There are numerous tour options in Costa Rica that can be included or substituted for suggested features in the tours below. Please contact us for more information. We are experts in customized student tours.
Includes:
· 6 Nights accommodations
· Deluxe continental breakfast each morning
· 5 Lunches
· 6 Dinners
· Admissions
· Escort/Guide service
· Taxes and gratuity
Day 1 – Depart USA/San José
Our Costa Rican vacation begins as we fly to San José, Costa Rica. Upon arrival at the newly remodeled airport, our tour guide and driver will meet us and we will board our coach. On the way to San José, the capital of approximately one million inhabitants, you may see three of the country’s sixty volcanoes from a distance, and see coffee farms on both sides of the highway. We tour San José, which was the third city in the world to get public electric lighting. We will see the National Theater, built from 1890-1897 and modeled after the Paris Opera House, and the National Museum housed in what had been a fort until 1948 when the military forces were constitutionally disbanded. Costa Rica has had no armed forces for over 50 years! IF/D
Day 2 – San José/Arenal Area
Today we will be whisked off for an inspiring introduction to the biodiversity and conservation efforts of Costa Rica at INBioparque, the country’s biggest biodiversity theme park. Our guided tour of INBioparque will include visits to the park’s exhibitions, walks along their trails, and visits to four of their wildlife stations. After the guided tour there will be time to visit the wildlife stations that were not included in the tour. Some of the wildlife stations feature poisonous frogs, tarantulas, butterflies, caimans, iguanas, turtles, boas, and more! After lunch in the park, we drive to Poás Volcano National Park to view an active system. When the mist and clouds part we'll won’t see flowing lava, but we’ll see the sulfuric, bubbling, green rain-fed lake at the bottom, surrounded by smoke and steam rising from fumaroles. At almost a mile wide, it’s the largest active crater in the world. B/L/D
Day 3 – Arenal Area
After a delicious Costa Rican breakfast, we head off in the direction of the active Arenal Volcano for a closer look at the activity. Perhaps we will spy red boulders tumbling down the mountain or hot lava flowing down the side! Upon arrival at the Arenal Hanging Bridges, we meet a local nature guide, who takes us on a walk high above the canopy as we cross six hanging suspension bridges! During the 1.86-mile walk, we get breathtaking views of the Arenal Lake, a waterfall and the majestic Arenal Volcano. Stay alert and we may get up close looks at Toucans, Quetzals, sloths and many other forms of fauna and flora. This afternoon we’ll experience the forest like never before - zipping by cable through the treetops! The La Fortuna Sky Trek Canopy Tour includes a cable car up the mountain and several zip lines down. Participants are attached individually to the cables with two high quality harnesses, which support the body so that you feel as though you’re sitting in a chair. Safety is the number one priority of the Sky Trek team, which frees us to enjoy the thrill of a lifetime! B/L/D
Day 4 – Arenal Area
This morning we will embark on a guided lava flow walk, where we’ll learn more about the mighty Arenal Volcano. After the walk, we’ll visit the Fortuna Waterfall, where we can walk the hundreds of steps down and swim in the pool at the base of the falls. (Remember, hundreds of steps down means hundreds of steps back up!) This afternoon, we enjoy time at a hot springs park including pools, slides, swimming and a buffet dinner. B/L/D
Day 5 – Guanacaste Area
We transfer to Rincón de la Vieja National Park on Costa Rica’s northern border. The park has many attractions including a volcanic complex with at least nine eruptive vents, bubbling mud pools, waterfalls and swimming areas, and possibly the largest growth of the national flower, the “guaria morada” or purple orchid. After a busy day of exploring we transfer to our hotel near Tamarindo, in the Gold Coast area, for dinner and the evening. B/L/D
Day 6 – Guanacaste Area
We have the experience of a lifetime today as we head down to the beach for a surfing lesson! Tamarindo has some of the best surf in Costa Rica, and with our instructors’ help we’ll learn how to catch waves and get up on the board. The afternoon is free to relax on the beach. B/L/D
Day 7 – Return
Sadly we must return to the airport for our return flights to the United States. We leave with wonderful memories of an entertaining, educational and adventurous week in Costa Rica. B