It’s time for an adventure, an Adventures by Disney adventure that is! Our family just returned from our first Adventures by Disney vacation a few weeks ago and it ranks in our top 2 family vacations to date! We traveled to Costa Rica on our adventure and had an incredible time. From the moment we arrived until the moment we left, Adventures by Disney ensured that our every need was met. We chose Costa Rica because our 12-year-old son, Jackson’s best friend from kindergarten, is from Costa Rica. Jackson has been asking for years to go and we decided 2024 was the year to make that trip happen.
Neither Bill nor I are particularly “adventuresome,” when it comes to independent exploration, and we felt like Costa Rica was a country that deserved to be explored in a way that we couldn’t imagine doing on our own. So, we began looking for a tour company that offered guided group travel that would provide both adventure and the attention to detail that we’ve become accustomed to when we travel. It didn’t take us long to settle on Adventures by Disney. We knew from our training in the travel industry that Adventures by Disney offered itineraries that would immerse us in the people, places and culture of Costa Rica. We also knew that we would have two Adventure Guides with us every step of the way and that if any adventure was “too adventuresome” there would be a less adventuresome alternative activity for the day. If I were to pick three things that stood out about the Adventures by Disney trip, they would be:
1. The age range of families on the trip. We had multigenerational families with young kids up to grandparents. We had families with teenagers. We had families with a college-aged child only. We had elderly couples with no children/grandchildren on the trip. We had families with younger children. It was fun to watch the kids get to know one another and gravitate away from their families to each other so that by the end of the week, we didn’t even see our son most of the day! We enjoyed getting to know some of the other adults, exchanged contact information with a few families and even met a family from Raleigh that we plan to tailgate with during college football season. We bonded with them as we watched our beloved NCSU Wolfpack win the ACC tournament! Go PACK!
2. The fact that we were one of only a few families on the trip for whom this was their first Adventures by Disney vacation. Most families were on at least their second or third trip with a few on their FOURTH Adventures by Disney vacation. What this told me was that everyone loves traveling with Adventures by Disney. We did! We were already trying to plan our next Adventures by Disney vacation before we finished this one. And honestly, the only reason we haven’t booked the next one yet is because we can’t decide which one we want to go on next!
3. The love of our Adventure Guides for their jobs and their knowledge about Costa Rica. Our guides were AMAZING. They expressed so much joy in their work. Adventures by Disney always includes one local guide. Having a guide from Costa Rica made the trip so special. He shared his love of his country with us every day, taught us his language, and so much more. Our guides attended to every detail and never missed a beat. When things didn’t go as planned, they pivoted and kept our spirits up so that as guests we wanted to “go with the flow.” Perhaps others complained along the way, but I certainly never heard it, and when you’re on a bus with 40 people, it’s hard not to hear if others are upset. At the end of the trip, our guides told us they had never actually led a trip together. We were all shocked. None of us would have ever guessed that. They worked so well together!
4. BONUS: The quality of the hotels we stayed at and the excursions that we went on. Everywhere we went was well vetted and well executed. We received great hospitality at each hotel and the excursions were AMAZING and safe!
5. BONUS 2: How much was included in the cost of our vacation! This trip was essentially an all-inclusive vacation with all of our lodging, most of our meals (with beverages, some limited alcoholic beverages), all activities/excursions, and gratuities for everyone except our Adventure Guides already built in. This made the trip stress free and easy!
Sometimes guided group travel can get a bad rap. A lot of people think it’s not for them. Afterall, who wants to be stuck on a bus with a group of people you don’t know for days on end? We took a chance on Adventures by Disney and we would do it again! We would absolutely recommend it to anyone who loves to travel, wants to stay in quality hotels, wants to have all of the pieces handled for them, wants to have expert guides lead them along the way, wants to be fully immersed in the culture, places, and people of the country they are visiting, and wants to have fun along the way!
