Costa Rica Vacations, Small Group Tours, Trips, & Excursions

02/27/2023

Review on 02/26/2023

Tour

Our tour guide was extraordinary and made every effort to enrich our experience. Most of the hotels were first class. Good pace.

02/26/2023

Review on 02/26/2023

Tour

Beautiful country, friendly people, outstanding wildlife, fantastic tour guide.

05/17/2022

Review on 05/17/2022

Tour

Our tour manager, Juan Pablo, was wonderful! He was very knowledgeable, interesting and articulate. He was also kind , compassionate and very patient. When one of our group fell in the bathroom and hurt her forehead, he immediately arranged to get her medical care (doctor, testing, stitches, medicine; etc.) Also, as a senior citizen, I sometimes don't realize that it's difficult for me to keep up with the pace of a tour. He managed to balance my needs with the others on our tour. He's an exceptional individual. I'm so glad he was our tour guide! I loved all the monkees and their antics! They were the stars of the show! It was a great trip and I would highly recommend it.

05/17/2022

Review on 05/17/2022

Tour

Our tour manager, Juan Pablo, was wonderful! He was very knowledgeable, interesting and articulate. He was also kind , compassionate and very patient. When one of our group fell in the bathroom and hurt her forehead, he immediately arranged to get her medical care (doctor, testing, stitches, medicine; etc.) Also, as a senior citizen, I sometimes don't realize that it's difficult for me to keep up with the pace of a tour. He managed to balance my needs with the others on our tour. He's an exceptional individual. I'm so glad he was our tour guide! I loved all the monkees and their antics! They were the stars of the show! It was a great trip and I would highly recommend it.

05/15/2022

Review on 05/14/2022

Tour

The trip was FABULOUS! Loved it

05/15/2022

Review on 05/14/2022

Tour

The trip was FABULOUS! Loved it

05/14/2022

Review on 05/14/2022

Tour

It was an amazing tour.We went to most of the National Parks, from the Caribbean Coast to the Pacific Coast.Staying in the middle of the forest with the monkeys around, and going in a boat to see the crocodiles so close, were unforgettable experiences. Staying at the Spa Spring Resort was wonderful. Walking to the Pacific Beach and back, after a swim, (on the last day)was very unpleasant, to say the least.and should be looked at to make it better. That was the only experience I could've done without. Everything else was great.

05/14/2022

Review on 05/14/2022

Tour

It was an amazing tour.We went to most of the National Parks, from the Caribbean Coast to the Pacific Coast.Staying in the middle of the forest with the monkeys around, and going in a boat to see the crocodiles so close, were unforgettable experiences. Staying at the Spa Spring Resort was wonderful. Walking to the Pacific Beach and back, after a swim, (on the last day)was very unpleasant, to say the least.and should be looked at to make it better. That was the only experience I could've done without. Everything else was great.

05/14/2022

Review on 05/13/2022

Tour

No zipline for me/us! I loved the adventure and thrill which I never image doing. February 8th-19th 2022 one of the best birthdays.

05/14/2022

Review on 05/13/2022

Tour

No zipline for me/us! I loved the adventure and thrill which I never image doing. February 8th-19th 2022 one of the best birthdays.

05/14/2022

Review on 05/13/2022

Tour

Excelletn tour guide. Excellent tour

05/14/2022

Review on 05/13/2022

Tour

Excelletn tour guide. Excellent tour

05/13/2022

Review on 05/13/2022

Tour

Our tour manager made this trip special. Even with some unavoidable issues his thoughtfulness and planning made all the difference

05/13/2022

Review on 05/13/2022

Tour

Our tour manager made this trip special. Even with some unavoidable issues his thoughtfulness and planning made all the difference

03/27/2020

Service

Detailed and very thorough information. Pick up from my home to the airport was an amazing, wonderful, deeply appreciated feature.
Tour

Zip lining, plantation Tours, home experience and boat rides.

03/09/2020

Great trip - we had a good time

Service

Service 0n tour was very good with some hesitation on pre and start of trip
Tour

Evergreen Lodge and Pacific side

02/24/2020

Service

Everything about our tour was excellent. Our guide had a real passion for the nature of Costa Rica and provided a great experience. Great hotels and food. Nice, clean bus with an experienced driver.
Tour

We loved the amount of nature we were able to see in a short time. We saw tons of monkeys, birds, reptiles and plant life.

01/10/2020

Wildlife, Adventure and Comfort

Service

We had an excellent guide, the tours were interesting, the food was good. The bus was excellent and the accommodations very comfortable. We enjoyed the fact that many meals were included in the tour. We enjoyed spent wildlife viewing... sloths, crocodiles, monkeys, giant lizards, tropical birds and poison dart frogs, how could you beat that? We would highly recommend the zip-lining tour and white water rafting.
Tour

Colette had excellent tour inclusions, especially the hanging bridges and wildlife spotting. The tour guide was interesting and informative. The Accommodations were very comfortable.

12/31/2019

Service

Local guides were excellent. White water raft guide was fabulous. Very good bus driver, bus was good. Tour manager was knowledgeable. When we booked this tour we requested the tour guide we had when we were on the Tropical Costa Rica tour. We were disappointed the request was not honored.
Tour

Very rainy on the Caribbean, Eco lodge had ants in beds, but took care of issue. Cacao plantation interesting. White water rafting was fabulous. Active tour and a lot of fun.

12/03/2019

Excellent adventure

Service

Traveling with Collette is guaranteed to be excellent. The experiences provided are superb.
Tour

Every day was a new experience. The highlight of this tour were the adventures: hiking, river boating, and learning more about the culture.

12/01/2019

Amazing small group tour!

