The tour was virtually perfect in every way, and everyone on the tour felt that way. Our tour leader Marco Zamomra, was the best imaginable! He did so much in the background to make sure everything went smoothly, yet he was never stressed or impatient. He was a wonderful administrator and a talented naturalist guide. From the first meeting, he engendered a feeling of “family” among us 16 strangers. He encouraged us to help each other and to enjoy each other’s company. The sights we saw were wonderful. The guides Marco hired were superb and knew their stuff in their areas. The itinerary allowed for a great variety of choices in activities suited to various interests and physical abilities. Marco had a sense of humor and generosity beyond belief. One tour member fell and broke a tooth, and he took her to his personal dentist and stayed in the room to translate while the dentist worked. He always took extra steps like this, as his main goal was to help us in every way. He was adaptable. We were so lulcky to have had him. To my surprise, wildlilfe is harder to see in CR than I had expected, but Marco and the other guides and experts were so knowledgeable that we saw many animals. What was really nice is that all the guides carry spotting scopes to which they can attach iPhones for close-up pictures not otherwise obtainable! There were a couple of spots in Manuel Antonio that were unpleasantly crowded, but that seems to be unavoidable, unfortunately. The hotels were all nice and breakfasts were great. A couple of the hotels were laid out in strange ways that required long walks with baggage and no one to carry them for us. Be prepared for that. Travel as light as possible. Eating out when meals weren’t provided cost about $15, more than I had been told, but it was always good food. Unlike on some tours, we were never dumped at souvenir shops, etc., a good thing! I highly recommend this tour, whether you’re into bird-watching or white-water rafting! You have choices and can make this YOUR trip and still be a “family” with all on your tour. The buses used were modern and clean and comfortable. One thing I would have liked was that certain info, like packing list and detailed itinerary and money expectations be provided earlier. As it was, I didn’t get some of the info until very shortly before departure.

The 14 day tour of Cost Rica gave my wife and I a very good feel for the various regions, habitats and climates. The accommodations were very nice and our tour guide Adrian was a great guide, person and host for the trip. He went above and beyond.

I had a great experience from a previous tour from National Geographic and G Adventures's partnership, and due to that, I booked this tour: National Geographic - Explore Costa Rica. However, 2 weeks later, I was informed that due to COVID-19, it'd not be run by National Geographic. Just by G Adventures, and it'd be named Costa Rica Upgraded. The experience was still good with a hiccup along the way, but I still feel it'd have been an improvement if National Geographic was involved. Our guide, Vinicio, was amazing. One of the top 2 best guides I ever had. He took great care of us and all aspects of our tour. He showed up with positive energy everyday, and was good natured, patient and helpful. He also had a vast knowledge of wildlife and nature in Costa Rica. The hiccup we had was our accommodation in Manuel Antonio, which wasn't up to par. After many complaints from the group, G Adventures did an investigation, and compensated us. The email G Adventures sent to us shows that they care and value us. It instills trust.