I think that people should be aware that the itinerary for our group was not the same as listed on TripAdvisor. Instead of staying in Monteverde, we were in a bus for about 9 hours that day, and there was no butterfly viewing. We also had a lunch that everyone agreed was mediocre that day at a restaurant that charged for to-go boxes.
There is quite a lot of walking on this tour. I believe the description should state this, because some members of our group were caught off-guard, and this led to delays for everyone.
Further, dinner is not only not provided (which is fine) but not accommodated for (which is not ok). On the middle day, we were told that we could pick up some KFC or Burger King along the way. I don't eat fast food in the US and definitely don't want to eat it while traveling. We arrived just as the restaurant at our hotel was closing at 9pm, so I was able to eat real food, but it was quite stressful. Another day, we were initially told we could eat something from a convenience store, but our guides did let us find a local restaurant when we practically begged. Overall, I can't recommend this trip for people who like to eat real food for dinner.
But, the guides were knowledgeable and the driving was mostly safe. So, if this is all you care about, book it. Costa Rica is beautiful.
Our family reserved a three day and two nights tour with Viator, who contracted with AyE Tours Travel. It included three breakfasts and three lunches, which were mostly delicious food. On our first day, we had a good time at Arenal Volcano, and Baldi Hot Springs. We then had a three hour ride to Monteverde which was very winding and bumpy. one third of the road had numerous pot holes. Luckily, we had an experienced driver who knows the road well.
On our 2nd day, after we finished walking suspension bridges. our guide Louie recommended our teenager boys do the Zipline. One of the boys was interested in doing Zipline. Louie also recommended that we do extra tours while waiting for the boy. Louie stated that there were three tours: butterfly garden, reptile, and sloth sanctuary. If we do all three, he could apply the butterfly garden credit towards three tours. Since one of the boy was going to do the Zipline with no time for any of the tour, so I asked whether Louie could apply his butterfly garden credit towards our tour. Louie stated that he had to ask his boss. After talking to his boss, he said to us that our tour does not include butterfly garden. We showed Louie our reservation. He did not budge. We ended up paying $120 to do the sloth sanctuary.
Our last day, we were supposed to visit Parque national Manuel Antonio. But we were dropped off at a free public beach with no facilities at all. Louie told us that we could rent a shower afterwards. We did after spending time at the beach ($2 pp). The shower facility was very shabby. We did not go through a paid admission to enter the National Park. On our reservation, it clearly stated Entry/Admission for Butterfly garden at Selvatura Park and Playa Manuel Antonio. However, we did not get to do either. Therefore, I would like a refund for both places we did not visit and any extra expenses we had to pay related to that.
Next I would like to comment on our two nights accommodation: the first night we stayed at Hotel Cipreses in Monteverde. We got a single full size bed in both rooms. In my room, there was not even one hanger. The towel was broken (see photo). The worst part was a non-functioning shower. The water did not come out from the shower head. It was cold and windy that night. I was shivering and I finally gave up showering that night and next morning. When I talked to our driver, Diego, during breakfast, he stated that he experienced similar problems with shower and he would let the hotel know. The 2nd night we stayed at Terraza Del Pacifico Hotel, which is an OK hotel. The shower worked, but there was only shampoo in the shower and a liquid soap bottle next to sink.
Overall, we enjoyed all the tours we did. We were disappointed that we did not do the butterfly garden and Parque National Manuel Antonio. Diego is a very experienced driver and he was very attentive to us. Louie is a young guide who hiked with us and walked suspension bridges with us. He took take care of our admission tickets and hotel check ins. However, he needs to talk more to the customer especially introduce Costa Rica's history, resources, and etc. We appreciate their time with us and rewarded them with generous tips at the end.