Service

The service on tour with Collette was truly exemplary! The guide, Chris and driver Juan Carlos, made sure we were always happy and treated as top guests. Everything went so smoothly. We love Collette!
Tour

We were on a small group tour and we were able to go to so many places that most people would not know about. Back rivers and primal rain forest. We saw soooo many birds and even a big cat sleeping in the treetops. Favorite adventure is hard to pick because all was great, but the zip lining was really thrilling and the hanging bridges were nearly meditative. All of it was wonderful but our guide and driver and all their sub guides were the true stars of the show. So organized.

11/02/2019

Service

The tour manager was excellent; it was a small group of Collette Explorations.
Tour

The Doubletree Cariari Hotel room, room 1025, in which we spent three nights was the worst room of the hotel. It was noisy from the lobby and the roller bags going early to the airport. The room dark, cold and damp. The drapes of the windows, front and back were never opened. The view from the back window was horrendous. The room should not be allocated during the worst days of the rainy season.

Thank you for traveling with Collette on our Costa Rica World of Nature tour. We're sorry to hear about the issues you experienced at one of the hotels on tour. Your feedback will be reviewed by our Product Design Team so that the overall touring experience for our guests can be improved.

Collette Support

05/24/2019

Service

Excellent guide and good variety of hotels.
Tour

Two days involved a lot of travelling but overall a well thought out tour with everything going like clockwork.

05/24/2019

Excellent, very well organised holiday

Service

Would recommend and buy from them again
Tour

Excellent tour with a fantastic guide and coach driver. Great wildlife - would have been perfect if it hadn't poured with rain all the time!

04/24/2019

Service

Good organisation of trip, everything thought of, including bottles of water each day, knowledgeable tour guide
Tour

Well organised tour, knowledgeable tour guide, good accommodation

04/22/2019

First time with Collette

Service

We had a good time on this vacation . The early starts 5:00 to 5:30 when you are on vacation is tough. The first eco lodge we stayed at was a little too much for my liking. I didn't mind the eco part but clean would be nice. There was mold everywhere. We were on an end and had no privacy. We had a big problem at the fourth hotel with the spa and with the front desk people. Collette said they will refund the money for the spa trip we never received. Those problems made it hard to stay there for three days. The best part of this trip were the people we traveled with. We had a great group of people. It was nice to have the feeling of being safe and to have a group of folks that you knew in and about towns. We had time to do our own thing but could find someone if we needed to.
Tour

Everything went smooth. Would like to get the paper work before the trip a little sooner.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Costa Rica. Your feedback will be reviewed by the Product Design Team in order to improve the overall touring experience for our guests. The optional tours that did not operate were refunded to your credit card on file on April 10th.

Collette Support

04/14/2019

Personalized, custom approach

Service

Friendly, competent,knowledgeable, dependable, caring staff.
Tour

enjoying nature thru adventures and firsthand experiences,ziplining, white water rafting, hiking, swimming, cooking class, cultural activities, ecolodges, boating, bus trips, and impromtu discussions about daily life of locals.

04/05/2019

The trip was what I expected and more.

Service

They answered my questions clearly and accurately except for once question about the additional tours. I misunderstood but all came right in the end.
Tour

I didn't have to worry about a thing. plane tickets, in country transportation, meals, accommodations, up time and down time were all provided seamlessly. The local guide was absolutely amazing at spotting and identifying the local wildlife for us.

04/01/2019

Such a exciting experience with nature!!!

Service

Everything was welled planned and out tour director was excellent. Jonas Gonzalez
Tour

Excellent we got to see so much wildlife..

03/25/2019

Service

Excellent guide and tour lived up to all expectations.
Tour

Seeing exotic wildlife and birds close up.

03/22/2019

Excellent tour and guide, tons of wildlife, great eco-lodges

Service

Excellent service, great tour guide
Tour

I would have given this 5 stars, but there were a few days where there was too much time spent on the bus. In their defense, the roads are difficult in Costa Rica. Maybe this should be a 15 day tour to allow shorter days of travel between locations. Also, skip Manuel Antonio Park. It is a zoo with too many people. Not the best way to end the tour that kept you away from crowds.

03/18/2019

Great adventure!

Service

Everything was well organized. We had a great time. I would use Colette again, and I would recommend them to friends.
Tour

I think the trip to Tortuguero was my favorite...I loved the boat ride in and the canal ride. I loved our cabin at Evergreen Lodge. The bird walks in the early morning with our tour manager Juan Pablo were fun and informative. All the hotels we stayed at had beautiful grounds and abundant wildlife.

03/18/2019

Perfect!

Service

The organization was perfect! Of course, the beauty of Costa Rica was the best part of this tour, and Collette made sure that all 22 of us saw that beauty up close. All accommodation was comfortable, clean and in beautiful surroundings.
Tour

The river tour into and out of our stay at the Evergreen hotel. The Evergreen hotel itself! It was the most interesting and beautiful hotel I've ever stayed at! All river tours provided great pleasure.

03/18/2019

Service

From our pickup at the airport, to the shuttle ride at the end, we received the best of care. With the personal introductions at the beginning to the excursion to our final dinner and new friendships.
Tour

Stopping the bus to ****** a sloth as it crossed a busy highway. The birds!

03/14/2019

the experiece and richness of jungle animals

Service

small and wonderful diverse group, energetic and personable tour guide. Amazing buss driver on narrow roads.
Tour

recommend a graphic style picture guide, showing the physical difficulty of each activity. Similar to the pain guide in a doctor's office. drop the first coffee event (with the long twisted tail) in favor of the coffee presentation alone the road café.

03/01/2019

Service

Everything was as described and more.
Tour

Unique opportunity to see the nature of this country. I loved Tortuguero. The Everygreen Lodge was great. I like staying more than one night at a location, although sometimes it was only one day because of travel and late arrivals. I would have liked another night and full day at Manuel Antonio. And a day in San Jose. The extra excursions offered were already included in the package. A Little confusing.

