Costa Rica Family Vacation

Arrive at the San José International Airport and transfer to your hotel for the evening. Once you arrive, you are free to explore the expansive private forest reserve at the resort, take a dip in the sunset pool, and enjoy a delectable local meal on your own.

About Xandari Resort

Xandari Resort & Spa offers the quintessential Costa Rica experience. The property’s forest reserve, with five waterfalls and miles of trails for bird-watching, provides the nature guests expect from a visit to Costa Rica.

Meet with your guide for a trip orientation over breakfast. Begin the four-hour shuttle to the Arenal region, then for a hike through lush tropical rainforest and lunch at La Paz Waterfall Gardens. Finish up the day learning about traditional Costa Rican farming at Arenal Vida Campesina Organic Farm followed by an authentic meal.

About Arenal Manoa
Resort Hotel & Hot Springs

Enjoy the beauty and tranquility of the Costa Rica countryside at Arenal Manoa Resort Hotel & Hot Springs. Stunning views of the Arenal Volcano, warm, friendly hospitality and fresh, seasonal and local cuisine come together to create one of Costa Rica’s most relaxing resorts.

Choose to take a birding walk in the early morning for anyone interested. Enjoy breakfast at the hotel and gear up for an afternoon of canyoning and get your adrenaline pumping.  Explore an organic orchard run by a local family, learning about traditional Costa Rican farming at Arenal Vida Campesina Organic Farm immersed in the warm and natural habitat facing the Arenal Volcano and surrounded by rivers and rainforests. Enjoy a delicious home-cooked lunch prepared by the owners! Mount a horse and ride off into the picturesque hills of Arenal Volcano, riding through cattle fields and beautiful primary forest along the way. Take in views of the Arenal Volcano, dense forests, and the vast Arenal Lake. After a day full of adventure, return to the resort for dinner

This morning we’ll transfer to Uvita Beach by road, stopping along the way for a walk and lunch at Miriam’s House. Explore Carara National Park on its well-kept trails, rich in flora and fauna, Carara boasts many habitats including marshes, primary and secondary forests and is home to parrots, parakeets, toucans, trogons, three species of monkeys, agoutis, coatis, sloths, tamanduas and more. Check into our accommodation for the next three nights and enjoy dinner at the hotel tonight

About Cristal Ballena Hotel

Cristal Ballena Hotel offers you everything you need for your dream beach, adventure, and nature vacation in Costa Rica. This beautiful four-star Mediterranean-style hotel rests on a rainforest-covered hill overlooking the famed Ballena Marine National Park, a crucial site for the world’s Pacific Humpback Whales to reproduce and give birth. On the expansive 12-hectare (29.6 acres) grounds near the City of Uvita, you will find luxury suites, the reception building, a souvenir shop, an immense ocean-view swimming pool, an open-air gourmet restaurant and bar, soothing Spa, and rainforest hiking paths.

Meet your instructors on the beach for private surfing lessons on the Marino Ballena shore. Break for lunch at a local restaurant. Shuttle back to the hotel and enjoy the afternoon at your leisure: hang out by the swimming pool, walk along the hotel’s rainforest hiking path or take a shuttle to the beach.

** Sea kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, and snorkeling available in the afternoon at an extra cost.

After breakfast, we head out on the Sierpe River for a boat tour exploring the beautiful maze of canals, river mouths and estuaries that flood the largest untouched expanse of mangroves in all of Costa Rica. Eat lunch in Palma Sur followed by a visit to Stone Spheres Park (can you figure out the mystery of how they were created and why?). Discover the Marino Ballena National Park by sea kayak! Paddle across the calm waters of the Uvita bay, en route, take in the expansive views around you and the various hues of blue water below you, with the chance to see pelicans, boobies, frigate birds, colourful fish, and other marine creatures. After a pleasant walk on the beach we enjoy a final dinner back at the hotel.

Have breakfast at the hotel and transfer one hour to the Quepos Airport. Sit back and relax on a charter flight to San José. From here, you can board your international flight to make your post-trip connections home.

**Trip itineraries are subject to change without notice due to road, trail, weather, and other factors outside of our control, for the safety and enjoyment of our guests, as deemed necessary and appropriate by Austin Adventures and Costa Rica Sun Tours.