Costa Rica family multi activity vacation

Planet

Costa Rica
Costa Rica is the birthplace of ecotourism and as such is also the place where this activity has achieved the highest level of success with responsible environmental policies being held by most hotels and tourist businesses .

Environment
Advising travelers to reduce impact: In every welcome packet that we give to our clients, we put out brochures with environmental information.

For our tours, our guides after every journey bring a bag with all the recycling to the nearest hotel that has a recycling plan and recycling disposals.

Office practice
Internally we encourage reusing, recycling and generally doing its best to reduce the overall impact our operation has on the environment.

Our local partners participates in the Certification in Sustainable Tourism (CST) program which rates businesses on the degree to which they comply with a sustainable model of natural, cultural and social resource management. Starting this in 2009 our partners have achieved a 3 leaf score for CST
They are also Rainforest Alliance verified -

Hotels on the itinerary -
Mawamba Lodge - Tortuguero - this lodge is adjacent to one of the most important Green Turtle nesting beaches - to ensure the turtle successfully lays her eggs, we follow strict guidelines regarding noise, torches and cameras and a qualified guide.

Pozo Azul - in 1995 started a reforestation project designed and supervised by FUNDECOR (www.fundecor.org) which has been qualified for the Green Seal under the umbrella certification by the Forest Stewardship Council ( FSC) under SGS Qualifor Certification.

People

Community :
We employ local drivers and local guides from National Parks - we do not use British tour leaders.
Our guides purchase clients groceries from local markets and our clients are encouraged to visit local markets and shops and to use local products and buy souvenirs from ethical sources.
We use accommodations that are also certificated with the Certification for Sustainable Tourism so we guarantee they have same standards and policies.

Family run restaurants and businesses are included in client itineraries

Our local partners actively supports a variety of philanthropic projects including supporting local schools, running its own reforestation project, encouraging and financing small local business ventures as well as other well known programmes run by local foundations.

Timbirina Social Projection: Since 1999 TRC has had a local environmental education program with the purpose of encouraging the local community to appreciate the value of natural resources as a way to improve their quality of life.

The educational activities address various topics regarding ecology and forest conservation, like the importance of incorporating sustainable practices into every day life. The program focuses on inquiry learning where the student discovers and enjoys at the same time, which has proven to be most effective for children. Because of the significance of this program, our guides explain to every visitor why their visit to Tirimbina is important.