02/18/2019

Service

Our tour manager, Ricardo Howell, was outstanding. He went into great detail about Costa Rica explaining how the country works in just about every way. The hotels were excellent as well as the meals. Food in Costa Rica is great especially the fish and beef. The wildlife was outstanding. Ricardo did a great job pointing out birds, etc and we enjoyed all of our nature walks. The visits to the pineapple, coffee, chocolate plantations were all wonderful. The bat presentation was outstanding. The bus was excellent.
Tour

Whitewater raft and float trips. Visit to the plantations. Tortogero

02/15/2019

Service

They were very easy to deal with and accommodating to my needs.
Tour

Excellent tour manager and excursions.

02/12/2019

Service

Local tour guide, Jose, was excellent. He had to deal with some major changes but always did it patiently. Also the bus driver, Juan, was unbelievable. We felt very comfortable with him at the wheel. He was always polite and very helpful.
Tour

We really enjoyed the Evergreen Lodge at Torteguero National Pk. It was so quiet and secluded. Food was excellent. The included whitewater rafting trip was lots of fun and a new experience for us, as well as the included ziplining excursion.

02/12/2019

All of Costa Rica is a "National Park"

Service

Well organized schedule, events, locations, and the tour guide, Jose, and bus driver, Juan Carlos, were outstanding. Parador and Mountain Paradise Hotels were the best. All meals and lodges/hotels were first rate. To have a brand new bus was a big plus! It also was great to have Quinn Long with us from the Missouri Botanical Gardens and Shaw Nature Reserve here in the St. Louis area. We enjoyed the whole trip, including zip lining, and white water rafting, cocoa presentation, pineapple plantation, coffee plantation, even the observation of "bats." Because of our experience with turtle research and rescue from the center on South Padre Island in Texas, we were not impressed with that part of the tour. The visit to the National Park at Manuel Antonio seemed a little anti-climatic with everything we had seen all during the tour before there. All in all, we would recommend Collette and their Costa Rica tour to anyone in the future.
Tour

See review above in custormer experience

01/10/2019

Adventure in Costa Rica

Service

The pricing was off on the final bill and included items were NOT included. Price adjustments needed to be made or you were overcharged if not paying attention to your original reservation. Included items in brochures were not honored by merchants on the actual trip. They were EXTRA, thus more cost.
Tour

River rafting, eco bat, chocolate,pineapple & coffee tours were the highlight of the trip.

Thank you for traveling with Collette to Costa Rica. We do offer optional activities that are not part of the base land tour. They are an additional cost but you are not required to purchase them. If your feedback pertains to items not including optional tours please contact our Guest Relations Team so we can research your comments.

Collette Support

12/31/2018

Service

They refunded my money for a cancelled optional tour promptly
Tour

Loved the Zip Line through the tree canopy

11/02/2018

Great time in Costa Rica

Service

I did not have a lot of contact with Collette, most was done with the local contact, Chris Philbin from Expedia CruiseShip Centers north shore
Tour

This was first time I have been on an organized tour. Usually I make my own plans. My concern was having a large group and waiting for the last person to get on the bus so I chose a small tour group tour. The group size was 19 and there was never a time where we had to wait for someone to board and thereby, lose time at the next experience. The planned excursions were excellent. I rarely felt rushed. Our full time guide and bus driver were excellence. The most memorable experience was the turtle egg laying excursion (extra cost) in Tortuguero. The meals that were provided were good, as local foods and spices were used. The hotel rooms were what I had expected considering we spent a lot of time in the rain forest. Not all of our hotel stays had air conditioning in rooms, which did not bother me, as the ceiling fans and the large window screens in the rooms provided ample ventilation. PS: Travel light, no one will notice you wore the same shirt a few days ago. Check with the hotel if they provide laundry service, most do, but prices vary. One hotel charge per pound and the other hotel charged per item.

06/09/2018

A fantastic adventure

Service

This was our fifth trip with Collette. For me the service they provide is top notch. The hotels where we stay are usually 5 stars the restaurants are the same quality. Also, the tour guides, We have never been disappointed. They are knowledgeable, interesting, organized and very easy going and polite. Also, the busses that they have provided, in all our trips have been luxury coaches, and the drivers are as helpful as the tour guides. In addition, the office workers are helpful, responsive and polite. We also encountered a small issue on one trip, Collette responded immediately and compensated us for our “inconvenience” by providing the entire tour with a free excursion.
Tour

The white water rafting excursion that was included in the tour, was by far the most fun we have had on any vacation.

06/08/2018

Paradise

Service

I thought everything about this tour was perfect...truely paradise! Our tour guide was so very professional and passionate about his country. I would have liked to stay extra time in the rain forest.
Tour

So many favorite memories, but the zip lining and watching the monkeys swing through the trees stand out in my mind,

05/11/2018

An amazing adventure!

Service

Everything really. Can't fault Collette
Tour

An absolutely superb tour, not to be missed. The zip wire adventure through the jungle was amazing. The tour manager, Ricardo, was the best I've ever come across. So knowledgeable, friendly, caring and with a great sense of humour.

05/01/2018

Service

Excellent guide and driver, good hotels, interesting tours and visits included.
Tour

It was a very good tour well organised and interesting. The accommodation was of a very good standard and yet very varied as we moved from place to place. The tour guide was very informative and also well organised so that we were able to enjoy all aspects of our holiday. The standard of our driver meant that we could completely relax and enjoy the journey.

04/02/2018

Stunning location,Volcanos,National Parks,Rivers,Fabulous experiences !

Service

From the time of booking,documents,door to door pick up.Smooth quality service throughout.A brilliant way of experiencing the best of Costa Rica Fabulous Scenery,National Parks,Volcanoes,waterfalls,Cloud Forests,exotic wildlife and great food yum yum ! Fantastic Trip...Thank you
Tour

Activities and excursions to cater for everyone with knowledgeable staff always on handUp close and personal with the exotic wildlife.One of my many highlights ziplining over the jungle canopy with breathtaking views of The Arenal Volcano Exhilarating and exciting !

