10 jours: Costa Rica Pure Nature

Destiny Travel Costa Rica made our trip to Costa Rica the most memorable and fabulous trip we have ever been on. I rarely write reviews, but I had to go online and write one for this company. I was a little nervous booking our entire trip since I did not know them but I am so glad I did. From the moment we stepped off the plane, everything ran so smoothly. We were picked up by Roger and taken to our first stop in La Fortuna. Roger was so great and informative and made our transition to Costa Rica easy and fun. Our guides and drivers for all our adventures (Arenal Volcano, La Fortuna Waterfall, Rio Celeste, ATV, Ziplining) were SOOOOO nice (Pepe and Fernando were amazing!!!) and always went above and beyond. And all along the way, Oldemar was there making sure we were happy and having a great time. Even when we had one small issue with the hotel, Oldemar quickly came to the rescue and helped us deal with it. We cannot wait for our next trip to Costa Rica and we will definitely book with Destiny Travel.

We held back for months during covid. Then in the last week of dismal February we abruptly decided to travel to Costa Rica in the first week of March. The morning the testing and quarantine rules finally eased, with hopes but no clear plans, we cruised the internet and found Destiny Travel. We inquired; Oldemar answered quickly. It took a few rounds of email because we were so vague at first, but fairly soon we settled on Destiny’s Pure Nature Tour, starting any day we wanted, and open days afterward for us to opt in to other tours. We dealt only with Oldemar; he made everything happen. We threw a whole lot of money blindly over the wall, wondering if Destiny was anything more than a great website…. It was and it is. We arrived on 8 March, barely 10 days later, and started our tour the next day. Destiny Travel’s longer tours are built by combining shorter segments, so you can design any itinerary, start any day, and go solo or in a group. The Pure Nature Tour includes a night tour of San Jose (with right-hand-man Oscar), Drake Bay/Corcovado Nat’nl Park, Arenal (with Sarchi en-route), and Monteverde. The hotels are 4-5 star in the cities and a bit more rustic but still all-inclusive in Drake Bay. Most days have pre-booked guided excursions (which you can choose); some days have free time. Some meals are included; some are open. Everything ran smoothly; the drivers and guides always showed up, always spoke excellent English (important as we do not speak Spanish – yet), were always generous with their deep knowledge and love of Costa Rica, its people, history, climate, plants and wildlife, often had a great sense of humor, and were thoroughly helpful and professional. We joined two more shorter tours after Pure Nature Tour. First, a 3-day 2-night tour to Tortuguero. Tortuguero is a northern Amazon – a maze of freshwater channels in the jungle. (And in some seasons a turtle-nesting beach on the Caribbean.) So different from the rest of Costa Rica that you can’t say you know the country unless you go there. So go. Destiny books these tours but, as I understand it, they are run by the destination hotels, not by Destiny itself. Our final tour with Destiny was to Sarapiqui River and La Paz Waterfall gardens. It makes for a long and very full day. We would have been happy to have more time in both destinations – for the river cruise to spot wildlife, and for the Gardens to see all the waterfalls. Our guide Fila was entertaining – telling us (often) that many guides are afraid of their clients, but he WANTED our questions. Fila also had strong opinions about animals in captivity. He believes that the animals in La Paz CAN be returned to the wild. So the tour there was doubly interesting…. We could describe and rate and recommend all of these destinations (yes, we do recommend them), but that would turn this review into a guide book on Costa Rica. Instead, let me stick to our experience with Destiny and Oldemar. Story 1: One evening before our trip began, watching TV over dinner, Oldemar heard that tickets for the World Cup qualifier were going on sale that evening. He knew we wanted 3, so when they went on sale at 9, he bought them for us. I understand that they sold out in hours; without Oldemar’s help we would never have got any. Story 2: We requested the Tortuguero tour on a Saturday; on Sunday Oldemar arranged it for us. At 6 a.m. Monday morning, when our driver didn’t show up, Oldemar contacted him and rectified the problem. (Because we booked at the last minute, we were on the tour list but didn’t get added to the pick-up list.) So the evidence is clear. Oldemar works all the time – early, late, weekdays, weekends. He wants to be sure you, as clients, enjoy Costa Rica a lot. Even if you can’t return yourself, you will recommend Costa Rica as a destination to your friends and family. Which we will, and we do, with thanks to Oldemar and Destiny Travel.

This trip was extremely fun! I had an amazing time and our guide Charlton was super funny. Marcos, the bus driver was very safe and kind.