By far this is the most beautiful trip we’ve taken. I’ve always been fascinated by the glowing beaches that were showcased in numerous Bollywood movies, where the actresses used to run along the shoreline that seemed to be covered in tiny blue LEDs, but in reality this was due to bio-luminescence life. At the time I had no clue what this was, but I knew I wanted to see this. Straight into my bucket-list it went. Over the years we’ve added a lot to the bucket-list and now its grown to a point where its like a bottomless pit. 😊

In October 2017, a friend of ours posted about a bio-luminescence trip in a group that I’ve joined. When I saw the pictures, I was awestruck and immediately called my husband, who was at work, and said “Babe, we are going for a trip. No ifs or buts!”. He loves traveling as well, so all I heard from him was “Ok, let’s go. In a meeting now, so we’ll talk later. Make the arrangements.”.

At the time, I did not know the cost, how much time we would need or how far it was. All I knew is that we had to go. We had just moved to Costa Rica, so no friends, far away from family and all I was doing at the time was waiting for my husband to get back from work, so imagine my excitement.

Early morning on the  Oct 21^st  , we took an Uber to Real-Cariari in Heredia, our nearest pick-up point. At the designated pickup point, we waited for the bus and met more folks that were to join us on this trip. The bus ride from San Jose to the Puntarenas harbor is about 2 hours, including a quick stop for breakfast. At the harbor, we had to get off at Boleteria Ferry a Paquera while the bus was being ushered towards the ferry.

The ride from Puntarenas to Paquera is roughly 1 hour. I was so excited as several of my dreams were coming true at the same time. As soon as we got our tickets, we got onto the ferry and made a beeline for the railings to get a better view of the ocean.

The ferry was surprisingly stable and did not move much in the waves. The Top deck has a nice restaurant with a seating area that give you a great view. They play good music as well. On deck we had a few beers, munched on a few local snacks and basked in the sun.

All-in-all, the ferry ride was a nice experience and lovely views of the neighboring mountains.

Tip: If you are visiting the Nicoya Peninsula, taking the Puntarenas ferry is the best option. If driving, make sure you get to the dock a good 1 hour before the scheduled push off. Park the vehicle in the designate loading spot before you cross the street to get tickets at the Boleteria Ferry a Paquera.

Make sure you inform the ticket counter that you are transporting your vehicle. They give you special card to transport vehicle.

Once you have the ticket, the usher will help guide the cars into the loading dock. Passengers will board last.

If you are driving to Puntarenas and need to park the vehicle overnight then we recommend parking in Cabinas Frank. They charge ₡12,000.

 

Ferry Timings:

From Puntarenas: 5:00 AM, 9:00 AM,11:00 AM ,2:00 PM, 5:00 PM , 8:30 PM
From Paquera: 5:30 AM, 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 2:00 PM, 5:00 PM, 8:00 PM

Tip:
If driving back from Paquera make sure you reach the dock 2 hours in advance. We had a very bad experience on a weekend , we intended to take  5:00 PM Ferry and had reached the area at 3:00 PM, We were surprised to see the queue on the road and reached ticket counter at 7:30 PM.

Location:

Waze: https://waze.com/ul/hd1g8v0r7s
Google :

Ticket Fee:
Adult: ₡810
Child: ₡485
Elderly Passenger: 0

Vehicle Fee:
Bicycle: 2200
Motorcycle: 3400
ATV and tricycles: 6800
Minibus: 18300
Bus: 22900

On the other side, we got off, took a quick 2-minute walk down to the shore where a small boat waited to take us to the Island.

The island is about 4km from the dock. As soon as we got there, we were greeted by the islands most friendly dog, a German shepherd (THEY ARE THE BEST). We dropped our bags off at the campsite and took a quick look around.

There is just one family and their house on the island. The house is located towards the back of the clearing about a 100ft from the water, In the center was the campsite where the family members were setting up the tents, with air-mattresses and pillows. A little off to the right about 20ft from the water was an outdoor dining area.

My husband and I are both from coastal areas back in India and the beach is like our second home. Wasting no time, we changed and dove right into the cold water, which felt amazing in the hot sun. We swam for a couple of hours and only came out when we were called for lunch. The family had prepared a simple but rather delicious meal for all of us. We had a selection of either Fish, Meat or Vegetarian. We ate and rested for a while in the many hammocks they had. Then once again, we headed back into the water. We played with the kids, who are very good swimmers, and the German Shepherd for the rest of the afternoon.

Around 4 PM, we took a shower (cold) and prepared for a small trek to the back of the island where we could see the sunset. The view is mesmerizing, the calm waters of the pacific and green mountains of the Nicoya Peninsula. We had our Camera and one of the guys had a Drone, so we got some neat pictures. We watched the sunset go down, then headed back to camp.

Tip: Make sure you get some mosquito repellent.

As darkness set in, fireflies dotted almost every part of the island. There were also a lot of mosquitoes, but thanks to the repellent, we were good. The plankton tour was scheduled for after dinner, so we just hung out in the hammocks with some music, beer and chit-chat. While talking, I happened to turn my anxious gaze towards the shore when I saw it. The beach had looked like it was glowing. I tapped my husband and we ran to the shore. I could not believe my eyes, the very same water that we swam in all day was now glowing. I picked up some water in my hand and it still glowed. We tried clicking a few pictures, but trust me, pictures will not do justice. We spent some time here in amazement, when we had to go for dinner.

Tip: The water glows when its disturbed. So, go ahead and ruff up the water with your hands.

After dinner we headed to a small boat that was going to take us out into the ocean to see more of the bio-luminescence effects of the plankton. It was a 30-minute ride but what the sights were breathtaking. I was like a little kid the entire time we were out on the boat.

We saw some needle fish skimming the surface of the water leaving a trail of blue behind it. We also saw some other fishes that glowed as they swam near the boat. The best moment was when we say a large stingray swim under the boat.It was exactly like the scene from the movie Moana. We took a few pictures, but again, its not the same as seeing it in person.

After the boat ride we got back to Isla Jesusita. We had planned a campfire, but we could not do it as It started drizzling. Nevertheless, we had thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and made quite a few lovely memories. With our hearts content we retired to our tents for a good night’s sleep.

The next morning, after breakfast, we were asked to get ready as we were going to head out a bit of Snorkeling. The ferry went straight to the snorkeling area, but the water was not clear as it had rained the previous night. As the are had a rocks and coral, we were advised not to get in. We returned to the island without snorkeling, but this meant we had more time for swimming before we had to leave to catch our ferry heading back to Puntarenas. On the way back all of us were quiet, frankly because we had seen and done so much already and just wanted to chill.

Once back at the Puntarenas dock, we got off the ferry, waited a little for the bus to pick us up. When the bus arrived we all pilled in and headed to a Puntarenas beach for lunch where we feasted on the famous Churchill, after which we headed straight to San Jose.

We got home around 4 in the afternoon, all happy and content with our trip. But we vowed to go back whenever possible and yep we made it possible on July 14th 2018. So we will add both the pictures here.

Services included on the Island:
Camping tents are equipped with mattresses, sheets and pillows. A kitchen, showers, sanitary services, shuttle boat for fishing tours, snorkeling and trips to nearby islands.

Services included in the ferry:
Snack Counter, Bar, Air-conditioned seating area, Music, TV.
Ferry is Handicap friendly.

What to bring?
Clothes for 2 days, sun block, towels, toiletries, a cap, sunglasses, Mosquito repellent, flip-flops, hiking boots.

Tip: Try planning your trip around the New Moon. The darkness will allow for the best experience.