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Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Guide)
 
 
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Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Guide) [Paperback]

Mara Vorhees (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)


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Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Travel Guide) Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Travel Guide) 3.2 out of 5 stars (10)
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Book Description

Country Guide October 1, 2006
Beyond the deserted beaches of the Nicoya Peninsula and the visceral heights of the Monteverde cloud forests lies the real Costa Rica – a land of delicate pathos, forthright purity and hard-won pacifism. Tromp through virgin rain forest – sighting poison-dart frogs and howler monkeys along the way – or simply explore the local lore and laid-back beach scene with this comprehensive guide.

Less Is More – expanded ecofriendly coverage and loads of volunteer and learning opportunities make traveling with a conscience easier than ever.

The Wild Side – spot your favorite rain forest dwellers – scarlet macaws, caimans and more – with our expert-written color wildlife section.

Gaps On The Map – lose yourself in the seldom-visited corners of this ecological powerhouse with informed do-it-yourself content and more than 80 maps.

Charge It! – surf the world’s longest left at Pavones, hike through rain forest in Corcovado or drop into roaring rapids with our Adventure Travel chapter.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

Best for curious and independent-minded travelers' --Wall Street Journal

From the Publisher

Who We Are
At Lonely Planet, we see our job as inspiring and enabling travellers to connect with the world for their own benefit and for the benefit of the world at large.

What We Do
* We offer travellers the world's richest travel advice, informed by the collective wisdom of over 350 Lonely Planet authors living in 37 countries and fluent in 70 languages.
* We are relentless in finding the special, the unique and the different for travellers wherever they are.
* When we update our guidebooks, we check every listing, in person, every time.
* We always offer the trusted filter for those who are curious, open minded and independent.
* We challenge our growing community of travellers; leading debate and discussion about travel and the world.
* We tell it like it is without fear or favor in service of the travellers; not clouded by any other motive.


What We Believe
We believe that travel leads to a deeper cultural understanding and compassion and therefore a better world.


Product Details

  • Paperback: 592 pages
  • Publisher: Lonely Planet; 7th edition (October 1, 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1741044634
  • ISBN-13: 978-1741044638
  • Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #555,575 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

25 Reviews
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 (9)
4 star:
 (7)
3 star:
 (4)
2 star:
 (3)
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Average Customer Review
3.7 out of 5 stars (25 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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167 of 175 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Conflicted author may depress you, July 10, 2007
This review is from: Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Guide) (Paperback)
While I agree with the conservationist spirit and general distaste for overrun tourist traps expressed throughout this guidebook by Matthew Firestone (one of the book's two authors), I found his relentlessly negative tone to be extremely off-putting. While the sections written by the other author (Mara Vorhees) are more neutral, informative and generally reflect the high quality I've come to expect from the Lonely Planet series of guidebooks, Matthew Firestone's sections have fully succeeded in dampening my enthusiasm for a trip to Costa Rica before the trip has even begun.

While it may be that the beach at Playa Tamarindo "is full of blubbery North American and European holidaymakers who spend most of their time frying in the sun like beached whales" turning their complexion "from a pasty white to a rosy shade of skin cancer," and while that description does indeed sound like a scene I would rather avoid, I find the author's consistent haughty tone and overriding negativity to be out of place and offensive in a book that is intended for - after all - tourists.

I am still planning what I fully expect to be an exciting and fun vacation in Costa Rica, but now I have to do so in spite of the author of this book's overbearing negativity. It's true, I'm sure, that Costa Rica was once better to visit than it is today, but this book is not for people who knew and loved the country years ago. It's intended for people who have never been there before, and since Mr. Firestone couldn't put aside his sour gripes and focus on what's great about the place rather than bemoaning what's been lost, his words and advice won't be making the trip with me.

This book has been my first disappointment in the Lonely Planet series.
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56 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The only one you'll need, January 4, 2007
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This review is from: Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Guide) (Paperback)
As usual I bought a few guide books and took them all with me. I had the National Geographic, the Tico Times book (Exploring Costa Rica) and the Lonely Planet. Lonely Planet was the bible. All the rest were fluff. As my trip progressed I put the others in the glove compartment and eventually deep in my luggage. The only time I needed anything else was consulting the map (I had a waterproof detailed Costa Rica map which I also recommend) and once when a phone number was misprinted.

As for the preachy tone, yes, I agree, there was a huge element in the book. A lot of it I tended to agree with (I personally think zip line tours are a terrible idea and would make more sense over Manhattan skyscrapers than in one of the world's most precious cloud forests and I also agree that Tamarindo is a hole) so it didn't bother me as much as some of the other reviewers. I wouldn't lower my score by more than half a star for that so they still got 5 stars.
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42 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Find a new author Lonely Planet, January 16, 2008
This review is from: Lonely Planet Costa Rica (Country Guide) (Paperback)
If you want to enjoy traveling to Costa Rica I would recommend another book. If you want to spend your time lamenting about how Costa Rica has changed, how Americans are annoying, and be afraid to take your valuables out of your hotel safe than I recommend you check this book out. I would often read passages out loud to different people I was traveling with. You would think that Jaco is similar to Jersey but with more crack and lots of prostitutes from reading this book. In fact, when I went it was mostly families, a little sketch, but man get a grip. I read the chapter on San Jose and was to afraid to take my camera to the central market and downtown. What a regret! The people everywhere in Costa Rica were so nice. Downtown was crawling with tourists with their cameras and police. It wasn't even remotely sketchy. We could only get reservations in Tamarindo for Christmas day and I was terrified that it was going to be like Myrtle Beach on Spring Break. Yes there were lots of condos but it was still Costa Rica! Dirt Roads. you could walk from one end of town to the other in less then 10 minutes, everyone was nice, the beach was pretty. I just couldn't understand why the authors seemed to hate travel so much and be so hateful towards places where we were going.

Also, the book didn't give a lot of key information about how to get around without a car. We wasted so much time in La Fortuna trying to figure out how to get to the different places we wanted to go. It turns out there isn't a bus, there are only guided tours. They are all expensive. We finally hitchhiked which worked out well but I never go to go on the hanging bridges. I loved Cahuita (it wasn't dangerous) and Dominical. I loved Costa Rica. I am ready to go back.

I just wanted to warn people to stay away from this book. I love guidebooks. I am the kind of psycho that gets them from the library and reads through them even when I am not going anywhere. This one was the worst.
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
accommodation online, mountaintop hostel, private hot showers, most established hotel, private bathroom with hot water, private cold showers, canopy tour, hardwood cabins, hardwood rooms, daily yoga classes, private trails, parque central, incl breakfast, volcano views, southeastern peninsula, pricier rooms, central peninsula, central pacific coast, granite spheres, steps from the beach, birding walks, midrange option, garden showers, surrounding rain forest, signed turnoff
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
San José, Puerto Viejo, Santa Elena, Manuel Antonio, San Jose, San Isidro, Parque Central, Puerto Jiménez, Golfo Dulce, San Pedro, Central America, San Miguel, San Carlos, Bahía Drake, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, Los Chiles, Central Valley, Caño Negro, Calle Central, Playa Hermosa, Los Yoses, Playa del Coco, San Rafael, Banco Nacional
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