Cindy Balfour
Google
My daughter and I put together a wish list of all the things we wanted to see/experience in Costa Rica and submitted it to Merle at TULU Travel.
Merle created “Hana’s Costa Rica Dream Vacation” itinerary and shared it with us for our feedback. We thought it hit all of our highlights and concerns and liked how well it was organized.
CONCERNS:
1. I wanted to be sure we had transportation from the airport in San Juan bc as you step out of the airport there are aggressive taxi drivers vying for your attention. I was very overwhelmed the first time I traveled in CR so I wanted to avoid that for this trip.
2. Also, I did not want to rent a car and deal with the hassles of figuring out how to get to our destination. Last time I traveled in CR the roads were extremely bumpy and narrow. I could not imaging us coping with the roads in an area we knew nothing about.
3. We wanted a worry free trip - free of any concerns for safety, choice of venue, and enjoyable excursions.
OUR TRIP:
We had an excellent time! Everything was expertly arranged and all things were scheduled in a wonderfully timely manner. It was so convenient to know we would be greeted by an English speaking Tico AT THE TIME THAT WAS SCHEDULED and be transported to our destination. The ease of pre-arranged transportation was an important part of the enjoyment of the trip.
One of the transportation companies was Arenal Star. Their driver, Rafael, was very professional, helpful, friendly, spoke excellent English, and very kind. Luckily we had him twice. We also appreciated his knowledge of Costa Rica (history, agricultural, etc) that he shared during the long rides (many were 4 hours or more).
The tours were exactly what we wanted. Each hotel/bungalow we stayed in was unique and had their own special something that made them enjoyable and memorable.
One of ours days was very long and arduous - lots of hiking, steep up and downs, all with incredible views. The end of that day was a few hours at the hot springs…after the sun set. It was spectacularly restful and a perfect reward for all of the hard work we did during they day.
The most amazing, wondrous, remarkable part of the trip was to La Fortuna Falls. We had to walk around rocks, in and out of the water, sometimes armpit deep….to get to the most incredible waterfall …with all of the moss and draping/drooping greenery…it looked like a scene out of Avatar ( the floating mountains of Pandora). Loved the view, the water, and just being there.
We stayed in an all inclusive resort in Tortuguero, traveled by van boat to Arenal Volcano/La Fortuna, Monteverdi, and finally to Tamarindo when we spent 5 days on the beach.
I have told friends about how happy we were with TULU travel and hope they talk to Merle.
BTW, the roads were excellent on all of our trips…looked like they were newly paved.
