Essential Costa Rica - Package with Manuel Antonio National Park

Customer Reviews

• DG

  David

  · March 23rd, 2025
  Trip in general: Overall the trip was good. I made it to all locations and had a good time. I was alone, never been there and don’t speak Spanish very well. This was for 11 days, five cities, two days in each and involved a lot of miles and hours of transfers. Transfers were on time and got me everywhere I was going. Hotels were smaller boutique hotels were all great (see comments below) except Turtle Beach Lodge in Tortuguero did not have air conditioning and it was extremely hot and humid there with no place to hide. I was told all had air conditioning. Activities I did were good and picked up on time and I had fun. I handled my own airline reservations. My biggest complaint was communications between travel agents and tour provider. When asking questions it took days to get answers. I did not receive my final Itinerary until 7 days before trip and had to complain to get it. This made me really unsure about going. I have traveled a lot all over but had never been to Costa Rica, I was alone and had limited Spanish speaking. Communication was good when down there with tour provider through text. Also some of my transports and hotels did not have fluent English speaking people which I was told they would. It was kind of weird that some groups I was with were English speaking but I was transferred in Spanish speaking bus where as they were in English speaking bus and we were going to the same city at the same time. I did not have any problems though. Activities: San Jose – walked to city on my own first night Tortuguero – provided activities 1.) city of Guapiles, 2) guided jungle tours on land and boat to see animals. No optional, too remote. La Fortuna – Provided tour of Arenal Volcano Park, optional ATV adventure through farm and river. Fun but you will get dirty. Monteverde – Provided tour of Monteverde Cloud Forest Park, optional Extreme Zipline. Longest and highest ziplines, 14 platforms, including two Supermans and a Tarzan swing that is actually a bungee jump/swing. Warning: you have to walk up steep inclines before each zipline. If you are not in shape it will be hard. There were points I thought I wouldn’t make it. The experience is lots of fun, except the inclines. Manuel Antonio –provided Manual Antonio National Park, walked to beach and restaurants. You can rent chairs and umbrella, can’t be in sun too long. Hotels: Autentico Hotel – San Jose – Nice hotel in city with air conditioning. I was able to walk to city center about 25 min walking. Restaurants and grocer near. Check in and check out was easy and English speaking attendant. Turtle Beach Lodge – Tortuguero - A 4 hour drive and two hour boat ride. It’s a rustic lodge in the middle of the remote jungle. Rooms are basic, open air (no air conditioning) screens, no windows. It is hot and humid here and you only have a fan and if there is a breeze. You will hear everything including sounds of jungle and your neighbor’s, not real private. Can’t swim in ocean and pool warm. The food is good but basic. The staff and guides were excellent, friendly and helpful. I was glad that it was only a two night stay given that it was uncomfortable in extreme heat. Disappointed that I didn’t really see that many birds or animals for the locations remoteness. It may have been good at one time but too many transports, boats and people I think are scaring the animals away. I wouldn’t recommend location to someone. Hotel Eco Arenal – La Fortuna – Nice small hotel with view of Volcano. Air conditional, pool and nice buffet breakfast with many choices. Attendant had limited English speaking. Restaurant right across street, Mary’s Barbeque, was excellent. Good service, good food moderate prices. Quite a walk to the small city. I got dropped off after an activity and ate there and then took an Uber back. Uber was cheap, fast and clean. The city has lots to do. Sign up for activities, restaurants and bars, grocers, etc.. Hotel Poca a Poco – Monteverde – Very nice small boutique hotel. It is laid out in different levels separating rooms with a floral jungle of any plant you can imagine. Covered pool, large hot tub and fire pit. They have a path that weaves through the jungle for spotting birds, animal and more vegetation. The room was attractive, modern, clean, private and spacious and had everything you need. Breakfast was to order and included. Check-in was easy and fast with English speaking host. There a small town a little way up the road with gift shops, groceries and many restaurants. I really enjoyed my time there and would recommend it. Hotel La Vela - Manuel Antonio – Another very nice small boutique hotel. . Air conditional, pool and nice buffet breakfast with many choices. Check in and out easy with English speaking attendant. The beach and National Park Manuel Antonio are both a 10 minute walk, as were gift shops, groceries and many restaurants. Very convenient and nice. Hotel Hampton Inn – San Jose – Big American style hotel with free breakfast buffet and free shuttle to airport. Many restaurants within walking distance.
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  Destination Services Costa Rica commented on this review

  Dear Mr. Gray, We truly appreciate you are taking the time to share with us your experience. Your opinion is very important for us! It makes us happy to hear that you enjoyed your vacation even the Tortuguero Experience (please note that Lodge... Show more
  Trip date: March 2025
• LC

  Lucinda

  · March 21st, 2025
  We were very happy with the entire trip until the last night in san José. The hotel was across the street from a casino. Loud people and music until 230 am when a round of 10 gunshots were fired. Police closed street so we were lucky to not get stranded. All the connections were excellent. Some drivers arrived early others a few minutes late. But always polite and helpful. The company in CR was very helpful with a couple issues. Responding quickly to email and phone. All parts of CR were beautiful in unique ways. Totally recommend the tour.
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  Destination Services Costa Rica commented on this review

