In The Loop Travel
  • Home
  • Destinations
    • The Americas
    • Caribbean
    • Mexico
    • Europe
    • Asia/Pacific
    • Africa
  • Fitness
  • Cruising
  • Travel Tips
  • Videos
  • Work With Us
  • My Work
  • About
  • Colorado Craft Brewery Guide
  • Media Kit
  • TBIN Influencer Network

The Right Tour Guide Makes Your Excursion a Great Experience

3/16/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
We thoroughly enjoyed out time in Limon, Costa Rica, with tour guide Danilo Hall. He can be reached for tours by email at adventure_caribbean@yahoo.com.
By John Roberts

As we passed through the buzzing marketplace early in the morning, our heads were spinning.

The truth is, we felt a little overwhelmed and unsure of what the day held. CMac, Craig, Lisa and I had just left the cozy comfort of our cruise ship. This was my third cruise and the second for Craig and Lisa, so we were relative newbies when we landed in Limon, Costa Rica, in 2011.

By the third sailing and visiting a new country, a cruiser is always navigating something new and exciting. In Costa Rica, we booked an independent excursion (instead of using a ship-hosted shore excursion). We had decided to try to find most of our own tours on this sailing on Celebrity Equinox in an effort to save money and get a more intimate adventure away from the crowds. (Check my post on why an independent excursion can be great.)

On our morning of arrival in Puerto Limon and after a long stroll up the pier and through that craft market, we emerged into the sunshine on the other side to find a row of cabs and minivans lined up, with friendly Costa Ricans eagerly hawking their tours. Amid this chaos, we were trying to find Danilo, the guide with whom we had set up a customized outing for the day.

Months earlier a little research led us to Danilo Hall. He came highly recommended on Cruise Critic message boards and TripAdvisor reviews of things to do in Limon, Costa Rica. But he had no website. Just an email. CMac corresponded a few times, told him what we wanted to do and set up the appointment.

Now, it was time to meet up with Danilo. But how in the world . . . ?

A man approached eagerly wanting to sell us a tour, closely followed by a second and third -- all excitedly bidding good morning and "How about a tour today?" We quickly explained to the small crowd that we had an appointment already to meet with Danilo, and the men parted. "Oh, Danilo," I heard one say.

Another walked us over to our guide whom everyone seemed to know. We immediately knew we had made the right choice. I quickly started referring to Danilo Hall as the mayor. It seems he knows everyone, and he put his connections and easygoing way to use in showing us around his country.

To this day, our excursion in Costa Rica ranks as the best we've ever had. We had outlined that we wanted to go ziplining, tour a banana plantation and have some beach time. Pretty simple, right?

Our guide packed our day with so much more. Here is what we did after sliding into Danilo's minivan and heading off.

Not too far down the road toward the ziplining forest, Danilo spotted something in a tree. He pulled over, and we took time to get a good look at a sloth slumbering in a tree. We watched a tour bus packed with our fellow cruisers drive on by -- missing all the up-close creature spotting were undertaking.

A quick turn down a side road, and we soon are standing below dozens of howler monkeys inhabiting the canopy above. This is fascinating to see, especially for the first time.

What is that across the street on a giant web? Danilo gathers up the huge spider to show us. Eek!

After a fun time ziplining, we stop off at a roadside fruit market to sample fresh pineapple, coconut water and more (all included). Then, Danilo spots a tree he wants to show us, rolls down his window and calls to a resident who quickly jogs from his yard to meet us in the middle of the road and passes a strange-looking bulbous orange fruit to Danilo. He asks whether we know what it is. We are stumped.

It's a cashew plant, and Danilo peels it open to show us the familiar seed. We are already having a great time, and we've just got started. We exchange amazed looks at each other: "How can this guy know everyone in the country?"

Spotting kids along the road holding a sloth, we pull over and Craig gets to cuddle one of the unique creatures.

Conversation turns to Danilo's love for fishing (he goes often out on a boat with his brother-in-law) and our love for trying beers in the countries we visit. Seizing upon this knowledge, our host makes haste to a grocery store and takes me in to pick out some flavors. We return with eight cans of brew to pass around and sample (all included, just because that's how Danilo seems to roll, I suppose).

