Costa Rica Itinerary: Day 14-15 Samara to Monteverde

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Last Updated on September 4, 2024 by Carolyn

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Samara Beach

On the morning of our 14th day in Costa Rica, we decided we’d head from Samara to Monteverde but not before having a stroll along the black sands of the Samara beach.

After an enjoyable breakfast outside on the patio at the hotel with the resident iguana scoping out our food we walked to Samara Beach. The beach was just a short walk from our hotel and we enjoyed dipping our toes in the warm ocean water, walking in the black sand at the ocean edge, and enjoying the beautiful morning.  We had the beach to ourselves.

I didn’t know then but Samara Beach is known for “wild horses” that wander loose on the beach. We didn’t see any that day but I think it would be pretty cool to share the beach with some “wild horses”.

Drive from Samara to Monteverde

After our walk, we packed up our belongings, set our GPS for Samara to Monteverde, and headed on our way. The drive from Samara to Monteverde should take just under 3 hours without stops.

Our drive would take us through Nicoya, back across the Amistad Bridge at the end of the Nicoya Bay and then we’d head North to Monteverde.

We were a bit disappointed that we hadn’t been able to make contact with a realtor that had a couple of interesting listings on the Nicoya Peninsula but we’d left messages and emailed so there was no more we could do.

When we crossed the Amistad bridge I checked my email and there was a message from the realtor apologizing that he was out of town and had just checked his messages. He said if we were OK with looking at the property by ourselves he’d go ahead and send us directions.

Dilemma: Turn Around or Go On

Now we had a dilemma: We were already about a third of the way from Samara to Monteverde whilst the property we were looking at was back in Tambor, not far from Montezuma. Should we turn around or write this one off and head for Monteverde?

Since we were quite enamored with Montezuma and the area, we opted to turn around. We hadn’t been able to look at any properties while we were in Montezuma so now that the opportunity was presenting itself we were game!

From where we were at the top of the bay it would be about 2 hours backtracking along rough dirt roads but it was only about noon so we had time to turn around and see the property (and perhaps another of interest) before dark. And then in the morning, we’d head to Monteverde.

The property we were heading for sounded beautiful but remote:

“King of the Mountain’ Sweeping Ocean Views on 33 Acres Above Hotel Playa Tambor and Los Delfines Country Club” read the listing but the fine print revealed that access to the property is via an easement road with the property at the very end of the road where the road is least maintained.

Yet Some More Adventurous Driving

We found the easement road and the turn-off to the property, via a rusted gate into a muddy cow pasture. After holding our breath as we crossed the slick pasture hoping we wouldn’t get stuck, we eased our way onto the path recently established by a backhoe, dodging holes who knows how deep and climbing over mounds of dirt pushed aside by the backhoe.

Up, down, and around bends we went, across small creeks and through thick jungle. At the mile-in point, I began to get worried about turning around: The road was getting worse by the minute, and seriously did we even want to consider a property this remote?

We decided this would be more than we wanted to take on. Just making the property accessible would cost a small fortune. Wally managed to get the car turned around, it was tight but with some jiggy jogging, he got it done.

We headed to Montezuma and on the way in stopped to look at another property that we’d seen listed, a little hotel that was priced reasonably. We planned on just viewing the property but fabric cloth on the fence prevented much viewing. We walked around the side and found a gap in the fence, we looked at each other “Should we go in?”. Probably against our better judgment, we did!

We walked into a garden with 4 rustic cabinas.  We shouted “Hola” and someone came out. We explained why we were there and she showed us around. It was cute enough but not what we were looking for.

Back To Montezuma We Go!

We headed back to Kassandra’s House and were happy that there was room available for us to stay another night.   We were treated to a quite beautiful electric storm over the ocean which we watched from the safety of the home’s balcony. We told Lucy why we were back and she said she knew someone with property for sale and that she’d make arrangements to take us there in the morning.

A side note: Everyone in Costa Rica has a friend with property for sale! Since there is no official MLS, everyone hopes to make a referral and get a piece of the pie.

The next morning we followed Lucy who was riding with her friend on a motorcycle, out to the lot. It was in an area called “Las Delicias”. We drove up and down some pretty steep grades (and this is coming from a Colorado resident!) and across a very sketchy bridge.  We got to the lot and tried to follow them into the grassy driveway but our slick tires said no despite the 4-wheel drive.

