Costa Rica 4-Week

Our experience begins in the San Jose Central Valley area B&B, where students get to know one another and establish goals for the weeks ahead. Here we will learn more about Costa Rica, take a Latin dance class, and loosen our muscles with an overnight rafting trip on one of the many spectacularly scenic rivers. We will also participate in some informal Spanish games and lessons, so please come with a desire to use your Spanish!

After settling in, we travel to work with local park rangers in one of Costa Rica's pristine tropical cloud forests. A rigorous hike will bring us to a comfortable eco-lodge, our home for the next several days. Time will be spent on a combination of environmental projects (trail work, reforestation efforts, etc.), night hikes to view wildlife, and day hikes to swim or see waterfalls. If the weather cooperates, we may have a spectacular view of the active volcano, Arenal, and adjacent Lake Arenal. It is very common to spot monkeys, anteaters, parrots, coatimundis and dart frogs in the cloud forest!

After our stay in the cloud forest, we head off for our community service projects in the Pacific Region.  While staying in a paired homestay (two students per home), we will work on projects chosen by the community itself.  Participants can choose between small construction and/or educational projects each day.  Typical small construction projects include: pouring the foundation for a community center, planting organic school gardens, painting and tiling a community kitchen, constructing a plant nursery, completing a sidewalk around the town square.  Educational projects include teaching English lessons and organizing and leading a "Día de Actividades" – an event for the community that includes field day competitions, art workshops, music, games and more!  Inevitably "los niños" become an integral members of our group! We will spend our afternoons and evenings joining in the daily lives of community members as we play soccer games, prepare special dinners, participate in a traditional game and dance night, or take short excursions.

Following the homestay, we travel to northern Costa Rica's most spectacular national park, Rincón de la Vieja. Four volcanoes surround this eco-adventurers' paradise, home to an astounding array of plant life and animals such as monkeys, tapirs, sloths, quetzals, and even jaguars! Here the group will stay in comfy eco-cabins on the grounds of a locally-owned working organic farm. We'll explore the park via its phenomenal zip-line, and indulge ourselves in Rincón's many thermal hot springs, mud baths, and hidden waterfalls. The combination of exciting activities in such a unique setting make Rincón the destination of a lifetime!

Time to hit the beach! We travel to the Pacific Coast, famous for its unique combination of rainforest and ocean settings. We spend two days boogie-boarding, enjoying zip-line canopy tours, and viewing wildlife. For two days we challenge ourselves with surf lessons taught by professional instructors. The wave conditions on this beach provide the perfect opportunity for all levels to hang ten!

Leaving paradise is always sad, but our trip back to the Central Valley gives us time to share our memories before we fly home. At a celebratory dinner in a nice restaurant we have an awards ceremony to reflect upon our last four weeks together. We realize that Costa Rica and the friends we have made will be with us forever.