Later, we tour the amazing banana plantation to learn all about the process for the crucial industry for Costa Rica. Finally, we head to a beach to take a dip and enjoy a little sunshine. It's a popular beach for Costa Rican residents, and Danilo meets with friends and talks soccer as we head off for a spell on the sands.

By this time, I think we are more satisfied and worn out than our guide. It's about time to head back to the ship, and we thank Danilo for the immensely fun day and tell him his price of $65 per person is too great a bargain. We include a healthy tip for the great personal service and extras he adds to the tour (free fresh fruit and beers? C'mon!). 

To this day, we rave about our time in Costa Rica (absolute pura vida), and we learned a key lesson about travel. It's most often the people that make the place, and you never know how you are about to be surprised in your journeys, so it's nice to go into things with an open mind.

Thanks for reading.

Travel happy!

JR
Subscribe today to get the latest reviews, tips and tricks to help you have your best adventure ever.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    Africa
    AIDA Cruises
    Alaska
    Albatros Expeditions
    Alicante
    AmaWaterways
    Amber Cove
    American Queen Steamboat Company
    American Queen Voyages
    Amsterdam
    Antarctica
    Antigua
    Arctic
    Arizona
    Aruba
    Asia
    Atlas Ocean Voyages
    Australia
    Austria
    Avalon Waterways
    Backroads
    Bahamas
    Barbados
    Barcelona
    Belize
    Blue World Voyages
    Bonaire
    Bora Bora
    Brooklyn
    Budapest
    Burma
    Cabo San Lucas
    Cadiz
    California
    Cambodia
    Cancun
    Caribbean
    Carnival Cruise
    Celebrity Cruises
    Celestyal Cruises
    Christmas Markets
    Cologne
    Colombia
    Colorado
    Corfu
    Costa Rica
    Cozumel
    Craft Beer
    Croatia
    Crystal Cruises
    Cuba
    Curacao
    Dominican Republic
    Dubrovnik
    Egypt
    Emerald Cruises
    Emerald Waterways
    Europe
    Expat Life
    Explora Journeys
    Fathom Travel
    Fitness
    Florida
    Fort Lauderdale
    France
    French Polynesia
    Galapagos
    Galveston
    Germany
    Grand Cayman
    Greece
    Grenada
    Guatemala
    Halifax
    Harmony Of The Seas
    Hawaii
    High Line Park
    Hiking
    Holland America
    Hong Kong
    Houston
    Hungary
    Ibiza
    Iceland
    Isla Mujeres
    Italy
    Jim Thorpe
    Key West
    Kotor
    Labadee
    Lake Minnewaska
    Las Vegas
    Lisbon
    Lithuania
    London
    London Eye
    Maine
    Malaga
    Mexico
    Miami
    Minnesota
    Mississippi River
    Monte Carlo
    Montenegro
    Monterey
    Montreal
    Moorea
    MSC Cruises
    MSC Divina
    Netherlands
    Newfoundland
    New Jersey
    New Orleans
    New York
    New York City
    New Zealand
    North Carolina
    Norway
    Norwegian Cruise Line
    Nuremberg
    Oceania Cruises
    Oregon
    Orlando
    Panama
    Panama Canal
    Passau
    Paul Gauguin
    Paul Gauguin Cruises
    Pennsylvania
    Philadelphia
    Pickleball
    Ponant
    Portugal
    Prague
    Princess Cruises
    Puerto-rico
    Queens
    Regensburg
    Regent Seven Seas
    Rome
    Royal Caribbean
    Saint-Tropez
    San Francisco
    Santorini
    Scenic Cruises
    Scottsdale
    Seabourn
    SeaDream Yacht Club
    Sicily
    Silversea
    Sintra
    Sorrento
    Spain
    Star Clippers
    St. Maarten
    St. Thomas
    Symphony Of The Seas
    Tahiti
    Travel Gear
    Travel Tips
    Tunisia
    Turkey
    Turks And Caicos
    UnCruise
    Un-Cruise Adventures
    UnCruise Adventures
    Universal's Islands Of Adventure
    Uniworld
    Utah
    Utica
    Utica Boilermaker 15K
    Vienna
    Vietnam
    Viking Cruises
    Washington
    Windstar Cruises
    Wisconsin

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014

    RSS Feed

Copyright © 2013 | All rights reserved | Ewing, New Jersey.
Contact | About | Media Kit