  Dear Lucinda, Thank you for sharing your experience. Your opinion is very important for us! We are truly sorry about the situation near to the last hotel; we will take some considerations about this. Again, our apologies! At same time, we feel very... Show more
  Trip date: March 2025
• 

  Cheuk-Ying

  · March 15th, 2025
  The pick up from the San Jose airport at the beginning of the tour, and the transport back to the airport at the end was smooth without any problem. The tour guides at each location were knowledgeable and helpful to explain things and take photos for us from their telescopes. However, we were not picked up from our Eco Arenal hotel to the Ecotermales hotsprings at 5:30 pm on March 5, 2025. Nobody showed up from Outhikers and fortunately the hotel lady was kind enough to call the number at Outhikers but there was no answer. Apparently, the tour was changed to a different supplier North Adventures without our knowledge. The hotel lady called her own driver to drop us to the Ecotermales hotsprings just in time to have the dinner buffet and hotsprings afterward. We were worried how we would come back to the hotel. Somehow, North Adventures sent their driver to pick us up and drop us back to the hotel. They apologized for the mistake and gave us a free lunch the following day. In addition, the pickup by Interbus from Restaurant Fogon de Lola to Arenal was short one seat. There were 4 of us to be picked up but only 3 seats available. Luckily a young guy was kind enough to give up his seat and sat on the floor. Beware of the sale price advertised, you have to factor in extra costs for all the excursions and the hotel packages in San Jose and Manual Antonio, which eventually adds up significantly. The final itinerary was sent to us only one day before departure which did not give us ample time to review it. A nice surprise was the free upgrade to a superior hotel Poco a Poco in Monteverde! In general, TourRadar is slow to respond to your questions (they say average 3 days).
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  Destination Services Costa Rica commented on this review

  Dear Cheuk-Ying, Thank you for sharing your experience. Your opinion is very important for us! We are truly sorry about the different situations you mentioned; we will take some considerations about this with the different suppliers. Again, our... Show more
  Trip date: March 2025
• 

  Fiona

  · February 14th, 2025
  We booked a 10 day tour to Costa Rica. Everything went perfectly! Hotels were great, transfers went perfectly and guides on tours were wonderful. We didn't want to leave. Costa Rica is the most amazing country.
  Trip date: February 2025
• KB

  Kerry

  · February 4th, 2025
  The tour itinerary and activities are fantastic and Costa Rica is beautiful but I would not recommend this tour provider. There are not very responsive when there are issues. For one of the additional activities which I purchased with the tour, the Ecotermales Hotsprings, the activity provider was 40 minutes late and after messaging and ringing the activity provider they arrived. I also messaged Destination Services Costa Rica through WhatsApp and they did not respond. Another additional activity that was puchased, the Selvatura Treetop Walkway guided tour, the activity provider didn't pick me up and when messages were sent and the activity provider called I was advised that they were not coming and had left. When I contacted the tour provider about this they said they would find a resolution but they have subsequently ignored follow up messages and have not gotten back to any correspondence or provided a refund for the activity which I was not provided.
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  Trip date: December 2024
• SK

  Sandra

  · January 27th, 2025
  Every detail was taken care of. From airport pickup to hotels reservations. Every van and every excursion was very well planed.
  Trip date: January 2025
• BC

  Brenda

  · January 21st, 2025
  Wasn’t informed ..no plastic bottles in the park..so humid that day with no hydration..my sis and I had to walk to the cafeteria for water. We were both feeling ill. Sat for over an hour drinking water. Didn’t finish the tour..went straight back. The guide was great!
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  Trip date: January 2025
• AG

  Anita

  · December 19th, 2024
  This tour was a comprehensive sample of Costa Rica. All the connections and tour guides were very knowledgeable and friendly.
  

  Destination Services Costa Rica commented on this review

  Good Day!! It was a truly pleasure to assist you during the whole planification of your trip. We are very glad to know you have enjoyed this journey. Regards, Destination Services Costa Rica's Team
  Trip date: December 2024
• KM

  Kathy

  · December 9th, 2024
  Communication with the company was good and we enjoyed our tour overall, but we wish that there had been more flexibility in changing lodging reservations once in country. We had a few lovely accommodations and some that were dark, dank and dismal, in need of repair and updating.
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  Destination Services Costa Rica commented on this review

  Good Day Dear Kathy We are sorry to hear you didn't like some accommodations, unfortunately it is not possible to do last minute changes when the customer is already in the country, as per-hotel politics they will go to penalize the full stay and if... Show more
  Trip date: November 2024
• OP

  Ole

  · December 2nd, 2024
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  The trip was superbly organized and the activities and hotels well chosen. Only the last hotel, San Bada, is getting on in years and should be replaced by one of the many others in Manuel Antonio.
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  Destination Services Costa Rica commented on this review

  Good Day Dear Ole Thanks for your comments, we are definitely taking in count the information to keep improving our services. We truly appreciate your feedback! Regards, Karla Alpízar Destination Services Costa Rica's Team
  Trip date: November 2024