Costa Rica, the land of Pura Vida, is considered the home of ecotourism. The country boasts 28 national parks, 58 wildlife refuges, 32 protected zones, 15 wetland areas, 11 forest reserves and eight biological reserves. Among these landmarks are three reserves known as cloud forests. Cloud forests take their name from very real natural phenomena, the fog and low-hanging clouds hovering just above a forest's upper canopy which rain down onto the leaves and trees below. The three most well-known cloud forests are Children’s Eternal Rainforest, Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve, and Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve. Monteverde is home to a natural phenomenon known as the Great Divide, which is between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. The same cloud forest is home to three thousand of nine thousand species of plants in all of Costa Rica. Travelers will start their journey in San Jose and arrive at any time. On the way to Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, everyone can enjoy the scenery and tropical seascape. Then, everyone will travel north to San Juan for a local homestay, which includes meals. At La Fortuna, the group will have a chance to see the Arenal Volcano; hot springs, whitewater rafting, and waterfall rappelling are all optional. At Monteverde, everyone can stop at Life Monteverde, a coffee cooperative, for coffee tastings. The group can engage in a tour of the farm to learn about continuous agriculture. The group can surf the waves at Santa Teresa and Montezuma and spend time at the beach towns. Arrive back in San Jose and depart at any time.
This is a 18-Thirtysomethings trip catering to travelers ages 18-39. But if you don’t fit in that age range, you can find trips for all ages on the G Adventures site. G Adventures is a sustainable, small group tour company that has been leading travelers for 35+ years. They have been pioneers in community tourism and their trips directly benefit the local communities they visit. They have a responsible travel effort called G For Good and partner with the nonprofit Planeterra, dedicated to ensuring communities touched by tourism benefit from it. They were rated one of CATALYST PLANET’s 8 Best Sustainable Travel Companies.