Keeping kids busy on a family vacation can feel like a full-time job taking away from the fact that you are supposed to be on vacation. Zip lines, waterfalls, and rafting will keep them entertained, but there is so much more to Costa Rica. Here are some budget friendly ways to spark their curiosity and help them feel connected to Costa Rica.
1. Create a BINGO Card
This is for all ages, young and not so young, couples, and families. Start this one at home before you leave and make it a fun pre-trip activity to do all together.
Everyone gets to create their own custom Costa Rica bingo card filled with fruits you won’t find at home, local phrases you might hear like Tuanis or Pura Vida, wildlife, birds, creepy crawlers, and famous Costa Rica dishes like gallo pinto. Get creative with your list and mix in a variety of things to keep your eyes and ears open to everything all around you.
Each time someone gets a BINGO on the trip, the reward could be a fun prize, whether choosing the next place to eat or picking out a souvenir to take home.
2. Bird Watching with the EBird App
The last thing you want the kids to be doing on vacation is having their phones glued to their hands but this is where technology meets nature. I have the Ebird App downloaded on my phone and find myself using it all the time just out of pure curiosity to identify the bird calls that I hear.
Pair it with one of Costa Rica’s laminated pocket field guides for birds and start checking off all the birds you hear during your vacation. It’s a great way to get everyone involved, and you’ll be surprised by how many fascinating birds you didn’t even realize were all around you. You can also get a laminated foldable guide for Costa Rica’s wildlife if you want to do some wildlife spotting.
3. Visit an Animal Rescue Center
Taking a guided tour at an animal rescue center like Costa Rica Animal Rescue Center is an absolutely incredible experience for all ages and is less than an hour away from Juan Santamaría International Airport.
You get the chance to see some of the Costa Rican wildlife like kinkajous, spider monkeys, parrots, and sloths and hear their stories. Some are victims of the illegal pet trade, while others are orphans who aren’t quite ready to survive on their own in the wild just yet like one baby sloth that was found clinging to the neck of a dog.
During your tour, you may even get the chance to see the sloth babies out practicing their climbing, sloths sleeping throughout the trees in the sloth gardens, or hear the sounds of the birds in the aviary. The paved tour trail makes it easy for all ages to walk and is accessible for strollers.
4. Visit a Turtle Hatchery
You can find sea turtle conservation projects to visit all along the coast some bigger than others. Even if there aren’t any hatchlings being released during your visit, it’s still well worth the trip. Explore the sea turtle egg hatchery, learn how the eggs are relocated and why it is so important for their survival rate, find out how temperature determines whether the hatchlings become male or female, the nesting cycle of sea turtles, and ways you can protect and save the turtles.
Sea turtle conservation projects, like Tambor Bay Turtles, (Tortugas Bahía Tambor) offer an “Adopt a Nest” program where you’ll receive updates on your hatchlings. Don’t be shy! When I volunteered, I loved visitors stopping by whether it was to see the hatchery, come out for a patrol shift or even just to take a look around to find out more about the sea turtles.
5. Go on a Beach Clean Up
Picking up trash on your Costa Rican vacation might not sound glamorous, but it’s an experience that will truly open young minds. Taking a walk along the beach, especially after high tide, can be an eye-opening experience, seeing all that washes up on shore. It’s especially a great idea if you just visited a sea turtle hatchery or took part in a hatchling release. When you see firsthand what the marine life lives within it really changes the way you think about the world and the decisions that you make.
You don’t need to join an organized beach cleanup, you can do this as a family if you plan to visit the beach, even if it’s just a small bag. It’s a great way to show kids the importance of taking care of our planet and hopefully will inspire them to make more eco-friendly choices when they go back home.
6. Take a Trip to the Local Feria
A trip to the local feria in Costa Rica is an adventure in itself. It’s filled with all the colors of the rainbow of fresh fruits and vegetables, many of which you may have never seen before.
Pick out some fruits you’ve never tried, like mamón chino, granadilla, and pitahaya, and have fun tasting them. They might look a bit out of this world, but they’re incredibly delicious. There are so many to choose from, whether you love them all or not, it’s all part of the fun. With homemade goods, one-of-a-kind art and souvenirs, and local dishes, the feria is a chance to connect with Costa Rica on a deeper level and really get to know its culture.
Don’t just fill your itinerary with nonstop, fast-paced activities, take some time to slow down and enjoy what makes Costa Rica so special. Just look around. The natural beauty, amazing wildlife, and curious new foods, there’s plenty to keep the young ones interested. It’s the perfect chance to show them new experiences, see the world differently, and even unplug from the digital world for a bit.
About the Author
Sarah Jordan is an internationally published travel writer and editor living in Costa Rica with her rescue dog, Coconut. Passionate about wildlife conservation, she dedicates her time to caring for sloths and protecting sea turtles. You can follow her Costa Rican adventures on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok at The Pura Vida Diaries
