When I did itJune
My own footage
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Waymarked — Horizons · Central and Pacific regions
Costa Rica
For travelers who'd rather sleep under a volcano in a rooftop tent than by a resort pool — Costa Rica done properly, and far cheaper than the brochure price, once you know which parts to skip.
15–18 days€380
Read the route ↓A 4x4 with a rooftop tent is one way to do this route — an option, not a requirement, and no more expensive than the usual rental-plus-hotel setup. It just buys you the flexibility to stop wherever the road looks interesting. A camping spot on a hillside above Arenal, a volcano filling the view, then blue-water rivers to swim in, and fast-flowing thermal streams running free beside the very resorts paying for that same water.
Off the main road at whatever intersection looks promising, into villages most visitors never pass through — small local restaurants serving some of the best food in the country to nobody but locals. Then dirt coastal roads on the Nicoya Peninsula, to beaches development hasn't reached yet, empty except for the odd rip current worth respecting.
Skip the surf town everyone stops at, and the national park everyone visits, for a wilder one a — where a crocodile taking a pelican isn't a show for tourists, just what happens here. A beach hike into an isolated bay, then a boat out to a nearby island for some of the richest diving in the country.
On the way back, into the mountains for coffee — not a group tour, just the family that's farmed this land for generations, walking you through the whole process before sending you off with the best cup of the trip. Costa Rica has a reputation for being expensive, and it can be — but going off-season, cooking more than you eat out, and paying only for what's genuinely worth it keeps this route far closer to a shoestring trip than the brochure price suggests.
Want more time on the coast, or an extra day at the volcano? Tell me and we'll build it in.
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At a glance
The facts before you fall for it
- Length
- 15–18 days
- Typical budget from
- €1,500–2,000 per person
- From budget hostels to boutique stays — same plan, your call.
- Best time
- Dec–Apr, or cheaper off-season
- Effort
- Easy–moderate — driving, short hikes
- Best for
- Road-trippers and campers
- Not for
- Resort-and-pool holidaymakers
Shorter on time? I'll trim the route to fit your days — deciding what to cut is part of the planning.
On the ground, excluding international flights. One plan covers up to four of you — backpacker or luxury, it follows your budget, not mine.
Why this route, from me
I've done it end to end. Here's what that buys you.
When I did itMost visitors stop at the same surf town and the busiest national park, at resort prices.
This oneA 4x4 road trip to empty beaches, a wilder park and a family coffee farm — far below brochure price.
- 1Rental-car insurance that isn't optional, whatever the booking site says
- 2Roads that need a 4x4, and river crossings that depend on the season
- 3Park entries that sell out and have to be booked online in advance
All of it is solved in your plan.
What's included
The parts most travel planners leave out
What any good planner gives you
You get all of this from me too, done properly. It's just not the reason to hire me.
- A planning call before anything is written
- A day-by-day route shaped on that call
- Where to stay, stop by stop
- A printable packing list
And then the part that's mine
Most plans stop at the list on the left. Mine keeps going — this is where a trip actually holds together.
How to get between every stop — which bus, ferry, train or transfer, how often it runs, and what to do when it doesn't.
Flight routing — which airports to use, and the multi-city combinations that save you a day of backtracking.
Entry requirements, checked at the source — visa rules, permits and border notes, plus the official application site, so you don't pay a lookalike site three times the fee.
Two or three side-quests, and my own notes — alternatives you can swap in, plus what I'd skip and what I'd do differently next time.
Good to know
I don't book, so nobody pays to be in your plan.
No commissions, no sponsored stays, no “partner” hotels. Every recommendation is there because it's right for your trip, not because it pays me. You make the bookings yourself, in your own name — and the plan tells you exactly what to book, in what order, and how far ahead.
Maximum four travelers per booking
How it works
The full process →01
Buy & a 10-min form.
Dates, group, and the logistics that shape it.
02
Intake call.
Where we both check it's a fit — if it isn't, you get a full refund.
03
Draft in 3–5 days.
Business days, for Horizons.
04
Revision call → final PDF.
We go through it together, then you get the finished plan.
Want this one, adapted to you?