Ask.CostaRica

Finally weddings at Paradisus Playa Conchal are allowed again. Conchal has finally settled this matter with the municipality. We wanted to make sure that all those brides that were worried about this situation and were planning their wedding at Paradisus can finally relax.

kmkucera, Welcome. Occidental is a great location for a wedding. If I get your drift correctly, you want to have your wedding overlooking the ocean view? We have done several weddings at OCC and most wedding are down by the beach. Cliffside would not really have a view down towards the ocean. What I will suggest is, check the tides very well. If you have a high tide you will not be able to have your wedding on the sand. At high tide there is maybe 10 feet of sand (feet wet for sure). Occidental: (notice very low tide) jennifer & donald occidental gran papagayo, playas del coco guanacaste, costa rica 2009 For cliffside locations look into: Tangomar: sarah & henry tangomar hotel, nicoya costa rica 2010 Villa Caletas Zephyr Palace: jordan & adam zephyr palace, villa caletas herradura, costa rica 2010 Villa Caletas Amphitheatre: valerie & chris los altos, manuel antonio quepos, costa rica 2010 This place could probably work, Los Altos: valerie & chris los altos, manuel antonio quepos, costa rica 2010

Legal docs have to be presented to the US/Canadian embassies translated into English. most of the lawyers we know in the destination wedding biz do this as a standard. Make sure this si done to avoid future problems. Lawyers that do not translate may be new in the DW biz.

I would like for you to leave Costa Rica with a good impression. Puntarenas is a port town, fisherman's town. Not very clean and the beach is a dark sand beach (kind of dirty as well. There are so many more places that are much better. What are you looking for? I would be glad to give you a hand. The one asset the place has is the long breaking left (surfing).

Playa Potrero is one of our favs as far as locations for weddings. Really beautiful sunsets, not many people and at low tide some really spectacular effects.Here's a wedding next door to you at Bahia Sol: nicole & dan bahia sol, playa potrero guanacaste, costa rica 2009 Facebook "Costa Rica Wedding DJ". He is in the area, very cool dude, lots of music and equipment. Cakes? If you are on such a budget go for a white cake at Panaderia Mussmani (bakery around the country) maybe $30. For more designer cakes and decent tables & chairs you would have to talk to a WC and work out a fee with.

Hello Jenk, For Central Pacific area (Jaco) I would suggest Los Suenos Luxury rentals for a group that big. Guanacaste villas, Hmmmmm.... In Tamarindo it would have to be a couple of properties. We just had a wedding at Villa/Casa Fonda Vela (jodie & brent casa fonda del mar tamarindo, guanacaste 2010 ?), next door is Casa Cook and there a few other properties right around there. You could have your ceremony at Cala Luna Point. Let me think of some other ones and get back to you.

Manuel Antonio Quepos sounds like your place. You are on the beach and have the Savegre River 25km out of Quepos. You can zip line, kayak/fish, surf, sunset sail, hike & explore the mountains of Tarrazu, MTB in Londres next to waterfalls (I am an adventure junkie myself). Dominical for post wedding is beautiful (like old Costa Rica). Many varieties of accommo: Buena Vista Villas, Los Altos -for mom, Si Como No, Karahe. You can also find great rentals: Casa Discovery, Casa Fantastica, Casa de las Brisas. Hope this helps.

In Tama there is only one: Barcelo Langosta. 30min away from Tama: Paradisus Playa Conchal. 10min from Paradisus Playa Conchal in Flamingo: Flamingo Beach Resort. One hour & half away from Tama going back on the main road and to Playas del Coco: Occidental Gran Papagayo and Allegro Papagayo. At the tip of Nicoya Peninsula: Barcelo Tambor. Hope this helps.

Tinkertoy, Malpais and Santa Teresa are the furthest from a "cookie cutter" wedding. It is less touristy and visited by celebrities (that's how much it is liked). Here's the link to the wedding we just did: madi & ben villas hermosas, santa teresa nicoya, costa rica 2010

Here's the wedding at Villas Hermosas: madi & ben villas hermosas, santa teresa nicoya, costa rica 2010

We just had a wedding booking at Villas Hermosas, it is a phenomenal location! Rated best place in all of Costa Rica by Tripadvisor! We will be posting the wedding shortly.

