Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 - San Jose

Flight to Costa Rica
American Airlines Flight 2167 leaving DFW at 4:15 p.m. and arriving in San Jose at 7:15 p.m.
Most groups arrive in the afternoon or at night. Upon arrival at the airport, possible wait time of 2hrs for consolidated groups/split itineraries. Arrival in San Jose: Touch down in San Jose, the country's bustling capital and cultural center. Founded in 1737 as "Villa Nueva de la Boca del Monte del Valle de Abra," the city's name was later changed to honor its patron saint, Saint Joseph.
Hotel transfer: After clearing customs and immigration, meet your bilingual guide, Alvaro Alvarado, who will remain with you throughout your stay. A private motorcoach then takes you to your hotel.
Transfer to hotel (30min). Check-in usually not possible before 2pm. In this case, group can store bags and exchange money.
7pm/8pm: Dinner at hotel; after dinner, free time.

Hotel Villas Tournon
Address: San Jose
San Jose 0032
Costa Rica
Phone: 506 2245 4616
Web: www.costarica-hotelvillatournon

Day 2 - San Jose & Arenal Region
8am: Guided visit to Imbio Park; Introduction to the Diversity of Flora and Fauna in Costa Rica (2hrs).
Visit INBioparque: Ecosystem exhibits and trails
Learn about biological diversity as you visit this theme park and research station created by the National Institute of Biodiversity. Get up close and personal with tarantulas, frogs, bees and butterflies in the permanent exhibits, or walk through three different ecosystem trails. Explore the plant life in the lagoon before admiring the butterfly garden. Stop by the Ecological Tourism Office on your way out for further information on Costa Rica's protected land areas.
10am: Transfer by bus; TD will lead group for sightseeing through a coffee plantation en route to Poas Volcano National Park. Guided tour (2hrs).
Visit Poás Volcano
Continue along a scenic 22-mile drive overlooking the Central Valley as you make your way to the Poas Volcano. This still-active volcano is part of Costa Rica's most developed national park. Here, you can see one of the largest craters in the world (about a mile wide and 300 meters deep), whose hot sulfurous lake changes color with volcanic activity. From a lookout point see geysers and active fumaroles; in addition, a 20-minute hike uphill rewards you with a view of the jewel-like Botos Lake, which occupies an extinct crater.
12noon: Lunch at local restaurant (up to 1hr).
1pm: Transfer by bus to Arenal Region (3hrs).
Travel to Arenal region
Journey west across the Central Valley to Arenal. This area is one of the world's major coffee producers.

Hotel Lavas Tacotal
Address: Arenal Region
La Fortuna de San Carlos 2156
Costa Rica
Phone: 506 247 912 00
Web: http://www.tacotal.com/Tacotal/site/index.html

4pm: Check-in at hotel in La Fortuna. Visit a Thermo Mineral Hot Springs Centre: group will have chance to swim in pools with hot springs and mineral waters. Bathing suit and flip-flops required (2hrs). Group visits Arenal hot springs (2hrs30min), which has 16 hot and cold pools of different temperatures.
Visit to the hot springs: Experience the relaxation properties of natural hot springs, filled with water heated by nearby volcanoes and channeled into pools. It's an ideal way to soothe muscles after the day's activities.
6:30pm/7pm/8pm: Dinner at hotel; free time after dinner.

Day 3 Arenal Region
9am: Kayaking on Lake Arenal. Guided tour by professional guides; kayaks are for 1 or 2 pax;helmets and life vest are provided (2 hrs).
Kayaking on Lake Arenal: Get ready for an adventure to remember - kayaking along Lake Arenal. Picture-perfect scenery surrounds you, including mountains, windmills and the Arenal Volcano, as you navigate the lake.
12noon: Lunch at hotel. Transfer to visit La Fortuna Waterfall (20min). Walking trail to the waterfall (1hr30min).
Visit to La Fortuna Waterfall: One of Costa Rica's most spectacular waterfalls, La Fortuna is located within the thick jungle of the Arenal Rainforest. You'll pass some impressive scenery (keep your camera ready for wildlife photos) as you walk to the top of the waterfall. You may also have time to make the breathtaking downhill climb to the waterfall's base.
6:30pm/7pm/8pm: Dinner at hotel; free time after dinner.

Day 4 Arenal Region & Monteverde
8am: Transfer to Monteverde Region (3hrs).
Transfer to Monteverde: Continue through the mountainous scenery to the Monteverde (Green Mountain) Reserve. The reserve was settled in 1951 by a group of Alabama Quakers; attracted by the country's pacifist history, they began dairy farming here. In 1972, the area became the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, a private nonprofit reserve with six distinct ecological zones containing a wide range of spectacular flora and fauna.

