Jungle & Culinary Experience

Arrive at Juan Santamaría International Airport. Upon arrival, a representative will be waiting to greet you at the airport and to direct you to your transport to take you to your hotel in San Jose for your first night in Costa Rica. Spend the rest of the day at your leisure in San Jose, the capital of Costa Rice and its largest city. Rest in your hotel or take a stroll around the neighbourhood to get a feel for San Jose’s flavour. In the evening, enjoy a dinner of authentic Costa Rican cuisine at Silvestre Restaurant. Set within a 1930’s house in one of San José´s finest old neighbourhoods, the food served in the Silvestre Restaurant is only part of the experience. The contemporary cuisine fused with traditional Costa Rican ingredients and techniques are replicated in the sumptuous colonial backdrop, fine art and good music. Overnight in San José.

After breakfast at the hotel, give your morning that extra boost with a coffee at the Borbon market. Take some time to explore the market, learn about the agricultural history of the area and even visit a local folk medicine stand where they claim to cure anything from a hangover to a broken heart. Continue to the number one place for authentic local cuisine: the Central Market. Housed within a 120-year old building, this is the perfect place to sample local delicacies, learn about the herbs used in traditional medicines, or simply sip on your second rich and smooth coffee of the day. In the afternoon, enter the world of gourmet coffee on a tour of a farm located in Barva de Heredia. Follow the coffee bean through its whole lifecycle, from the nursery to the selection and harvest of only the finest specimens. You’ll be surrounded by that unmistakable coffee aroma as the farmers reveal the roasting and packing techniques that enable them to deliver the best coffee from plantation to mug. Learn how experts ‘break the cup’ by using techniques to taste, or ‘cup’, coffee in order to identify and grade the characteristics that qualify it as gourmet. At the end of the tour, you will be transferred back to your hotel. Overnight in San José

Start the day with breakfast at the hotel, then get ready for your chocolate tasting experience. Meet chocolate maker Alex who will guide you through the history of cacao and chocolate and let you in on the secrets of this exotic fruit. Wander through the cacao tree plantation, feast on its fruits and learn all there is to know about chocolate. At the end of the tour, you will be served a lunch with hints of cacao oil and garnished with cocoa nibs, followed by a cacao-based dessert and a chocolate drink infused with spices such as chili, vanilla, anise, achiote and pepper. Later in the day, visit the Hernandez family and learn about their project that aims to bring back traditional Costa Rican dishes that have been forgotten over the centuries. Sit around the family table and experience the charm of Costa Rican hospitality as you sample a range of different dishes made from ingredients you have probably never heard of before. During your time with the Hernandez, you will also have the opportunity to visit their botanical garden where they have over 500 species of organically grown orchids. Overnight in San José.