Destinations / Latin America
Put together personally by Yari Steennot
Costa Rica
Pura vida: from Caribbean canals to Pacific beaches
Brochure not opening? Email me and I will send it to you.
My recommended private route through Central America's greenest country: the canals and turtle beaches of Tortuguero, Arenal volcano with its hot springs, the cloud forests of Monteverde and the monkeys and sloths of Manuel Antonio. You finish with three relaxing days on the Pacific coast near Uvita, where whales pass by. You travel with your own party on your own dates, by rental car or with private transfers; hotels and the airport pickup are arranged in advance.
Highlights
- Looking into the steaming crater of Poás volcano, with a coffee tasting at a historic estate
- By boat through the jungle canals of Tortuguero (chance of nesting sea turtles in July–October)
- The perfect volcanic cone of Arenal and an evening in natural hot springs
- Hanging bridges above the rainforest
- Monteverde cloud forest by day and by night
- Monkeys, sloths and white beaches in Manuel Antonio National Park
- The 'whale's tail' of Marino Ballena and a boat trip with a chance of humpbacks and dolphins
- Coffee and chocolate farms run by local families
Day by day in the brochure (PDF)
For information only, not an offer yet
What I will arrange for you after launch
You travel, I arrange everything. You travel privately: no group and no fixed guide tagging along.
- Airport pickup and the transfer on your last day; the details are in the brochure.
- All hotels and guesthouses, booked in advance at the level you choose: Budget, Comfort or Premium.
- Transport on the ground: a rental car waiting for you (self-drive) or a private driver and private transfers. Domestic flights and trains where that makes sense.
- The activities and entrance fees on the route. Prefer a guide? I can add a local guide to any activity.
- Breakfast, and the meals at remote places with no alternative (such as a safari lodge, desert camp or yurt camp). For the other meals I give you my restaurant recommendations, but you choose completely freely where you eat.
- A personal intake, at your home or by video.
- A WhatsApp line with me, before and during your trip, and my personal 24/7 number.
- A call-back after your trip.
- Your international flight: after launch I will also book your flight for you. Prices on the site exclude the flight.
Travel whenever you like
Your dates are completely free: there are no fixed departure dates, you leave on the day that suits you. My recommended route takes 16 days. Shorter or longer is possible too; I adapt the route.
This is advice, not a rule. If you want to travel in another month, I tell you honestly what to expect (rain, heat, crowds) and adapt the route.
Price by level and transport
You choose the level of your hotels and how you get around. Same route, same care; only the hotels and the transport differ.
Estimated prices per person, based on 2 travellers, excl. international flight. Travelling solo, count on a supplement of roughly 55%. With four travellers the price per person drops by roughly 13%.
If you are interested, I am happy to send you the hotel guide with all the addresses.
More about self-drive and the private driver on this route
Self-drive
Costa Rica is a classic self-drive destination. Your rental car (4x4) is waiting on day 5 in Guápiles, after Tortuguero, where no car is needed, and you return it at the airport on day 15: no one-way fee. Your Belgian licence is sufficient (together with your passport with entry stamp), you drive on the right and distances are short, although on the narrow, winding roads you rarely average more than 50 km/h. Drive in daylight only, use Waze and never leave anything visible in the car. Full insurance is included in the price; fuel and the small tolls are paid by you.
Private driver
Prefer not to drive? Then we arrange private transfers between all stops, each with a licensed driver who collects you at your hotel and stops wherever you like on the way. It is not one driver who stays with you throughout: locally you are collected for each activity, or distances are walkable or a short taxi ride. To Monteverde you take the classic jeep-boat-jeep across Lake Arenal. The price difference with self-drive is small in Costa Rica, because rental cars with the mandatory insurance are expensive.
Flight & price
After launch I will also book your flight for you. The prices on this page exclude the international flight.
Return flight Brussels–San José not included: allow about € 650–990 p.p. depending on the month (cheapest in January, most expensive in July and December). After launch I will find you the best flight with your proposal.
Indicative price (estimate) per person based on 2 travellers, excl. international flight. This is not an offer: nothing is being sold yet. Indicative price (estimate), not an offer. In high season the price can be higher, in low season lower. All prices are indicative estimates, not an offer. Nothing is being sold yet; after launch you receive a no-obligation proposal with the price of that moment.
Travelling responsibly
Costa Rica is a pioneer in ecotourism. Wherever possible we choose lodges holding the national CST sustainability certification, work with licensed naturalist guides when you want one, visit family businesses (coffee, cacao) and support national park management through park fees. By law, turtle tours are only allowed with a licensed guide, without torches or flash. Flight CO₂ offsetting is available.