Explorica Summer Academy - Costa Rica Language, Adventure, & Conservation

  Costa Rica

• San Jose: 
San Jose
• North Western Region: 
Flamingo,  Arenal
• Eastern Lowlands: 
Gandoca,  Talamanca,  Puerto Viejo
• Monteverde: 
Monteverde

Duration of Program: 2-4 weeks
Dates: Departure on June 27 and July 11, 2008

Description: Dreaming of tropical adventure, conservation programs, and intensive Spanish immersion in gorgeous Costa Rica? Our Eco-Adventure tour is hard-core travel for high-school students who want the full look at Costa Rican ecology and culture with plenty of time left over for summer fun. Spend five days at the Enforex language school in beautiful Flamingo Beach taking Spanish lessons in small-class settings with native speakers, then spend a week proving how much fun tiny Costa Rica can hold. Finally, you'll work with respected environmental and conservation organizations to learn how vital you are in keeping the earth in balance.

Highlights: Language School
The Enforex school is located on the waterfront, facing the marina, at the entrance of the town of Flamingo. Classes are held in a new complex with 15 classrooms, a garden area, kitchen, video room, common area and a pool with a patio. Capacity is 70 students a day and participants are mainly from the United States and Canada, although many nationalities are represented.

Canopy Tour
Soar through the treetops for the unmatched close-up of the New World's best wildlife refuge. Harness yourself to cables that run between platforms high in the trees, then step into thin air and zip from tree to tree. Experience a true bird-eye view from your new aerial perspective.

Brauilo Carrillo National Park visit
The breathtaking rainforest of the Brauilo Carrillo National Park dips from 36 m above sea level at its lowest point to 2906 m at its highest, giving visitors a huge range of sights, climates, and wildlife to encounter in its 44,000 hectares. Ocelots, toucans, and monkeys scamper about, rugged mountains give way to rushing rivers, and even the occasional eagle or jaguar calls this rainforest home.

Turtle Field Project at Night
ANAI has been working for decades to protect Costa Rica's sea turtles, which have been both targeted by poachers and pushed off by development. You'll help patrol the beach, watching for predators and helping to move sea turtles and their eggs to safer locations, to get a true hands-on feel for coastal conservation work.

Reventazon River full-day guided rafting trip
The perfect way to experience Costa Rica at its best. After getting full safety and paddling instructions from your guide, head off into lush rainforest teeming with toucans, herons, and iguanas. Be on the lookout for basilisk lizards these reptiles can scurry across the water on their hind legs, a feat that earned them the nickname "Jesus Christ lizards." End your tour of Costa Rica's most popular river with a traditional lunch prepared by your guide.

Cost in US$: Starting at $4082

This Program is open to American and Canadian Participants.

Participants Travel to Costa Rica Independently Or in Groups

Typically Participants Work Independently Or in Groups

Application Process Involves:

• Letters of Reference
• Online Application plus Application Assessment

Explorica Summer Academy's Mission Statement: Explorica Summer Academy stemmed from the idea that students should have opportunities for in-depth cultural exploration outside the classroom. So with a management team that boasts 150 years of combined industry experience, Explorica offers high-quality, road-tested tours for adventurous students and teachers. Our three-week programs let high-school students from across the country, ages 14 to 18 years old, combine international travel, study, and adventure as they learn about the world from teachers and from each other. And each three-week tour presents unique learning opportunities with accredited institutions, from French schools on the Cote d' Azur to conservation organizations in Costa Rica or South Africa.