Arenal Volcano
The volcano measures about 5358 ft high. It was dormant for hundreds of years until 1968, when it erupted unexpectedly, destroying the small town of Tabacón. Due to the eruption three more craters were created on the western flanks but only one of them still exists today. Since October 2010, Arenal's volcanic activity appears to be decreasing and explosions have become rare. There is no complete trip to Arenal without taking the Volcano Hike. This is the best way to look at the volcano lava flowing from a safe point and the best panoramic view of the volcano!. You will be submerge in a primary Tropical rain forest, where you will spend about 1½ hour exploring the Silencio Trail, which is located in a private primary forest, facing the majestic Arenal Volcano.

Caño Negro Wildlife
Set near the Nicaraguan border in a marshy, jungle-like area, the Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge is one of the most difficult places to independently visit in Costa Rica. It is set in a remote area of the country and is often submerged in water from flooded rivers. The boat tour operate along the Río Frío (Cold River), a slow-flowing river that winds through canyons on its way to the Caño Negro Lake. Along the shores of the river and in the trees that bend over its waters, visitors will be able to spot birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians. There are howler, spider and white-faced monkeys, three-toed sloth, caimans, turtles, and even Jesus Christ Lizards. Keep your eyes on the river, too – there’s the chance of spotting the fin of a freshwater shark as it slices above the water’s surface.

White Water Rafting (optional)
White water rafting is one of the 'must do' activities in Arenal Costa Rica if you are an adventure lover. It is hardly surprising it is a popular activity given the warm water, great rapids and the chance of seeing the adundant flora and fauna in Costa Rica. Arenal Volcano is the second most visited location in Costa Rica, afterall who can resist visiting one of the most activie volcanoes in the world, combined with the many activities in the area? Once in Arenal many people take advantage of the white water rafting in the area, the convenience and the beautiful rivers make it a good choice. And who is rafting suitable for? For those with a great sense of adventure and wanting to see Costa Rica from a fun and different prospective...white water rafting Arenal Costa Rica is a must!

Canyoneering (optional)
Canyoneering (or canyoning) in in the Lost Canyon, Arenal Costa Rica is a wonderful experience. Imagine yourself in surrounded by lush rainforest atop a magical canyon waiting to rappel down some jungle waterfalls! Start off by doing a fun 4x4 off-road adventure as you climb about 15 minutes up into a quiet mountainside community. Prepare to get wet! Your guides will give you a thorough safety talk to explain important rappelling and down-climbing techniques. You will be provided high-quality technical climbing gear such as a harness, helmet & gloves. Prepare to get wet as the guides aassist you as you make your way down amazing rappels! Take a deep breath! You’ll rappel down 150-ft waterfalls for the thrill of a lifetime! Make your way along the river bed by down-climbing and rappelling a series of six waterfalls that get gradually bigger and… BIGGER! Save the best for last! The biggest and most-exciting waterfall is your last descent… you’ll finish with a 200ft-guided-rappel at the end!

Baldi Hot Springs
Baldi Hot Springs is located 4km from the town of La Fortuna in Arenal Costa Rica and is a popular hot springs set in 4.5 acres of gorgeous tropical gardens. It has 16 different hot springs baths of varying temperature, averaging around 40°C. Baldi Hot Springs has restaurants, swim-up bars, spa service, changing facilities and tropical gardens. The pools are spread around the grounds and sculpted with stones and framed by lush plants. Many types of treatments and massages are available from the spa, which take advantage of the thermal waters, minerals and other volcanic properties. There is a restaurant with an international menu (and relatively high prices) and a bar which serves cheaper snacks of: hamburgers, pizza and fries. On a good night, you can sit in a pool, drink in hand, watching the lava flow down the volcano!

Horseback Transfer (optional)
85 miles (136 km) of road separate the town of La Fortuna – which lays at the base of the Arenal Volcano – and Monteverde. Due to the mountainous terrain separating these two locations (and some 3,700 feet in elevation), there is no direct route, as the road is forced to detour by the town of Tilarán. You will travel from La Fortuna to the Arenal Dam. A motorboat will take you to the other side of the Lake Arenal to El Castillo, a town where the horses will be ready for you. You will ride for three and a half hours, crossing rivers, grasslands, typical farms and forests. Then you climb up over 3,300 feet until you reach the cloud forest. This is probably the most spectacular trip you will find in Costa Rica. This trip gives you the opportunity to see some of the most stunning scenery in the world as you ride nearby the Childrens Rainforest Reserve and the Monteverde Cloud Forest.

