Reviews

Your Words – We tell it like it is! Holiday Reviews by previous Exodus travellers

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73 Reviews

4.7 out of 5

Scott Forsyth

Reviewed December 2023

Pura Vida!

This trip is quite simply outstanding. The wildlife, the food, the culture – basically the whole experience – is just amazing and I cannot talk highly enough about it. Travelling from the Caribbean to the Pacific and back inland again, the itinerary finds a very good balance between travel days and hotel stays, allowing regular opportunities to stay 2/3 nights in one place. The ability to spot wildlife is phenomenal – in fact if Exodus were to offer a free refund if you don’t see a sloth, they would have a sure bet!. Other wildlife experiences were also regular (quetzals, monkeys, tamanduas, birdlife, turtles hatching, snorkeling with turtles, sharks, tropical fish, the list is endless. Finally, the quality of the food caught us by surprise. An absolute delight for every meal and the fruit is SOOOOO fresh!

Most Inspirational Moment

the moment we found the quetzal. an incredible (and rare) bird which also brought home to us just how dedicated the tour leader was to giving us the best experience possible. his patience, passion, and knowledge of habitat finally paying dividends. Swimming with a hawksbill turtle is also an experience I will treasure for a long time!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Jorge could not have been better. Passionate about his Country, the Culture, the wildlife, the sustainability, he went out of his way to ensure the group had the best experience possible.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take your own travel towels. not needed in the hotel/lodge pools but useful for sea swimming. Patience is required to see the wildlife. It is all there and you need to trust the guide to find it, but it can sometimes take a while. That said, you WILL see lots of wildlife and the experience will be amazing.

Marcia N

Reviewed December 2023

Costa Rica’s Coastal Secrets

Great trip. Awesome guide (Jorge) and excellent driver (Freddy) both went out of their way and gave up their free days to maximize our opportunities to see wildlife – and we saw lots! Baby endangered green sea turtles emerging from nests and making their way to the sea, all 4 species of monkey, sloths, racoons, coates, agoutis, a peccary, a tapir, a tamandua, dolphins, sharks, resplendent quetzals, red and green macaws, crocodiles, caymans, lots of pretty colored birds. Mostly very well organized. Mostly went to plan. I highly recommend this trip.

Most Inspirational Moment

Hard to say: there were so many. I think sloths were my favourite wildlife. I loved all the wildlife. And snorkeling in the Carribean and swimming in the Carribean and Pacific.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent (Jorge)

Advice for Potential Travellers

Pack light: you move every 2/3 days and the bags have to be humped on and off the bus roof and on and off boats. Don’t bother taking local currency. Everywhere accepts dollars and the rate is usually better. Take secure waterproof sandals - not flip flops/ for getting on and off the boat at Caño Island (wet landing and boarding) although you could do it barefoot as it’s mostly sandy but there could be rocks. Wear a tee shirt for snorkeling or you will burn your back. Take a universal sink plug if you hope to do any laundry. No sinks had plugs except in San Jose. Drake Bay will do laundry free. Difficult to dry stuff as so humid. We had rain only on one day in December and it was never very cold.

Rosie H

Reviewed December 2023

Costa Rica Coastal Secrets

Costa Rica’s Coastal Secrets is a brilliant trip. The itinerary is well thought through with a variety of excellent locations and the right amount of travel. Our guide Jorge was great – efficient and friendly. We saw so much wildlife – turtles, sloths, coati, agouti, tamandua, racoons, spider monkeys, capuchins, howlers & squirrel monkeys, otters, crocodiles, bats, sharks, tapir, dolphins, peccary, resplendent quetzels, tanagers, trogon etc. All the accommodation was very comfortable. Drake’s Bay, Tortuguero & Cahuita are stunning locations. The National Parks are very well looked after and teeming with wildlife. The Costa Ricans are very friendly. Everything is green. This is a very enjoyable, rewarding & memorable trip. The minibus was comfortable and we enjoyed all the boat trips. The snorkelling trip was fun.

Most Inspirational Moment

Coati in Corcovado, baby turtles in Tortuguero, sloths in Cahuita, quetzals in Savegre..... loved it all.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Jorge was great - efficient, friendly, knowledgeable & enthusiastic - a great ambassador for his country.

Advice for Potential Travellers

This is a brilliant trip - do it if you can. Everywhere takes US dollars, you don't need to get CR colons. Some places don't take credit cards - you will need cash. You need a waterproof for the cloud forest. A thin beach towel would be useful as some hotels don't let you take their towels to the beach. You need binoculars and a phone or camera, walking shoes, sun hat, sun glasses, sunscreen, mozzie spray. Water shoes to get on & off the boat are useful . We spent about £550 pp cash.

