Costa Rica, Spanish Immersion

Day 1 (San José): Fly to San José, meet your travel director and travel to your hotel.

Day 2 (Monteverde): Travel to Monteverde to meet your host family! Enjoy your first meal with your family, who will provide your breakfast, lunch and dinner each day.

Day 3 (Monteverde): Visit the cloud forest for a chance to see 400 species of birds, 100 species of mammals and 2,500 species of plants. Enjoy a canopy tour, then later learn about local cuisine through a cooking lesson.

Day 4 (Monteverde): Get an unparalled perspective on the local area on a morning trail ride on horse back. The afternoon is free for you to socialize and practice your Spanish.

Day 5 (Monteverde): Visit the Mariposario, or Butterfly Farm, comprised of four climate-controlled butterfly gardens, a medicinal plant garden, a biodiversity center, and a live leaf-cutter ant colony. Observe some of the tropic’s most fascinating and beautiful insects, then continue to a reptile farm to see more than 30 species of reptiles and amphibians found throughout Costa Rica, including frogs, lizards, geckos, and snakes. Enjoy a night walk in the cloud forest when wildlife is more active.

Day 6 (Monteverde): Today, participate in a preservation and sustainability community service project, followed by a visit to the Life Monteverde coffee plantation, to learn how large scale coffee producers are attempting to improve efficiency in production while reducing environmental impact.

Day 7 (Monteverde): Discover local academic life at the Colegio Técnico de Santa Elena. Meet local students, socialize in Spanish, and maybe even join a pick up soccer game!

Day 8 (San José): Say ‘adiós’ to your host families and travel to San José for dinner and an overnight stay.

Day 9: Fly to the U.S.