Housing and Meals
Accommodations are in Hotel Las Brumas in Cartago. It is conveniently located in a safe, central part of Cartago located near a grocery store, restaurants, and the clinics.
Each participant will normally share a room with 1 or 2 other participants.
Breakfast will be provided everyday downstairs in the restaurant Mi Tierra from 6:00 am to 10:00 am.
The hotel does provide a laundry service for a reasonable extra fee. It is priced per Kilo of weight.
There is potable water, hot water, free Wi-Fi, and TV’s available in all of the rooms
Each day all of the rooms are cleaned by the hotel staff and participants are left with fresh bath towels
At least 6 select lunches or dinners will be provided during excursions and activities throughout the course of the program. Otherwise, there are many affordable restaurants and a grocery store (there is a kitchen available) close to the hotel for participants to economically stay nourished.
Travel
While in Costa Rica, everyone will travel primarily by two ways: Uber and Private Shuttle
Uber
Daily travel to clinics will be thoroughly explained and guided so that students feel safe and confident each day - they will use Uber with their partner and should budget around $20 per week to safely cover costs.
Uber will also be the main way to get around Cartago in free time to restaurants, museums, and stores. A typical Uber within Cartago costs $1 - $4 (also that is usually split among other participants).
Private Shuttle
All group excursion transportation will be together in a private shuttle bus provided by Toucan Abroad
Most of pickups and drop offs at the airport will be by shuttle
Normally, all the participants will come together to rent the shuttle for the long weekend trips to save money and for the convenience of travelling altogether.
Safety
Regarding safety, we take serious measures to make sure that everyone is secure and comfortable throughout the trip. Hotel Las Brumas, where we all stay, is a secure location in a safe area with 24/7 assistance and vigilance at the front desk. Unless otherwise noted, there is a curfew each night to make sure everyone is accounted for before going to bed. All participants have a partner when shadowing so they will never be alone when working or commuting. Additionally, on all excursions, the Program Director and Regional Director will always be present to help in any situation and take necessary action. That being said, we fully trust all others who are involved with the restaurant meals, excursions, activities, and transportation that are provided in Toucan Abroad. As noted, there is free time and independent travel weekends where they may not necessarily be any Team Members present, but we make sure in orientation to stress safety protocols and go over best travel practices in order to prepare them to travel independently. We also always strongly encourage all participants to travel in big groups on the weekends - for safety reasons and it’s way more fun!
