While offering all of the traditional tour packages and transportation services, Avispa's Adventures aims to provide you with an active experience of the real Costa Rica-providing tours like no others, taking you off the beaten path for a one of a kind, matchless experience which is over and above a standard big coach tour.
I have been on several tours with Amy and Avispa and had the most wonderful opportunities to see Costa Rica at it's best. With them, we've gone snorkeling, to see turtles come up on the beach to lay their eggs, to the humming bird sanctuary, the cloud forest, volcanos, the canopy rides, and on and on...We got to experience Costa Rican culture at its best. Amy has lived in Costa Rica for over 8 years and knows the country intimately. Both Amy and Avispa provide superb customer service and are very knowledgeable. I'm planning my next adventure with them now. I'd highly recommend this wonderful couple.
Posted by: Bill Gough | March 15, 2006 at 09:00 PM
Hi Amy,
Remember me? The redheaded woman from Pittsburgh,PA who did the susperwoman move with Mario at Borinquen? I will ask my brother Jon Kaplan from Baltimore if he knows you at all. If you would be so kind as to send the phots that you took of me and my friend Christina, I would greatly appreciate it. Was great to meet you! ET
Posted by: Ellen Teri Kaplan Goldstein | February 05, 2007 at 08:49 PM
I found Avispas Adventures and Amy on tripadvisor.com from other guest comments. Everything was positive feedback and they were right. Amy showed us everything we wanted to see and more in CR. Both her and her staff we excellent and provided a personal touch. We did two of her tours while there and they were the highlight of our trip. ( Miravalles Volcano & Corobici River Adventure )We can't wait for our next visit!!!
Posted by: Kitten Pope | June 27, 2007 at 07:57 AM
Correction to my previous comment, we took the Palo Verde Adventure, not the Corobici River. Highly recommended.
Posted by: Kitten Pope | June 27, 2007 at 08:02 AM
Oh my gosh !! This was our 2nd time to Costa Rica and we a long with the 4 other couples so enjoyed our trip and this is ALL due to Avispa's Adventures!! Amy, Jose, Carlos, Luis and all were absolute the greatest. We never felt rushed on tours, meals, we were well taken care of (thank you Jose)and felt like one big happy family.
Also, anyone contact Amy about helping the school children out with school supplies and clothes. The children are so eager to learn, let's not let them down.
Amy and Jose, thanks so much and our invitation to Texas is still open.
Posted by: Albert & Maralea Miller ~ TEXAS | July 20, 2007 at 06:41 AM
Words can't express the wonderful experience we had with Amy and Jose at Avispa's Adventures. After reading many reviews on different websites, we decided to book several tours through Avispa's Adventures. I had many questions and Amy responded to each promptly. We were picked up at the airport and taken to our hotel by Jose who was happy to give us information about the sights as we were passing them.
The Miravalles Adventure Tour was amazing. The guides were all very professional and Amy made us all feel relaxed on our first canopy tour. We got to see several monkeys and other wildlife. Lunch was great, the hot springs and mud baths were fun and interesting. We got to sample some local wine while soaking. The day ended with a horseback ride and hike to a beautiful waterfall. We had a taste of Costa Rica that we will never forget. Definitely bring your camera with you on this trip. You will get some amazing shots.
We also went on the white water rafting trip. Again, the guides that Amy and Jose use are all very professional. The scenery was spectacular. On our way back, Jose stopped at a local supermarket so we could buy Costa Rican coffee to bring home.
My experience with Amy and Jose was wonderful and we left feeling we truly had found friends in Costa Rica. I would highly recommend Avispa's Adventures to any of my friends who are visiting Costa Rica and I'm looking forward to our next trip there.