Zipline (optional)
You will ride an open-air gondola from the ground to the heights where you'll be dropped off at an observation area for fantastic views of the gulf and cloud forest. From this area, choose to return to the ground below by riding the gondola back down or opt for a faster trip by riding down on a zip line stretching across canyons and between treetops, the exhilarating adventure of zip lining down the mountainside begins, ultimately returning you to the starting point at the main building. There are currently ten zip line cables and they range in height from 40 meters to 100 meters and in length from 100 meters to 750 meters.

Monteverde National Park
Monteverde was originally founded in 1951. Founded by a group of U.S. Quakers, who were pacifists seeking refuge from the draft, relocated there because of Costa Rica’s political neutrality. These Quakers made every effort to preserve and maintain the integrity and natural beauty of their new home land. To sustain themselves, the Quakers began making cheese from milk brought to their primitive processing plant each morning by Tico dairy farmers. Today the Quakers produce tons of cheese daily. Consequently, they achieved their goal as well as seeing their community thrive. The Monteverde Cloud Forest is known around the world for its conservation efforts and has been much praised for its forward-thinking ecological preservation efforts enacted within it. Monteverde is truly a biological and ecological treasure in Costa Rica’s already rich landscape. Scientists have come from all over in order to study and examine Monteverde’s rich ecological and biological qualities. The reserve is not really a national park; it is instead run by the Tropical Science Center, an organization that runs numerous projects in order to maintain and preserve this ecological treasure.

Mangrove Kayak
Paddle through the smooth inland waterways of the Damas Island Estuary, one of the most unusual types of vegetation on the planet, and learn the importance of this delicate ecosystem. Mangroves thrive where the salt waters of the ocean meet the fresh waters of tropical rivers creating a periodically submerged forest of interlacing aerial roots. You will be given paddling instructions at the beginning of the tour. Your bilingual guide will show you the wealth of animal and bird life that lives in this unique habitat, such as mangrove wrens, swallows and an abundance of shore birds. On the banks of the estuary, you'll see the main protagonists of the mangrove ecosystem; the Sally light foot crab, as well as boa constrictors tangled in the aerial roots, silky ant eaters and monkeys in the upper branches and crocodiles slipping in and out of the water.

Manuel Antonio National Park
This park is just south of Quepos on the Pacific Coast, 132 km from San José. Perhaps It is so popular because of its expensive white sand beaches backed by an evergreen forest that grows right up to the high tide line. The principal habitants are primary forest, secondary forest, mangrove swamps, lagoons and beach vegetation. There is quite a varied fauna with 109 species of mammals and 184 of birds. The park includes 12 little isles just off the coast; these are a number of dolphins and, at times, migrating whales can be observed.

Wednesday, December 5: You'll need to arrive at LAX, mid-evening for departure on overnight flight to Costa Rica.

Thursday, December 6: We arrive at Juan Santamaria Int'l Airport in early AM. As you exit the airport, look for our leaders (with “Friendly” signs) to direct you to our coach. The air-conditioned coach will accompany us throughout our trip. we'll make a lunch stop near Varablanca. North of here you'll see the famous Catarata de La Paz, a waterfall which you can walk behind on a trail. Good photo op! Our coach will drive around rolling hills and fields of the NE facing Cordillera de Tilaran foothills. We'll drive through San Carlos and Fortuna, with at least one stop at a market to look around. Late afternoon we'll arrive at Arenal, just up the hill from Fortuna. In May 2004 and Dec. 2006 we witnessed spectacular late night eruptions of Vulcan Arenal. In the evening, we'll make the coach available for a dinner stop in Fortuna. Accommodations: Arenal

Friday, December 7: Cano Negro Wildlife tour is off the beaten path, but worth the effort. We will head to Los Chiles from where you'll do a peaceful boat ride along the Rio Frio in an area unsurpassed in natural beauty – wildlife guaranteed! Departs: 7:30am Duration: 8 hours Includes: lunch, covered boat, naturalist guide, transport. In the evening we will enjoy the gardens and many soaking pools of the Baldi Hot springs. dinner is included but bring $ for the poolside bar. If you choose not to join us then here in Arenal, after our included breakfast, you have many choices. Accommodations: Arenal

