It seems that the more Costa Rica grows in world-wide tourism popularity, the more plastic the general vacation experience of it becomes.

Did you know that the country got its touristic start as a hard-core eco-tourism location, more suited for mochileros (backpackers) than millionaires?

But boy has that changed.

However, that organic eco-intensive vacation experience still exists. And I’m here to make sure things stay that way for a long time. After all, when it gets right down to it, that’s what Costa Rica really has that distinguishes it from so many other plastic fantastic tourism locations…like Cancun and its close cousin, Cozumel. I always tend to pick on those two, probably because they both start with C, are relatively close in proximity and are both a far cry from what I believe a Costa Rica vacation experience should be.

So, in the spirit of de-plasticizing the typical Costa Rica vacation, I am offering in today’s post 10 ideas for an organic Costa Rica vacation

1. Stay for a night or two (or three) in one of Costa Rica’s amazingly sustainable (off-the-grid) eco-resorts. One of the best choices in that regard, Rancho Margot at the Arenal Volcano. Here is a Sanjay Gupta CNN piece on Rancho Margot that I am sure you will enjoy…

2. Spend time hiking around in Costa Rica’s ubiquitous National Parks, Private Reservers and/or Wildlife Refuges. Roughly 25% of the country’s total territory is made up of them, so they are not hard to find. And they all present a spectacular way to get down and dirty with Costa Rica’s stunning nature and biodiversity.

3. Visit one of Costa Rica indigenous reserves. Costa Rica has 6 indigenous tribes that welcome visitors to experience their ancient ways of life. Below is a list and the general area where each is located…

Bribri – Puerto Viejo
Boruca – Boruca in the Southern Zone near Buenos Aires
Maleku – in Guatuso, not too far from the Arenal Volcano
Huetar – there is a small community near Puriscal, not too far out of San Jose
Chorotega – these guys actually don’t exist anymore, but you can see their culture on display in the making of spectacular pottery pieces in the small town of Guaitil not too far from Tamarindo beach
Guaymi – these guys are located not too far from Boruca in the tiny village of La Casona near San Vito

4. Partake in a Rural Community-based tourism offering. There is a particular agency that specializes in this…they are known as Actuar and their website has a broad range of offerings in diverse locations across the country. Really super cool and sustainable stuff.

5. Spend part of your trip volunteering. Like Actuar, there is an agency that specializes in these types of volunteer vacation opportunities. They are called Tropical Adventures.

6. Get to know one of the many conservation organizations in Costa Rica that are seeking to protect animal habitats and eco-systems. Find out what their mission is and how you can help out, even after you return home. Often these guys operate in conjunction with private reserves, thus the advantage of killing two organic ideas with one stone (notice I said nothing about killing birds, which would not be organic at all).

7. Visit a working organic farm. This is becoming more and more of a big deal in Costa Rica. We visited one just the other day near my home here in Perez Zeledon. Actually there are several in this area and they are all over the country. They offer a great day-tour experience as well as ideas and inspiration to take home and live more sustainably.

8. No matter where you are in Costa Rica, there is more than likely some cultural event taking place. These are usually in the form of férias (local events or fairs) where you can mingle with locals and see what they do for fun (also eat some good local food).

9. Another cool thing to do and also a way to save money on the trip, is spend time patronizing local businesses. Three that come to mind are sodas (small family run dining establishments featuring very local and cheap, but delicious, cuisine), pulperias (small family run grocery stores) and chicheros (the little bars that are everywhere and offer the coldest Imperials you can find). Outside of San Jose, Costa Rica has not yet been infected with the big box virus that massacred small town U.S.A. like a modern day bubonic plague.

10. Costa Rica’s flora and fauna present an unlimited supply of inspiration for the arts and for that reason we have great producers of arts and crafts in almost every nook and cranny of the country. I highly recommend getting out of the last-minute souvenir store mentality (most of that shit is made in China anyway) and take the time during your trip to visit real live Costa Rican artisans and actually spend some money on their stuff. And don’t worry so much about haggling down the price for God’s sake…what is it with North Americans??

So there you have it…

10 ideas for an organic Costa Rica vacation that can reduce the plasticity, while deepening and enriching the overall experience you can have here.

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