By Ava Lingerfelt 

Waterfall in the rainforest in La Fortuna, near Arenal Hanging Bridges Park. Photo credit: Lisa Lingerfelt.

For my 2023 spring break, my family decided to travel to Costa Rica for eight nights. We spent four nights exploring the rainforests of La Fortuna and participated in various exciting activities. After seeing Costa Rica’s jungles, we visited the breathtaking beaches in Los Suenos. Costa Rica was one of my favorite places I have been by far, due to the amazing sightseeing and various activities. 

Costa Rica has been an independent Republic since 1921 and shares its borders with Nicaragua to the North and Panama to the South, with both Caribbean and Pacific coasts. Spanish is the main language spoken throughout the country, but on the Caribbean side, you can find that they speak Caribbean Creole due to the influence of the Caribbean Islands. 

Costa Rica’s population is around 5 million people, and most are concentrated in the capital city, San José, where more businesses are located. Geographically speaking, the size of Costa Rica’s mainland is very small; it is just 19,714 square miles, similar to West Virginia.

A term often used by the locals is “Pura vida.” Instead of saying “goodbye” or “you’re welcome,” they would respond with “Pura vida,” or “pure life” in English. I think these words represent what Costa Ricans stand for and how they live their lives. Costa Ricans live the “pura vida” by enjoying life’s little pleasures; they enjoy spending time with friends and family, eating meals together, and exploring the great outdoors in their beautiful country. 

Looking out at foggy mountains from our hotel room. Photo credit: Ava Lingerfelt.

To get there, we woke up bright and early at 3 a.m. on Friday, March 3 and began our long day of traveling. We connected through Atlanta, and once we landed in Costa Rica six hours later, we started the three-hour drive to the city of La Fortuna. Even though it was a long day of traveling, I knew it was worth it when I gazed out at the beautiful mountains and fog-covered jungle during the drive. Before reaching the mountain ranges and tall, green trees, we drove through narrow dirt streets lined with small, colorful houses.

Riding horses in La Fortuna. Photo credit: Owen Lingerfelt.

My family and I stayed at The Spring Resort & Spa near La Fortuna. The resort was beautiful, and the architecture was different from anything I have ever seen. The resort is located in the middle of Costa Rica’s jungles, surrounded by tree-covered mountains. The La Fortuna area includes the cone-shaped Arenal Volcano and its surrounding rainforests, hot springs, and waterfalls. The Arenal Volcano is in the Cordillera de Tilarán mountain range. There are natural hot springs located in various spots around the resort, which was something I had never seen before. After taking in the views at the resort, we ventured out and explored the rainforest further. 

The first day, my family and I went sunset horseback riding through 150 acres of mountains, rivers, trees, and valleys. We could see the fluorescent orange sunset behind the mountains that painted the sky colorful reds, pinks, and yellows. 

Mistico Park’s hanging bridges. Photo credit: Ava Lingerfelt.

The second day we drove about 30 minutes to Mistico Park‘s hanging bridges, where we hiked a few miles over high hanging bridges scattered throughout the rainforest. The hanging bridges are long footbridges made of wood and metal that are suspended high over the rainforest. This is a great activity if you enjoy hiking and beautiful views.

The author on one of Costa Rica’s highest, longest ziplines. Photo credit: Lisa Lingerfelt.

The third day, we went ziplining on the longest, highest ziplines in Costa Rica. There are seven different cables (zip lines) that are each 656 feet in height and 2,460 ft in length. Each person is attached to a full body harness and wears a helmet for safety. A gondola and chairlift took us up to the top of a mountain, and we slowly worked our way down by riding the seven different ziplines. I have always been a thrill seeker, so this was definitely my favorite activity of our trip.

Ryan Lingerfelt rappelling down a waterfall. Photo credit: Lisa Lingerfelt.

We spent the final day at La Fortuna waterfall rappelling. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend, but my family raved about it. My mom Lisa said, “This was probably my favorite activity from the vacation, besides all of the sightseeing we did.” My brother Owen (’26), said that “this was a close second, but ziplining was my favorite.” I couldn’t go due to a second degree sunburn I got the previous day.

For the rapelling, my family got into a four wheeler and traveled up a mountain until they reached their first waterfall, where they jumped from the top and rappelled down.The highest waterfall they repelled down was 175 feet tall, and they repelled down a total of five different waterfalls, hiking between them. The tour company we used is Pure Trek Canyoning in the Cordillera de Tilarán mountain range.

Rappelling down a waterfall.
Photo credit: Lisa Lingerfelt.

The next day, we began our drive to Los Suenos, a beach destination on the Pacific Coast. Two hours into our drive, we stopped at La Paz Waterfall Gardens Nature Park, which was beautiful. We saw more incredible waterfalls and a variety of wildlife. There was a butterfly habitat we walked through with dozens of colorful butterflies flying around, and next door there was a habitat full of monkeys, including white face monkeys, spider monkeys, and squirrel monkeys. Outside, we saw plenty of hummingbirds flying around, sticking their beaks into some of the vibrant flowers scattered outside. Costa Rica’s scenery, wildlife, and ecosystem as a whole was definitely a highlight from the trip, as it is significantly different from ours. 

After driving another two and a half hours, we reached Marriott Vacation Club Hotel at Los Suenos, which was also beautiful. It felt as if we had entered a different country. We were no longer in the rainforest, but now looking out at long stretches of beaches over teal blue water. 

A white face money in its habitat in La Paz Waterfall Gardens National Park. Photo credit: Lisa Lingerfelt.

After our days of activities in the rainforest, we were tired and ready to relax on the beach. In addition to laying out, we walked around neighboring towns and looked in a few small shops. I loved venturing out beyond the resort and immersing ourselves into the culture. We roamed the streets, where people left the doors to their homes open, rolled carts selling fresh milk and cheese, and little kids ran around freely. 

Los Suenos is known for its surfing and fishing, but sadly we didn’t get to surf because our hotel was located in a cove where there weren’t waves suitable for surfing. My brother and dad went fishing and claimed “it was some of the best fishing we have ever done,” which is fitting, considering Los Suenos claims to have some of the best fishing in the world. Owen and my dad, Ryan, took a small charter boat to go fishing at 6 a.m. in the river at the base of a waterfall. Typical fish in shallow water in the river in that area are rainbow trout, bass, mojarra, and bluegill. My father caught five fish (three bluegill and a mojarra) and Owen caught two mojarra.

Beach at Marriott Vacation Club Hotel in Los Suenos, Costa Rica. Photo credit: Ava Lingerfelt.

One night, we went into the city of Jaco, a short drive from our hotel, where we explored more shops and ate at a restaurant on the beach. My mother and I shopped in cute little boutiques while my brother and my dad sat at a local bar and ordered appetizers. We then met up at El Point Jaco Beach, where we watched the sunset and enjoyed some of Costa Rica’s delicious cuisine.

My family and I all agree when we say this was one of our favorite family vacations by far; the activities are endless, the scenery is beautiful, and the country itself is like no other.