast at the hotel and headed out at around 8am. Manny was the guide for today and the Palo Verde boat tour was about an hour away. Carlos was our driver and we always make good time when he’s driving. Once we reached the boat launch we all piled out of the van and onto the boat. It held about 20 people and our captain was Felix. We started down the river and saw a small croc floating in the water. While traveling down the river we saw many species of birds that Manny pointed out. Once we reached the Palo Verde National Park we saw the white face monkeys. They were very friendly and even came about a foot from the boat. Many people were feeding the monkeys (but not on our boat). Manny said that this was not allowed and the park rangers would fine you if they see you doing it. There were probably 25 monkeys or so in the trees. One monkey even had a baby on its back. The boat trip lasted about an hour and a half, which was perfect. When we got back to the dock we ate at a little restaurant down the road from the boat company. They grow their own rice and beans, which is the staple food of Costa Rica. They also had fresh squash, chicken, and homemade ice cream. The ranchers use this road to heard cattle between the fields so we saw many cows and Brahma running by.
After lunch we started out to the Guitil Pottery village. On the way our van broke down but they had another van come along and pick us up in less than 30 minutes. The kids passed the time by playing termite toss (throwing rocks from the road at the termite mounds in the tree). The Guitil Pottery village was very interesting. When we arrived Willie gave us a demonstration of how he makes the pottery. We bought a few pieces to bring back for family and then my little one tried the pottery wheel. She absolutely loved it and didn’t want to leave. Overall the day went pretty good. Manny, one of the guides from Vargas Tours is excellent. Since he’s a native Costa Rican he knows a lot about the area, local customs, animals, etc. I would highly suggest asking for Manny on your tours if you book with Vargas.
Last night we decided to venture out to a different restaurant. When Lupita called to give us a run down of our final day I asked her where would be a good place to eat. She suggested Father Rooster over and Playa Coco. It was pouring down rain so she volunteered to drive us. The restaurant was a little bright color shack right on the beach. It was charming with saddles hangin from the ceiling, mismatched chairs and a tin roof. We sat out on the porch and ate dinner. There were raccoons running all over and even sitting in chairs right beside us. The kids thought it was pretty funny. We caught a cab back to our hotel after dinner.
The next day we headed out at 8am and Manny was our guide. We drove into town and met a guy named Gus, who was a local cowboy. We each got a horse and rode the trails and along the beach. After the ride we went across the street and ate lunch ate lunch at the Happy Snapper. Lunch was good and the kids had fun playing with a dog they named Ralph. After lunch Mario drove us to the town of Tamarindo. It’s one of the local surfing towns. It was low tide so there weren’t many surfers out. The girls and I walked around and looked in the shops. We found a fabulous store called Papaya con Leche. The two ladies in the store hand make all of the bathing suits. I bought three and Coco bought two. The designs were super cool. Iris bought a little crocheted red skirt with shells at the bottom to go with a bathing suit she was wearing. Willow bought a pair of surf shorts from Secret Spot, a surf store on the beach. We headed back after going shopping. At night we took a cab to Claudio y Glorio in Coco. The food was excellent and it was right on the beach. The service was fantastic. Once we reached our hotel our beloved Grover, Willow’s favorite stray dog was barking for us when we got out of the cab. We walked out to the beach and spent time with him since it was our last night.
Our last day there we woke up at 4:30am so we could get to the San Jose Airport in time for our noon flight home. Willow and I woke up before everyone else and tried to find Grover, our favorite dog on the beach. We couldn’t locate him. Lupita and Ricardo picked us up right on time and we headed on our 4 hour journey to the airport. On the way there we stopped at a wonderful restaurant. The weather was clear and we made good time. When we reached the airport we all said good bye to our new Costa Rican friends from Vargas Tours.
I asked each person what things they liked the best and least this is what each person said:
Me, The Hot Spings, Sauna, mud bath on the Mega Combo Tour, riding the horses on the beach and shopping in Tamarindo. Liked white water rafting the least
Iris, 6 yrs old, liked the Guitil Pottery village and the Arenal Volcano
Willow, 12 yrs old, liked the white water rafting and the dogs at the hotel
Coral, 17, liked the rafting the best.
Tony, my husband liked, horseback riding.
We would definitely use Vargas Tours again and we would stay at the Bosque Del Mar. Both worked out really well.
I'm posting here because you all know how great our area is and that means that you might be able to give me advice on a vacation location that is different enough from our area to be worth seeing. It's just me and my wife (although our daughter might meet us) and I'm hoping not to spend a fortune. I don't mind driving but I don't love driving. Driving to Atlanta is about as far as I like to drive in one day. Just want to see something different and maybe do something different. I'm thinking about the mountains in NC but I really have no idea where or what. So, any good ideas?
I I have know idea of your budget or how long you have, but would go see the rocky mountains; Colorado, Utah, Nevada. They are awesome. The scenery is significantly different than here in Florida, or in the mountains on the North East. Maybe hit the Grand Canyon, and some of the desert areas in Arizona along the way.
Actually ,I think a day drive was asked for.I don't think this person wants to go overboard just getaway someplace different.So I think more like Aheville NC.
Asheville, NC ~~ rent a cabin in the Smokey Mountains in Maggie Valley ~~ beautiful get away! Lots to do in the area, too.
Great idea and eat at Maggie's Country Kitchen! Best BBQ in the country!
I use to live in Maggie Valley and I sure miss this place.
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