Costa Rica: Pura Vida and Conservation

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Program number: 2643481NT
Group Leader's name: Mark Schlueter
Requested departure date: 6/1/2024
Requested return date: 6/11/2024
Departure gateway: Atlanta (GA)
11 days
The experience of a lifetime is waiting for you. Every detail from local restaurants to cultural discoveries has been customized by your professor for your group. Take a look at your personal itinerary for a sneak peek of what's in store.
 

  • Day 1: Fly to Costa Rica

    Meet your Field Director at the airport

    Enjoy dinner in San Jose

  • Day 2: San Jose region • Tortuguero

    Snap a photo at Braulio Carrillo National Park, built to preserve the wildlife of the area, from jaguars and ocelots to quetzals and eagles

    Travel by boat to Tortuguero, accessible only by boat and home to just 700 residents

    Enjoy lunch at your hotel in Tortuguero

    Spend a half day exploring Tortuguero Village on your own 

    Enjoy dinner in Tortuguero

  • Day 3: Tortuguero

    Enjoy a boat ride through the Tortuguero canals and see how the rainfall, fresh water, and Caribbean sea supports the area's exceptional biodiversity

    Enjoy lunch at your hotel in Tortuguero

    Visit Tortuguero National Park, and see if you can spot a howler monkey, toucan, or even caiman

    Enjoy dinner in Tortuguero

  • Day 4: Tortuguero • Sarapiqui region

    Travel by boat to Siquirres, where you will then board your private coach bus to make your way to the Sarapiquí region

    Enjoy lunch in Sarapiqui

    Participate in a canopy tour

    Enjoy dinner in Sarapiqui

  • Day 5: Sarapiqui • Arenal region

    Enjoy a whitewater rafting excursion

    Travel to the Arenal region and keep an eye out for the mile-high Arenal Volcano 

    Enjoy lunch on your way to Arenal

    Visit the Arenal hot springs and dip your toes into the naturally heated pools

    Enjoy dinner at your hotel in the Arenal region

  • Day 6: Arenal region

    Take a day trip to Los Chiles, a bustling community only a few miles from the Nicaraguan border and overflowing with Costa Rica’s trademark biological splendor

    Take a boat tour of Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge and see the rare and endangered animals that have made the refuge their home 

    Enjoy lunch at Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge 

    Enjoy dinner at your hotel in the Arenal region

  • Day 7: Arenal region • Monteverde

    Visit La Fortuna Waterfall, a spectacular 200-foot cascade surrounded by green cliffs

    Travel to Monteverde

    Enjoy lunch in Monteverde 

    Enjoy dinner in Monteverde

  • Day 8: Monteverde

    Visit the community-run Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, where you will: 

    • Learn about their mission to promote environmentally conscious development practices 
    • Enjoy lunch
    • Plant a tree in the EF Reserve and leave a positive mark on the earth
    • Walk through the clouds on a canopy adventure (Note: To ensure safety, there is a 220lb weight restriction imposed on canopy tours)
    • Enjoy dinner

    Enjoy dinner in Monteverde

  • Day 9: Monteverde • Guanacaste

    Travel to Guanacaste

    Enjoy lunch on your way to Guanacaste 

    Take an excursion to Rincón de la Vieja National Park, a rain and cloud forest that boasts geothermal hot springs

    Enjoy dinner in Guanacaste

  • Day 10: Guanacaste

    Enjoy snorkeling off the coast of Guanacaste in clear Pacific waters, home to interesting and unusual marine life

    Take a boat tour of Palo Verde National Park, one of the last tropical dry rainforests in Central America

    Enjoy lunch in Palo Verde National Park

    Enjoy dinner in Guanacaste

  • Day 11: Depart for home

View full itinerary

  • Day 1: Fly to Costa Rica

    Meet your Field Director at the airport

    Enjoy dinner in San Jose

  • Day 2: San Jose region • Tortuguero

    Snap a photo at Braulio Carrillo National Park, built to preserve the wildlife of the area, from jaguars and ocelots to quetzals and eagles

    Travel by boat to Tortuguero, accessible only by boat and home to just 700 residents

    Enjoy lunch at your hotel in Tortuguero

    Spend a half day exploring Tortuguero Village on your own 

    Enjoy dinner in Tortuguero

  • Day 3: Tortuguero

    Enjoy a boat ride through the Tortuguero canals and see how the rainfall, fresh water, and Caribbean sea supports the area's exceptional biodiversity

    Enjoy lunch at your hotel in Tortuguero

    Visit Tortuguero National Park, and see if you can spot a howler monkey, toucan, or even caiman

    Enjoy dinner in Tortuguero

  • Day 4: Tortuguero • Sarapiqui region

    Travel by boat to Siquirres, where you will then board your private coach bus to make your way to the Sarapiquí region

    Enjoy lunch in Sarapiqui

    Participate in a canopy tour

    Enjoy dinner in Sarapiqui

  • Day 5: Sarapiqui • Arenal region

    Enjoy a whitewater rafting excursion

    Travel to the Arenal region and keep an eye out for the mile-high Arenal Volcano 

    Enjoy lunch on your way to Arenal

    Visit the Arenal hot springs and dip your toes into the naturally heated pools

    Enjoy dinner at your hotel in the Arenal region

  • Day 6: Arenal region

    Take a day trip to Los Chiles, a bustling community only a few miles from the Nicaraguan border and overflowing with Costa Rica’s trademark biological splendor

    Take a boat tour of Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge and see the rare and endangered animals that have made the refuge their home 

    Enjoy lunch at Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge 

    Enjoy dinner at your hotel in the Arenal region

  • Day 7: Arenal region • Monteverde

    Visit La Fortuna Waterfall, a spectacular 200-foot cascade surrounded by green cliffs

    Travel to Monteverde

    Enjoy lunch in Monteverde 

    Enjoy dinner in Monteverde

  • Day 8: Monteverde

    Visit the community-run Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, where you will: 

    • Learn about their mission to promote environmentally conscious development practices 
    • Enjoy lunch
    • Plant a tree in the EF Reserve and leave a positive mark on the earth
    • Walk through the clouds on a canopy adventure (Note: To ensure safety, there is a 220lb weight restriction imposed on canopy tours)
    • Enjoy dinner

    Enjoy dinner in Monteverde

  • Day 9: Monteverde • Guanacaste

    Travel to Guanacaste

    Enjoy lunch on your way to Guanacaste 

    Take an excursion to Rincón de la Vieja National Park, a rain and cloud forest that boasts geothermal hot springs

    Enjoy dinner in Guanacaste

  • Day 10: Guanacaste

    Enjoy snorkeling off the coast of Guanacaste in clear Pacific waters, home to interesting and unusual marine life

    Take a boat tour of Palo Verde National Park, one of the last tropical dry rainforests in Central America

    Enjoy lunch in Palo Verde National Park

    Enjoy dinner in Guanacaste

  • Day 11: Depart for home

Building skills for a global world

Whether you're aiming for a promotion, want to land your dream job, or hoping to leave your comfort zone, international experience gives you the skills you need to succeed in an increasingly global world.
 97% growth in the number of students who were confident navigating unfamiliar places post study abroad.1  93% of students who studied abroad and entered the workforce were employed within 6 months of graduation, compared to 49% who did not study abroad.2  Students who studied abroad saw 100% greater improvement in GPA.3

 

 

*Sources: 1: EF Study Abroad Program Impact 2018; 2: IES Abroad 2015; 3: Georgia Learning Outcomes of Students Studying Abroad Research Initiative 2010  

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