Packing for your Costa Rica Trip

There's nothing worse than going to the beach and realizing you don't have a towel to take.  You might think of grabbing one from the hotel but we have a much better solution - an Aquis Adventure Microfiber Towel, Blueberry, Extra Large (29 x 55-Inches). At about $24, this towel is perfect for beaching it in Costa Rica.  It's a generous size, dries quickly and is lightweight for packing.

 

Next up is an item that's more of necessity than not, a Waterproof Travel Map of Costa Rica.  It's so much easier to have a handy dandy map than trying to find a store to buy one from.  And for only $12, it's an essential item for your Costa Rica adventure trip and the 'waterproof' part is just a bit of added protection that's especially helpful if you're headed into the humid Costa Rica rainforest.

We truly wouldn't recommend visiting Costa Rica without having a great guidebook, so here's a couple of our favorites.  Frommer's Costa Rica 2012 (complete with a fold-out map) and Fodor's Costa Rica 2012 (with full-color photos) - both retail for about $14 each.

         

If you're going to be surfing in Costa Rica, you may also want to consider picking up a pair of ergonomic ear plugs like Barracuda Ear Plugs.  They retail for only $5 and it's not worth risking getting swimmers ear from constantly hitting the waves.

And again, depending on where your Costa Rica adventure will be taking you, it's a good idea to purchase some good insect repellant, we like $8 Repel Lemon Eucalyptus Natural Insect Repellent, and some Tender After Bite The Itch Eraser - only $10 for a 4-pack, just in case.  They're definitely worth picking up before you go ;)

Here's a great tip - before leaving for Costa Rica, load your Garmin Portable GPS Navigator (from $96 with lifetime traffic & map updates) with GPS Travel Maps and take it on your trip - your GPS will be worth it's weight in gold when it comes to navigating the local Costa Rican roads - don't get a rental car without one!  It's so much cheaper to bring your own GPS from home. 

       

While cell phones can take some great pictures (and unless you change your SIM card at the airport to ICE, you won't be able to use your phone for anything other than a camera or for WI-FI access), a pocket sized digital camera is the way to go.  We love our little red Nikon COOLPIX L26 (16.1 MP, 5x Zoom, NIKKOR Glass Lens, 3-inch LCD) it takes awesome photos and fits just about anywhere and cost us only $86.  Another option is the 

Canon PowerShot A1300 (16.0 MP, Digital Image Stabilized Zoom, 28mm Wide-Angle Lens, 720p HD Video Recording) for just $84.99.

     

For more information, visit our complete Packing List for Costa Rica.

Pura vida,

Ed & Connie