Travel with someone who has actually been there.
Honest guides, real trip videos, and a network of local businesses I've personally checked out. No paid rankings. Just what I'd tell a friend.
Less research.
More “let’s go.”
Start with the kind of week you want. Pick a beach base, see a simple plan, then compare stays when you’re ready.
The beach reset
Fly into Liberia → settle into Papagayo → stay in one beach base.
- Arrive: keep the first evening free.
- Days 2–4: beach time, one boat outing, and a slow lunch.
- Before you leave: keep a buffer for your airport transfer.
Know before you choose: resort areas can mean higher meal and transport costs. Check the full stay cost, not just the room.
Choose the base.
Then check the stay.
Compare hotels for this escape ↗On the hotel site, search Papagayo, Costa Rica with your dates. Prices and availability are live there.
Read the Papagayo stay guide →Still deciding? Get the free beach-base guide →These are suggested self-booked trips, not packages. Hotel links may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Heading somewhere else? Find your Nicaragua or Florida starting point →
Not sure where to start? I'll point you.
1 Where are you thinking about?
2 What matters most on this trip?
You're on the list. Check your inbox this week.
Pick the right Guanacaste beach base before you book.
Seven areas compared, from Papagayo to Nosara: who each one fits, who should skip it, and drive times from Liberia. Plus about 60 local businesses I've checked and my own picks. Nobody pays to be in it.
- Where to stay, eat and book
- Dry vs green season, LIR vs SJO
- 3-day and 5-day sample plans
Where is your trip budget leaking?
Six taps. I'll match your travel habits to the Travel Rules from my book that fix them. Results show right away, no signup.
- 60 Travel Rules
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Thinking about living in Costa Rica or Nicaragua?
Most move problems start in the first 90 days. Work through the checklist I would hand a friend, then find a lawyer, mover or property manager I have already checked.
- 1Before you commitAttorney, documents, insurance
- 2Your first 30 daysRent first, keep every receipt
- 3Days 30 to 90Test the plan, then decide
Local businesses I'd send my own family to.
Restaurants, hotels, tour operators, drivers, and relocation help across Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Florida. Every listing is free and checked by me before it goes up. Nobody pays to rank higher.
Start here
The guides people ask me for most, updated for 2026.
Talk Travel with Glen · National parks
Watch the story. Plan your park trip.
Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, and Yosemite: researched lodging picks, tours to consider, visit plans, and the official updates to check before booking.
Where I spend my time
See it before you go.
Weekly videos from the road: what things really cost, where I stayed, and what I'd skip next time.
What's the one thing you can't figure out?
Send me your trip question. I can't answer everyone one on one, but the questions that would help the most people become a video on YouTube and Roku or a new guide here.
- Real costs, safety, getting around, where to stay
- Moving abroad: residency, renting, what I'd do first
- Own a business? I'll point you to a free Verified listing
Got it. Thank you. If your question becomes a video or guide, I'll email you the link.
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Free trip videos from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Florida and beyond, on the big screen. Available in the US, Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the UK and more.
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Travel With Glen Stories: The Tower Built Around RampsSeville’s Giralda tells a story through its ramps, followed by a Seville arrival connection and a separate Santa Teresa stay in Costa Rica.
Travel With Glen Stories: A Journey Finds a Home BaseViYarte’s founder story traces years of travel toward a home base on Nicaragua’s Pacific coast, with practical beach and stay context.
Travel With Glen Stories: The Forest That Was Nearly a ReservoirHow Muir Woods nearly became a reservoir, followed by San Francisco guiding and separate Costa Rica travel connections.
Travel With Glen Stories: The Long Way From Tree to BarGlen’s Jamaica cacao memory leads to Blue Valley Chocolate, with distinct factory and farm stops and a separate Santa Ana spotlight.
Travel With Glen Stories: Room to Exhale in TokyoA Tokyo tidal garden opens Glen’s September story about finding room to exhale. Includes New Sanno eligibility guidance and a separate Santa Ana spotlight.
Kīlauea: Un paisaje vivo (Español)Explora fuentes de lava, gases volcánicos y un cráter en transformación con imágenes del USGS filmadas en 2025.
The books
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