So, next March or thereabout my wife and I are going to visit Costa Rica. Since it's got fairly primitive infrastructure and roads, high crime, and several very different environs in different parts of the country, we are going to go for 10 days with a tour group, probably Caravan Tours, to get an overview of the country and it's history. We've never done this type of tour, and I'm wondering if anyone here has been on a group tour for an entire trip somewhere. Would love any input on tours in general and definitely any info from people who have spent time in Costa Rica. From a few sources I have derived that tours can pretty much separate you from the local inhabitants to a large degree, except if and when you skip the activities for the day to do something on your own, which we plan on doing. I get the impression I will have to learn some Spanish to be able to converse with the locals on a shoot-the-shit level, so I have started checking out some free apps for that. We may stay a few days after the tour on our own.
Buy the latest issue of Archeology magazine. In the magazine will be ads for different university hosted tours. A friend and I went to Cancun like that about 10 years ago. Got amazing private tours of archeology sites all around there. Totally worth the money. I knew someone with a timeshare in Cancun so we stayed there while everyone else stayed in hostels. We would just cab to the group and then take off to the sites. So we would party in Cancun and then meet up with the group. Chitchen Itza, Coba, Talum. Because we were with archeology professionals and students we were allowed to inside many of the buildings and tombs that regular tourists can't access. I plan one doing the same thing if and when I ever make it to Machu Picchu.
Love this, thanks. I don't plan on doing Mexico anytime soon, but the university/archaeology tour would be fantastic. Totally random, but my dad was flying for the Air Force in the 80's and stopped quickly near Cairo. He was stoked to get a couple of hours of free time and went to see the Pyramids as a bucket list item. He was super-disappointed, b/c he only got to go in the uber-tourist section, there were graffiti and garbage all over, and he got a generally bad feeling about how these wonders of the world were being cared for, instead of awe that they were built 5000 years ago. Maybe it's better now, but I think I'd rather see the scientist/historian view of things, even if it takes longer or is more expensive, than the "random touristy" view.
I would do a university tour for Egypt. They offer them for all around the world. Also you can rent someone's timeshare at a resort for cheaper than you can book at the same resort. Just make sure you do your homework first. I've stayed twice at resorts in Cabo using rented timeshares. Once it was a 4 bedroom suite and there were only two of us. The magic basket as AWESOME!
Tours are a bunch of old crackaz. You wake up early as fuck and rush through sites. They have been fun though and you do see a lot.
I have never been on a tour in a foreign country. I did however go to Ecuador with a youth group in my early twenties. We had a guide and went to different parts of the country meeting people, living how they lived, not much luxury. Stayed in Quito a bit for some downtime. But, mostly adventure. Stayed in a village called Panchanillay in the mountains next to a volcano, Mt. Tungurhua which erupted when I was there....favorite part was that I got to live with a tribe in the Amazon for several weeks. Very eye opening. Had to learn a good deal of spanish.
Been to Costa Rica twice. Love that place. Never done a group tour there. I prefer planning a more private trip.. What do u want to know? Cloud forest in Monteverde - do both a day and night tour. Pacific beaches are very nice and relaxing.
As most of the usual sites and activities are included, it would be helpful to know which might not be worth the time, as we will probably need a break from the tour routine one or two days at least. Here's the tour info: http://www.caravan.com/tour/costa-rica
Do you speak Costa Rican Hispanic? Dialects vary from one country to another and the slightest mis conception of a word will get you in trouble. Perhaps it is easier to fake a British or Austrian accent. You have got to hook up with retired CIA agents. I hear they have fiefdoms spread all over the beautiful coastline.
If you like zip lining, when you go to la fortuna check out the zip lining there. Just hang out at the beach at guanacuste. Not sure how the snorkeling is in that specific area. We didn’t do much in San Jose. I don’t know what cloud forest you are going to, but see if you can get a private guided tour. We just asked someone at the hotel to hook us up and had a great experience that way. Again we did a day and night tour with the same guide. A lot of the wildlife is nocturnal so it is a completely different experience. That’s about all I got. I would also try to find out the mosquito situation. One time we went and the mosquitos were unbearable. I had wished I had packed more light pants. They love the fresh blood of tourists, but they might only like liberal blood so you might be ok!
Also, for the most part you don’t need to speak Spanish. There are a lot of ex pats and the economy is tourism based. Rural areas have less English. Guestures and Spanglish go a long way. Uno mas cerveza por favor,will get you by.
I'm going to Costa Rica at the end of March too. Keep the info coming! We are going south of your path, Jaco. I have plans to go surfing. Zip line is a possibility. Going to rip around on this boat and catch some sail fish, hopefully.
It wouldn't surprise me. You can find a hooker anywhere. Surprised that you even said that as it's probably your modus operandi.
one of my cousins wanted to do a bro trip there a few years ago and we found out it was basically all hookers there. dunno if they would have been all that hot.
