Baldi Hot Springs NEW REVIEW '10

Baldi Hot Springs in La Fortuna could be the hot springs option that provides the BIGGEST BANG for your BUCK.
We've been wanting to re-REVIEW Baldi Hot Springs for quite sometime now. Our fist video of Baldi Hot Springs was done when we were just starting out and weren't really sure of what we were doing.

First, it's important to note that the entire town of La Fortuna pushes Baldi tickets on the tourists, for the simple fact Baldi pays commissions and Tabacon and EcoTermales don't. So all the tour shops, hotels, restaurants, as well as every Tom, Dick AND HARRY we'll usually suggest Baldi over the other hot springs, not saying that's bad.... just sayin. Baldi tickets can run anywhere from about $16.00 to whatever you're willing to pay, so it's BEST to shop around a bit if you're traveling on a budget or want to save a couple bucks. DO NOT BUY BALDI TICKETS AT BALDI- you will currently pay $28.00 at the entrance if you don't get them somewhere else. We paid $22.00 for use of the hot springs and dinner per person. Dinner is buffet style... we thought this was an EXCELLENT DEAL.

Tabacon Hot Springs is expensive, like $70.mas o menos but the 'Garden of Eden' has nothing on Tabacon and Eco Termales (across the street from Baldi) is more private, tranquilo and GREAT for a more 'chill' hot spring option (here's our write-up and VIDEO REVIEW of Eco Termales) and then there's Baldi,,,,BIG (25 pools of various sizes) and about as close to a hot spring 'theme park' as you're going to get,,,, water slides, loud music, kids, numerous swim up bars..... and LOTS of tourists- at Baldi, it's all about Q*U*A*N*T*I*T*Y.


I gotta say, Baldi is looking much nicer than it did in the past, the vegetation has matured adding some much need LUSHNESS to the area and even in the bigger pools gives the illusion of happening upon thermal waters in the middle of the jungle. It doesn't quite look as natural as Tabacon, but a BIG IMPROVEMENT. My comparison: Tabacon Hot Springs vs Baldi Hot Springs- the TRUTH.

Drinks are ridiculously expensive at Baldi Hot Springs even for a touristy destination- you almost think you're drinking at a swim up bar at the Mandalay Bay in Vegas. We took cans of beer in, we're NOT telling YOU to do that and I know Baldi would frown on that as well, but we did with no trouble, although we didn't advertise the fact either. Towels require a $10. deposit which you get back when you return the towel and lockers for your valuables cost $5.00 which you don't get back.

Depending on your MOOD and your BUDGET- Baldi Hot Springs definitely fills a certain hot springs niche...

**WARNING**WARNING**WARNING**WARNING**

"THE SLIDES AT BALDI HOT SPRINGS ARE NOTORIOUS FOR CAUSING INJURY- NO JOKE!"

Our NEW VIDEO Review of Baldi Hot Springs in La Fortuna Costa Rica



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Crossing into Nicaragua from Los Chiles

Crossing the border at Los Chiles Costa Rica into San Carlos Nicaragua is a BREEZE.
Granted, crossing the border at Los Chiles isn't the most popular travel route between Costa Rica and Nicaragua- Penas Blancas holds that distinction- at Los Chiles it's mostly backpackers who want to venture off the beaten path, 'perpetual tourist' types looking for an easy passport stamp and renewal of their VISA's and Nica's looking for work or visiting families, who mostly utilize this border crossing. The reason it's less traveled is simple- there's just not many 'convenient' Nicaraguan travel options once you're made it to San Carlos, although there's a couple boats that go to Granada as well as an airstrip with flights to Managua. So Penas Blancas is far away the border crossing of choice being it's an easily accessible GATEWAY to many points of interest in Nicaragua- San Juan del Sur, Rivas, Granada, Managua, Ometepe etc. But no matter, since we've received numerous e-mails asking for a 'video' process of the crossing, we thought we'd oblige.

So, D'Angelo, myself and 5 of our friends decided to make a day of it. We rented a driver/van for $80. and left at 8:00am from La Fortuna. Stopped at Muelle (about 35 minutes from La Fortuna) and checked out the iguanas and then headed up to Los Chiles, Costa Rica, another hour away from Muelle.


Los Chiles is a border town located on the banks of the Rio Frio, which in turn is the river 'border' between Costa Rica and Nicaragua that you must navigate by boat in order to reach San Carlos. The tiny town of San Carlos is located on banks of Lake Nicaragua just opposite from where the Rio Frio empties into the lake.

Our boat arriving into San Carlos Nicaragua.
This border crossing at Los Chiles is about a thousand times less stressful than Penas Blancas for obvious reasons, and so you can compare the two, I posted both border crossings BELOW.

Once you're gotten your passport stamp at Immigration, located a block from where you get the boat, you'll have to make a decision as to whether to take the 'public' boat to San Carlos or negotiate a price for your own boat. Obviously, if you're traveling by yourself, negotiating for a boat probably wouldn't be the most cost effective option. We made the mistake of negotiating price per person as opposed to haggling over the price of renting the boat itself. I think we paid $50. too much doing it this way. The public boat is about $20. per person TOTAL (there and back). We paid $25. per person to have our own boat, go much faster and we could leave San Carlos whenever we wanted as opposed to the public boat that left San Carlos at 5:30 regardless. All in all, not a bad price, just think we could have done a little better.

Here's the VIDEO crossing the border from Los Chiles Costa Rica to San Carlos Nicaragua:



Crossing the BORDER at Penas Blancas:



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