What is an Ecolodge?

Lapa Rios Costa Rica Ecolodge

Costa Rica is known for ecotourism along with many other types of tourism. The ecotourism is without a doubt the best type of tourism (that is just our own company's opinion). With ecotourism comes all sorts of ideas of how to travel with little or no harm to the environment. The most common way to enjoy ecotourism is to stay at a Costa Rica ecolodge.  An ecolodge can range from arriving only by raft in Costa Rica whitewater rafting tours to remote ecologdes or being at the populated Manuel Antonio but staying at a place with a real commitment to the environment. To put it simply anyone can really just call themselves an ecolodge and have many pretty plants at the entrance but there is a real science to becoming an ecolodge. It should be noted also that as long as being an ecolodge and a green company is a positive marketing tool, this just means we as a world community, are in the process of taking steps towards a sustainable planet with respect to nature. All hotels should be ecolodges and all tourists should travel in an eco-friendly way. It needs to be to the point where it is not talked about or marketed, it is just done. Bad habits change slowly and people have to be educated. We are seeing this with recycling. Gradually families are doing it along with school, industries etc. Hopefully, it will soon just be a part of life.  That is where we have to be with "ecolodges" but until then we can only hope that they just set an example in the direction that our world needs to be moving and continue to give people a "true" eco experience and not try and deceive anyone.

Costa Rica Ecolodges

Costa Rica is a country that makes for the perfect ecolodge. If you want to be on the ocean surrounded by rainforest then there is a spot for your lodge. If you would like to stay in a lodge at an elevation of 10,000ft with the Quetzal bird nearby then there is  a lodge for you. With all the ecolodges in Costa Rica there is a standard for what makes you an ecolodge. There are rating services by CST (Certification for Sustainable Tourism) who awards leaves from 1 being the least eco-friendly to 5 leaves being having your eco-awareness to the max. Last I checked there were 7 hotels in Costa Rica that had 5 leaves some of them being simple lodges to even a near 5 star hotel in the Manuel Antonio area. The true test of an ecolodge comes after you are certified. This is where the human mind must take a step forward beyond a simple leaf system and actually be eco-friendly for the sake of nature and the sake of future generations. Maybe instead of leaves on websites they should put pictures of our grandkids or even our kids as this has to be a project thinking of them and not just immediate sales on rooms for having 5 leaves as an ecolodge.

What makes an Ecolodge Eco-Friendly

The idea of being an ecolodge is to have little to no impact on the environment. There are hotels that build their entire enfrastructure with labor from the local community and materials from the local area cutting down on importing things from far distance and being less dependant on fossil fuels. This is all in the building process and when the operation gets started is when it becomes tricky. One of the most important in our opinion is food. Many ecolodges have gardens that grow their own food and if you can grow a premaculture garden that would be best and/or atleast organic on hotel grounds gardened by local labor.

Being involved in the local community is always a part of being eco-friendly. This should involve preserving local culture in our opinion and if there are Indians nearby you are in luck because you can make extra efforts to preserve cultures that are in dying need of conservation. Community help can be in a number of different ways but if at all possible should involve sustainable education such as gardening, different impacts on the environment, and most importantly educating to care for present and future generations which ultimately generates the interest of conservation.

Finally the ecolodge itself should operate with as low of impact as possible to the environment in allowing it's guest to feel part of the action through maybe not running water, not having A/C units, planting trees to offset their jet they arrived to the country in, washing towels and sheets as little as possible, and taking their own food to the compose. The ecolodge should operate off of alternative energy such as solar or hydro. The ecolodge should educate through optional evening talks about conservation in the local area and global warming. The ecolodge should be using graywater for plants.

Our company supports ecolodges all over Costa Rica. You must look and investigate to make sure if what you are getting into is really an ecolodge with first priority "green trees" or first priority "green bills". Our Costa Rica Spanish School is what we consider an eco-school and our comapny operates as much as possible with little to know impact trying to offset car rides and many more projects we have going on.

Currency Exchange

Colones

nominal The currency in Costa Rica is called the "colon" named after Christopher Columbus. The exchange on average is around 500 colones to $1. It will go up and down on a daily fluctuation and unless dealing with large amounts it is easiest when on a Costa Rica Adventure to just go with the 500 when doing your calculating and buying.

We do not suggest you exchange dollars to colones at the airport. They do not give a good rate and it turns out almost everywhere in the country will take dollars. What will happen is you pay with a $20 bill on your first stop, you will get change in colones. Stores often won't take $50's or $100's. Exchanging money is not difficult and if you would like to go to a bank it is possible but we do not suggest doing it only because the lines are usually a 30 minute wait. I know we and the family will be eager to get out into the jungle and start the adventures of whitewater rafting the pacuare river or the waterfall rappels so waiting in line is usually not on an itinerary. ATM machines are readily available and you can get colones or dollars with your debit card. There is a nominal international transaction fee any time you use a credit card. 

