Famous for its biodiversity, a geography trip to Costa Rica will show your students the importance of protecting the environment!
School trips to Costa Rica offer students the opportunity to explore one of the most biodiverse countries on the planet.
Costa Rica is the perfect destination for both geography and science school trips. Plus, as a real pioneer of ecotourism, this is the ideal destination for encouraging your students to become more environmentally conscious.
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Activities in Costa Rica that your school group will love
Arenal Volcano Hiking Trails
During this unforgettable experience you will enjoy hiking on the lava trails of the Arenal Volcano.
Baldi Hot Springs
Baldi Hot Springs is located in La Fortuna de San Carlos at the base of the imposing Arenal Volcano.
Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge
CañoNegro lies in the north of the country, lying very close to the border of Nicaragua.
La Casona del Rio
Casona Río Fortuna is therenowned Costa Rican historical and elegant turn-of-the-century country home of the former Costa Rican president, Rafael
Monteverde Cloud Forest
Set atop the spine of Costa Rica's continental divide, Monteverde is a high altitude (1,440 m) region in the north
Why visit Costa Rica?
Incredible biodiversity
Costa Rica is a country that takes its biodiversity very seriously and so it should – despite making up just 0.03% of the world’s landmass, Costa Rica makes up 5% of the world’s biodiversity.
Boasting the perfect mix of forests, volcanoes, beaches and nature reserves, Costa Rica offers a wealth of opportunities to learn more about conservation and the practice of scientific research that would be hard to find anywhere else!
On your educational tour to Costa Rica, you’ll explore the Monteverde Cloud Forest, which is home to over 100 species of mammals, 400 species of birds and 1200 species of amphibians and reptiles. Here you’ll find out about the local conservation efforts and the contributions being made to scientific research.
You’ll also take a boat tour in Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge, where you should be able to spot monkeys, sloths, birds and reptiles.
A pioneer of sustainable tourism
A school trip to Costa Rica is a great option for educating the travellers of the future to travel more responsibly, as the country has led the way in terms of sustainable tourism since the early 1990s. An estimated 26% of Costa Rica’s land area has been devoted to national parks, wildlife reserves and protected areas.
Costa Rica’s commitment to sustainability extends beyond tourism too – in 2018 the country hit the milestone of 99% of its energy coming from renewable resources, including hydropower, solar power and wind power.
The country is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2025 and looks set to be on target for that. In fact, to date, Costa Rica is the only country in the world to meet all five of the criteria set by the United Nations Development Programme to measure environmental sustainability!
Dramatic geology
Costa Rica is geologically active and is part of the Central America Volcanic Arc. The geological activity is caused by the Cocos Plate being subducted beneath the Caribbean Plate, on which Costa Rica sits.
This means that your students can learn more about plate tectonics, volcanoes and earthquakes on their geography school trip to Costa Rica.
We can arrange for you to hike the Arenal Volcano lava trails, where you’ll have the most fabulous views of the Arenal Volcano. And, after a sweaty hike, your students will love the opportunity to bathe in the thermal water pools at Baldi Hot Springs.
Where to visit in Costa Rica
San José
A school trip to San José offers your students the unforgettable opportunity to explore spectacular Costa Rica!
San José school trips are most popular among geography groups who come here to learn more about the country's incredible biodiversity and its status as a world leader in sustainable tourism. Highlights include hiking the Arenal volcano trails and visiting a cloud forest.
Related resources
The Ultimate Guide To Organising School Trips
Everything a teacher needs to know about organising a trip – from start to finish.
How Do I Write A School Trip Letter?
Our top tips for writing a letter to get parental permission.
Risk Assessment For School Trips
Worried about the prospect of completing the risk assessments for your trip? We're here to help.
What To Pack For Your School Trip
Bombarded by questions from parents and students about what to pack? Share this handy guide and free, downloadable checklist!
Why Are School Trips Important?
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Why choose Halsbury?
We build your trip around you
Tell us your learning objectives, curriculum and budget and we’ll do the rest.
Contact usWe’re trusted for a reason
We’re members of ABTA, ABTOT and the School Travel Forum. We also hold an ATOL and the LOtC Quality Badge.
Read moreOur Education specialists
Laura Lucas
Tour Consultant
Paul Hudson
Tour Consultant
Laura Martin
Tours Sales & Product Manager
Emma Gray da Silva
Tour Consultant
Meet our education specialists and get to know more about the people committed to making your school trip the best it can be.
FAQs
Do you offer travel insurance?
We do. Travel insurance is an optional extra and you can find out more about it in our travel insurance resource (which includes the policy documents and FAQs).
If you decide against arranging this insurance through us (which is absolutely fine, by the way), please just remember you must have suitable travel and medical insurance to cover your group.
How far ahead should I start planning my trip?
As a general rule, we recommend that you start planning your trip 12-18 months before you want to travel. This gives you plenty of time to get it approved and launched to students and parents.
Planning early will mean you have a greater choice of accommodation and travel options - and it will make paying for the trip easier for families, as they'll be able to break it down into smaller, more manageable payments.
You can check out our trip-planning timeline for a better idea of the process and when you should expect to be doing things.
If you are looking to travel sooner than this, it is possible. It will depend on availability and you may find prices are a bit higher, but get in touch and we can see what's possible.
Can the trip itinerary be adapted to my curriculum and requirements?
Every single trip we arrange is tailor-made, so yes, the itinerary can be adapted.
Our Tour Advisers and Itinerary Coordinators are all experienced school travel specialists. They'll work closely with you to make sure your itinerary supports your learning objectives. They'll be able to offer suggestions and advice to make sure you make the most of your time.
So, when you're browsing through our school trips, just remember that the itineraries and activities you see are there for inspiration only - your own itinerary can look as similar or as different as you want.
Equally, we've suggested trip durations based on what groups usually request - if you want to go for a shorter or longer duration, just let us know.
What accommodation options are available?
The accommodation options that are available vary depending on the destination but we're usually able to arrange everything from hostel-style accommodation to more luxurious hotels.
On each of the trip pages, you'll see some accommodation options - these are usually the most popular for those destinations, but we often have plenty of other options available. You'll discuss accommodation options (and budget) with your Tour Adviser when they're putting your quote together, so don't be afraid to let them know if you want something different.
We only work with accommodation options that are suitable for schools. As a member of the School Travel Forum (STF), you can be certain that all accommodation contracted by us complies with local legislation with respect to fire and general safety, is contracted by trained Halsbury Travel staff or reputable agents, receives a standard audit and risk assessment prior to use by Halsbury Travel and receives a supplementary audit if it is used on five or more occasions in a year.
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