Dive Review of Rich Coast Divers/Villas Sol in
Costa Rica/Guanacaste

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Rich Coast Divers/Villas Sol, Jun, 2008, by Timothy A. Kolakowski, PA, USA ( Contributor 12 reports with 1 Helpful vote). Report 4463.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	This was our first trip to Costa Rica, after hearing from many people that it's a great destination. And we had a blast, from beginning to end. We flew into Liberia rather than San Jose - it's a half hour drive from the Guanacaste resorts, and San Jose is about 4 hours. There are several resorts in the area. We chose the all inclusive Villas Sol based on their website and some travel reviews and it was a great choice. The grounds are beautiful. Villas Sol is built into the side of a hill, with easy access to the beach by shuttles. The food was plentiful and very good, with lots of native choices. The resort staff is very friendly but be advised that except for the customer service employees, English is a second language...a distant second! Oh well, part of the charm! Lots of families stay at Villas Sol. They have kids activities as part of the all inclusive and a staff to organize them. They were MIA for two days but except for those two days the kids club worked out well. The diving is different here. You won't get that Caribbean visibilty here, but there is more to see than most of the Caribbean diving I've done. I saw more sharks and octopi in 4 days' diving than most of my Caribbean trips put together. A real highlight is the hour long trip out to the Bat Islands, where some of our group saw the bull sharks that Bat is known for. I dove with Brenda & Martin of Rich Coast Diving, who we got to know when we dove with them when they owned Silent Immersion on Curacao. Lots of fun - their divemasters are young but enthusiastic. The boat isn't pretty but it's a great dive boat. It's a converted trimaran sailboat with all kinds of room to spread out and gear up. The main dive sites are less than 10 minutes away. No coral but lots of rocks for the critters. We'd definitely go back. Not only is the diving great but the land activities like the zipline, the river cruise, and the hiking make Costa Rica a must - see.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Florida Keys, Grand Bahama, all 3 Caymans, Saba, St. Vincent, Curacao, Bonaire, Provo, Grand Turk, Salt Cay
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	78-80°F / 26-27°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	20-40 Ft/ 6-12 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	?
Enforced diving restrictions	Prefer divers to stay with group
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Bucket on boat

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Dive Review of Rich Coast Divers/Villas Sol in Costa Rica/Guanacaste

Rich Coast Divers/Villas Sol, Jun, 2008,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Rich Coast Divers/Villas Sol in
Costa Rica/Guanacaste