This non-profit field trip of 7 days in-country is open only to Elizabethtown College students, faculty, staff, and alumni. (Students and faculty have first preference.) The themes are Costa Rican society and tropical biodiversity. One academic credit is available to students, with a short paper on a topic related to the trip. (Tuition cost, if necessary, is not included in the trip price.) It is not necessary to know Spanish, but there will be lots of opportunity to practice if you do. Arrangements are made through La Choza Tours, Tárcoles de Garabito, Puntarenas, Costa Rica. The cost is $2000 per person, based on a group of 20 persons total. Only the airport departure tax in San José, about $30, is not included.

Sponsoring Professor:
Wayne Selcher, Department of Political Science (e-mail: selchewa@etown.edu)

Costa Rica is a small country that has been a big success in development and human well-being terms. The country has no military establishment, a fact unique in Latin America and rare in the world. Costa Rica has had uninterrupted democratic governance with free and fair elections longer than any other developing country (except perhaps for India), and the democratic culture is thoroughly inculcated into the population. As a result of wise and socially conscious policies, on quality of life measures, such as the United Nations Development Program's Human Development Index, Costa Rica scores far above the average for the developing nations of the world. Distribution of income and opportunity is far more equitable than in any other Latin America country. Costa Rica is known in diplomatic circles as a cooperative and pacifistic country that encourages peaceful resolution of domestic and international disputes. Its current President, Oscar Arias, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his mediational role in settling violence in Central America at that time during his first time as president.

Costa Rica has become known in recent years as a world leader by example in the environmental movement, dedicating large tracts of land to national parks, especially in rain forest areas, and educating the population on environmental matters. Environmental tourism and education has become a major business in the country in the last ten years, as the former leading exports of coffee and bananas suffered long-term price declines on the international market.

On our trip, we will learn from Costa Ricans about how they  define their nationhood and place in the hemisphere and the world, the political and economic successes of the country, the challenges they face, and their environmental spirit. We will visit beautiful highland and lowland sites, including volcanoes and rainforests, which represent a fine sample of the mountainous and seacoast natural environments that Costa Ricans call home.

Saturday, March 1, 2008
5:30 a.m.        Leave Elizabethtown College via Executive Coach charter bus for Philadelphia Airport
9:45 a.m.        Depart to San José, Costa Rica on US Airways Flight 1923
1:50 p.m.        Arrival in San José (on the equivalent of U.S. Central Time)
3:00 p.m.        Travel to Arenal area, with lunch or snack on the way
7:00 p.m.        Check-in at Hotel Las Cabañitas
7:30 p.m.        Dinner in the town of La Fortuna
Evening at Hotel Las Cabañitas

Sunday, March 2, 2008
7:15 a.m.        Breakfast at Las Cabañitas Restaurant
8:30 a.m.        Visit to Arenal Volcano National Park or the Silens Nature Trail
12:00 noon     Lunch and swimming at Hotel Los Lagos Restaurant and Hot Springs
4:00 p.m.        Time in the town of La Fortuna
6:30 p.m.        Dinner at the Las Cabañitas Restaurant
Evening in La Fortuna at Hotel Las Cabañitas

Monday, March 3, 2008
7:00 a.m.         Breakfast at Las Cabañitas
7:45 a.m.         Check out of hotel and depart to the Central Pacific Coast area (Tárcoles region),
                        with crocodile watching from Tárcoles River bridge. This will be a 4 hour bus trip.
12:00 noon      Lunch at Rain Forest Restaurant
1:00 p.m.         Nature walk in the rainforest of Carara National Park (2 1/2 hours)
4:30 p.m.         Check-in at the Hotel Punta Leona
6:00 p.m.         Dinner at Steve’n Lisa’s Restaurant or Punta Leona resort
Evening at the Punta Leona Beach Resort

Tuesday, March 4, 2008
7:00 a.m.        Breakfast at Carabelas Restaurant, Punta Leona Resort
7:30 a.m.        Departure to the Jungle River Tour
10:30 a.m.      Villa Lapas Sky Walk, canopy tour, or horseback riding (choose one)
12:45 p.m       Lunch at Las Bartolas Restaurant
2:00 p.m.        Visit to Playa Blanca Punta Leona (white sand beach)
6:00 p.m.        Dinner at Fiesta del Marisco, Tárcoles
Evening at the Punta Leona Beach Resort

Wednesday, March  5, 2008
7:00 a.m.        Breakfast at Carabelas Restaurant, Punta Leona Resort
7:30 a.m.        Check out of Hotel Punta Leona
10:15 a.m.      Coffee Plantation Tour at Café Britt, in Heredia
12:00 noon      Lunch at Café Britt
1:00 p.m.        Visit to Sarchí and Grecia
6:30 p.m.        Arrival in San José and check-in at Hotel Ambassador
7:00 p.m.        Dinner in San José
Evening in San José at Hotel Ambassador

Thursday, March 6, 2008
7:00 a.m.        Departure to the Cartago area
8:00 a.m.        Breakfast en route
9:00 a.m.        Visit to Irazú Volcano National Park
12:00 p.m.      Lunch in San José
1:30 p.m.        Visit to the National Art Gallery
2:30 p.m.        Guided city tour of neighborhoods (barrios) in San José
4:00 p.m.        Visit to the Central Market in San José
5:00 p.m.        Back to the Hotel Ambassador
6:45 p.m.        Dinner in San José
Evening at the Hotel Ambassador

Friday, March 7, 2008
7:00 a.m.        Breakfast at Hotel Ambassador
7:20 a.m.        Travel to the Alajuela area
9:00 a.m.        Visit to Poás Volcano National Park
12:00 noon     Lunch in Nuestra Tierra Restaurant
1:00 p.m.        Visit to the Gold Museum
2:00 p.m.        Visit to the National Theater
3:00 p.m.        Visit to the National Museum
4:00 p.m.        Back to the hotel and free time in San José
6:30 p.m.        Dinner in San José
Evening at the Hotel Ambassador

Saturday, March 8, 2008
7:30 a.m.        Breakfast at Hotel Ambassador
8:15 a.m.        Departure from Hotel Ambassador
9:00 a.m.        Visit to INBio Park  (an educational nature reserve)
11:00 a.m.      Lunch at Mall Internacional in Alajuela
12:30 p.m.      Check in at the airport
2:45 p.m.        Depart to Philadelphia Airport on US Airways Flight 1922
8:41 p.m.        Arrive at the Philadelphia Airport
About 11:00 p.m.   Arrive at Elizabethtown College via Executive Coach charter bus

Included in the Trip Cost:
- Comfortable A/C bus transportation for  in-country travel, with a microphone and speakers for the guide
- Breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and bottled water  enroute
- Accommodations in two non-tourist hotels and one beach resort, all double occupancy
- Stops or visits in villages during transit through the countryside
- Full-time bilingual Costa Rican naturalist guide
- Entrance fees and taxes for all visits
- Costa Rica maps and brochures

Not Included in the Trip Cost:
1. Airport tax paid individually upon departure from San José— $26
2. Any optional personal expenses