Many people tell us they have trouble deciding whether to do their vacation planning themselves – using internet searching and guidebooks for research – then making all the reservations and arrangements themselves.
Indeed, for many people, doing their own planning is a genuinely better alternative. We know that our success depends on being able to separate ourselves from the hype in travel marketing. We don’t want to encourage you to use us if it’s not a good match. So as you read on, we’ll help you make that key first decision in as unbiased a way as we can- including thinking through the pros and cons with you.
Which Travelers May Be Better Off Planning Their Vacation Themselves?
Travelers with lots of time
They have a lot of vacation time and they are not like travelers who have just a week in Costa Rica and would feel distraught to lose 10% of their vacation wrestling with some problem with their plans, or a hotel reservation problem.
They have the sense that with enough time they could get all the rich experiences on their own, and they give less weight to our knowing how to schedule many more interesting experiences and encounters for them in every day.
Travelers with a limited budget
They are simply unable to spend more money to prevent problems, get more experiences, have the benefit of guides, and maximize their lifetime memories.
Travelers who find adventure in things going wrong
These travelers have a high tolerance for, even a liking for, uncertainty.
Many of our guests (quoted in ‘Which Travelers May Be Better Off Having Us Do the Planning?’) rave about how smoothly everything went. But even with us, things can go wrong. The issue is whether you’re willing to pay extra to minimize how often things go wrong.
The question is whether getting stuck, then rescuing yourself, is a big part of your enjoyment and adventure. If spending a day fighting with a hotel is an experience you could enjoy. Whether you want to remove such stress is often the determining factor in whether you’re willing to pay more to have carefree experiences.
Travelers who love the detailed “do it yourself” process
Some people love to do their own planning. All the details of planning are a major delight to them.
In fact, some travelers love the planning process almost more than the travel experience. They love to study peer reviews and separate the wheat from the chaff. They find the planning so nourishing, they might plan 10 vacations in detail for every one they actually take.
With us, you take a more strategic role in the planning, by telling us in detail your interests and preferences on your Wish List. Then we do all the detailed planning, reserving all the places, cars, planes, guides, and other vacation details to get you the exact vacation that matches your interests. You come to us with your suitcase of dreams, expectations, and standards. You remain the star; we plan and manage all the backstage details – with you collaborating actively in tuning the itineraries we provide.
Travelers who love to be their own in-country guides, or hire their own guides
There is no way that travelers on their own can know as much about what there is to see the very month you are there, where to go to see what wild life at any particular moment, what to avoid, and how to learn the most from every hour, as an experienced local, who is a trained guide.
But for the self-guiding traveler, not knowing – and discovering whatever they are lucky enough to discover – is part of the adventure they want.
Which Travelers May Be Better Off Having Us Do the Planning?
If you are a traveler who values peace of mind a stress free experience and eliminating risks and hassles
If you are the kind of person for whom worrying about things going wrong seems to cause you as much or more stress than things actually going wrong, you should rely on us. You go on vacation to be in a unfamiliar environment, but paradoxically the fact that the environment is unfamiliar can make it feel more stressful.
We go to extraordinary lengths to make your experience as safe and as seamless as humanly possible.
Since there is no effective regulation of adventure sports or any kind of transportation in Costa Rica, we only work with a the ziplines, rafting companies, charter air taxis, etc. who pass our stringent safety survey
You’ll find us consistently punctual, but we recognize the possibility that we might be unavoidably late (for example due to an unannounced detour) so we have systems in place to call you on those very rare occasions that we are not going to arrive on time. Worrying that you have been forgotten and will lose a whole day of your vacation is lot worse than having to wait for a pick-up when you’ve received a call before the appointed time to inform you when we will arrive.
As with so many things in life the perception is almost as important as the reality. It is not enough for your vacation to be safe and hassle free, it also has to be worry free
Please email to [email protected]
Or jump into the adventure by filling out our unique vacation tool