Costa Rica and Nicaragua

Quotes and Feedback from our customers

February 2011:

"What an amazing experience. What a fantastic holiday and I would say a life changing two weeks for me!" 

"The holiday was a whole experience - on every level - informative, fun, serious, delightful and totally different. The group itself had tremendous qualities which developed over the two weeks. The tour guide and bus driver were exceptional and the visits were a unique opportunity to learn about history, place and life as it is."

"So many highlights, so much to learn, everyone we met was generous with their time and information."

"Very memorable experience of the two contrasting countries - terrain, political and social - very well portrayed and explained by our guide and project leaders."

"I really enjoyed all of the tourist visits but "sky" walking was something I had never experienced before."

"Probably my best Traidcraft experience due to very cohesive, interesting group - excellent guide and lots of fun!"

"Great group, trip educational and fun at the same time, wonderful landscapes and wildlife, fascinating visits to producers."

"Excellent range of producers and projects visited."

"Rodrigo the driver was great!"

"Expert guides added greatly to the educational aspects of the tour. Without exception they were welcoming, enthusiastic and mines of information."

"The visit to the co-operative at Matagalpa will stay with me for a long time, the welcome from the women who helped us to make a meal, the school and the children but especially the co-operative leader who had been through so much but put the history of Nicaragua, the corruption and the development of the co-operative into perspective."

"I now have a much fuller picture of each country, its natural environment, political and social context, something of the everyday lives of some people. I feel connected across the world."

"A huge thank you to all of you for this marvellous and life-changing tour."

"The volcano forest walk in northern Costa Rica was the best - we had an excellent guide and there was plenty of variety and it was a good length. I also enjoyed the Monteverde cloud forest."

"I enjoyed Granada - a beautiful city with so much history."

"Heiner was excellent throughout. A good interpreter and communicator, very patient and good fun."

"All the guides were excellent, generous with their time and welcoming."

"Heiner was extremely well informed, very good at communicating his knowledge and experience, very attentive to the group's wishes and I had complete confidence in his organisation and flexibility."

"All the tourist attractions were excellent, hard to choose a favourite."

"The sail on Lake Nicaragua was so peaceful and beautiful."

"The Monteverde Clout Forest was my favourite tourist visit. The wonder of the lush growth and breathtaking interdependence of trees, fauna, flowers, animals birds and butterflies. The exellence of the guide and spotting the rare Quetzal high up in the tree. Our thrilling and invigorating canopy tour hurtling through the treetops on the high wire was an experience never to be forgotten. Brilliant."

"Heiner was so good, so helpful, so amazing...no faults!"

"I left a piece of my heart in Costa Rica and I will definitely go back."

"The sugar cane cutting in San Ramon was my favourite visit - meeting and spending time with workers, becoming aware of some of the cost of our sugar and being in the field and feeling the good earth beneath my feet."

"All the producer and projects visits were good - expecially the visit to the small coffee co-operative at San Ramon Nicaragua."

"The transport was comfortable, clean and we had an excellent driver who never took chances."

"We had a grassroots experience with the opportunity to find out so much about the countries and meet local people."

February 2010:

"This was another wonderful tour with 'Meet the People' (as they always are)."

"Every tour has been well organised, with local guides, full of interesting places and events, a brilliant opportuinty to meet the people of the fair trade communities and find out about their projects, interests, plans, ambitions and successes."

"It was marvellous to meet producers and manufacturers in so many places, and to see their commitment to fair trade."

"The visits to the coffee producing farmers and the pineapple factory were outstanding."

"Every visit was interesting and the local hosts went to great trouble to explain their ethos and work."

"It's good to see how the fair trade premium is used - and in so many different ways dependings on the project." 

"The trip on Lake Nicaragua on the last day was fabulous. It was beautiful and we saw lots of wildlife."

"A wonderful experience. We saw and learnt a great deal. We enjoyed ourselves and felt to have an adventure"

"Our guide, Heiner, and our driver, Jimmy were superb. The Fairtrade projects were interesting and fascinating and gave us the opportunity,once again, to discover how lives have been changed through the premiums gained in Fairtrade and how the awareness of co-operation and concern for the environment is improving the communities"

"I had a fantastic time, learnt a lot about Fairtrade and I really did not wat to come back!"

"The Fairtrade visits were of course the highlight of the trip and all were fascinating, informative and worthwhile in different ways. Meet the sugar cane and coffee farmers was very special as was listenning to Mary recount the story of the struggle the women of Santa Elena had to set up their cooperative" 

"The visits to the two farmers were particularly special. We shall always remebmer eating sugar cane cut by the wonderful man in San Ramon and also having home produced coffee and banana cake in Monteverde"

"I particularly enjoyed visiting the old people's home in the Pineapple co-op and seeing the progress of children in the schools"

"Heiner was an excellent tour guide very patient, accommodation, always looking out for extra things to show us on the journeys, good at translating the spanish and just generally a lovely person"

"We enjoyed rice and beans so much that we are having it at home now"

"Heiner worked extremely hard and was always willing to do his utmost for us"

"We enjoyed the trip very very much and think Costa Rica and Nicaragua are both fantastic countries"

"Granada was lovely, especially the boat trip around the islands. So much wildlife. The hot springs - even in the rain were wonderfully refreshing"

"I have seen that there is so much more to fair trade than just the producers getting a fair price, I ahve seen how the premium is used to really benefit the local community and the environmental benefits. I also saw the way Shared Interest has helped the producers. It has made me more passionate about Fairtrade and I want to be more involved"