Costa Rica Travel Agents

Everything went very well! Costa Rican people are very friendly and helpful. Olman adjusted my itinerary to fit my wishes. I also met many pleasant fellow travellers during the tours.

The guides on guided nature hikes are incredible. They can locate birds and other animals in the canopy or insects on trees that we would miss. Some could even imitate bird sounds enough to interact with the birds.

One of the drivers on the shuttle buses between places in CR was especially interesting to talk to and gave us many good tips. He worked for Interbus and his name was Alex. He speaks English fluently. With luck you'll he'll be your driver too.

The ziplining in Monteverde was fun and I highly recommend paying extra for the "Superman" harness that lets you lie prone as you zipline over the forest.

I miss the fruit in Costa Rica! It's something you can't take back with you. You can only encourage others to go there to try it.

Hotel Reviews

Hampton Inn & Suites San Jose Airport

Alajuela

This is a modern hotel which is very convenient to the airport. The shuttle runs regularly. If you have a room which faces the railway line expect some noise, but there are few trains and it finishes early enough. A good restaurant with Costa Rican food a short walk away is "Rosti".

Authenticity & Character

For this type of hotel I don't expect authenticity and character.

Location

Good location if you want to be close to the airport. You can also take the train to/from the city although it doesn't run often.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Dreams Lodge Monteverde

Santa Elena

This is a small family owned and operated hotel with a super friendly and helpful staff! If you have your own wheels it's easier to go to the center of town, otherwise it's a taxi or long walk. But it's also quiet so you will probably sleep better than at a hotel in town. The freshly prepared breakfasts (no buffet) were also good.

Authenticity & Character

This is a small family owned and operated hotel away from the center of town. I liked it.

Location

Far from the main town area but quieter and closer to nature because of that.

Staff

Very friendly and helpful staff. They really make you feel welcome and give you good advice.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The only problem was that the small refrigerator in the room was noisy. So I unplugged it.

Hotel Magic Mountain

Fortuna

Spectacular view of the volcano from the room! The view changes depending on the cloud cover and the sun angle. The room was clean and comfortable. The music and partying at the swimming pool can be loud sometimes but it stops early enough that you can sleep. Fantastic breakfast buffet. Easy walk into town.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Spectacular view of the volcano. Easy walk into town.

Staff

I wanted to leave a tip for housekeeping but the front desk could not make change for Costa Rican money.

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

El Silencio Hike & Visit to Ecotermales Hot Springs

Arenal/La Fortuna

I have the impression that part of the hike was skipped because it was raining. Part of the group returned to the van early and the guide took us somewhere on a normal road, not a hiking trail.

Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge Boat Safari

Arenal/La Fortuna

Fantastic! Saw many animals. The "surprise" at the end (after lunch) was also good but I don't want to spoil it here.

Quality of Experience

Food

The lunch was too rushed.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Night Excursion at the Wildlife Refuge in Monteverde

Monteverde

Very good tour. I would do it again and hope to see different animals next time. There are many people on other tours in the same area at the same time, so be prepared to be on a crowded trail. I would like to suggest a night tour with night vision glasses in a less crowded forest.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Selvatura Park Self-Guided Hanging Bridges & Zip Lining

Monteverde

The zip lining and the hike through the forest and over the hanging bridges was fantastic! I highly recommend paying extra to be put into the "superman" harness for the last zip line so you can lie flat as if you are flying. A pity that they don't make a video of that for you, only the regular zip line at the beginning. The zip lining is rather rushed but they need to run many people through the system. Try not to lean back when you are zip lining because then you will start to brake with your brake hand to prevent yourself from leaning back further.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The road to the activity is in terrible condition.

Celeste River and Tenorio National Park Hike

Arenal/La Fortuna

Excellent guide! (Sorry, forgot his name.) And finally a good strenuous hike.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Coffee & Chocolate Tour in Monteverde

Monteverde

The freshly made chocolate paste was amazingly delicious!! I wish there was more chocolate tasting instead of just coffee tasting (with 1 hot chocolate).

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Guided Hike

Monteverde

Great guide, wonderful experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

We highly recommend our Kimkim team in Costa Rica. We did an impromptu trip and received amazing services from Gustavo and Jessica. Gustavo was able to formulate our trip itinerary and book everything with a turn around time of 6 hours. Thank you for making our trip so memorable, he organized the trip based on our preferences. Jessica was great at navigating our day to day plans and was quick with her communication. We will definitely use Kimkim for our future travels.

We recently returned from an amazing family trip to Costa Rica, all thanks to Priscila. Her meticulous planning and attention to detail ensured a smooth and enjoyable experience. When unexpected events arose, Priscila swiftly handled them, keeping our trip stress-free. She was always available to answer questions and provided invaluable tips throughout our journey. Her dedication and local knowledge made our adventure truly unforgettable. We highly recommend Priscila for anyone looking to create lasting memories.

Family adventure:Arenal/La Fortuna, Golf of Papagayo. This was relatively last minute trip with one adult (me) & 2 kids. It was a week filled with zip lining , nature walks, snorkeling and good ol ‘beach time. First time for all 3 of us in Costa Rica and I think we all are a little bit in love. Wilman picked us up from our hotel in San Jose in his nice clean car & drove us to Arenal. Wow what a beautiful place. Hotel room is on the foot of the volcano with our private hot spring. Mistico Park hike: so many hanging bridges through pristine jungle: it’s hot, loud and beaming with life: toucans, sloths, all kids of insects. Mundo Aventura zip lining was combination of adrenaline rush and amazement of zipping thought forest canopy. Staff were all so nice to my 9 and 14 yo sons. Night hike at wild frog sanctuary did not disappoint either, but we were really tired at this point:so many tiny frogs, huge spiders, sloth, and snakes. Next day we were picked up by Alex who drive us to Golf of Papagayo with a stop at Danaus eco park and butterfly garden. We saw crocodiles and more rainforest frogs. We arrived late in evening at our beachfront hotel just in time for quick swim before sunset: sun sets at 6: then pitch dark night.(which was amazing to us, boom, lights out) Next day Snorkeling with Pacific coast dive center was probably the top highlight in an action packed week. This was really unforgettable. Last day we enjoyed the beach and pool at Bahia del Sol, which was perfect. Transfer to Liberia airport was with Genaro who took different route:main road was flooded (rainy season). Big thank you, he knows how to navigate those muddy hills. When we could, we tried to eat at Sodas: family run restaurants serving Costa Rican dishes. I can’t really describe how beautiful Costa Rica is without mentioning the immense kindness and warmth of all the people we met during our trip. I feel very grateful I was able to experience this with my two kids. Thanks so much🙏I sincerely hope to be back and see more

We had an amazing experience. The drivers were all great, shuttle service was reliable, Priscila did an awesome job putting together our itinerary and was super responsive if we had questions. She checked on us every day and made sure we had a stress free and enjoyable trip. HIGHLY recommend KimKim - we will use this service again.

Hotel Reviews

Montaña de Fuego Resort & Spa

La Fortuna

Friendly staff, good food. Room could use a little repair, but would stay again.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Monteverde Country Lodge

Monteverde

Great staff, clean, quiet and comfortable. Great location. Everything was walkable.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Playa Espadilla

Manuel Antonio

Clean, cozy, quiet, great location, pool was super nice.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Walking tour on the slopes of the Arenal Volcano

Arenal/La Fortuna

Great insight on the geological history of the area.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Welcome to Monteverde

Monteverde

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ok

Transport

Arenal Hanging Bridges & La Fortuna Waterfall Guided Hikes

Arenal/La Fortuna

Awesome - saw wildlife, beautiful, great intro to the area.

Quality of Experience

Daniella was a great guide - very knowledgeable.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Canyoneering Tour by the Volcano

Arenal/La Fortuna

So much fun - not hard, little scary at first (if you’ve never done this), but very safe and an 8 year old did it with us. You will get wet!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private: Coffee, Chocolate and Sugar Cane Experience

Monteverde

Roll was very knowledgeable and personable. Very informative and bonus night hike if you do a later tour. Learned a lot and saw all sorts of wildlife - Boa, sloth, tarantula etc.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Rollo was great

Transport

100% Aventura Zip Line Monteverde

Monteverde

So much fun - safe for anyone. 5 year old was doing it with us - in tandem with a guide.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Snorkeling at Isla del Caño Biological Reserve

Manuel Antonio

Absolutely amazing - highly recommend it. Great business, Kim was awesome, saw a ton just snorkeling - including a humpback whale, turtles, all sorts of different species of fish. The lunch on the boat was great.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Professional and knowledgeable - fast boat. Captain and crew knew what they were doing.

Transport

Good bye Costa Rica!

Costa Rica

Fast and easy check in. Plenty of food options at the airport. Buy your souvenirs before you get to the airport - WAY expensive.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Christian was awesome. Gave us a little bonus sightseeing tour around San Jose and took us to a local spot for lunch.