03/27/2018

Service

Excellent guide. Nice number of guests. Good food. Very clean, comfortable bus and great driver.
Tour

Nice variety of experience - feel like I saw much of the country.

03/20/2018

Service

It was a great tour, except the Jungle crocodile Safari, that was a waist of time, The Tour guide from that company was more interested in his phone and his companion instead of pointing out wildlife. the lunch there was great but not enough time to eat it. Otherwise it was a great tour and Adriana made it very exciting.
Tour

there is always room for improuvment

Hello, thank you for bringing this to our attention. We have passed along your feedback about the guide from the Jungle Crocodile Safari to our product development team for review. They'll use it to improve the tour for future guests.

Collette Support

03/17/2018

Service

Excellent trip but more strenuous than promoted.
Tour

The rain forest and cloud forest were extraordinary. A very friendly, traveler-oriented country. A definite bucket list one!

03/16/2018

The beauty of Costa Rica

Service

It was a packed trip! Packed with activity. A little active for some of us seniors. Hotels were very adequate, however, some on hills and up many steps. I think there were the perfect amount of inclusions, leaving a little alone time. Meals at hotels were very nice. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable about the ecology and biology of the region.
Tour

Favorite experience was zip lining.

02/20/2018

Service

Of great importance was the incredible guide, ********* ****. The adventure was well planned, the country was spectacular and ********* provided ongoing helpful insights into the nature we came to see. We have been on 4 Collette led trips and will book more, all will be in the small group format. This Collette adventure was clearly the best.
Tour

The birds of Costa Rica were incredible!

12/30/2017

Service

Our 5th exploration tour with Collette and it was well organised from start to finish. Booked directly with Collette's and they were very efficient.
Tour

A fast paced tour with quite a few early starts. Excellent hotels in great locations. Our tour manager was very informative and had a good sense of humour. There were many highlights, the best were seeing a Jaguar in Tortguero and zip lining. I was surprised that a tour of San Jose was not included but we did that by ourselves as we had an extra day at the end of the trip.

12/29/2017

Very busy everyday with something exciting always on the agenda

Service

Would definitely go on another trip with collette
Tour

Zip lining beside the volcano and being able to see the beautiful area going down

12/27/2017

Great service

Service

Documents were mailed well in advance of tour. Setting up payments and details of trip was very smooth over the phone. Credit back to us for change in travel plans by tour operator was received in a timely manner.
Tour

Nature tour of Costa Rica was wonderful. A tour director who knows where to find wild life! We would never have seen these things on our own.

12/01/2017

Service

Our guide was excellent so many combinations could have been upgraded
Tour

Seeing turtles hatch which are guide set up especially for our group was amazing. Could have lived without the earthquake but he had nothing to do with that

12/01/2017

Excellent holiday with friendly party of guests

Service

Good itinerary and excellent guide. Personal collect and drop off was very good and accommodation in a Gatwick hotel in advance of early flight was generous.
Tour

Perfect except for some embarrassing confusion over tipping, said to be included for British guests but guide not aware. Have taken this up with Collette and awaiting reply

09/08/2017

Service

The hotels, excursion, guide and driver were all first rate.
Tour

The waterfall and swimming hole in west Costa Rica was a highlight.

06/16/2017

Absolutely Fantastic

Service

This was my third Collette tour. I thought that the itinerary really gave us a feel for the different regions of the country, and the places we stayed in, while lovely and comfortable, also gave a sense of place and locality. They were not big, sterile hotels. Also, our guide was absolutely superb
Tour

My favorite experiences would be the cruise we took on the Torteguero River, where we saw birds, crocs, and other animals, as well as the Arenal Hanging Bridges tour, where I felt I was on top of the forest (I actually was).

05/01/2017

A most enjoyable time and a fine learning experience.

Service

Appreciated the pick up and transportation home. Our tour director was most efficient and personable and soooooo knowledgeable about all aspects of Costa Rican nature. Thought our out of the way lodges were quite unique.
Tour

I mentioned them in the previous response.

04/14/2017

Poor service

Service

Failed to note that as I was flying out direct to San Jose that I would need transport from the airport and an extra night in the hotel until I questioned what was to happen. No car to meet me at LGW on way back so tried to phone the company using the number provided which turned out to be a private number - the owner of which had clearly had many calls in the past as she knew exactly which company I was calling. I had to get the correct number from one of the other drivers.The driver who eventually arrived had poor driving skills - took both hands off the steering wheel frequently, drove on his brakes - I wold have failed his driving test!
Tour

Optional zip wire experience

03/24/2017

Not enough excursions and what we had was scheduled at same time. Would li...

Service

Not enough excursions and what we had was scheduled at same time. Would like to be able to tour local towns and shops. On the bus to much, traveling. Tour guide t give more information while driving in the country side and buildings in the towns.
Tour

Resorts were unbelievable. Tours in the jungles were wonderful.

Hello Janice,
Thanks for sharing your feedback. We will pass this feedback along to our product and tour manager team. They will find it useful when improving the tours for future guests.
We appreciate you bringing this to our attention.

Collette Support

03/04/2017

Outstanding exploration of Costa Rica is quite an adventure

Service

The pace of the trip was very good. Our guide was extremely well informed and our driver was very good. We enjoyed our accommodations and the food at the resorts was outstanding. We enjoy the pickup service very much.
Tour

Riding the boats on the rivers was a fun and different experience

02/22/2017

Must Go Back to Costa Rica

Service

Although my Costa Rica trip was cut short by a family issue, I enjoyed what I did see. The hotel accommodations were great. *Team member name removed by Feefo* was wonderful.
Tour

First class all the way!!!

02/08/2017

Absolutely amazing

Service

Great trip guide was excellent so well informed. Hotels were wonderful very comfortable. Really enjoyed the group we traveled with. Bus driver very efficient way handle bus very courteous too
Tour

Loved everything especially the zip lining.

