Costa Rica gets asked to do a lot of vacations at once: rainforest, volcano, cloud forest, beach. What most Costa Rica tours don’t tell you upfront is that the country’s own Pura Vida spirit pairs naturally with one of the world’s great wildlife destinations next door, and that a single well-planned trip can cover both without feeling rushed. [We think that’s the whole point of not planning this one yourself.]
Costa Rica tours from Canada mean long flights, a genuine language and logistics learning curve, and, if you want to see it properly, a second leg most travellers never plan for: the Galápagos Islands. We built ours around exactly that combination. If Costa Rica has been on your list, here is what an Approach Tours trip actually looks like, what it costs, and how we plan around the parts that catch first-time visitors off guard.
Key Takeaways
- Costa Rica is only half the story, and we say so upfront. Our Costa Rica & Galápagos Islands Tour is 16 days, all-inclusive, and moves through Arenal Volcano, Monteverde Cloud Forest, San José and then a small-ship expedition cruise through the Galápagos. See our full Costa Rica & Galápagos experience.
- Rainforest and archipelago, in one trip. Most Costa Rica itineraries stay on the mainland. Ours pairs a week of volcanoes and cloud forest with a chartered expedition cruise through the Galápagos Islands, connected by a short flight through Ecuador.
- The Galápagos leg sails on a small expedition yacht capped at 34 travellers, all-inclusive from flights out of Canada to gratuities on the ground, with a Group Guru at your side throughout.
- This is rated High difficulty, and we say so plainly. Canopy walkways, boat landings on the islands, and a genuinely full 16-day itinerary make this a trip built for travellers who want the real thing and can keep pace with it.
- Not sure Costa Rica and the Galápagos belong in one trip? Our Costa Rica tour package guide walks through how the pairing works.
Why Costa Rica rewards a guide who knows it
Everyone pictures Arenal Volcano first, understandably, its near-perfect cone rising straight out of the rainforest. But some of the more memorable context on this trip comes a few days later, in the cloud forest town of Monteverde, and it starts with a fact most visitors never connect to the volcano at all.
Costa Rica abolished its military entirely in 1948, redirecting the country’s defence budget into education and healthcare, a decision written into Article 12 of its constitution. [It is, as far as national decisions go, a genuinely unusual one.] Three years later, in 1951, a group of Quakers from Fairhope, Alabama, left the United States specifically because of that decision. Opposed to conscription and drawn to a country that had chosen not to have an army, they settled in the highlands above Puntarenas, cleared land for dairy farming, and named their new home Monteverde. Their decision to protect the forested watershed above their farms became the seed of what is now the world-famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve.
That is the kind of context a good guide hands you walking a hanging bridge through the canopy, not read off a plaque you skim once and forget by lunch. It is also, honestly, why we think a small group with a dedicated Group Guru beats touring Costa Rica on your own. You could see the cloud forest without that story. You would not feel the same about how it got there.
What a typical Costa Rica and Galápagos itinerary covers
Our Costa Rica & Galápagos Islands Tour runs 16 days and treats both halves as one trip, not two. The rough shape of it, without pretending to cover every stop:
Costa Rica first. You will land, meet your Group Guru and the rest of your small group, and head straight for Arenal Volcano and its thermal waters. From there, a rainforest canopy walk and a family farm visit, then a crossing of Lake Arenal to Monteverde for two days: its cloud forest, coffee traditions, and a wildlife sanctuary walk among them.
From Monteverde, the route heads to San José before a flight to Quito and on to the Galápagos, where you board a chartered expedition yacht for six nights among the islands: Kicker Rock and Punta Pitt off San Cristóbal, the seabird colonies of Española, the hidden lagoons of Floreana, the giant tortoises of the Santa Cruz highlands, Darwin Bay on Genovesa, and the iconic landscapes of Rábida and Bartolomé, before a final stop at Mosquera Islet and the flight home.
