Getting There

Getting to Bahia Luminosa is part of the adventure--a taxi ride or rental car from the airport near San Jose (see the Maps) takes you through the beautiful mountains on the way to the sea (between 1.5 hours from airport area, 2 hours from downtown San Jose), where you can board the ferry at the Gulf port of Puntarenas.
Ferries run almost hourly from Puntarenas to points north and south of Bahia Luminosa. The preferred route is aboard either the TAMBOR or PENINSULAR ferry serving Paquera after a 1-1/4 hour scenic crossing that is quite a pleasant tour in itself. The single ferry serving Naranjo is fine only if you are driving a rental car - there is no public transport or taxi service from Naranjo south to Bahia Luminosa. Call us at 641-0386 from Puntarenas to advise of the departure time of the Ferry you are taking to Paquera and we will call a taxi to meet you at the Paquera Ferry Terminal to bring you to Bahia Luminosa (about $11 one-way). (See more details below.)

Check out the Paquera ferry --

The Paquera ferry (actually there are two different ships that go to the same landing, the Peninsular and the Tambor) is the most picturesque and pleasant way to arrive on the Peninsula. After the very smooth ferry passage, a less smooth but interesting twenty-minute taxi ride will take you to Bahia Luminosa. Arrangements can be made for large parties of six or more to be picked up by the Luminosa van at the Paquera landing.

Bahia Luminosa on the Nicoya Peninsula

TRANSPORTATION POSSIBILITIES TO BAHIA LUMINOSA

From the Airport Area to BAHIA LUMINOSA (Brilliant Bay), morning arrivals:
By land and sea ­ 2 persons @ $35 per person includes Taxi to Puntarenas Ferry Terminal, Ferry tickets for 1 _ hour crossing of the Gulf, Guests met at PAQUERA Ferry Terminal and transported to Bahia Luminosa Resort Hotel, 20-25 minutes. For 4 persons, same inclusions - $25 per person. For 5 to 9 persons, same inclusions - $17.50 per person.

Guests may rent a car at the airport and drive to the Puntarenas Ferry terminal, then get in line one hour before scheduled departure time of the ferry (again, allow 2+ hours for the trip from the airport). We believe the rental car option to be less desirable for most to get to the Resort. For the continuation of a holiday in Costa Rica, after departing BAHIA LUMINOSA, the Hotel will assist in arranging rental of a vehicle in Puntarenas to visit other attractions. While at BAHIA LUMINOSA, guests will have little or no need for a vehicle.

For groups of 5 to 10 guests we can arrange for a comfortable air conditioned tourist Van, with bi-lingual driver to transport the group when they desire to go and wherever they desire to go in Costa Rica. The cost ranges from $100 to $125/day.

Another option would be to fly from the airport with SANSA, the local airline, to the TAMBOR airfield, a 30 minute flight where the guests would be met and transported to BAHIA LUMINOSA by taxi or Van. The airfare is approximately $65 per person and transport to Bahia Luminosa Resort Hotel is $25 for a taxi or $40 for a Van ­ a 45 minute trip. NOTE: SANSA allows 25 pounds baggage per passenger, excess is an additional charge and may not be available if aircraft at full weight. SANSA has two departures daily at 10:00 A.M. and 3:45 P.M

If the airline arrival time (after noon or later) precludes a reasonable arrival time at BAHIA LUMINOSA, we recommend an overnight stay in the Central Valley but not in the San Jose city environment. One option is to find accommodations in the airport area, arranging for departure on the following morning for the Resort. Near the airport, a good choice would be the VILLA DOLCE Hotel, a small charming Hotel with gracious owner/hosts Franco & Maria (tel 433-4350; E-mail htldolce@racsa.co.cr). If the Villa Dolce is fully booked, the Hampton Inn is also near the airport. Both will pick guests up at the airport.

Guests not driving a rental car should telephone BAHIA LUMINOSA from PUNTARENAS to advise the scheduled departure time of their ferry to PAQUERA so that we can arrange to have the guest met and transported directly to the Resort at time of arrival at the Paquera Ferry terminal. Guests flying to Tambor should telephone BAHIA LUMINOSA from the airport to advise the departure time of the flight they are taking, so that we may arrange for a taxi to meet that flight.

BAHIA LUMINOSA's room rates range between $45 and $70/Night. Discounts for groups and seniors are available when directly booked with us. Our E-mail in the United States is tropics@thegrid.net and in Costa Rica tropics@racsa.co.cr The telephone at the Resort is 641-0386 Fax is 641-0387.

The Nicoya Peninsula

The North and West side of the Peninsula is in the Province of Guanacaste, The East side of the Peninsula, overlooking the Gulf of Nicoya is in the Province of Puntarenas all the way to the southern tip of the Peninsula (Cabo Blanco). (For more description of the Nicoya Peninsula, see http://www.nicoyapeninsula.com/index.html )

The development of the Guanacaste side is somewhat reminiscent of Miami Beach, Florida - rather dense. On the Gulf side of the Peninsula, development of significant Resort Hotels is more restrained, between the beach front Hotel BAHIA LUMINOSA, located 9 Km (5.6 mi) North of the town of Paquera, on the main N/S road and Cabo Blanco. There are beach front Hotels in the Tambor and Montezuma areas, 30+Km South of the town of Paquera.

BAHIA LUMINOSA (Brilliant Bay) is the closest significant Resort on the Nicoya Peninsula to San Jose and the town of Puntarenas. Traveling time from the San Jose International airport area: by vehicle to Puntarenas is about 2 hours, the 1+ hour crossing of the Gulf by one of the ferries that go to the Paquera Ferry terminal is followed by vehicle time of 25 to 35 minutes to BAHIA LUMINOSA. Vehicle times from the Paquera Ferry Terminal to areas South of Paquera vary from 45 minutes to 2+ hours.

In addition to the parks in the province of Guanacaste, there a number of Parks, Preserves and Reserves at & South of BAHIA LUMINOSA and Cabo Blanco, at the southern tip of the Peninsula.

Guests may also access facilities on the Gulf of Nicoya side by mid morning and afternoon flights to the Tambor Airstrip, a 40 minute flight. From the air strip to BAHIA LUMINOSA a taxi takes 45 minutes. Note the baggage limit of 25 pounds per person on the flight.

The beach and other hotels on the Gulf of Nicoya side generally offer significant amenities, flora and fauna & wild life, varying activities such as fishing, horseback riding, Scuba, exploring, golf. Example: BAHIA LUMINOSA offers, in addition to on-site activities, Scuba, Sport fishing, horseback rides with guide to a waterfall, boat tours to the famous Tortugas Islands, small craft rentals, trips to the Curu Nature Reserve and the los Delfines Country Club. Possibly exclusive to BAHIA LUMINOSA is its careful preservation of its virgin forest, which meets the sea in quiet harmony, augmented by professional landscaping. Bahia Luminosa IS crowded with families of the small "Howler" monkeys and other forms of indigenous life in the air and sea. It is NOT crowded with people.

Contact Info: tropics@thegrid.net & tropics@racsa.co.cr Tel. 011-506-641-0386 (Costa Rica).

Return to Bahia for more details