02/07/2017

This tour had the best tour guide ever!

Service

This tour had the best tour guide ever! *personal info removed by Feefo* truly 'took care' of all of us through the whole wonderful trip. We are seriously interested in another trip to Costa Rica if * personal info removed by Feefo* runs the trip. The lodgings, food, and historical information were 5 star through the whole trip. The mountain roads on a coach were not first class but * personal info removed by Feefo* entertained us with stories, facts, and history of the country he loves. We have taken two other Collette trips and keep returning to Collette because of this kind of quality. Please don't ever let * personal info removed by Feefo* leave!
Tour

As stated above, this was a fantastic tour. It was even more than we expected. We went on this tour for our 50th Anniversary which *personal info removed by Feefo* made very special over and over. We got to see all the habitats we wanted to see and with expert guidance from *personal info removed by Feefo*. Waking up looking out over the Pacific with a toucan 3 feet in front of the window and having hundreds of blue morphos fly all around us just after photographing almost twenty hummingbirds are some of our favorite memories. Thank you for tour but especially for *personal info removed by Feefo*.

02/07/2017

Excellent service by Collette

Service

Excellent tour .very good guide and driver.
Tour

Cloud hotel and surroundings outstanding

12/30/2016

Excellent service by Collette

Service

Thoroughly enjoyed the vacation!

12/30/2016

On the whole it was great. I just didn't like the distance of the Rio Celes...

Service

On the whole it was great. I just didn't like the distance of the Rio Celeste to the planned activities. Too much difficult bus travel. The resort was lovely ,but had a heavy mildew smell. Why go there where it pours rain most of the time. Then travel 2 hours each way to go to an activity. Couldn't you stay somewhere closer to the raft trip?
Tour

The tour was a 4and 1/2 overall. I liked the crocodile boat trip and the Tortoguera segment best.

12/30/2016

do not stay at the last to places. other wise excellent.

Service

i enjoyed all food, day trips, company and the guide was excellent. but i feel the last two places we stayed at were to far from town or things to go to see . i would opt. on those places.
Tour

all the wide life people so friendly, food excellent

12/03/2016

I loved Tortuguero. Wish we had more time there. Loved Manuel Antonio also....

Service

I loved Tortuguero. Wish we had more time there. Loved Manuel Antonio also. Our guide for the trip was excellent. I thought that in Rio Celeste hotel and Cloud Forest one we were too far removed from anything else. When we did venture out as we did both days from Rio Celeste, it was just too long a ride 4 days in a row basically--to get there, to go rafting, the indigenous adventure, and then leave for the drive to Manuel Antonio. Too many days of long drives. I didn't really care for the Maleku tribe presentation. They don't live that way now, so I would have prefered to see just how they do live, not their rituals from the past.
Tour

I already did make a statement about the tour. My favorite experience was the whole Tortuguero experience. Loved being with all the birds and animals around. I could have spent more time there.

11/14/2016

i felt we were being well loked after.

Service

Dealt with our queries quickly and promptly - even arranged for courier to purchase postage stamps for our postcards before we arrived. He took the trouble to find out about us, to ensure we had a good time.
Tour

Excellent hotels and food - good group - felt that we were secure in an unfamiliar environment. Favourite experience - Manuel Antonio National Park and beach.

09/02/2016

Brilliant

Service

Super to deal with, very organised, well run & the best experience we have ever had. Cannot recommend then high enough simply superb. The guide Ricardo was fantastic, nothing was to much trouble & always happy. could not have had a better guide.
Tour

Please do not change a thing!! All was a fantastic experience & all the little things done by Ricardo made the trip even more special. The wildlife seen was superb & some would not have been possible without the experts on site so a big thanks to them all.

06/17/2016

Experience the Wonders of the Costa Rica

Service

I took my granddaughter on this trip as a graduation present from college. She loved it. This was my 4th visit to Costa Rica but this experience was somewhat different than the others. We stayed in new properties and visited some new locations where we were informed about their diversification program and learned about the many they things they are doing to preserve their environment. We were immersed into the culture and thoroughly enjoyed mingling with the people and sharing their ideas and thoughts. We really enjoyed the animals, the food and the lovely properties. Our guide Fabian Alfaro was excellent. He taught us so much about his country and blended with our group beautifully. We only had 10 people on this tour, which was a little unusual for Collette, but it made a great experience for us and we enjoyed our little family and got to do many things we couldn't have with a large group. I would highly recommend this trip.
Tour

I liked the immersion into the culture, learning how the people live and seeing how much they love their country and want to protect it and save it for the next generation. They live in one with nature and love and appreciate life. Their existence does not depend on money and material things but appreciating life and the moment.

06/17/2016

Excellent experience

Service

Loved being picked up from our home to go to the airport. Excellent tour guide who was very knowledgeable of Costa Rica and very sensitive to the needs of the members of the group. The experiences were on time and interesting and we were very comfortable throughout the trip.
Tour

Many excellent moments and we grew to love Costa Rica due to these experiences. Loved our group and the size of the group was especially wonderful. THe only negative was the hotel we stayed in San Jose. Although we thought it was a beautiful property, we had a walking tour in downtown San Jose and had to spend almost $70 in cab fares to get to where the tour began. Also the restaurant in the hotel was very disinterested in us and it took us forever to get our lunch and to get the attention of the wait staff.

05/09/2016

Service

Door to door service was an excellent touch.

04/27/2016

Service

I did not deal with Collette went I purchased the trip.
Tour

Other than the San Jose hotel, only one other hotel which I would describe as 3.5 to 4 stars. The planning of the wild life experiences for 9:00 to !0:00 AM, just does not work when it was as hot. The animals are already hunkering down for the day. Having a hotel that is 1 hour and forty-five away from a national park for 2 hours in the park is he waste of a day. The La Quinta hotel was a dump. .