Posted by: Eileen Dedcovich | December 05, 2007 at 04:17 PM
My husband and I just returned from a trip to Costa Rica celebrating our 35th wedding anniversary. We learned about Avispas tours online and arranged in advance for the Palo Verde River trip and also the day long Miravalles Adventure. We have traveled internationally and usually avoid tours, but we were absolutely delighted by our experience with Avispas. Amy was fantastic in helping us choose the excursions we would enjoy most, and Jose, our guide for both trips, was knowledgeable, eager to please, and just a fun traveling companion. We saw fabulous wildlife on the river trip, enjoyed a great lunch at a small local restaurant, and had the chance to experience a bit of what community life is like off the beaten track. Jose was happy to give us extra time for a shopping side trip. The five hour tour stretched into a leisurely 7 hours with no extra fees. We quickly saw that this is the hallmark of Avispas Tours. The itinerary always remained flexible, and we were never rushed. On our Miravalles day trip, we were the only travelers. However, since we had booked in advance, Amy was gracious enough to give the standard group rate. We began with a morning of zip lining. We'd never done this before and were a little nervous about it, but the guides at Papagayo Canopy Tours walked us through the process, and two of them escorted us all the way, never pushing us to go more quickly than we wanted. It was the most fun ever! Then we enjoyed another beautiful meal at an open air restaurant including traditional Costa Rican coffee service. Then it was on to go by horseback to the hiking trailhead for Miravalles falls. The views were breathtaking. After the horse trip back down, we were able to hike around the volcano crater and enjoy the relaxing volcanic mud soak followed by a sauna and nature hot spa. We weren't sure about the mud bath, but Jose really encouraged us to try it. If you take this trip, it is not to be missed! I've never felt so relaxed in my life and didn't have a single sore muscle the next day. Again, our day was leisurely and self paced with time for shopping and even a stop at the grocery store for airplane snacks and bags of coffee to take home with us. On our way back to our hotel, Jose pointed out a small town that would be hosting a bull riding competition the following night. "That sounds like fun." we commented, and he immediately offered to take us if we were interested. We arranged it with Amy and for a ridiculously small charge for transportation, off we went. This may have been our favorite part of the trip. Everyone in town was there from the grandpas to the babies. Outside the bull ring was a small carnival and vendors selling, among other things, delicious barbecued ribs. We arrived early, so Jose took us to experience beers and a local shrimp dish at a small neighborhood bar. The bull riding event itself was a slice of local color and excitement. Amy came by to meet us as well bringing warm cinnamon churros for us to snack on . As we enjoyed the evening together, she also shared a bit of how Avispas is giving back to the community through events like the children's Christmas parties that were going on during our stay. We were grateful for the opportunity to help purchase some of the food for one of those outreaches and so excited to meet someone who is committed to making a difference in the surrounding community. As an ESL teacher, I've volunteered with similar projects in Ethiopia, and felt such an immediate kinship with Amy's passion for impacting kids' lives.
While in Costa Rica we stayed at a large resort hotel that offered a variety of very corporate group tours. We were so thankful that we had connected with Avispas. We were never just a customer or "one of many." When we left we felt we had become lifelong friends with Amy and Jose. While we hugged and said our goodbyes, we knew that we would heartily recommend Avispas to anyone we knew lucky enough to be visiting Costa Rica! As we said to Jose and Amy both, "How do you thank someone for a priceless memory?"
Posted by: Burt and Renee Cheezem | December 30, 2009 at 10:28 AM
My husband & I would highly recommend Avispas Adventures to anyone visiting this area of Costa Rica. Not only did we receive superb customer service & excellent tours, Amy with Avispas took all of the stress off of our shoulders (as the bride & groom arranging group tours for 40 people)& perfectly executed all of our tours during our wedding week in Costa Rica. Amy also allowed us the opportunity to stop by one of the local schools that Avispas sponsors. It was an eye opening experience to see the run down buildings & playgrounds & imagine how the children learn without some of the things we consider a necessity for a school (in the U.S.) She also arranged for clients like us to bring much needed school supplies to the children in the area. Definitely book with Avispas!!!!
Posted by: Dianne Parker | April 06, 2011 at 07:59 PM
My husband and two kids had one of the best vacations to Costa Rica. Thank you so much Amy and Avispas Adventure. You and your staff are AWESOME!! You have the best service and I have been telling everyone about how great it was to have Avispas show us all the sites in CR. We spend a week with you all and you made us feel at home. Thanks again and we do plan on going back and we will make sure to look you up. PURA VIDA!!!! The Kindla Family
Posted by: Kindla Family | August 12, 2011 at 10:02 PM
Thank you for sharing this post. I am traveling to Costa Rica for the first time this summer and am so excited. I want to see the pristine beaches and wildlife up close and personal.
Posted by: jaco condo rentals | March 14, 2013 at 09:38 AM
Hello Amy
My name is Ken Edwards I wanted to take the time to thank you for creating such a awesome experiance while in Costa Rica we loved the river tour we went with Chepe he is soooo funny made the trip educational while putiing humor in it as well we loved him!!!!! Our hearts ache wanting to be back there lol soo in the future we will use your company for all our tours on our next visit which we hope will be very soon also in closing I would suggest givin Chepe raise he so deserves it
Thanks again Ken Edwards
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