Here is a list of the currency:

20,000 colones just came out in 2010 and is around ---- $40

10,000 colones also known as a puma is worth         ---- $20

5,000 colones also known as a toucan is worth      ------- $10

2,000  is worth ---------------------------------------------------- $4

1,000 also known as the infamous "rojillo" is worth ----- $2

After these bills comes very large coins that feel like bricks compared to the coins we use in the USA. They have coins that are worth $1 = 500 colones and they have coins that are worth just a fraction of a penny making it quite the load of coins to deal with.

How much Money to bring to Costa Rica

Most of our tours are all inclusive which means you really do not need much money. If you are on one of our off the beaten path Costa Rica adventure tours our goal is to have you spend no money during your stay. But we know everyone always wants a little taste of home so stopping for a icecream sandwich is always big with the kids and with just around $20's a day is more than enough when you are signed up for one of our Costa Rica family adventures. If you decide you want to eat at a fancy place then expect to pay fancy prices but local spot can be around $6's meal and the fancy prices get up to around $30/meal.

The souvenir shops often have nice things and often have a ton of stuff that is not nice it just depends if you want a refrigerator magnet that was made in China that will break in a week or a souvenir that comes from local village that had some time invested into making it.

Crime & Safety

Costa Rica is still considered one of the safest countries in Central America for traveling. Over the last 10 years our company has had no major incidence involving crime and much of it has to do with knowing the area, the people, and not putting ourselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.

A few members of the Tourism Police Force

Like any place in the world that has had a tourism boom you will find the select few that are looking to take advantage of a camera laying around in a rental car or a taxi driver looking to charge a little extra for cab fare. In the last three years Costa Rica has added a police force that is a "Tourism Force" and they do an excellent job of patrolling the touristy areas. Many of our Costa Rica Adventures are outside of the touristy areas. Here we get into less populated areas and actually get into the nice wholesome country-side of Costa Rica which is probably one of the safest places on the planet when it comes to living the Pura Vida!

During a Costa Rica Family Adventure we always consider safety first, be it in the whitewater rafting tours, driving on the roads, or keeping an eye on your personal belongings.  What will keep us all safe, just like anywhere in the world, is to not be naive and follow the advise of guides who know the area.

You will see Costa Rica on the news or read a negative review on the internet every now and then but you can just as easily turn on the Maimi news and find many stories just as negative. We feel Costa Rica is the perfect spot for a family vacation first and foremost because of the safety that Costa Rica offers.

Costa Rica Time Zone

I think it is only fair that I start this topic off by saying Costa Rica is in Latin America and most of us know that Latin America has a few different time zones but there is always "Latin Time". This means that people living in Latin America seem to operate on a more relaxed scale of time. To put it simple 15 - 30 minutes before or after a scheduled event is still considered on time. It is easy to get use to after a while and just seeing the locals not worry about time and to just go with the flow has been one of the more positive effects on the daily lifestyle of living abroad.

Being a Costa Rica Adventure Tour company we unfortunately do not have the liberty to operate our tours on "Latin Time" and we realize our paying customers have limited time in the country and being very on time is one of our companies main goals. When we do have to visit areas that other tourists will be visiting such as the Costa Rica whitewater rafting Pacuare River trips we know it is very important to be early because we always try and get to the river first making it feel like our own private river for the day.  Costa Rica's official time zone is not "Latin Time" it is GMT - 6 zone which gives Costa Rica US Central time when during winter months and during daylight savings time Costa Rica is in US Mountain time. This gives Costa Rica 1 hour behind New York City or 2 hours behind New York City depending on the time of year.

This is time thing can be an important part of a Costa Rica Vacation and usually starts with the planning part. If you are taking part in an active Costa Rica Adventure you want to be able to know when and where you will lose or gain some sleep. If you are joining us for more of a relaxed extended stay such as our Costa Rica Spanish School then I would say the flight is less important on getting the right hours.

Driving in Costa Rica

Free Back Massage

If you visited Costa Rica 20 years ago and you arrive today you will notice two things about the driving. The first will be is that there are still potholes but not as many. The second will be is that there are a lot more vehicles on the road. You will notice this pulling out of the San Jose Airport as it is filled with traffic.

The Costa Rica Adventure of renting a car is always an option but we like to think that our way of transit is a bit more attractive and relaxing. Our style is "leave the driving to us" and our guides will take the stress out of finding your way on the roads of a foreign country, will stop at interesting places and at the right times (like sunset spots) and give you accurate commentaries on what you're driving by.

Caldera Highway

If you can remove a few hours from drive time in a Costa Rica Family Vacation then you are making everyone in the car happy and you will probably have some more time at the beach or you can spend more time Whitewater Rafting the Pacuare River. Well this all became possible when heading to the Pacific side in the last few years. The Caldera highway is now open and it is without a doubt your straight shot to the Pacific. This all sounds good but like many roads going through mountains it is often closed. It is good to know the detours and when the detours are crowded it is good to know the detours of the detours which is something we take pride in knowing very well.

