Costa Rica family holiday with teens

Planet

Carbon reduction-

Costa Rica is a well known destination for eco-tourism. Described as the 'greenest and happiest nation', the country now generates 98% of of its electricity from renewable resources. There is a lot that the rest of the world should learn from the Costa Rican approach to sustainability. For this reason, it is great to promote meaningful travel in Costa Rica, immersing in the incredible nature, particularly for the younger generation.

All of our accommodation in Costa Rica reflects this dedication to sustainability, complete with commitment to renewable energy. For instance, we supply accommodation that has been recognised with certifications for Sustainable tourism by the Costa Rican authorities. They pride themselves on promoting "natural and cultural experiences hand in hand with the integral growth of the community". They go the extra mile by proudly posting yearly sustainability reports on their website. Also, there is the opportunity to stay in aptly named 'ecolodges' and 'wildlife refuges.' Another example is an accommodation that even has its own farm, supplying the kitchen from the on-site culinary garden and fresh eggs from their chicken coop. In fact fresh, seasonal produce is emphasised on this trip. A significant example of this is on Isla Venado, famous for its fishing history, where your dinner will be the catch of the day.

This trip is an exciting and active adventure. For this reason, it includes lots of 'human powered transport' and movement. This includes rafting in Turrialba, kayaking at Arenal volcano, surfing in Samara, ziplining and walking through Monteverde and Manuel Antonio.

Environment and wildlife-

Costa Rica is one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet. The plethora of flora, fauna and wildlife is the primary attraction to tourists. On this trip this is evident across national parks Monteverde and Manuel Antonio where many people go to spot sloths and monkeys. For this reason, it is even more important to hold strong values of animal welfare and protection. We’re serious about this animal welfare stuff and want to do everything we can to improve the welfare of animals in tourism. We’ve therefore teamed up with animal welfare experts, ANIMONDIAL. Their vision is to minimise tourism’s impact on animals, natural environments and the people that depend upon them. They’ve helped us to improve the welfare standards of our trips even further and create long-term plans to support animals in tourism. Best of all though, we’ve worked together to create an Animal Welfare in Tourism Starter Kit for small businesses, to help other travel companies improve their animal welfare standards too. Furthermore, these national parks are also conservation centres dedicated to nature recovery.

This trip contributes to the maintenance of areas of outstanding natural beauty by promoting national parks and forests like the cloud forests of Monteverde and Manuel Antonio, which have entrance fees that feeds back into the economy and wildlife protection, and use local guides who are experts in the local flora and fauna.

We also offer tools to our customers to encourage sustainability, carbon reduction and caring for the environment both at home and away. These include 'zero waste while travelling: our top tips'.

People

The hotels that we work with in Costa Rica follow in the same ethos as the rest of the accommodation we offer- small, boutique style special stays that are locally owned, authentic and full of character. Costa Rica boasts some of the best examples of this policy.

The emphasis on the fishing history on Isla Venado does not only benefit the tourist with new knowledge and a delicious dinner, but also supports the local economy as the island's residents rely heavily on fishing.

We maximise local economic opportunities further by using only locally owned excursion companies where you will meet and learn from expert local guides throughout the trip, including in national parks and when learning to surf.

One of the key aspects of our itineraries is that we work with local partners who are based in Costa Rica in order to provide the most authentic insight into everyday life in the destination, and divert from the usual tourist trail (which is important when considering the mitigation of environmental degradation in tourist hotspots) but also supports the country's economy even before our customer has touched down as the local partner helps to develop their itinerary.

Costa Rica is renowned as one of the most LGBTQ+ friendly destinations in Latin America.