11 Apr 2025
My friend and I booked a very expensive private tour through Viator while we were in Costa Rica. We were anxious to see the waterfalls and the volcano that were promised as part of the tour. Our tour guide arrived 1/2 hour late saying he had a flat tire. During this time we were waiting in the sun in an open parking lot. Our tour was led by an 18 year old boy who had never led a private tour before and had never been to the waterfall site (we know this since he told us this). Although we had told him we didn't wish to go in the snake display, he ignored our wishes and entered anyway. We walked through and then had to wait for him to finish his visit. Having never been to the site, he was unfamiliar with the layout and seemed more interested in taking pictures for himself than leading a tour. Several times we had to double back on our route since he had led us the wrong way and we had to remind him to slow down since he had set a fast pace for two women well over 70. He didn't seem to know anything about the waterfalls or the history of the site.
When we left the waterfalls we headed to the volcano. Even here he was more interested in talking to the Spanish visitors than giving us any information about what we were seeing. After our walk to the volcano, he suggested seeing a Gold Exhibit which was at the park that he had never seen and seemed anxious to be able to see. This was about 2:45pm. We were supposed to be at the airport (according to our schedule) by 3:30pm and we were a minimum of an hour away from the airport. We arrived at the airport about 4:15pm. Fortunately we had enough time to make our flight.
We were VERY disappointed in this tour. While we did see the sights as promised, the tour guide was not up to the job. He told us he got this tour as a reward for doing well in group tours. I wish him well with his group tours, but I would not recommend him for any private tours until he has had some training on how to conduct them.