The Free Back Massage

If you are ready for a free back massage you usually do not have to go much farther than just signing up for one of or Costa Rica Adventure Tours. If we are taking you down to the Pacuare River or maybe getting you ready for a 150ft Costa Rica Waterfall Rappel that you will see nobody else at, then it is time for some 4-wheel driving. Our vehicles are geared to get your through the roads you will face on your Costa Rica Adventure Tours.

Just to give you an idea of what roads can be like in Costa Rica, you have to imagine that the country is about 50 miles wide with a very large mountain range running through the center of the country. This mountain range can rise up to 13,000ft and on average around 10,000ft right down the middle of the country. Now add rain and rain and more rain up in these mountains and you have very steep and wet roads. Now I don't want to scare you off.   With the infrastructure that the tourism boom has brought almost all areas now are quite easy to get to but it is one reason why after Christopher Columbus visited the "Rich Coast - Costa Rica" for the first time, his return trip was not too much of a success because the terrain was difficult to get through. You have to remember though it is this difficult terrain that has kept much of this country so beautiful. If you visit our Costa Rica Spanish School in Sitio de Mata you will see exactly what we are talking about with just a five minute ride on a bumpy road you arrive at a village that is one of our favorite spots in all of Costa Rica.

If you are not into the adventure off-roading there are plenty of itineraries that will fit a smooth ride from start to finish and you can save the back massages for the Costa Rica Spas.

Costa Rica International Airports

Costa Rica is home to two different International Airports. The largest and is located 10 miles outside of the capital city of San Jose. It is called the San Jose Airport labeled SJO or the Juan Santa Maria (Juan Santa Maria is the national hero) Airport. The second international airport is located in the Guanacaste province and called the Liberia airport or the Daniel Oduber airport.

SJO San Jose Juan Santa Maria Airport

When confirming a Costa Rica Adventure Trip with us there is a good chance your itinerary will require you to fly in and out of the San Jose Airport. If you choose to design your own family trip and the itinerary requires you to arrive in Liberia that is not a problem but most of the trips we have begin with arrivals at San Jose Airport. The San Jose Airport is a beautiful modern airport located in the center of the country in the Central Valley at an elevation of 3,000ft. It is surrounded by the Poas Volcano and Irazu Volcano.

There are a number of different airlines that fly into San Jose for your Costa Rica Adventure Tour,  Continental, USAir, Taca, JetBlue, Spirit, Frontier, and American. From what we have noticed over the years of experience is that JetBlue and Spirit offer the best rates on flights to San Jose. These flights arrive all during the day and are even some red-eye flights.

The San Jose Airport just expanded in 2010 and now is larger in size on the inside area and has a number of souvenir shops. Our personal opinion is that the souvenir shops are mostly a monopoly by the Britt Company which sells some great stuff but if you want variety of souvenirs or local crafts then your best asking your Costa Rican Adventure guide to stop before dropping you off on the last day.

One of the benefits to arriving to the San Jose Airport is that you are in the center of the country and it is sort of a hub for tourism companies and local transit. If you are joining us in one of our Costa Rica Spanish Schools and you chose to arrive on your own it is very easy to find buses and reputable taxis at SJO to take you where you want to go.  The security is pretty strict at the airport and getting ripped off outside by some stranger is definitely a thing of the past.

Liberia Airport  Daniel Oduber Quiros LIR

The main reason for flying into the Liberia Airport is that you would be les than an hour's drive from beautiful beaches in the Guanacaste area when you arrive to Costa Rica. Chances are if you sign up for a Costa Rica Family Tour then you will not be arriving to this airport but you could choose to end you stay at a beach and then fly out of Liberia.

It is a nice airport and it also was just expanded. The airport is located about 2 hours from the border of Nicaragua and just 50 minutes from one of the main developed beach towns called Tamarindo. Here you will notice a heavy real estate market and a very modernized part of Costa Rica.

Although our company operates tours in this area, we very seldom have clients fly into Liberia. To give you an example the Costa Rica Whitewater Rafting Pacuare River is around a seven hour drive from Liberia which nobody is ever up for. If you do fly into the Liberia Airport there are always options and things can be arranged just leave that up to us.

Next Vacation: A Cruise or Costa Rica Eco-Tourism?

Image via WikipediaIm going to lay this one out there nice and simple. A cruise ship is a large floating piece of junk. One cruise ship generates EACH DAY:

•  25,000 gallons of sewage from toilets each day
• 143,000 gallons of sewage from sinks, galleys, and showers
• 7 tons of garbage and solid waste
• 15 gallons of toxic chemicals
• 7,000 gallons of oily bildewater

Not to mention the amount of over-eating, glutnous fest, artery clogging, health-care bill rising cost, (should I go on...?).

Just go with Eco-Tourism its a No-Brainer

Design Your Own Eco-Tourism Adventure

Source: NatGeo: GreenGuide

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