Pamela Peers

Reviewed December 2023

Brilliant trip with Jorge Suarez, fantastic guide, and Freddy, excellent driver driver

I have done a lot of Exodus trips and this was one of the best. We saw everything significant that there was to see, thanks to the extraordinary ability of Jorge Suarez to see even the tiniest creatures in thick foliage, then set up his scope to enable us all to see it. Too many species to list them all but for starters: Sloths, tapir, several species of monkey, alligators, a breathtaking assortment of birds, including lots of hummingbirds and even the wonderful resplendent quetzal.

Most Inspirational Moment

Undoubtedly, seeing the resplendent quetzal in all its glory

Thoughts on Group Leader

Jorge Suarez must be a candidate for guide of the year! He consistently went above and beyond expected levels of support to the group. He was available 24/7 for the entire 15 days and was always suggesting interesting additions to the core itinerary. He has a comprehensive knowledge of the flora and fauna of this wonderful country, and was enthusiastic about sharing it with us. He's very sensitive about group dynamics and ensured that we all got on well.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Don't take too many clothes. It's very hot everywhere except the one night at Savegre, and the day visit to the Irazu volcano. There's an included laundry service at Drake's Bay.

Justine Stevenson

Reviewed March 2023

If you are considering this trip then definitely go

We absolutely loved this trip – it’s definitely for the wildlife lover and you need to be prepared for some very early mornings and some long travelling days – but if you can cope with that then you will be massively rewarded. We saw more than it’s possible to list here – Tortuguero and Corcovado are both highlights but everywhere had something new and good to offer. The trip was definitely helped by having the best group of fellow travellers – experiencing it with them made it all the better.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide for most of the trip was Jorge Diaz and I can’t praise him enough. He is passionate about the country, entertaining, engaging and supremely knowledgeable. Our driver was Carlos Salazar - hats off to him for some brilliant driving and his care and attention.

Clare Murphy

Reviewed March 2023

Fantastic trip

This trip exceeded all my expectations. We saw so much wildlife in addition to the breath-taking Costa Rican scenery. The birdlife was spectacular – we saw toucans, scarlet macaws, hummingbirds, quetzel, parrots, tanagers, trogons, waterbirds, and a host of other colourful birds. We also saw plenty of mammals including monkeys, sloths, coatis, and even tapir. The itinerary was excellent, taking in both the Caribbean coast, the cloud forest and the Osa peninsula on the pacific coast. We also had a day of snorkelling off the pacific coast where we saw turtles and dolphins. Our guide, Alejandro, was was an excellent wildlife guide and tour leader and looked after us very well for the duration of the trip

Most Inspirational Moment

I really wanted to see a keel billed toucan up close. I had been to Costa Rica the previous year and had not seen one of them. Our guide, Alejandro, went out of his way to find me a keel billed toucan in Tortuguero and I got some excellent photographs. Another highlight was our encounter with two Tapirs in Drakes bay on the Osa peninsula. We had been to Corcovado national park on the previous day and not seen any, although I knew our chances of seeing one was slim. On our second night at Drakes bay, two tapirs wondered out of the forest onto our lodge grounds and sauntered around, munching the vegetation. They disappeared off into the forest again only to reappear 20 minutes later for another walkabout. They weren't even slightly nervous. What a sighting!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide, Alejandro Rodriguez, was an exceptional guide. He really took good care of us. From the beginning of the trip we felt we were in safe hands. Nothing seemed to phase him. British Airways lost the luggage of one woman on our trip and he was on it straight away; she was reunited with her luggage later on in the trip. He worked tirelessly in the background organising things for us, from booking optional trips on our free days, to booking restaurants for us, and even organised free excursion and trips for us on our free days. He was also an excellent wildlife guide and spotter. Within hours he knew the particular interests of each of the group members and ensured that each group member was catered for. He knew who was interested in birds, who was interested in mammals, who was interested in plants, and who was interested in frogs, and ensured that all our interests were satisfied. He was also very knowledgeable on Costa Rican culture, history, politics and eco tourism and sustainability and kept us amused for hours on the long bus journeys with his witty accounts of all things Costa Rican. Overall I think he was probably one of the best guides I have ever encountered.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Bring a hat and gloves for early morning quetzel spotting in Savegre cloud forest

Valerie Burden

Reviewed March 2023

Wonderful wildlife

This trip packed in a great variety of wildlife locations each with its own range of habitats and communities of organisms. Overall, the accommodation and food was good.

Most Inspirational Moment

The Tortugeuro boat trip, cloud forest walks and everything about the Osa Peninsula. We also enjoyed the coffee farm tour much more than we expected.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Alehandro Rodrigues has excellent knowledge and good communication skills. He was extremely enthusiastic and had a great sense of humour. He was helpful in dealing with individual problems and needs.

Advice for Potential Travellers

It is ESSENTIAL to bring $US in small denominations as hardly anywhere will accept a large note. 'Bring a warm sweater for the cloud forest in the packing list is the understatement of the century. You need really warm clothes for the early morning bird watching, including a woolly hat and gloves. You also need warm clothing for the hotel in the evenings. The temperature variation between day and night is huge.