Thank you for choosing us for your recent tour. Maintaining a high level of quality is our number one priority. That priority is extended into every aspect of a vacation experience - from airfare to your tour manager and from meals to hotels. We’re disappointed to hear about your recent experience. \n
\nPlease accept our sincere apology for the conditions you experienced at some of the hotels on tour. We have forwarded your feedback regarding the hotels, as well as your comments on the timing of the sightseeing to our Product Development Team. They will be reviewing this feedback and using it to enhance this tour for our future guests. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.\n
\nWe want to constantly better our product, service, and customer satisfaction. We encourage all feedback as it allows us the opportunity to identify problems and strive to make the necessary corrections. We are thankful for your business and look forward to seeing you on another tour.

Collette Support

04/27/2016

Unacceptable Hotel at one location. Trip was oversold in advertising.

Service

This was our third Collette trip and will be our last. We were put in a hotel that was totally unacceptable.The La Quinta Country Inn in Sarapiqui was old, dirty and the poorest hotel I have ever stayed at. They should have know better. This tour is way overstated in the Collette advertising . What they told us the trip would be and what is was at most (not all) locations were two things. The only good Hotel was Arenal Springs Resort. Tour manager did a good job. Most daily activities were good or very good but a few in Tortuguero National Park were very disappointing. Menu options at all locations except Areral were average at best and semilunar. Most our our tours were good but a few were not up to a expected standard. Our tour guide did a good job.
Tour

River rafting, Zip Line and the Tarcoles River tour. Also enjoyed the Pineapple plantation tour

Thank you for choosing us for your recent tour. Maintaining a high level of quality is our number one priority. That priority is extended into every aspect of a vacation experience - from airfare to your tour manager and from meals to hotels. We’re disappointed to hear about your recent experience. \n
\nPlease accept our sincere apology for the conditions you experienced at some of the hotels on tour. We have forwarded your feedback regarding the hotels, as well as your comments on the timing of the sightseeing to our Product Development Team. They will be reviewing this feedback and using it to enhance this tour for our future guests. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. \n
\nWe want to constantly better our product, service, and customer satisfaction. We encourage all feedback as it allows us the opportunity to identify problems and strive to make the necessary corrections. We are thankful for your business and look forward to seeing you on another tour.

Collette Support

04/26/2016

Great experience with Collette

Service

We were very impressed with the organization and value of our trip and we would definitely take another Collette tour.
Tour

Our Collette tour was perfect from picking us up at the airport to ensuring that we were returned to the airport with plenty of time to make our flight and a packaged breakfast to take with us since we left very early. The tour manager was excellent, ensuring that everyone was having a good tour and that all the details were managed. She was so enthusiastic about sharing her country with us.

04/25/2016

A good company to holiday with

Service

Holiday purchased through a third party travel agent. There was a mix up in the holiday offered in the new & old Collette brochure which hopefully Collette will correct in the 2017 brochure. We reached an amicable agreement so booked the holiday. Collettes mileage charge for home collection over 100 miles is excessive. This was our second holiday with the company & doubt it will be the last. Information pack for the holiday plus the numerous emails prior to the trip are very welcome.
Tour

We required a nature holiday & this holiday more than met the brief. Wonderful hotels apart from the rooms at Hotel Punta Leona, Playa Blanca which were cramped & unwelcoming. Excursions were first class & the white water rafting was a great experience. Some culture was included like meeting local farmers & pineapple growers. Tour manager was excellent as was the coach & driver. Many reptiles & birds were spotted by the numerous guides on the included excursions that we would have not seen otherwise. Pace of tour was good but you need to be fairly fit as there was a lot of walking in high humidity over some uneven ground. If you can avoid going via the USA then do so as their immigration lines even for passengers in transit are long & slow. We did not meet our connection home due to late arriving aircraft & the curt nature of United Airlines personnel. Collette were very good & arranged an overnight hotel with transfers. Would not travel with United Airlines again as the meal from Newark to Heathrow was terrible with the main course being burnt & pre-meal cheese being a month out of best by date.

04/25/2016

Service

Had good service from Collette
Tour

Good paced tour. Wildlife we saw was good. HIghlight was probably the whtite water rafting, but whole tour was very enjoyable

04/24/2016

Service

Very professional. Would recommend

04/22/2016

The best !

Service

Provided all that they promised and more.Hotels were terrific, tour guide was incredible and the organization was second to none.
Tour

Incredible experience. All was planned spectacularly and I could not have asked for more.

04/21/2016

Best holiday ever

Service

From start to finish this tour was excellent. Our tour guide Fabian Alfaro was brilliant, so kind, corteous, friendly and knowledgable. The excursions were marvellous. The next holiday we have ever had, thank you.
Tour

Most accommodation was excellent, we were unimpressed by La Quinta. The food, accommodation, cleanliness and staff left a lot to be desired at this property.

04/21/2016

makes it easy

Service

Two tours so far and my travel agent always get quick answers to my questions from Collette. Very friendly when i call them directly.
Tour

A fantastic tour with a great tour manager, Adriana Diaz Rodriguez. Driver was excellent too. Love the small group tours. I loved best the hotel near Arenal and zip lining blew me away. hanging bridges was fun too.

04/21/2016

Service

Good

04/04/2016

Service

Adequate for the money.
Tour

We did not go to Torteguero Park since we left our lodge too late and other groups that were there earlier got their permits. We felt rushed going through the turtle conservatory. All we saw there was a short (15 minutes) documentary and we had to board our boat to go to the nearly village whereby we were stranded there for at least an hour. We would have liked to go through the exhibit in the conservatory but ....

03/19/2016

Service

good holiday

03/12/2016

Enjoyable vacation!

