Our last day in Arenal was full of excitement. Today was our biggest activity of the trip; we were ready to go Canyoning and Rappelling! We were picked up by our hotel and driven to the edge of the private land where the tour takes place. We hopped into a jeep and headed to the start point. We were quickly placed in our harnesses, helmets and met our 8 guides. They were all so friendly and became quick friends with the whole group.
After the safety talk on how to rappel, we were launched into the tour. They don’t just start you with a baby rappel. The first section is a 165-foot waterfall! It was amazing. Kels and I got to go side by side (I had the head start) but I was quickly passed with Kels’ rappelling skills. : ) The rest of the tour was so fun. Three more rappels plus a zipline combined with a drop. The guides encouraged all 15 of us along as we jumped and spun. I was so sad to see it end. Our group was a great range of ages and family dynamics and everyone loved their tour. I would definitely recommend this tour.
We ended back at the operator’s main headquarters where we were fed the typical casado lunch with coffee and cookies for dessert. We hung around afterwards and spent some time hearing about the guide’s stories and where they were from. So fun.
Once we returned to the hotel, we checked out and read in the hammocks until our transfer to Monteverde arrived.
We did the typical transfer from Arenal to Monteverde: bus-boat-bus. It was raining and misty along the lake and so pretty. The boat ride was about 45 minutes long and our driver would go along the edge of the lake so we could get better views of the many egrets, cormorants, kingfishers and herons. On the other side, our driver picked us up and we began the steep ascent into the cloudforest. It was about a 3 hour drive but the landscape was so amazing it didn’t matter. The farms along the steep hills led into dense forest and coffee fields. The scattered houses and cars that make this commute everyday were impressive. The roads were so bumpy that I bet they would be exhausting even on a motorcycle!
Upon arrival to Santa Elena, our driver pointed out the best local hang outs and we continued on our way to the Trapp Family Lodge, just minutes from the Monteverde Cloudforest.
The hotel was just as I hoped: Simple, clean and beautiful. It was full of rich wood and simple décor and reminiscent of the Izaak Walton Inn back home in Montana. We had a pleasant dinner with our new favorite drink: Jugos Naturales en Agua (aka: fruit smoothie) and called it an early night.
Next Up: Cloudforest Hike and Manuel Antonio!
Kelly and Rhenee were excellent to work with on planning our trip. The logistics all worked smoothly and everyone was friendly and on time. Our accommodations were very good, particularly the incredible Patagonia Camp in Torres del Paine! Our guides on every excursion were outstanding and made the hikes memorable! Overall we had a wonderful trip with incredible memories!
Scott Gibson
1 day ago
Adventure Life is definitely a first-class safari tour company, and our representative was Franny Friesz. First of all, she responded immediately after we contacted Adventure Life. We told Franny that we had never been on a safari, and she was more than eager to offer a mountain of information about the trip. She informed us fully about all the ups, downs, and all arounds! She even prepared a number of packages for us to review -- even after we made changes to the areas we wanted to explore. Friendly, helpful, professional, and extremely knowledgeable -- these words describe Franny, and what a wonderful trip she prepared! We couldn't have asked for better service than Franny of Adventure Life. We HIGHLY recommend her and her outstanding company! Bon Voyage!
Prima Burke
2 days ago
The staff at Adventure Life made planning my family's trip to the Galapagos Islands as easy as possible. They listened to what we were hoping to experience and made thoughtful suggestions about how to accomplish our vacation goals while meeting the needs of travelers ages 17-76! They patiently answered questions and follow up questions in the months leading up to the trip. They helped us trouble shoot and customize the trip in every way possible. The logistics involved in traveling from Boston to the Galapagos are innumerable. The Adventure Life staff helped us arrange every detail and the team they assembled in the Galapagos was tremendous. I have never done a trip this big before and after working with Adventure Life this time--would not hesitate one second in working with them again.
Jennifer Howard Schroeder
3 days ago
Kevin got right on our request and had us booked within the week