Los Cipreses
Address: Monteverde Region
Santa Elena 8956
Costa Rica
Phone: not listed
Web: http://www.cipreseshotel.com/

Visit a local school
Group will visit a local school on the way to Monteverde Region. Lunch at hotel.
Optional: Horseback riding: those not horseback riding can have free time at the horseback riding site (2hrs30min); the group will be provided with helmets and accompanied by professional guides. Transfer to hotel in Monteverde (up to 1hr).
Horseback: Explore Monteverde on horseback! Your bus will head to La Cruz de Monteverde, where horses and guides will be awaiting your arrival. During your two-and-a-half hour trip, you will stop at a local school, where you'll interact with Costa Rican students and have the opportunity to sample homemade refreshments. Afterwards, the bus will take you back to your hotel in Monteverde.
7/8pm: Dinner at hotel; free time.

Day 5 Monteverde
Visit the Santa Elena Cloud Forest
7:30am: Transfer to forest (15min); walking trail and tree planting at EF reserve (45min).
Plant a tree in the EF reserve in Monteverde
Half-day at the Santa Elena Cloud Forest: Explore the spectacular Santa Elena Cloud Forest, a paradise rich in diverse plant and animal life and situated near the Continental Divide. Warm northeasterly trade winds, filled with moisture, blow in over the Atlantic. As the winds sweep up to the Continental Divide, they cool and condense to form clouds, bathing the forest in a constant soft mist. The cloud forest averages 12 feet of rain annually. Look for bromeliads and orchids as well as brightly colored quetzals among the lush flora. Until recently, the reserve was one of only two places in the world that was home to the now-extinct golden toad (sapo dorad0). Leave your mark on the Earth when you plant a tree in the EF reserve - future generations will appreciate the oxygen!
8:30am: Transfer to Selvatura (30min) for Canopy tour.
10am: Canopy tour (2hrs). Lunch at hotel.
Canopy Tour: On our canopy tour, you will make like the birds and monkeys who call the cloud forest home. Special traits, suspension footbridges and zip lines unveil one of the planet's most fascinating ecological systems from a unique perspective - the tops of the trees. With local expert guides at your side, you can decide which view you prefer - from below or from above.
7/8pm: Dinner at hotel; free time.

Day 6 Monteverde & Central Pacific Coast
Transfer to Central Pacific Coast (3hrs); visit Carara National Park on the way.
12noon: Box lunch or lunch at hotel. Free afternoon.
Visit to Carara Reserve: Follow the coastline south to the Carara Reserve, a national park that boasts a dazzling population of rare wildlife. Be on the lookout for scarlet macaws, boat-billed herons, motmots and roseate spoonbills among the lush vines and anceint trees that make up the park's dense jungle.
Transfer to the Central Pacific Coast: Transfer to the breathtaking Central Pacific Coast, where sandy beaches, a rocky coastline and lush rainforests act as a magnet for travelers.
7pm/9pm: Dinner at hotel; free time.

Hotel Punta Leona
Central Pacific Coast
Punta Leona
Costa Rica
Phone: 506 2231 3131
Web: http://www.hotelpuntaleona.com/

Day 7 Central Pacific Coast
Enjoy a free day on the Central Pacific Coast
9:30am: Trip to Manuel Antonio National Park (1hr30min).
11am: Visit to Manuel Antonio National Park, trail & beach.
12noon: Box lunch or lunch at hotel. Free afternoon.
Excursion to Manuel Antonio National Park: Join an excursion along the shoreline to Manuel Antonio National Park, known for its lush jungle vegetation and white, sandy beaches. This beautiful 716-acre park is home to both the squirrel monkey and the two-toed sloth.
7pm/9pm: Dinner at hotel; free time.

Day 8 Puntarenas Region & San Jose
Travel via Sarchi to San José
Transfer to San José via Sarchi; Free afternoon in San Jose; (5hrs).
Lunch in Sarchi. Free afternoon.
Transfer via Sarchi: Your full-day transfer to San Jose begins via picturesque Sarchi, a town known for the brightly painted designs and colorful wheels that adorn local oxcarts. The complex patterns are passed down from one generation to the next.
7pm/8pm: Dinner at hotel; after dinner, free time.

Hotel Villas Tournon
Address: San Jose
San Jose 0032
Costa Rica
Phone: 506 2245 4616
Web: www.costarica-hotelvillatournon

Day 9 San Jose
Take a whitewater rafting expedition on the Sarapiquí River
Half-day whitewater rafting excursion (2hrs).
Whitewater Rafting Excursion: Experience a thrilling whitewater rafting expedition down the Sarapiqui.
12noon-1:30pm: Lunch in Sarapiquí after the tour. Group returns to the hotel early in the afternoon.
7pm/8pm: Dinner at hotel; after dinner, free time.

Day 10 Home
Return on July 2nd: American Airlines Flight 2166 leaving San Jose at 10:10 a.m. and arriving in DFW at 3:20 p.m.
Transfer to San José airport
San José International Airport is located about 30min from our hotels. Group should anticipate being at the airport 3hrs before flight departure time.
Return Home: Your tour director assists with the transfer to the airport, where you'll check in for your return flight home.