Service

Our tour guide. Priscilla was great, not only knowledgable, but extremely pleasant and patient. We enjoyed ever phase of our trip; highly recommend Collette to any friend planning a trip. We hope to be able to take another trip with Collette in the future
Tour

Zip line and hanging bridges

03/11/2016

Service

Never used Collette before. Service & organisation excellent from booking all the way through the holiday. People on phone always helpful with all questions, no matter how small
Tour

Tour manager knowledgable, helpful & fun. tour nicely paced. seemed to do a lot but not rushed & plenty of time to just wander & see what 'critters' could be found. Abundant sightings of birds, monkeys, reptiles etc. Each place completely different & well chosen. White water rafting tremendous fun. Fantastic holiday!!!

03/10/2016

A first class company, with first class holidays with experienced good people on hand,

Service

Not the first tim we have used Collette. We have found the service first class, so we use them again & again! Very helpfull people in the UK in Manchester, nothing is too much trouble.
Tour

This was an exceptional tour, far exceeding our expectations, Our Tour Manager Fabian Alfaro was also exceptional, knew what he was doing, and made the process easy for all of us. His knowledge on Costa Rica, the wild life and everything else was very good, cant praise him enough, also a good fellow with a great sense of humour. Only one bad experience and that was our room in La Quinta Country Inn, which left much to be desired, wash basin coming of the wall, and a shower that would not switch off,making a loud noise all night. This hotel is not maintained very well in our oppinion. The rest of our hotels were fine especially Hotel Arenal Manoa, this is outstanding..

03/09/2016

Excellent, well paced, great activities - a good 'first time' group tour.

Service

We had good advice and service from our local Co-Op travel shop. They managed our booking which went ahead smoothly without problems. I used the Collette gateway to gain information about the trip as time went by. This was very useful as we could browse the hotel selection and tour itinery when we wanted to. We did question the use of our second hotel. The rooms were not serviced well although the public areas and restuarant were very good. We would recommend Collette to anyone considering a long haul trip.
Tour

Our tour guide was excellent, very knowledgeable and good fun. We enjoyed the fact that the group was only made up of 22 people. The stay near to the Arenal Volcano was great, fantastic view of the volcano and wonderful weather. The bird and wildlife was fantastic. The white water rafting and hanging bridges were amazing experiences. We enjoyed the food, great fresh fruit and salads. The local food was also very good. Our tour manager directed us to some excellent restaurants for lunches. The educational part of the trip such as learning about coffee and chocolate was excellent.

03/08/2016

Serious safety issues, no bottled water provided at the hotels/resorts.

Service

We had done a previous tour with Collette to Africa. We were very pleased with that. This tour was not up to par with Africa. He was fine, then got sick on the first day of the tour. We spent 3 days on the tour and left, he was not getting any better, after seeing many Dr.'s. One of the problems was not having bottled water provided to us in our rooms, or at the first three resorts we stayed at. This contributed to my husband having traveller's diarrhea, and dehydration. Even sick at the resort, (Evergreen Lodge) I had to keep refilling our empty bottles up with water coming out of a jug at the restaurant. This was not up to standards for us. The tour started on a Monday and we left on a Thursday. There is safety issues at the La Quinta Country Hotel. We were staying in a cabin behind the reception desk. This required walking down a sidewalk pathway to our cabin. At the top of the walkway coming down to our cabin, there is no hand railing . In the day time it is fine, a person can see. At night is a whole different story. The last night we were there, the power went out. Mike was in the cabin, I was at the top at the reception. They provided me two small dollar store candles, in a tiny bucket, that shone up in the air. They did not shine on the ground, so I could not see to walk. I knew this at the time, and could not make it back to the cabin, because of these safety issues. If I fell off of the sidewalk, there was a drop off of 6-8 inches before hitting the ground. These grounds rolled down a hill to a small ravine, 20 ft. down. Somebody seriously could be hurt. (Lack of hand railing down). One other tour member, an older gentleman did fall that night. He hit his head and scraped his knees. That hotel has serious safety issues, that need to be looked at. If this was our first tour with Collette , this would be our last. Would not make a good first tour impression. You don't get a second chance to make a first impression.
Tour

Did not know the tour manager till the first day of our bus trip, on the bus.

Hi Marlene, We are so upset to hear about your experience on the Costa Rica tour and that it paled in comparison to Africa. We're looking into this immediately and will be in touch. Thanks, Guest Relations at Collette

Collette Support

03/08/2016

Collette is the best for service, itinerary, and guides.

Service

I recommend Collette to my friends because of Collette's excellent service. Agent Keiko always has the answers to my many questions. The pre- and post transport really simplifies getting to and from the airport. And the clothing cases come in so handy. Thank you.
Tour

The tour more than met expectations. The sights, sounds and experience of the rainforest was outstanding. Having a knowledgeable tour manager , in addition to local guides helped foster a desire to return for more. I am already looking forward to my next Collette tour.

03/08/2016

Informative and fun

Service

The tour was as advertised and the guide was professional and fun. He worked hard to ensure everyone was taken care of and was so patient.
Tour

Loved the chocolate tour, rafting, and zip lining.

03/08/2016

Not our favourite holiday. The best bits were on the Pacific coast, wonderful birds on the crocodile river, excel:guide

Service

Not as good as our tour of New Zealand with you two years ago. The weather was against us but dashing around in a boat in pouring rain at Tortuguera Nat. park was not good especially two days later we got to a brridge where we leaned over and there were so many iguanas almost in touching distance. The guide knew they would be there so it might have been better to have told us not bother with glimpses on the river in the rain. There was much more to see at the sight in comfort. The monkeys visited every day. The frogs croaked continually all night and a Cayman strolled about by the restaurant! There were plenty of birds too. The cabins were very basic and the next hotel at Sarapiqui was more like a youth hostel, 3 or 4 beds in one room a block of showers and loos, the beds had thin hard mattresses and the walk to the main foyer and restaurant was a very long way. The visits to pineapple farm coffee plantation and chocolate manufacture were all good, but I had not realised that Costa Rica has no archeology or ancient civilisations to speak of. Our guide was good, we had a few bus problems but the weather was not conducive to the type of holiday, probably more suited to younger keen photographers and nature enthusiasts. We did not get a clear idea of the tour. The only hint we got of the non luxury type of accommodation was the warning that not all hotels had air conditioning. I have to say I will be careful not to travel with United Airline ever again and I very much hope never to be in Newark airport either.

