Costa Rica Travel Agents & Reviews

Costa Rica was an interesting country and Manuel Antonio had a lot to offer. We booked late (August) for a vacation for 11 (including our five grandchildren aged 11 to 16). Zicasso's travel agent came through with many connections for housing and activities. She was quick to respond to questions and always very pleasant. You could tell she loved Costa Rica and knew the country. She was detailed, until she wasn't. We were disappointed that the final schedule had many pick-up errors, as well as miscommunications. It felt as though she had passed the work off to someone else. 

Although it had been mentioned in previous reviews that a sloth lived in the tree above our pool at our villa, we never saw one. Everyone did enjoy interacting with the friendly monkeys and birds. Instead of swimming, the patio became a gathering spot for the forest animals. 

The consensus was that our private catamaran tour was our favorite, even though it rained during most of our trip. The crew was very hospitable, always on the lookout for our safety, and professional. They prepped food as we watched and it was extremely delicious! Our grandkids loved swimming off the boat, jumping into the water, and sitting on the netting as we sailed. 

We also enjoyed the private ATV tour (in spite of smelly, wet helmets). The staff, snack, and lunch were excellent, and the excursion was exciting. The staff were attentive to our safety. Unfortunately, two ATVs "died" during our trip. 

Our final outing was a rainforest waterfall excursion. We feel this was a "last-minute" fill-in for our scheduled tour. We were picked up in a vehicle that was too small for our group and we scrunched 13 people into a van that seated 11. The tour guide was pleasant and guided us to various waterfall sights, but there was little talk or explanation during the trip. The fresh pineapple was delicious and the favorite stop was at Window Beach, where everyone enjoyed jumping the warm waves of the Pacific. Communication was lacking as we never knew how long we had at each stop. The food back at the business was just okay. 

The villa was very nice and had some beautiful features. It was nice to have private bathrooms in the bedrooms, but we should have been alerted that we needed to bring our own shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. We've never traveled anywhere that required us to do so and purchasing six of each at any of their stores was extremely pricey. It could have easily been handled with a "heads-up" mention. Also, the foosball table handle was broken, as was the dishwasher. It took a day for us to get enough towels for our needs since housekeeping didn't leave enough out. We lost time communicating with our host due to internet connections.

Manuel Antonio is an expensive town. There were many nice restaurants and one-of-a-kind, "homemade" shops, and the locals were very welcoming and accommodating. 

Hilly, windy, narrow roads made it nearly impossible to get around without a car. So, as a result, parking was difficult as well.

We had the trip of a lifetime to Costa Rica! Everything worked incredibly well. The tours and transportation were like clockwork, and working with Zicasso’s travel planner and her team was easy. We loved our time in Costa Rica and my family (husband, two kids ages nine and 11) was very happy with our activities and accommodations overall!

We had a great trip and Zicasso’s travel agent did a very good job of organizing a variety of activities to enable us to see Costa Rica in a thorough way, but in a short time. 

My only disappointment was the resort in La Fortuna. It was a great place, but we were placed in rooms a mile away from the restaurant, hot springs, and swimming pools. We had to call for a shuttle bus each time we wanted to get out of our rooms and that was frustrating, as well as preventing any spontaneous strolls or time outdoors enjoying the beautiful weather and scenery. We enjoyed all the other planned places and activities. 

I would suggest to our travel company that they include how long each planned activity is expected to last when they publish the itemized itinerary so clients can plan for meals, unscheduled time, and rest periods.

I highly recommend the travel company to other families traveling to Costa Rica! Pura vida!

My husband and I planned this trip to Costa Rica as a gift for my grandson, age 13, and granddaughter, age 10. Most impressive was the Zicasso travel agent's choice of hotels.

In Arenal, we had a very spacious two-bedroom, two-bath unit. The master suite included an enormous spa which entertained the kids when a thunderstorm prevented them from enjoying the pool. This was a very safe, family-friendly resort overlooking the volcano. There were several hot springs and a swimming pool that we took advantage of. Breakfast was good and offered plenty of variety.

