Costa Rica tour

country:	Costa Rica
trip type:	A small group adventure
departures:	Departs selected Saturdays throughout the year
price:	From £560 (15 days) excluding flights. Local payment US $300. Price includes some meals (breakfast daily, 2 lunches, 4 dinners), transport & comfortable hotel accommodation. Maximum group size 12. All departure dates are guaranteed
vouchers:	Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday

Costa Rica tours

Adventure holidays

Wildlife holidays

the amazing things you'll be doing

Travel from the Caribbean coast to the Pacific.
Discover Costa Rica's lush green rainforests, white sand beaches and amazing abundance of wildlife. With the night time spectacle of Arenal's lava glowing in the darkness, and the turquoise blue waters of Manuel Antonio, this tour is an adventure in paradise.

Highlights include:

Visit San Jose's eclectic Central Market

Spot wildlife in Tortuguero National Park

Visit the Insect Museum of Sarapiqui

Hike around the Arenal Volcano

Experience the cloud forests of Monteverde

Relax on the beaches of Manuel Antonio

day-by-day itinerary

Day 1-2:	San Jose. Among the galleries and theatres of San Jose are wonderful reminders of an ancient past. Perhaps visit the Jade Museum to see pre-Colombian ornaments or the Galeria Nacional, which displays modern art in old prison cells.
Day 3-4:	Tortuguero National Park. Enjoy the thick forests, cool waterways and powdery beaches of the national park. Explore the jungle by foot then travel by boat to spot monkeys, birds, frogs, sloths and crocodiles from the river.
Day 5-6:	Sarapiqui. Journey into the heart of Costa Rica's banana-growing region. In free time, opt to get close to a different kind of wildlife at the Sarapiqui Insect Museum or go hiking or mountain biking in the surrounding jungle. Otherwise, find a quiet spot to listen to the colourful birdlife twitter.
Day 7-8:	La Fortuna. Sitting next to the Arenal Volcano National Park, La Fortuna is an exciting outdoor base with endless opportunities for adventure. From here, the views are spectacular and the active volcano itself is reflected in Lake Arenal. In the evenings, why not slip into the hot springs and soak up the views of the glowing volcano?
Day 9-11:	Monteverde. Travel to idyllic Santa Elena, high in the Tilaran Mountains, and discover hundreds of different plant and mammal species on a guided walk through the Cloud Forest Reserve. Lush, green and jam-packed with colourful butterflies, this is a nature-lover's paradise.
Day 12-13:	Quepos. Descend from the mountains to the Pacific coast for a chance to relax on the white sandy beaches or hit the water for some sea kayaking, boating or snorkelling.
Day 14-15:	San Jose. Home to over one third of all Ticos, San Jose offers a great insight into Costa Rica's character.

small group adventure holiday

This is a 'small group adventure' - on our group trips you'll be with a maximum of 11 like minded travellers and you'll have a group leader with you. Whether you are travelling alone or with friends it's good value, and a great way to meet new people! While itineraries are pre-planned there is some flexibility and you'll have plenty of privacy. This trip will appeal to travellers of all ages who enjoy meeting people from other parts of the world as well as seeing new places! (more)

Because of our small group size, we're able to guarantee departures for all of our trips. Once you have booked and paid your deposit, your trip is guaranteed to go!

highly commended

This tourism business was Highly Commended in our 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards - the largest awards of their kind in the world, and organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine, of the Royal Geographical Society.

Since 2004, the Awards has recognised individuals, companies and organisations in travel making a big commitment to the culture and economies of local communities and helping to conserve biodiversity.

how this holiday makes a difference

We just can't get enough of the Amazon, not only as a jaw-dropping travel destination but also as a global treasure and this trip will help to ensure that the incredibly Amazon Rainforest is here for us to enjoy for generations to come! Book this trip between 1 February 2007 and 31 March, and 10% of the land costs will be donated to our Foundation's Amazon Fund. The Amazon Fund will help support on the ground projects by the Foundation's long time partners Greenpeace and WWF. By booking your Latin American adventure with us you're helping us work towards a sustainable future for the Amazon.

This trip gives you plenty of opportunities to get to know the culture and vibrant history of Latin America. There are numerous chances for local interaction as we cover so much ground using all means of public transport. You’ll be surprised how much you can learn from a friendly local who strikes up a conversation during your journey.

Your leader and the occasional local guide will be able to direct you to many local eateries throughout the trip, helping you discover real local fare at real local prices (and probably helping you learn some Spanish at the same time). All travellers are encouraged to explore with the group and on their own, learn a few words of the language and interact with the locals as much as possible.

Local guides are employed to help explain as much as possible about the cultural differences and the historically significant places that we visit. This also allows us to appreciate the importance of preserving and respecting these sites and to help us minimise the impact of our visits.

There are plenty of opportunities to support local merchants in the markets and stalls that we pass along the way. We can purchase traditional handicrafts from local artisans and learn more about the importance of preserving these crafts.

Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people.

We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel.

'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left).

We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays.

We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism.

This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards.