Serendipity Adventures

All of the guides were knowledgeable and articulate about the wonderful biodiversity we were seeing. All of the transport drivers were punctual to the minute according to our itinerary. The entire trip went exactly as planned. Great work by the entire Serendipity/KimKim team.

Hotel Reviews

Tortuga Lodge & Gardens

Tortuguero

We loved this hotel. Great staff, excellent food, knowledgeable friendly guides and excursions.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Arenal Springs Resort

La Fortuna

The view of Arenal volcano from our room was like a picture on a postcard.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

El Establo Mountain Hotel

Monteverde

Nice view from our room. Good food at the restaurant. The shuttle service to the rooms from the reception was dependable AND NECESSARY because of the steepness of the slope the hotel was built on.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Guided Boat Excursion Through the Tortuguero Canals

Tortuguero

Great boat trip with lots of animal and plant sightings. Great guide — he really took time to point out details of the environment.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Private Guided Hike in Arenal Volcano Park 1968

Arenal/La Fortuna

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Look

Transport

Safari Float on the Peñas Blancas River

Arenal/La Fortuna

Friendly knowledgeable guide who really took time to show us the plants and animals along the river.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

All Day Adventure at Selvatura, including Zipline, Hanging Bridges, and Fauna Exhibitions

Costa Rica

Selvatura was very well organized and well worth the day we spent there.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Coffee & Chocolate Tour

Costa Rica

Great tour. Very worthwhile with lots of details and hands on experiences throughout the tour. Fascinating to see the processes of coffee, sugar cane, and chocolate cultivation.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private: Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve Guided Hike

Monteverde

Great personalized guide for just our private group. Forest Alive. Very informative and in depth walk through the cloud forest.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Super knowledgeable guide.

Transport

Incredible guides for all excursions. Everyone was so helpful and friendly

Hotel Reviews

Arenal Paraíso Resort, Spa & Hot Springs

La Fortuna

So pretty! It was advertised as a place to see the volcano, but sadly, rain and fog obscured it. The restaurant meals were good. Their breakfast was amazing. Not a negative thing to say about the Lodging.

Authenticity & Character

The surroundings, staff, cleanliness of facilities.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Karahé Beach Hotel

Manuel Antonio

A bit disappointed in the room. No coffee maker, not always hot water. Ceiling fan very dusty. We didn’t spend much time in the room, so it was satisfactory.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Río Balsa Whitewater Rafting Adventure (Class II-III)

Arenal/La Fortuna

It was fun. Water was low on the river, so maybe not as exciting as other times of the year. But still worth it. Fresh fruit served to us in the middle of float and a good meal after was included

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sunset Sailing Cruise on the Brisa Elegante

Costa Rica

It was so good. Beautiful sunset, plenty of time to jump in the water and enjoy the ocean great dinner and drinks.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Private Organic Cooking Class

Arenal/La Fortuna

I learned a lot about herbs and organic gardening. Guide was so knowledgeable and shared much information with us. We collected many of the items found on farm. They were added to a sugar cane drink. Dinner was good. We cut up the items for our meals. Made corn tortillas. Fun

Quality of Experience

K

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Private Sloth Observation Tour

Arenal/La Fortuna

Personal guide worked very hard to find the sloths and birds in area. Refreshing fruit during the tour. Take bug spray.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

ATV Adventure Manuel Antonio

Manuel Antonio

Because there was a miscommunication with the pick up time with the driver, we missed the tour. Requesting a refund. Except for this bump, everything was very smt

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Because of driver not on time, we were unable to do the adventure

Sky Tram, Sky Trek & Sky Walk

Arenal/La Fortuna

It was so good! Equipment was top notch. Exciting. Even as an 80 year old, I was able to experience the thrill of it Staff so good.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

L

Transport

Manuel Antonio National Park Guided Nature Hike

Manuel Antonio

A great guide! He loved what he does! Very informative tour. Highly recommend!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Let us choose our time for pick up so we’re able to shop and eat in the area.

Our family of four (two adults, two kids ages 11 and 12) just returned from an 8-day trip to Costa Rica — our first time — and it was incredible. Elena, Nancy & Adrian at Serendipity Adventures planned everything: airports transfers, two fantastic properties (Arenal Springs Resort and Hotel La Mariposa), and a full slate of daily adventures across Arenal/La Fortuna and Manuel Antonio.

The itinerary was perfectly paced. We hiked Arenal Volcano and the La Fortuna Waterfall and walked the hanging bridges above the rainforest canopy with our excellent and personable guide Mariano, we went whitewater rafting on the Sarapiquí River (Flow Trips was great!), flew through the trees on Sky Adventures zip lines, explored Manuel Antonio National Park with a guide (big shoutout to Soccio and his son/CR's next best guide, Luther, from Endemic Birds), and wrapped up with a catamaran cruise. Every activity was age-appropriate and kept the whole family engaged. All pickups, transfers, and logistics were handled seamlessly — we never had to figure anything out on our own.

There was one minor hiccup on our first full day where a miscommunication about pickup time caused us to miss an excursion, but Elena and Adrian jumped on it immediately and made adjustments to make it right. That was the only issue across the entire trip, and how they handled it actually reinforced our confidence in them.

If you're considering Costa Rica and don't want to deal with the stress of coordinating everything yourself, I'd highly recommend Serendipity Adventures. Elena was responsive, knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and clearly knows the country inside and out. We'd book with them again without hesitation.

This was an outstanding trip planned by Holden and Adrian at Serendipity Adventures with only two months’ notice. We made sure to be where we needed to be and everything happened like clockwork. This is our third trip through kimkim, and as always the kimkim platform made all of the planning and payment easy. This time we especially liked the new kimkim app that made it handy to pull up our daily itinerary and see what was happening when. Costa Rica was exceptionally beautiful, and the easy logistics really allowed us to enjoy the views, great food and world-class wildlife.

Guides were all excellent throughout our trip, making every stop along the way a really educational experience. One of the big advantages of having a guide is meeting and getting to know a local person in the place you are traveling. We always learn so much more than we would just on our own. The guides have a lot of infectious enthusiasm for Costa Rica and the area they live in. Things are so varied throughout the country, and each new ecosystem is a new opportunity to learn about unique plants, animals, geology and ecology. From hollow trees filled with water that sound like a drum when hit, to hand-grinding freshly-roasted coffee beans, to stopping on the side of the road on the way to the airport to see how a cashew grows, we were constantly coming in contact with new and interesting subjects.

Our list of new-to-us animals, birds and plants is huge from this trip - some standouts were howler monkeys, spider monkeys, two & three-toed sloths, agoutis, coatis, quetzal, eyelash pit viper, scarlet macaw, caimans, motmots, sea eels, morpho butterflies, and special mention to all the various hummingbirds at Monteverde and the nighttime spider eyes watching us in La Fortuna. The plant and insect life is an important part of the experience as well, especially at Amor Arenal where you are surrounded on all sides by amazing jungle vegetation, and the cicadas, birds and wind are the constant backing track.

We met so many friendly and helpful people at all of the hotels and attractions, it made for a welcoming trip. Adrian from Serendipity kept track of us through WhatsApp - and provided some critical help over the phone when we became too absorbed in the Monteverde cloud forest and had to change plans quickly. The hotels were all noteworthy because of the helpful staff and the excellent facilities. Every guide was a stand-out, and really every guided activity was rewarding and worthwhile. The naturalist guides were invaluable - Bryan at Arenal, Joe on the Peñas Blancas River, Andy in Monteverde, and Kenneth in Nosara all really knew their areas well and gave us real insight into the natural world of Central America.

Transfers were timely and seemed like a necessity, not an option. There were quite a few rough roads and tricky turns, it was great to have locals driving. They were all excellent.