Saturday, December 8: Today you are free to relax or choose from many activities including La Catarata de La Fortuna. River rafting on the Rio Toro and Penas Blancas. Hike to a lagoon filled extinct crater. Horseback riding. A boat ride or windsurfing on Lake Arenal. Canyoneering, the highly recommended Tabacon Resort, with hot springs, water slide, 12 soaking and swimming pools of various degrees, gardens, spa, restaurant, massage, etc. Explore the Venado Caves. Get up close to Vulcan Arenal in the evening., or stay at our hotel and swim/or venture out on your own. Accommodations: Arenal

Sunday, December 9: After breakfast in the dinning room, Join us on our leaders choice volcano hike or consider some of the items above that you may have missed. Accommodations: Arenal

Monday, December 10: Depart Arenal in early AM, for Santa Elena and Monteverde via Tilaran. Today, we strongly recommend the horseback tour between Arenal and Monte Verde for an enjoyable day of adventure, Last group said they loved it! Monteverde is over 2000' higher than Arenal. Our coach will take us around Lake Arenal, the largest in Costa Rica, and make various stops, like the over 200 power-generating windmills here. We'll stop in Tilaran, a farming/ranching business town for lunch. From Tilaran, on to Santa Elena and our goal, Monteverde, is one of the most proclaimed destinations in Costa Rica. After our long drive, arrive early afternoon for our 3-night stay and some time to do what you want to do. Pace yourself accordingly; it's your vacation! Accommodations: Santa Elena/Monteverde

Tuesday, December 11: In the Quaker community of Monteverde is the famous Reserva (Biologica Bosque Nuboso) Monteverde, we will tour in early am. In this largely English-speaking town, you have many optional pursuits. The Serpentarium, Ranarium (amphibians), many art galleries, hiking trails, the Sky Walk, Canopy tours of the Monteverde Cloud Forest, horseback riding, butterfly gardens, the Quaker cheese factory, organic coffee farming, and numerous other tours. Whatever you decide, you may find that others are interested in joining you. Accommodations: Santa Elena/Monteverde

Wednesday, December 12: Another day of activities. Accommodations: Santa Elena/Monteverde

Thursday, December 13: Depart early AM for the dash (about 5 hours) to Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio, along the way south, we have stops at Crocodile bridge (Rio Tarcoles); you'll see the namesake basking along the riverbanks and perhaps lunch in Jaco, the surfing capital of Costa Rica. Then it's on to Quepos, the service center for the resort community outside Manuel Antonio. The small Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio has all those things tourists want, stunning beaches, a magnificent setting with offshore islands, abundant wildlife, lush rainforests with a network of trails, all within walking distance of our hotel. However, as a result it is over used. The park now limits daily admission, we will enter early a.m. on Fri/Sat (opens at 7 a.m.). Accommodations: Manuel Antonio

Friday, December 14: Today ½ our group will Kayak through Mangroves of Damas Estuary, bus departs 10:00am. The rest of us will have opportunity to hike in Manual Antonio NP. Our nice hotel offers an included breakfast each morning. This is the perfect time to mix with our group and discover their plans for the day. This hotel was a favorite of the last group, so we increased our stay by an extra night. You'll discover an amazing amount of wildlife on the hotel grounds: Troops of monkeys that come passing through, large iguanas that are perfectly motionless; in the evening look for the fireflies and blue and orange colored land crabs! Our hotel has its own beach on the ocean, swimming pool, and a security guard stationed nearby. Accommodations: Manuel Antonio

Saturday, December 15: Another day in paradise. Deal with it! Today ½ our group will Kayak through Mangroves of Damas Estuary, bus departs 10:00am the rest of us will have opportunity to hike in Manual Antonio NP. Accommodations: Manuel Antonio

Sunday, December 16: Early morning departure to Juan Santamaria Int'l Airport. Along the way, we'll have a stop in the beautifully set handicraft town of Sarchi for last minute shopping, short walks and sightseeing. We anticipate enough time to stop in San Jose area, before our late afternoon flight to LAX.

After you send your payment, you'll have two weeks from the date we receive the check to cancel without penalty. After that date your airfare tickets will be ordered and If you cancel, a $250 fee for the land package will apply. After October 1, 2012, substantial funds will have been committed to the trip vendors. The land package fee will be non-refundable and the airline ticket will belong to you.

How much is the single supplement fee?
If you are traveling alone and specifically request single accommodations, you will be asked to pay the $350 single supplement. Please be advised that the room is subject to availability.

How much does lunch and dinner typically cost?
Lunch is typically $3 to $10 and dinner $6 to $20.

Does the trip include travel insurance?
Non-optional travel insurance is included in cost of the trip.