Costa Rica Summer Program | Pacific Discovery

Location

Costa Rica
- San José

Length

2 - 4 weeks

Program Tags

Need-based funding, Merit-based funding, General grants/scholarships, Payment plans, 529 Plan eligibility, BIPOC funding

Health & Safety

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Program Details

Activities

Animal Viewing Surfing Yoga

Timeframe

Summer

Housing

Hostel Hotel Lodge

Primary Language

English

Age Min.

Age Max

Pricing

Starting Price

7950

What's Included

Accommodation Activities Equipment Meals Tour Guide Transportation

What's Not Included

Airfare Travel Insurance

Last Updated: Mar 10, 2025

Wish List

9 travelers are looking at this program

About Program

Get ready for an unforgettable summer adventure in Costa Rica, one of the happiest countries on earth! This jam-packed program throws you into the heart of the action. Hike through lush rainforests in Los Santos, navigate thrilling rapids on the Pacuare River, and kayak through the serene Golfito – no experience necessary, just bring your sense of adventure!

Discover the secret to Costa Rica's happiness: the laid-back "Tico" vibe meets a globally inspiring model of eco-stewardship. Learn about sustainability firsthand at a permaculture ranch, living alongside the local community and immersing yourself in the authentic culture. You'll even have the chance to contribute to conservation efforts at a wildlife rescue center, helping to rehabilitate exotic animals like sloths and howler monkeys. Leave Costa Rica feeling empowered, connected, and with a heart full of happy memories.

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Diversity & Inclusion 💙

BIPOC Support

We understand that we have a long way to go in achieving the diversity we strive for among our students, staff, and partners. We are committed to fostering a more diverse and inclusive organization, and we recognize that this requires time, effort, and resources. At Pacific Discovery, we deeply value diversity, equity, and social justice, and we are dedicated to creating educational experiences that reflect and promote these values. Our program curriculum incorporates social justice education and encourages students to explore their own identities. To further support these efforts, we offer a 'Diverse Voices' Scholarship.

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LGBTQIA+ Support

All of our Pacific Discovery programs are LGBTQIA+ friendly, and our operations team have attended CIS Abroad's LGBTQ+ Allyship Training, to ensure we’re doing what we can to support this community. We provide an open and non judgemental space for students to explore who they are at this pivotal time of their life, and in our admissions process we seek information not only on a student's gender, but their pronouns and gender identity. We’re aware of the differing cultural perspectives of LQBTQIA in the countries that we visit, and can direct students to a semester location where they’ll feel the most comfortable. Operationally we ensure that our instructors use inclusive language and can facilitate conversations with students around their identity, and discuss the rooming situations with LGBTQIA+ students.

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Neurodivergent Support

Our programs are designed to support students with a wide range of neurodiverse conditions while following our essential eligibility criteria. For students needing extra help, we provide personalized wellness plans . These plans include coping strategies, care protocols, and specific requirements to help them engage effectively in the program. Our instructors have access to mental health first aid resources and are well-prepared to offer strong support to students with these needs.

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Accessibility Support

Our programs offer a variety of physical activities, including hiking, surfing, rafting, and mountain biking. We make sure to accommodate students with diverse needs such as asthma, diabetes, and chronic medical conditions, while working within the infrastructure of the host country and our program schedules. We're mindful of the varying levels of accessibility in the countries we visit and can help students choose a semester location where they feel most at ease.

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Impact 🌎

Sustainability

Sustainability is one of the 6 core components of each Pacific Discovery program, where we educate students about the local and global environmental issues, how to travel sustainably, and have them think deeply about their impact and what they can do in their daily lives to affect change.

We recently embarked on a Net Positive Benefit project where we are qualifying what impacts our groups have on the local communities, taking into consideration carbon emissions +/- social impacts +/- conservation impacts +/- community impacts. On our programs, students engage with non-profit organisations such as Litter Intelligence, Scholars of Sustenance, Ulu Mau puanui, Llama Pack project where they directly work for a better future - planting trees, eradicating invasive weed species, helping local communities and food banks.

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Ethical Impact

We make a conscious decision to partner with host communities and suppliers who are passionate about our students' participation and involvement with them being of a positive benefit to the community. We want our presence to enable positive sustainable growth for our partners and this mantra is ingrained in the fabric of our programs.

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Program Highlights

Volunteer project working with sloths and monkeys at an animal rescue center
Surf on the pristine beaches of the Pacific coast with professional guides
Spot an abundance of wildlife in the forests, mangroves and beaches of a Wildlife Refuge
Take a 3-day white water rafting trip through rapids and waterfalls on the Pacuare river
Investigate sustainable agriculture and its importance in developing communities

Popular Programs

Costa Rica Mini Semester | 6 weeks

Experience a gap year program where you will not only get to immerse yourself into the culture by living under the same roof as a Costa Rican family, but you will also get to expand yourself personally. The nature-based activities will have you raging through rapids, feeling the rainforest watching you, and seeing new wildlife.

Program Dates

Application Deadline

July 1, 2025

Program Dates

July 3, 2025 - August 1, 2025

July 2, 2026 - July 31, 2026

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Questions & Answers

Location

Location:

San José

Currency:

Costa Rican Colón

Weather:

Jan-Mar

79 F / 57 F

Apr-Jun

81 F / 63 F

Jul-Sep

88 F / 73 F

Oct-Dec

86 F / 73 F

Costa Rica is known for its Pura Vida lifestyle and San José is a great place to get familiar with the lifestyle. One of the best ways to discover San José is through the arts; whether you like theatre, dance, or music, this is the quickest way to the heart of Costa Rica.

About Pacific Discovery

Pacific Discovery gap year, semester and summer programs are experiential education programs suitable for high school graduates, university students and recent graduates. They were developed with a focus on six core components: educational travel, service learning, cultural and language immersion, sustainable adventure travel, outdoors and...