We would recommend Costa Rica without reservation, and this tour made it great.

BEST VACATION OF MY LIFE.

Traveling with KimKim is a dream. No stress about making big decisions, getting reservations or planning activities. In the past, I've hit a wall vacation planning - not knowing what hotels to stay out, what to do - I would just get overwelhmed and shut down. I plan to travel the world now with KimKim.

Our trip to La Fortuna, Monteverde and Tamarindo was beyond exquisite. I was travelled with my 15 year old daughter and we came home closer than ever before. Hiking, white water rafting, ziplining, sloths, hotsprings, anteaters, rare birds, climbing a volcano, surfing, watching baby turtles hatch, shopping, sun tanning, kayaking, eating, making friends, and most importantly memories that will last a lifetime.

Our local guide Elena was beyond extraordinary. She was available at the drop of the hat via Whats App. She provided fantastic recommendations and helped with last minute reservations.

For the hotels : The Arenal Springs Resort was fantastic. PERFECT for families and for couples. Rooms were the best on our trip. You get your own private condo like structure which provides a sense of privacy - with a view of the volcano. Breakfast was great. Hot springs were to die for. Location fantastic.

Sibu Hotel Lodge was boutique and had a gorgeous restaurant. All teak tables and interior that rivals an NYC hotspot. You get access to a nearby sister hotel with a pool, jacuzzi and spa. View was fine but very centrally location.

Diria Hotel in Tamarindo was great. Elena booked us a beachfront room with a view. I would've NEVER done that on my own and it made all the difference. We were right on the beach with astonishing sunsets. She connected us with a local surf instructor who took us sea kayaking and then taught us how to surf the next day. Nico was so awesome. We were both able to actually surf at the end of the lesson. Priceless. The turtle tour was fine. I gave Elena my feedback and she handled it immediately.

Elena also rented a car for us. I was hesitant to drive on roads, but she encouraged us to do it (plus its cheaper than a driver). BEST DECISION. We had freedom when traveling between cities and got to stop and take pictures of the breathtaking landscape. People do not drive fast so you can really control the car on the roads up and down the mountains. My only criticism is that I would've driven to the zipline park in Monteverde instead of getting picked up at the hotel by a shuttle bus. It would've given us more freedom to leave when we wanted to.

Activity Reviews

All Day Adventure at Selvatura, including Zipline, Hanging Bridges, and Fauna Exhibitions

Costa Rica

I would've driven to the location instead of taking the shuttle bus.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arenal Volcano Hike & La Fortuna Waterfall

Arenal/La Fortuna

Our tour guide Bella was outstanding. He was able to spot animals and birds that were SO FAR AWAY. The hike was fantastic. Very interactive and fun.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Whitewater Rafting Sarapiqui River (Class III-IV)

Costa Rica

We had our tour guide Bella again. He was so much fun and awesome. Challenging - but not too challenging. LOTS OF LAUGHS.

Quality of Experience

Bella

Food

SO GOOD. Real Costa Rican food.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Knowledgable and kind.

Transport

My family's trip to Costa Rica was exceptional. We used Kimkim to get it set up and found it was a very easy process. Bryan Leon, at Serendipity Adventures, helped to plan, organize, and manage our trip. Bryan, Nancy, and Adrian, among others, worked diligently to make sure everything ran smoothly.

Truthfully, I was very impressed. Our goal was to enjoy the vacation itself, not all of the minutiae normally required. We flew into Liberia, got picked up immediately and had a 3 hour drive (after a 5 and half hour flight) that felt like it was about 15 minutes long. The driver, Alex, was super friendly and was telling us stories all the way to our first resort. Every transport or activity was handled punctually and professionally. We stayed at 3 separate resorts over 8 days and each resort had it's own unique and interesting flavor. Every single guide was great and made the activities very engaging. Completely worth the cost, I've never had this much of a stress free vacation. The only thing I had to do was to show up and enjoy myself.