Tinkertoy, Hi there. Not to try to much on making a "sales pitch" for Costa Rica, but you will definitely get a less artificial experience here. We have a long list of boutique hotels that offer a more unique and memorable experience as opposed to what I have heard of the conveyor belt weddings in Mex and the Caribbean (that is why CR is a hot destination). Yes, more bang for the buck in Mex, that's because there is so much and so much competition "more coca cola weddings - cookie cutter". Look at Small Distinctive hotels, Bahia Sol, La Posada and the best rated boutique hotel in trip advisor: Villas Hermosas (we just had a wedding there and will be posting it shortly-will advise you).

If you are not wanting to be in the middle of busy Tamarindo, Playa Grande is a choice. Separated by the estuary, it is a less busy place. More peaceful and relaxed. Langosta, which is right outside of Tamarindo is also quieter but more like condos for rent, Villalegre B&B and the all-inclusive Barcelo (a little too loud & busy). Hotel La Posada in Hacienda Pinilla is about 25min outside of Tamarindo, take a look at that. Here's a wedding we had there to get and idea: tia & jonathan hotel la posada, hacienda pinilla guanacaste, costa rica 2010 (by Events & Weddings CR)

katitava, Hi there. Getting to Santa Teresa is an adventure itself. Ferry ride, dusty roads but worth the area (pretty straight forward getting there). It is more like the Costa Rica people used to talk about years ago. Plenty to do, from relaxing at the beach to serious surfing, serious MTB rides, hiking, etc. We actually have a wedding at VHermosas on sat, we will post the photos so you get an idea. Run by a Canadian couple, very nice people. We had some friends from the US spend a week there and they loved it. Some of them first time travelers out of the US.

Want to have your reception in the sand? On the way to a wedding we had in Tangomar, we stopped at Tambor Tropical (http://www.tambortropical.com/) for lunch. We spoke to the general manager about weddings and loved what he proposed for destination weddings. They are willing to set the whole reception on the sand in front of the hotel. This is the wedding you could have under the moon and stars. Not many places in CR can pull this off. We will have some photos of set ups soon!

It had been a while since I had been back to Tangomar for a wedding. Wow! It has gone under an incredible remodeling. We had an elopement, but could definitely envision how beautiful a bigger would wedding would turn out. Here are the photos: emily & rod tangomar resort, playa quisales nicoya, costa rica 2010

Hello All Brides! Let us know if we may be of assistance in any way. We know Costa Rica inside and out. Cheers,

It is a good time. To get the best of Osa, do it with Mike Boston Osa Aventura : Corcovado National Park and Osa Peninsula Tours in Costa Rica (a Scottish zoologist that visited and never left) we do it with him, he has tents at the stations and knows where to see everything. I've seen jaguars, tapirs, crossed rivers (he makes you build rafts to get across) and searched for Harpy eagles with him. Every time friends visit, we head that way and call Mike. They call him "Mapacho".

In May-June you should be OK without booking in advance (that is what we do when we travel the country-we do a lot). Jenn please feel free to contact us once you are in CR and you are heading to a particular area to give you the heads up on the best of the area.

Jennifer, Something that you should know. Sarah Browne from Fino Photography is an excellent and very artistic photographer. Sarah actually used to work with us and decided to move back to the US for personal reasons. Through a WC we found out that she has been informing her clients that she can't make the wedding last minute and having a photographer we let go recently (for several reasons) cover them for her. Sarah does beautiful work and we were very sorry to see her leave CR( we have left the door open for her to come back and work with us), make sure she will be attending to have the beautiful images that she shows in her site. We think it is only fair that you are well informed about this.

It was a little chaotic for those brides having weddings in Malpais for a while. Having the Paquera Ferry down meant a trip around the Nicoya Peninsula (hours of driving). The Ferry is up and running again, just in time for us! We have a wedding in Tangomar today and one later this week in Santa Teresa.

New municipality laws state that fireworks can be displayed no later than 9pm. So, plan accordingly for them in your wedding schedule.

Denee, Have you looked at vacation rentals and considered just bringing in vendors to make your wedding day? I used to stay at Las Palmas (right on the beach in P Grande). The large house is big enough to set up a reception for 30 (max - I had my 30th there and had 30 people over) or even set the recep in front of the villas. Bring music in, caterer, rentals and bring you decorations. Pay a WC fee (not on site but to book all of this) and cut your costs and have an intimate, low key wedding

Osa, Osa Peninsula! I mentioned previously, I know, but is is such an amazing experience. We are planning a hike across the Peninsula when the seasons winds down with all the staff and staying at La Leona Lodge for a few days. Gonna be great! I agree, just melt away stress at Tabacon!

Actually Sarah from Fino used to work with us but left the country. Is she back?