The lot was about 22,000 m2 (about 5.5 acres) and had been nicely developed. There was an assortment of fruit trees already planted and fruiting and at the high point on the property it looked like one would get a second-story ocean view.  There was a creek and forested area on the property and it fronted to a public road. There were no utilities which was a big drawback. It was a nice piece of property but priced more than we wanted to pay for raw land, especially without utilities but well worth considering.

Montezuma Falls Hike

We left the property and went back to Montezuma. I decided since we didn’t have time the first time through Montezuma that we should hike up to the Montezuma Falls before leaving Montezuma this time. After all we needed to have some fun on this trip!

We did the hike and it was quite the experience. Most of the time the trail was fairly easy, we just had to be careful not to slip on the muddy footing. Then we came to a rock ledge where you had to shimmy across hanging on to a rope as there were no footholds!  I saw others do it so ventured forth, and it really wasn’t that difficult. We stopped at the first falls as that was where the trail we were on ended. I swam in the swimming hole but didn’t swim under the falls like some of the braver swimmers were doing.

The Montezuma Falls is actually a set of 3 waterfalls but we didn’t venture further as we weren’t sure of how it was accessed. It turns out the trail continued forth on the other side of the river to the next 2 levels but involved a whole lot of stairs.

We made our way back down the trail and at the bottom treated ourselves to a fresh chilled coconut to drink.  And then we headed to Monteverde as we wanted to be there before dark and it would be a minimum of 4-5 hour drive since Montezuma to Monteverde involved a whole lot more driving on dirt roads than if we’d driven straight from Samara to Monteverde.

The Drive from Montezuma to Monteverde

We encountered some quite slow traffic along the Costanera Highway before we turned off it to head to Monteverde. The Costanera carries a lot of truck traffic and it’s only as fast as the slowest vehicle is going at that particular time. The drive from the Costanera to Monteverde was pretty but the road was very twisty and quite rough (it was mostly a dirt road).

The scenery as we approached Monteverde was stupendous when the clouds that were swirling around us let us sneak some views.  We caught glimpses of Nicoya Bay, and the rolling green mountainsides reminded us of what we’d expect to see in New Zealand. 

A Lovely Airbnb Hotel

We were pushing it for time to arrive before dark and as we drove into St. Elena’s dusk was settling in.  I was busy trying to find us a room for the night but was overwhelmed by the number of listings I found on Airbnb. I finally chose one that was highly rated and very affordable and booked it, Hotel Claro de Luna.

We initially drove by the turn-off for Hotel Claro de Luna as the small road it was on branched off at an odd angle, and visibility was limited what with being in the clouds and darkness settling in.  We turned around and were able to quickly find the road and arrived at our destination. We stumbled through check-in as the hostess wasn’t really expecting us since we’d made a last-minute booking. 

We were astonished at the room and the grounds. For the grand sum of $30.00, we’d landed ourselves in a gorgeous hotel with beautiful gardens and a very impressive room. (Note this was a seriously discounted last-minute rate in the off-season).

The room had 2 double canopy beds, a fridge, a huge bathroom with hot water, and a porch with a rocking chair where one could sit and view the beautiful gardens.

We were quite hungry so we asked the receptionist for a restaurant recommendation, Restaurante Parrillero was within walking distance so we gave it a try. We hurriedly walked to the restaurant as a cold drizzle had settled in. One of the restaurant’s specialties is wood-fired pizza so we had that and it was quite good.

On the whole drive to Monteverde and throughout dinner, Wally had been mulling over the last property we had viewed in Montezuma. It checked most of the boxes and he decided he’d throw out a lowball offer. The lack of utilities was a big shortcoming but if the price was low enough he felt that we could work with that. So he sent an offer via WhatsApp and anxiously waited for a reply.

What a long day! Our drive from Samara to Monteverde had ended up being a 2 day trip! We crawled between the fresh sheets on the very comfortable bed and I for one slept soundly while Wally on the other hand wondered all night – had he made a mistake throwing out an offer?

Join us on the Rest of our Costa Rica Journey

If you’re jumping in at this post and want to read more about our Costa Rica Journey, seeking a place in Costa Rica to hang our hat, here’s the first post on the journey: 17 Day Costa Rica Itinerary . Did you miss the previous day’s post? You’ll find it here: Montezuma to Samara (it features a video of an epic drive)

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