Serendipity Adventures set up an itinerary that was great. Transports were always 15-20 minutes early, and we had no issues the activities. Every guide was friendly, knowledgeable, and very engaging. I've never been on guided hikes with tour guides before and this trip spoiled me. It's so much more fun to go with someone who knows the area and can fill in so many details about the land and animals.

Shout out to all of the tours/guides:
Esteban at the North Fields Coffee tour (my wife now loves to mix light and dark roasted beans)
Bryan at the Arenal Volcano Park hike, thank you for being so engaging. The coconut drinks at the end of the hike were perfect.
Sergio at the Arenal Hanging Bridges walk, thanks for pointing out so many different animals and the history of the area.
Jorge at the Tapir Valley Nature Reserve Night walk. Such a beautiful area, seeing the Tapirs so close was great. Walking through the Tapir Valley at night is an incredible experience.
Manny at the Rio Celeste hike. Thank you for guiding my family on the hike and finding all of those small snakes and insects we never would have seen otherwise.
Kevin from the Patron fishing boat. I can still taste the tuna you and the crew prepared, one of the most delicious meals I've ever had.

Activity Reviews

Private Guided Hike in Arenal Volcano Park 1968

Arenal/La Fortuna

So much fun.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Half Day Fishing Tour with Patron

Gulf of Papagayo

Great time, was my first time fishing in the ocean. Enjoyed it immensely. Caught a tuna and Kevin and his crew prepared the best meal from it I've ever had.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Introduction to the Gulf of Papagayo

Gulf of Papagayo

Absolutely beautiful area.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Coffee, Chocolate and Sugar Cane Farm Tour

Arenal/La Fortuna

So much fun, eating chocolate and drinking coffee in the morning, what more can one ask for?

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide, Esteban, definitely can talk coffee and the best way to prepare it. You're definitely in good hands if you want to learn how to brew a perfect cup of coffee.

Transport

Tapir Valley Nature Reserve Night Walk

Bijagua / Rio Celeste

Possibly the highlight of the entire trip. Walking through the forest at night was incredible. Starting the hike in the daylight and then watching the sun set before continuing was amazing.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Jorge was an incredible guide. So very knowledgeable about the area and it's history.

Transport

Rio Celeste & Tenorio Volcano Private Hike

Bijagua / Rio Celeste

Beautiful area, great hike.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arenal Hanging Bridges Guided Walk

Arenal/La Fortuna

Everything was great, walking over the hanging bridges was an incredible experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Sergio, the guide was excellent and extremely knowledgeable.

Transport

Fabulous trip all around
Tours guides EXCEPTIONAL!!!

Hotel Reviews

Paradise Hot Springs Thermal Water Resort

La Fortuna

Great hot springs s as nd beautiful setting

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel

Puerto Viejo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Sky Tram, Sky Trek & Sky Walk

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Arenal Mambo Combo Canyoning and Rafting

Arenal/La Fortuna

Staff was superb!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Night Excursion in Rainforest and Wild Frog Sanctuary

Arenal/La Fortuna

Boring

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Kayak Adventure & Rainforest Hike in Punta Uva

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca

Lots of animals- sloth, monkey, turtle etc…

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Bribri Chocolate & Waterfall Excursion

Costa Rica

Enrico was great

Quality of Experience

Enrico

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

All tours and guides were excellent. We would recommend all of the activities on our itinerary.

Special mention to Grievin and Andrea from Uvita Night Tours. We spent two days with them and they were fantastic!

Would recommend adding Alturas Wildlife Sanctuary to your tours.

This was the first time using Kimkim and we would absolutely use them again. Our trip itinerary was customized for our family and included super unique experiences and hotel stays that we don’t believe we would have been able to find ourselves. The clear and thorough instructions in the daily itinerary were easy to follow and reflected the appropriate amount of downtime between excursions and traveling between cities. Overall super happy with the trip and thank you guys very much!