The hotel in Manuel Antonio was conveniently located within walking distance of an array of good restaurants. The unit was a modern three-bedroom, two-bath unit and the elevator took you directly to your unit.

In addition to the fabulous accommodations, every activity we booked went as planned and everyone showed up on time.

Zicasso’s tour operator and his team planned the perfect vacation for our family (two teenagers and two adults).

It was the perfect combination of adventure, exploration, and water time, along with having all our needs attended to! It was great to have a detailed plan with pick-ups and drop-offs so we just had to show up on time!

The girls loved the private surf lessons, my husband enjoyed his fishing expedition, and we all loved our snorkeling tour and the sunset catamaran.

The accommodations and restaurant recommendations were wonderful, making this one of our favorite vacations! The planning, communication, and logistics were executed flawlessly. We sincerely appreciate all their work and expertise. We hope to use them again, as we plan to return!

This was our first extended family trip and our first trip to Costa Rica. There were seven of us – four adults and three young adults. We were traveling in memory of my father-in-law, who died the previous year. We wanted a balance of rainforest and beach, exploration and relaxation. Zicasso’s trip planner was amazing – hands down the best travel agent I have ever worked with. From our first 45-minute Zoom call to the updates to the itinerary to in-country dinner reservations, it was perfect. The transportation, venues, guides, and resorts were top-notch. For our next trip to Costa Rica, we will be in touch with our agent again! I would recommend him to anyone looking to travel.

I highly recommend booking with Zicasso's travel company! From the moment we started planning our vacation, the whole team was patient with my many questions and ensured my mom and I had the trip of a lifetime. Our travel specialist was always so kind and made every effort to personalize our itinerary with a great mix of exploring the outdoors while embracing the local culture. Even when my sister, who was supposed to come with us, had to cancel last minute, our agent and the team worked diligently to adjust our hotel rooms and other bookings, taking a huge weight of stress off our shoulders.

I would also like to thank our driver (a fabulous storyteller), who was with us through most of our trip. Not only was he a great person to talk to, but he always made sure we were comfortable and had everything we needed. It was truly a pleasure to meet him! 

Overall, thank you for the greatest trip. We can’t wait to come back!

We celebrated my daughter's high school graduation with a 12-day trip to Costa Rica. I interviewed several local travel agencies and fell in love with Zicasso's tour company from the very first phone conversation. The owner was fantastic to work with, helping me craft the perfect adventure-filled, action-packed vacation for my family. He was honest and took the time to listen to our preferences. He provided great feedback and suggestions.

Prior to our trip, I felt very confident that I was in good hands and knew that every detail was taken care of. During our trip, the company owner checked in with me several times to make sure everything was ok. Unfortunately, someone in my family had to go home early and he was so helpful in coordinating an extra trip to the airport to accommodate our family needs (it required an extra nine hours of driving and a hotel stay for the driver).

The company owner and our agent were generous enough to not charge me for this extra trip. They even canceled all the hotel and activity reservations for that family member, and I received a refund at the end of my trip! It truly was a trip of a lifetime. I found myself thinking, I wish there was a travel company like this for every country because I would use them again to plan my next vacation, wherever it may be!

I also want to give a special shoutout to my driver, who drove my family on several long road trips during our vacation. During our drives, he would spot many interesting animals and birds, and stop on the side of the road so we could get out and get great pictures. Some of my best close-up opportunities to look at animals occurred while in the car. He talked about the agriculture, the school system, and the different rainforests. He even bought plantain chips from the side of the road and shared them with my family. Even though his job was to drive us from point A to point B, I felt his knowledge and his ability to spot animals was better than many of the tour guides we had on the trip. He really cared about Costa Rica and was excited to show us all it had to offer.

I highly recommend this travel company. And ask for our driver to drive you around; you won't be disappointed.