Discoteca Night

Farewell Event Dinner

Indoor Soccer Match with Host Families

Costa Rica has a rich tradition of Caribbean dances. It is considered by many to be the best site to learn about salsa and merengue. Learning about these dances will greatly increase your experience at any Costa Rican gathering!

Costa Rica has many good museums, in particular those dedicated to Costa Rica?s unique culture and traditions. There are also great museums, or parks, dedicated to its immense biodiversity. You will visit Heredia?s Museum of Popular Culture. The museum has exhibits to highlight the traditional practices of the Central Valley. In San José, amongst others, is the impressive National Museum which depicts Costa Rica?s Pre-Hispanic past and describes the country?s history since discovery by the Spanish. You?ll find many impressive gold, silver, and jade artifacts dating from before the Spanish conquest. This museum is fascinating because it was a former military barracks and is amazingly still riddled with bullet holes from Costa Rica?s revolution in 1948.

The central valley of Costa Rica provides some of the world?s best coffee. We will visit a local coffee plantation and you will learn about the history and process of growing and harvesting coffee. And you won?t want to miss out on sampling some of the famous blends!

Organic Farm & Medicinal Plants Tour

Costa Ricans have a feverish passion for futból and it is the national pastime of the country. A great way to meet locals is to take part in games in the afternoons or the weekends. You will get some good exercise and of course, practice your Spanish. Also, there are often games amongst the different professional teams in Costa Rica. This is always a fun experience and you will see the incessant passion Costa Ricans have for the sport.

City Tour (San José City) & Artisan Market

Explore the vibrant streets of Heredia! We will visit the plazas, the churches, and learn about the historical aspects of the city, which has so much to tell. During the tour, we'll venture in and out of the local markets, the whole time of course being entertained by the local artists and performers. The tour will end on a famous street café, enjoying local pastries, sipping espressos made from the world's best coffee, while the locals hustle back and forth!

San José has a thriving theater culture. Often there are performances in San José at the ornate National Theater or one of the other well-renowned venues in town. All types of performances come through the city such as plays, musicals, dance, symphonies?you name it. This is a great way to experience another side of life in Costa Rica and take in some artistic culture!

Wildlife Rescue Center Tour

Costa Rica is home to many traditional pastries that are sure to satisfy your sweet tooth. Get your hands in the dough and learn how to make home-made spiced bread rolls, cheese sticks, cangrejos (a croissant-shaped cheese-filled pastry) and sweet empanadas with your choice of filling including guayaba, pineapple, or dulce de leche (caramel). Then enjoy your treats fresh from the oven with fresh coffee or fruit juice!

Learning to cook traditional dishes while abroad is the best way to take something back from your experience. You will learn how to prepare such important Costa Rican dishes as Gallo Pinto, the national dish. Other recipes include tamales and empanadas. The classes are completely hands and are one of our most popular cultural activities!

Welcome Event & Program Orientation

Costa Rica may be the closest to nature you will ever come! Many people seek out the peace and discipline of yoga, allowing you to delve into the healing of mind, body and spirit that yoga provides. Try yoga for the first time or continue your practice of this wonderful exercise.

Learn to bake some of the traditional Costa Rican breads and pastries.

Experience Costa Rica's rich history come alive through this traditional folkloric dance class. First, watch a performance by a local Heredia dance group and then learn about the elements of the music, instruments and traditional dress for men and women including the colors, enaguas (skirt), blouse, and necklace and bandana and chonete (hat). Each dance has its own history, origin, region and each tells a story through movement and music. Then, learn the steps and finally don the traditional dress yourself to dance for classics such as the Punto Guanacasteco and a peasant waltz called Pavo Negro (black turkey).