Costa Rica – our first travel adventure outside of Europe. There were so many places to choose from – we considered areas in SE Asia like Malaysia and the Philippines and Central America. After googling the safest countries in Central America and looking at the pictures of Costa Rica we were sold and the planning started.
I wasn’t keen to go on one of the organised tours that most families go on when visiting Costa Rica. I was sure I could organise something myself for much less and do it a little more off the tourist trail (sorry everyone else – it’s not personal – I’d just rather see everything around me rather than people and hear the natural noises over tourist natter) and I was right. What I had not anticipated was the massive amount of time it took me to plan this trip – there are so many amazing places in Costa Rica, there’s so much rainforest how do you pick which bit to go to? When you have the choice of anywhere how do you pick which beach?
That’s why I’m putting this blog out there – in case I can help someone else plan their trip a little quicker than mine or give other families the confidence to go visit Costa Rica. Our overriding impression was that it is a super friendly and beautiful country, easy to travel around with lots of restaurants which serve food which most kids should be willing to eat (chicken, rice and chips, burgers, sandwiches and pasta) even when we were in non touristy areas.
I wanted to share these with everyone so you know that it’s possible to do this yourself, get the trip you want and save money too.
Read our blog posts on Costa Rica for our itinerary, journal, reviews and get some tips and ideas for your own trip or check out our Costa Rica facts page for everything you need to know before you go.
Days 1-7. Flying to Costa Rica with kids, American visa’s and La Virgen with kids
Days 8-11. Mountains, waterfalls and hummingbirds around La Paz and Volcan Poas in Costa Rica.
Days 11-18. Beaches, Quetzals, turtles and a flooded toilet around Matapalo in Costa Rica.