Stephanie Edwards

Reviewed February 2023

A Nature Lover's Paradise!

This is a trip that packs in a lot! Moving from the Caribbean coastal rainforest, across the centre of the country via the mountainous cloud forest and then down to the Pacific coastline, there is ample opportunity to see some of the fantastic bird and mammal wildlife that is all around you. Every day there is something new to see.

Most Inspirational Moment

Lots of great moments. The sunrise boat trip along the waterways of the Tortuguero National Park was astonishing. Hunting the elusive quetzal at sunrise (only partially successful) but then having a great encounter with one later in the day, not to mention an amazing snorkeling trip on the Pacific Coast.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Alejandro Rodriguez was a great leader. He was very well organised, communicated arrangements clearly and dealt with minor issues as they arose. His wildlife knowledge was outstanding as was his ability to constantly spot birds, lemurs etc at the top of trees. I don't think there was ever a question he couldn't answer!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for some very early starts most mornings. It's a bit of a shock at first, but you quickly get used to it and end up going to bed quite early! The rain forest can be very wet as well as warm and humid, and I was very glad I had taken a fairly substantial poncho which could be worn over a backpack. Walking sandals and trainers/boots are needed. In addition, the early morning quetzal hunting is very cold, needing warm clothing including a hat and gloves. Also take light, cover up clothing for evenings in the rain forest, when the insects come out biting!

Karen Schober

Reviewed February 2023

Costa Rica Extravaganza

This is a jam packed, go go trip. We saw lots of Costa Rica’s landscape and wildlife. Even though there were a couple of long days on the bus, I found it a fantastic way of see the countryside. It is a small country with slow roads so we were very happy not to be doing the driving. We saw 89 species of birds, in addition to sloths, monkeys, coati, snakes frogs, dolphins and a tapir. And snorkeling we saw, of course many fish, but several hawksbill turtles, a green sea turtle, and 2 white tipped reef sharks. We saw wildlife!

Most Inspirational Moment

More than one! Foremost among the loads of wildlife was our experience seeing 4 of the infamous Quetzals. I've wanted to see them ever since a trip I took in the late 70's to Guatemala. Photos do not do these magnificent birds justice. Secondly, we encountered a school of dolphins on our boat trip back from Drake Bay. I have seen many dolphins in the wild before, but this calm, warm morning was special. Perhaps 25 of them played with our boat for 30 minutes. Amazing.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Glenda Araya is the best tour guide EVER! So knowledgable we called her Glenda-pedia. She truly loves nature and loves Costa Rica. She is quite the ambassador for her country. Her parting speech to the group brought us all to tears. She is wise beyond her years.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Pack light. We found our carry on roller bags and a small back pack were perfect. There is laundry at Drake Bay toward the end of the trip but plan on washing out quick dry clothes in your room. Bring a small clothes line. We wish we had. Mostly it was very warm and humid but quite chilly in the highlands for the early morning bird watching. Don't forget a warm fleece or puffy jacket. Footwear. Trails can be root covered and uneven so you will be glad you have sturdy walking shoes. Plus, there can be stinging ants and yes, snakes. Also, there are some wet landings from boats and flip flops will not work. Bring some water shoes or sandals to protect you from hot sand and rocks.

Sylvia Andrews

Reviewed January 2023

Coastal Costa Rica- great trip, but room for improvement.

Very good wildlife viewing in the reserves. We were lucky with the weather overall. There are some long days on the bus as would be expected and almost all the days are very early starts with a bit of a rush for breakfast. The accommodation was good on the whole but we were disappointed that in several places our accommodation was not the usual and probably downgraded. This is arranged through Tui in Costa Rica apparently and being high season the Savegre Lodge could not take all our group. The nights in the Suria hotel were cold with inadequate heating in the rooms although the bedding was sufficient. The local guides were good in Tortuguero but not so good in Drake bay. Our Exodus guide Guillermo was excellent. There was only one opportunity for snorkelling (Cano Island), the first session was very disappointing as you have to follow the guide. We were dropped in deep water with very little to see. The second session was a little better but we still couldnt go where we liked as there were so many groups in the water.

Most Inspirational Moment

The Blackwater canals in Tortuguero. Getting close to an anteater and racoons. A sloth just above our heads with a baby while walking in Cahuita. Some of us saw quetzals in Savegre and the hummingbirds were great!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent. He really knew his stuff and his English was perfect.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The walk in La Marta is fairly steep and slippery. When we did it it was wet and it would be useful to have a walking pole for safety. A cheap poncho would be worth getting as well as your normal waterproof jacket. They are provided on the boats in Tortuguero where getting drenched is likely (We were lucky in January). Overall there were less mosquitos than we thought (using Trek Sensitive) The guide said that the drinks at Drake Bay were reasonably priced but we didn't agree. Pack a wooly hat and gloves for Savegre as it can be frosty standing around especially if you are going to leave before dawn for the quetzals.

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