Tanya and I had a wonderful trip! Thank you for your expertise and guidance! The hotels were exactly what we had expected. Sugar Beach had a phenomenal view as you said it would! I simply don't know where to begin...

Cafe Britt was really exceptional. The tour was Disney-like with the manner in which it was presented. Grano D'Oro was simply beautiful. We loved the decor, the centerpieces, and the upstairs hot tub!

The rental car worked out fine. $161 for 100% insurance coverage for the week. 4x4 was a must!

We did not have a voucher for the LaPaz Waterfalls. Even worse, the directions to the waterfalls we were given by Travel Excellence were incorrect. I assume we will receive a credit for this.

The drive to Arenal was very pretty! Super directions, by the way.

The Lodge had a tremendous view but as you have already noted, it was very cloudy the days we were there. Tanya and I loved the howlers in the morning! Beautiful humming birds and flowers all over the property. The hiking across the river to the Old Lava Flow trail was fun. White water rafting was tremendous! I could have handled a 3-4 I bet! Our guide was very friendly and animated. The group was first class and acted very safely. Our guide even helped us find poison dart frogs, a big goal of mine while in Costa Rica! Next trip, we may not go for a hotel as 'basic' as the lodge. We spent some time at the Tabacon Resort and would likely stay there next time. By the way, while having some drinks at Tabacon's main spa, we finally saw Arenal burp some lava. Not much and maybe only three or four times, but enough to say we saw a volcano erupt!! They said that was the first time in 15 days it had done so on that side of the volcano.

Our canopy tour was cancelled but Travel Excellence came up with an alternate plan for us that worked out quite well. We had a wonderful driver for that trip - Walter - and we hope to stay in touch with him. Tanya did not like the zip lines as much as I did, but they were spectacular in my book. One zip line was over 600 feet long!

The main road to the coast was blocked by a mudslide, so we left Arenal for Upala, then went down to Liberia and over to Flamingo. Beautiful drive and lots of fun!! Met some great Ticos along that drive. Great local food as well.

We learned on our first day of diving that although our voucher stated a pickup was to occur at our hotel, no one had lined up a driver or taxi for us. No problem, since we had a car, but the Dive Shop was a little ticked at first (I assume there will also be a credit for this missed service.) The diving was simply phenomenal! I copied you on a thank you I sent to Costa Rica Diving. We saw some amazing pelagic life - a white tip shark, lobster, jewel and moray eels, many starfish, a school of mackerel 200 strong, scorpion fish, trumpet fish, red snapper, and our favorite: mantas, including a fifteen-footer! That was also our deepest dive to date (60 feet) and our favorite. I brought along a new underwater camera, so I can not wait to see the pictures!!

The hotel at Sugar Beach was so beautiful. Our room was a little messy with torn baseboards and marred furniture, but it really had the feel of being in Costa Rica we were looking for. I thought it was perfect. Tanya loved the hammock and the view was unreal. We saw so many big iguanas there and beautiful blue birds with a frontal plume called "urraccas". Elbia at the front desk said she remembers you. Bictor, behind the bar, was lots of fun, too.

Great flight from Tamarindo. Was a neat way to see the country!

A+ Leigh Ann! We owe so much of this to you and your expertise. We are looking to plan a trip next year to either Africa or Greece so I hope you have equal experience in those locations as well!

Best regards,