The staff at Southern Explorations recently returned from Costa Rica and looked at how we could fine-tune our trips. As always, we came back with a logbook of notes to compare with feedback from recent Southern Explorations travelers. We’ve made some adjustments to our popular Costa Rica tours that we can’t wait to share with you.
But first, we have to pass along the good news that travel to Costa Rica is easy again! As of April 1, 2022, Costa Rica has suspended its tricky pre-departure requirements that every traveler submit an online health pass, proof of vaccination status, purchase supplemental health insurance and take a covid test within 72 hours of travel. Now is the time to make travel plans!
Our time in Costa Rica was spent revisiting old haunts, exploring new territory, and sharing traveler feedback with our local guides all with the aim of making our trips better than ever. We’ve updated our standard hotels, added new upgrade options, diversified daily activities, and tinkered with logistics to reduce travel time and maximize experience time.
Southern Explorations has added stays located in remote, private nature reserves tucked into the folds of mountains. These secluded eco-lodges offer modern luxury and plenty of room for active families who want to spend the day zip-lining through lush forest canopies or fishing for rainbow trout along the verdant banks of mountainside rivers. Day hikes are steeped with the enchantment of ever-moving mists and forests that bustle with life thanks to Costa Rica’s famous biodiversity. Horseback tours give a group of all abilities the chance to cover a lot of ground.
Highland stays also offer couples glorious seclusion and opportunities to taste Costa Rica’s coffee where it is grown. Learn from locals how to pair rum with food and taste wine. Hotel menus feature farm-fresh honey, cheese, fruit, and vegetables and are a revelation in flavor through just-harvested simplicity. Book a bit of restoration on your trip and support the local maker economy with culturally influenced spa treatments that use locally made products.
Find adventure in the froth of white water as you raft one of the rivers that rush toward the calm of the lowland rainforests where wildlife watches from riparian palms and trees that grow up to 50 meters high.
For those who are bound to the marine winds and cleansing waves of the ocean — there are answers to be found in the waters that come to Costa Rica’s two vast coastlines. Come to know bliss on earth while surfing a perfect wave and discover the true definition of ceviche includes the sensation of warm sand underfoot. Snorkel with marine life and bask in the famous Costa Rica light.
Southern Explorations has also added new ways to live your days on the Caribbean Coast with stays in hotels that highlight Costa Rica’s special brand of sustainable luxury and intentional eco travel. Wake up on the shores of the Caribbean in the heart of a nature preserve. Take a bike ride off the beaten path or take the opportunity to watch wildlife emerging in the magic of dusk in the Tortuguero Canals.
The biggest takeaway from our traveler comments and our staff notes was that our guide’s inside, on-the-ground knowledge was the most valuable part of each trip. However you decide to experience Costa Rica, Southern Explorations’ well-traveled expert guides will introduce you to the vibrant and gracious people who define the very essence of Pura Vida. They have vital information and know-how that evolve a trip from a valuable vacation into a priceless immersion into Costa Rica’s pristine beauty.