Costa Rica (Lonely Planet, 9th Edition) - Matthew Firestone [405]
Bar King’s (Calle 3 btwn Avs 3 & 4) More Latin in flavor, it also attracts a few local women.
Casa Blanca (cnr Calle 4 & Av 4) A dark, smoky and air-conditioned dive that is packed from about 5pm onward with a mainly male clientele sipping drinks and watching grainy porn on the telly. It’s easy to find: follow the ear-splitting Latin music emanating from the jukebox.
Aquarius (2758-1010; Av 3 btwn Calles 2 & 3; 8pm-2am) Inside Hotel Acon, this long-running disco spins salsa, reggaetón and pop on different nights.
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Getting There & Away
Puerto Limón is the transportation hub of the Caribbean coast.
AIR
The airstrip is about 4km south of town. There are no regularly scheduled flights, but you can charter a flight to San José through one of the charter companies there (Click here) or to Puerto Jiménez or Golfito through Alfa Romeo Aero Taxi.
BOAT
Cruise ships occasionally dock in Limón, but most boats providing transportation use the major port at Moín, about 7km west of Limón. For information on boats to Tortuguero, Click here.
BUS
Buses to and from San José, Moín, Guápiles and Siquirres arrive at Terminal Caribeño (Av 2 btwn Calles 7 & 8) on the west side of the city by the baseball stadium, where local ladies line up to sell pan bon, a type of West Indian fruit cake.
Guápiles via Siquirres & Guácimo (Tracasa; Terminal Caribeño) To Siquerres/Guápiles ₡900/1600; two hours; departs almost hourly 5am to 6pm.
Moín, for boats to Tortuguero (Tracasa; Terminal Caribeño) ₡300; 20 minutes; departs hourly 5:30am to 6:30pm.
San José (Autotransportes Caribeños; Terminal Caribeño) ₡2500; three hours; departs almost hourly 5am to 7pm.
Buses to points south all depart from Autotransportes Mepe Terminal (2758-1572; Mepe; Av 4 btwn Calles 3 & 4), 100m north of the Central Market.
Bribrí & Sixaola ₡2600; three hours; departs hourly between 5am and 6pm.
Cahuita ₡1000; 1½ hours; departs at 5am, 6am, 8am, 10am, 1pm, 2:30pm, 4pm and 6pm.
Manzanillo ₡2000; 2½ hours; departs at 5:30am, 6am 10:30am, 3pm and 6pm.
Puerto Viejo de Talamanca ₡1900; 2½ hours; departs at 5:30am, 6am, 10:30am, 3pm and 6pm.
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AROUND PUERTO LIMÓN
Playa Bonita
While not the finest beach in the Caribbean, Playa Bonita offers sandy stretches of seashore and good swimming convenient to Limón – and accommodations that are considerably more attractive than anything you’ll find in the city. Surfers make their way to Bonita for its point/reef break, which makes for a powerful (and sometimes dangerous) left. Just north, Portete is a small bay with a wicked right working off the southerly point. Any Limón–Moín bus will drop you off at these places.
SLEEPING & EATING
The road between Limón and Moín is home to some good accommodations. The following are listed in order from Limón (east to west).
Oasis del Caribe (2795-0024; d US$35; ) About 3km northwest of Limón, on the inland side of the road, these cozy pink bungalows are decorated with lace curtains, bamboo furniture and worn (but clean) sheets. They are clustered around a small pool, which is critical, as this place does not have beach access.
Hotel Maribú Caribe (2795-2543/2553; maribu@racsa.co.cr; d/tr US$51/69, d with ocean view US$85; ) A few hundred paces west of Oasis, on the ocean side, is this 52-room hilltop hotel with spacious white-stucco bungalows with thatched roofs dotting a well-maintained garden. Rooms come equipped with simple wood beds, cable TV, minifridge and private hot showers. A popular onsite restaurant (mains ₡3200 to ₡5400) – with incredible water views – dishes out a mix of Costa Rican and Mediterranean specialties.
Hotel Cocori (2795-1670; s/d/tr incl breakfast & dinner US$38/55/76; ) A freshly renovated seaside hotel with simple, whitewashed rooms and private hot showers also has a breezy, ocean-view restaurant that serves everything from