Costs, timing and getting there from Canada
The Costa Rica & Galápagos Islands Tour runs from $22,995 CAD per person in double occupancy (Sea Deck, Standard Plus Cabin) for 16 days, all-inclusive, from your flights out of Canada right through to gratuities on board. If you would rather arrange your own international flights, that option saves $1,075. Deposits are structured around the cruise portion: $1,500 per person to book, $1,500 per person 45 days later, and the balance due 150 days before departure. Cabin categories and single availability vary by departure, so it’s worth checking current pricing when you’re ready to book.
Wondering when to actually go? We have a full seasonal breakdown for the Galápagos that walks through the garúa season versus the warmer months, worth a read before you pick a date.
Radically All-Inclusive, applied to Costa Rica and the Galápagos specifically
“All-inclusive” gets used loosely by a lot of operators. For us it means every flight, every excursion on land and every listed activity aboard the ship, the vast majority of meals (44 of them across the trip, including a family farm lunch, a coffee and chocolate tasting, and a farewell dinner), and free-flowing drinks and Wi-Fi once you’re on board. You will not be sorting out which regional flight connects Costa Rica to the Galápagos or trying to book shore excursions from a hotel lobby in San José. Your Group Guru handles it, and handles the small stuff too: the reservation nobody remembered to make, the traveller who needs a slower pace on a boat-landing morning, the details that add up to a trip that actually feels like a vacation rather than two separate ones stitched together.
Built for Travellers 55 and Up: difficulty, honestly addressed
We rate this itinerary High difficulty, and we are not going to soften that. Between canopy walkways in Monteverde, wet and dry landings onto the Galápagos Islands from small boats, and a genuinely full 16-day pace across two countries, this trip asks something of you physically. So here is the thing: we would rather tell you that upfront than have you find out mid-cruise.
It still rewards the effort. Your Group Guru and the ship’s naturalist guides are there for every landing, not just the highlight-reel days, and the pacing gives you real time to adjust between the mainland leg and the cruise. Our physical requirements FAQ covers what to expect in more detail, and our Costa Rica and Galápagos guide for seniors is worth a read if pacing is your main concern.
How to choose the right Costa Rica tour
A few things worth checking before you book with anyone, us included: does the itinerary actually connect Costa Rica’s mainland to the Galápagos properly, or does it just cover one and call it a complete trip? Is the ship genuinely small, or is “expedition cruise” doing a lot of marketing work for a vessel carrying hundreds of passengers? And does the operator handle the Ecuador flight connection and the boat landings for you, given how easily a missed transfer can unravel this kind of itinerary?
We think our answer to all three holds up. A 34-traveller expedition yacht, a route that treats Costa Rica and the Galápagos as one trip instead of two, and a Group Guru who has done this exact route before and knows which flight to build slack around.
Related Articles
- Choosing the Right Costa Rica Tour Package
- Best Costa Rica Tours: Plan Your Dream Getaway
- Costa Rica Galápagos Tour Cost from Canada: A Full Guide
- Best Time to Visit Galápagos from Canada
- Costa Rica and Galápagos Tour for Seniors
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is the Approach Tours Costa Rica itinerary?
Sixteen days, all-inclusive, covering Arenal Volcano, Monteverde Cloud Forest and San José in Costa Rica, followed by a six-night expedition cruise through the Galápagos Islands.
How much does a Costa Rica tour from Canada cost?
Our Costa Rica & Galápagos Islands Tour starts from $22,995 CAD per person in double occupancy, with a $1,075 discount for travellers arranging their own international flights.
Is this itinerary difficult for travellers with mobility concerns?
We rate it High difficulty because of canopy walkways in Monteverde and wet and dry boat landings onto the Galápagos Islands, and we would rather tell you that upfront. Your Group Guru and the ship’s naturalist guides pace the group throughout, but it is worth an honest conversation with us before booking if mobility is a concern. Our physical requirements FAQ is a good place to start.
What is the best time of year to visit the Galápagos?
It depends on what you want from the trip. Our seasonal guide to the Galápagos breaks down the warmer, wetter months versus the cooler garúa season in detail.
Does the tour include both Costa Rica and the Galápagos?
Yes. This itinerary treats them as a single trip rather than choosing Costa Rica’s rainforest or the Galápagos on its own. A week on the Costa Rican mainland leads into a short flight through Ecuador and a six-night expedition cruise through the islands.