We’re sorry to hear that the weather was not in your favour on this tour. We’ve been in touch with our product team and ground handlers and sent them your feedback regarding the wildlife excursions. \n
\n Please accept our sincere apology for the conditions you experienced. Maintaining a high level of quality is our number one priority. That priority is extended into every aspect of a vacation experience - from airfare to your tour manager and from meals to hotels.\n
\nWe apologize that you did not have a great experience with the accommodations. We have also informed the product team about your experience with the hotel, bus and flight options on this tour so that they can plan for more appropriate options. They will be reviewing this feedback and using it to enhance this tour for our future guests. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. \n
\nWe want to constantly better our product, service, and customer satisfaction. We encourage all feedback as it allows us the opportunity to identify problems and strive to make the necessary corrections. \n
\nWe are thankful for your business and look forward to seeing you on another tour.

Collette Support

03/08/2016

A BIG TICK ON MY BUCKET LIST

Service

ONE OF THE MOST ENJOYABLE HOLIDAYS I HAVE HAD

02/19/2016

Super Costa Rica despite not seeing Arenal Volcano

Service

Very good advice from travel agent and Collette British office. First class organisation throughout. Excellent TM willing to manipulate program to offer guests more options. Good hotels and good choice of venues. Will definitely consider Collette for future holidays.
Tour

Our two memorable experiences where daring to do white water rafting and zip lining. Seeing the birds and animals in their natural habitats were exactly why we had gone. We were not disappointed. We would highly recommend this tour to anyone else. You get first class service, excellent tour management and never to be forgotten experiences.

02/19/2016

Great holiday,

Service

Excellent service. Loved the transport to and from airport. Excellent tour guide and driver. Journey to and from wasn't much fun.
Tour

Loved the tour. Clean comfortable hotels. Great tour guide and driver. Loved seeing all the birds and animals. Thrilled to see Scarlet Macaws at the beach. Loved boat trips, seeing Crocodiles and Iguanas. White water rafting was a new and exciting experience. Transport to and from the airport was wonderful. The actual journey wasn't so much fun. Changing planes in America was stressful.

02/18/2016

Costa Rica Experience

Service

Pre trip with Collette was excellent. The reps answered all questions completely.
Tour

Tour was action packed and provided activities to do for everyone. The rain forest experience was Great - waking to the howler monkeys every morning, and then seeing so much of the wildlife and birds. The zip line was a thrill of a lifetime for me-something I will never forget. Loved that we traveled from the city, to the rain forest, to the Carribbean, to the mountains, and to the Pacific Coast. A truly amazing trip.

We're so glad to hear this, Dorothy! Thanks for traveling with Collette! It sounds like you had a wonderful tour in Costa Rica.

Collette Support

02/18/2016

Highworth Travel

Service

Excellent service as always.
Tour

Very good in all aspects. Lots of varied activities. Excellent tour guides. Good hotels. Fantastic wildlife. Would love to do it all again.

So glad to hear this! Thanks so much for the note!

Collette Support

02/17/2016

Colette & United Airlines

Service

Our holiday in Costa Rica was both fantastic and interesting with a tour manager of exceptional ability. However despite our booking the holiday considerably in advance the seat allocation we were given, in fact left with was very poor to say the least. The standard of seating space and general sevice on flights between Newark and San Jose was appalling particular the standard of equipment inspection prior to flight and when faulty seat was discovered after full boarding completed was totally unacceptable in causing the loaded flight to be delayed for TWO HOURS on the runway at San Jose. This series of incidents and poor service was compounded with the failure of the docking tunnel at Manchester Airport. Be certain although we may well book again with Colette we shall do everything to avoid flying with United. If this should prove unavoidable we would be hard pressed not to go elsewhere.
Tour

Great experience with Tour Manager, Omar Torres of exceptional ability and knowledge.

Thanks so much for the response and thanks for choosing Collette!

Collette Support

02/17/2016

loved Costa Rica with Collette

Service

I am a travel agent and sent a very positive email to my DSM with Collette. Basically, we loved the group size and the type of fellow travelers this kind of holiday attracts. Our main guide, Jonas Gonzales, was very informative, professional and capable as well as friendly to all. The accommodation was appropriate but I wish that the Sarapique, property La Quinta Country Inn, would rake up the leaves so the snakes do not have ground cover to hide in.
Tour

I loved the natural history aspect of the tour. The guides helped us to see and identify them so now I have 60 different names of birds on my list for Costa Rica. Seeing butterflies, crocodiles, sloths, iguanas, monkeys, frogs, turtles, and more were all part of our experience. At the Punta Leona Hotel the monkeys looked in at us while we ate in the restaurant which had open walls with netting surrounding it so It was as if we were in the cage and they were running free-what fun. We also visited coffee and pinapple plantations as well as a local farm to learn about the agricultural production of the country.The country feels very safe and the locals are friendly and do not beg or interfere with you.

02/17/2016

Costa Rica a natural paradise

Service

Plenty of new experiences packed into a very informative tour.
Tour

Excellent tour manager a very enjoyable trip. Tourtagura was very good Arenal was wet and Tarcoles river was a highlight

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Costa Rica: A World of Nature From $3,499 $3,399 pp* Featuring Tortuguero National Park, Arenal Volcano & Manuel Antonio National Park

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Costa Rica: A World of Nature featuring Tortuguero National Park, Arenal Volcano & Manuel Antonio National Park

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Costa Rica: A World of Nature Featuring Tortuguero National Park, Arenal Volcano & Manuel Antonio National Park