psythe

For first visit to CR would like structured tour via company.
Good idea or no?
If so, what are the reliable tour companies to use?

Kinkazote

Whereas we normally plan trips to Costa Rica as independent travel, we (my wife and I) actually have taken a hosted tour through Overseas Adventure Travel. There is a trip report on the tour here:

http://www.fodors.com/community/mexi...0-oat-tour.cfm

Very few contributors on this forum have taken hosted tours of this type and actual comparative advice is hard to come by. I think a structured tour hosted and guided is a fine way to see a lot of the country. If you think you need this kind of structuring, then you probably do. They range on price from the affordable to the very expensive. I have no problem recommending OAT. It's a great way to see a lot in a small amount of time.

volcanogirl

Costa Rica Expeditions is a great tour company. I think they're a little bit pricey, but they do an excellent job. As far as it being a good idea, we like to plan our own trips, and it's easy to do in CR, but nothing wrong with using a tour company if that interests you.

qwovadis

www.lovecostarica.com Pat gets awesome reviews here good discounts and pricepoints have yet to see a bad review
in a decade.

www.odysseytourscr.com Al Diego great locals many good reviews. travelexperta.com Marina puravidaeh.ca all good

For tours tauck.com is best for upscale. OAT has NO CR expertise have seen many complaints BBB.org Gate 1 also
gets an F on BBB.org so avoid those.

Many touts scammers especially on Tripadvertizer where
the top 'expert" is a for profit tout refers to his wife
every chance he gets.

Caveat emptor here and there. insuremytrip.com wise.

Happy Planning!

qwovadis

costaricaexpeditions.com is #1 local pretty expensive usually.
visitcostarica.com for all other options affordabletours.com
for discounts on tours. CR is better booked independently for
me no early AM bus calls with stale hotel food yuk!

schmerl

Tauck is great but expensive. I have friends who did Costa Rica with Caravan Tours and loved it. They had previously traveled with Tauck many times and were not disappointed with Caravan. I'm sure Tauck stays in nicer resorts, but they were very pleased with their Caravan trip.

volcanogirl

Costa Rica Expeditions did our trip to Tortuguero, and they honestly wowed us. We were traveling down a canal, and they said we were going to stop for lunch. They pulled the boat over and whipped out a beautiful picnic for just the two of us to enjoy on the side of the river - they had wine, fresh fruit drinks, ice, and great food. We couldn't believe it. They have a rep for great service. For us, it was very worth the cost. When we left the lodge, they gave us an extensive survey to fill out, and they wanted to know all good and bad points and who in particular gave us great service. I love that they're so proactive about their business. I commented on how good something was, and they gave me the recipe for it. Lots of nice touches with them.

jdp867

We used Costa Rica Expeditions for our first trip to CR 10 years ago. They do a good job, but as others said before, they are a bit pricey. We have been back three times since (and are headed back next week) and have made all of our own arrangements (hotels, drivers, in-country flights and tours) without a hitch. We have found the folks on this forum to be more helpful than any tour operator!

Kinkazote

Qwovadis, your comment on OAT not having Costa Rica expertise is ludicrous!
They've been doing CR trips for years, essentially using the same local transportation, guides, hotels, routes, and attractions as other tour purveyors, plus some unique stops and experiences. The Grand Circle Foundation (akin to OAT) has been very active in and beneficial for Costa Rican communities. There was one outrageous complaint on this forum virtually accusing OAT of sexual enslavement and contractual misdeeds. That comment and yours in no way square with the actual experience we (and the others on the trip) had. It would be interesting to read the unresolved BBB complaints against ALL the business entities recommended here, but no where nearly as interesting or as useful as an actual report from real live persons who have actually perchased or experienced what these travel businesses offer.

Kinkazote

Well, that must be purchased, not perchased.

volcanogirl

Good point up above - Pat Hewitt does get consistently good reviews as well.

Deb15July

My mother has used Overseas Adventure Travel on numerous occasions and has always been quite happy. She will be using them for an almost month long trip to India later this month. In fact, she also plans to go to Costa Rica later this year with OAT!

schmerl

We have also used OAT on several trips and have found them to be wonderful!

Michael_Kaye

I am Michael Kaye, CEO and Founder of Costa Rica Expeditions. The best company for you---or whether of not you should try to plan and arrange your own vacation, depends on a lot of factors including your budget, the time you have available, your tolerance for things going wrong and uncertainty, what you want to get our of your vacation and your travel style among other things.

ttdragonfly

We were initially going to go with a tour, but after reading all the info on here we packed that idea in. It appears that a two week trip here is do-able. I won't lie, it's a LOT of work but do-able! Best of luck!

incabod

Companies I have used, had friends or family use, all good examples.
Horizontes – http://www.horizontes.com/eng/ - Very green company, offers packages, involved with community programs, good company & good folks
Crreferals – http://www.crreferrals.com/ - Good for custom planning, has packages, involved with animal rescue, good company & good folks
Actuar - http://www.actuarcostarica.com/app/cms/www/index.php Off the beaten path rural tourism, involved with community programs, good company, good folks.
Caravan – http://www.caravan.com/ - Best for larger group tours up to 30 or more. Excellent reputation and well respected. Awesome at what they do.
Costa Rica Expeditions – http://www.costaricaexpeditions.com/wl3/index.php - Trip planners, owns some of there own lodges, has won many awards, great reviews and good folks.
Desafio - http://www.desafiocostarica.com/ Great company, involved in community programs, really good folk.

Enchanting_girl

I do know some of the Inca suggestions, Horizontes, Crreferals and Desafio are very good. I also know Pure Trek is really good. For my one day tours is used valledoradotours.cr, they have good rates!

volcanogirl

We've used Desafio for a lot of one day tours, and they are very good. Several times though they've sent Sunset Tours in their place which we thought was kind of strange. Sunset Tours is great too. I just didn't know they were affiliated.

tccostarica

Best to do it yourself skip the agent.