San Jose Tours and Trips

This trip truly lives up to its name and was an unforgettable way to experience Costa Rica’s incredible biodiversity. From lush rainforests and wildlife-rich national parks to volcanic landscapes and the coast, the itinerary felt perfectly balanced and thoughtfully paced, with each destination offering something new and exciting. One of the real highlights was the wildlife. Seeing animals in their natural habitat was a daily occurrence, made even more special by the expertise of our local leader. Their knowledge, enthusiasm and ability to spot wildlife we would otherwise have missed added huge value to the experience and brought the landscapes to life. The trip also offered a great mix of guided walks, scenic drives and time to simply take in the surroundings, making it feel immersive without ever being rushed. Early starts were well worth it for the rewarding wildlife encounters and peaceful moments in nature. Overall, this adventure is ideal for anyone wanting to explore Costa Rica’s natural highlights in depth, with the reassurance of excellent organisation and an outstanding local leader. A truly memorable journey through one of the world’s most beautiful and biodiverse countries.

This was my first Trutravels, and group tour experience, and I couldn’t have asked for a better tour guide and group of people to have spent the past 10 days with! I’ve made friends for life with some of the girls and we all agreed that our hearts felt very full at the end of the 10 day…If anything I wished the tour was longer! Our guide Jose was a brilliant group leader and went above and beyond to make sure we all had a great trip, he was very friendly, fun, and such a genuinely nice guy and you could tell how much he loved Costa Rica as his hometown. He made himself available 24/7 for us all and nothing was too much of an ask!

This was the experience of a lifetime for me and definitely the highlight of my month-long trip to Central and South America. I joined this one the day I finished my Yucatan Peninsula cycling trip with Explore, my first with the company. The recommendations and reviews I'd received beforehand were justified. I was the only Australian on both trips. It didn't matter, as there was great camaraderie within the group and the leader, Allan, was top-notch. Our driver, Ronald, was also professional as well as being obviously very big-hearted and concerned about our comfort, welfare and safety. When a trip relies on being at the right place and time, the driver and vehicle are the most important elements of the trip. Allan's knowledge and passion for Costa Rica and its natural environment are obvious and he was very effective in helping us learn and love it as well. The detail and frequency of his communication was ideal and his attention to detail excellent. We were very fortunate to have both Allan and Ronald look after us, as well as the bonus of having Issy, an Explore senior exec, along for most of the trip, doing QC and checking out hotel options. Good to see the company checking its services! The accommodation was very good and matched the expectations Explore provided in its pre-trip information. As always, some places are better than others. When a place had some minor deficiency it was offset by being in a great location. My favourites were in the rainforest and mountains. The itinerary is right for a 2-week wildlife tour, plenty of time for varied photography, physical activity options and unstructured time for R&R and doing your own thing. Whitewater rafting, ziplining, sea kayaking and of course walking are all easily able to be included. Allan and some of the group are excellent wildlife spotters and photographers. I learnt so much and am keen to improve my own skills. I am so happy I chose to go on this trip and have been recommending it often since it concluded.

This was my fourth Collette Tour and was definitely a favorite. The wildlife and vegetation defy imagination and the tour allowed us closeup access to both. Our bus driver, Drew, expertly drove us for the many miles and did so with such a friendly manner. He also provided for our well-being by giving us each a bottle of water daily. Osvaldo Padilla was our tour manager. His knowledge of and love for Costa Rica shone as he constantly delivered educational information. He showed great enthusiasm when spotting and showing special wildlife to us. A favorite memory was when Ozzy, on his own time, took us on a nature walk around the grounds of the resort near Lake Arenal. I was so thankful that he was able to show us a sloth with a baby, toucans, a poison dart tree frog and other wildlife. The extra attention that he gave to us was very much appreciated. The two other spectacular memories are of being on the Cano ***** riverboat with howler monkeys calling across the river and of walking over the hanging bridges where a resplendent quetzal was perched at eye level, just off of the bridge. The vegetation in that cloud forest was amazing! I would like to again thank Ozzy and Drew for taking such great care of us and providing wonderfully memorable experiences.

A top trip for the nature and photography enthusiast. Excellent locations with some stunning nature in its natural setting. Well organised and expertly led by Explores team of driver and lead who’s sharp observation and intuition where to find what never ceased to amaze.

Amazing tour made perfect by a fabulously knowledgeable and attentive tour guide (Miguel Vasquez). Great itinerary and even tho we did the ‘reverse’ think it was the best way round. Antigua at the end was the icing on the cake. Great mixture of adventure, nature, history and local culture. Food and drink good too. Accommodation is good some exceeded my expectations but not enough to warrant ‘excellent’. ..