Gap Year Programs in Manuel Antonio,Costa Rica

I was in Quepos for 6 weeks did Spanish classes, surf classes and two volunteer projects (working with kids and teaching english). I made a lot of new friends, got more independent and experienced an amazing country like a local.

Everything is part of the experience. Learning how to go with the flow is an essential part of staying here. I’ve made so many new friends, locally and from around the world. The workers are fantastic and super accommodating, as long as you’re reachable and communicating. I’ve enjoyed working with kids and every new day brings about something new to learn. I love my Spanish classes and we’ve been correcting things I learned in school and building off of it. I’m really excited for the rest of my time here. ¡Pura vida!

I stayed in Costa Rica for 4 months and for my Gap Year with Maximo and it was the best choice I could’ve made. I did the customized path with Spanish Immersion and Volunteering with Children. They were extremely accommodating to my needs and made sure I had the best experience. From the close proximity to many beaches to my classes to my host family. This program was everything I could’ve dreamed of and more. So much so that I already planned my next journey back for the New Year!

I loved being in Costa Rica, it honestly was the best experience I met so many people from all over and we made so many fun memories. I would definitely come back to Costa Rica I loved my host family they were truly amazing and so kind I will definitely recommend doing this.

I had the best time volunteering at Maximo Nivel, I like that they put a very thoughtful approach to my trip! I felt safe throughout my entire stay, I really appreciate the careful thought that the staff put in not only for my experience but everything else involved.

Máximo Nivel is a program that offers fantastic Spanish courses and flexibility to travel around Costa Rica. The Spanish instruction was fantastic and it was the perfect place to improve my fluency! Highly recommend

I really enjoyed getting to know the instructors more personally. As for the activities, I had a lot of fun doing the waterfall rappel. A very eye opening experience in terms of experiencing culture and learning to respect and understand people who are different. I learnt how people live different lives and believe different things but we all have similarities.

My favorite part of this course was the ending. It is bittersweet to know that it has come to an end, but now is the time that I look back on how much I have changed and also bonded with my troop/guides. This course changed me. in our generation, it is very common that we don't look around and explore. This course gave me the opportunity to experience challenges, accomplishments and pure joy in life.

I'd been planning for this trip for many years and everything in Costa Rica was even better and more exciting than I imagined. I always felt safe, but I was out of my comfort zone almost always. Even when it was hard, we had fun and got to see so many different parts of the country, We learned so much, saw so many new things, pushed ourselves, and got so much closer.

Outward Bound is really great for people mentally and physically. It is very healthy and life-changing. I learned that I could do anything if I just push myself more than usual. It has changed my outlook on life and people and I overcame my fear of heights.

made new friends and had meaningful encounters with the locals all while experiencing a mutlitude of new activites and lifestyles. Doing service in an indigenous village and getting to experience life as they do was englightening and inspiring. It made me realise how little is truly needed to get by and be happy. Less = more - having less builds more meaningful relationships and experiences.

It is an amazing opportunity to break out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself and learn about a completely different culture. It was a very rare and incredible experience. By stepping out of myself, I was returned to myself.

Outward Bound provided an experience full of adventure, knowledge, culture, service and great food. - it is hard to come by so much in other programs. Service presents the best opportunity to get out of your own ways and into a different culture. I deeply appreciate being in a community among the Bri Bri to enrich my own personal knowledge of the World. It was meaningful to directly see how a community benefited from my help, as they enriched my life.

I think Outward Bound is a safe way to explore a foreign country, it has really fun events as well. You become independent in some ways but Outward Bound is also about being part of a group. It was challenging and pushed me out of my comfort zone but it was amazing and fun and I will hold on to these memories forever. I learned that I really enjoy travelling and challenging myself. I definitely want to see more of the World in the future.

It was so nice to have efficient leaders while on course. I also really enjoyed how Outward Bound allowed us to experience the culture while still providing some sense of normality. I learned that I need to step out of my comfort zone sometimes in order to live life to the fullest aswell as being more mindful of others. Also not all spiders are dangerous!

The kids learning to be responsible for the themselves and to support each other - I'm really motivated to get back to rock climbing when I get home. I loved all the rappelling. I'm also excited to work on my Spanish more. I'm dying for my own kids to come!

It was very nicely curated. I thought it was a good mixture of luxury and roughing it - staying at the homestays. I loved the hike into Piedras Blancas. It was so special to have Mauren show us her hometown. It was such a pristine location and very challenging so the kids felt very accomplished to get there. It refreshed my love for the outdoor recreation and it rekindled my interest in outdoor education. As an elementary teacher, I have so many responsibilities that distract me from the use of outdoor education. I loved the meeting format - I feel this could be useful in the classroom.

It made me grow in a lot of different ways and I got really good experiences and met amazing people so overall I am extremely grateful for everything that happened on this trip. It is smart to do things you have never tried before because you might end up loving them and that is definitely what happens this trip. I will continue to try new things.

It was lifechanging, mindgrowing and out of your comfort zone awesome. My favorite part was releasing 88 turtles in one night. It was so cool to watch them all make it to shore. I was so happy to see them make it to the ocean.

I really loved all of the big activities like ziplining because of the adrenaline rush. I also really liked spending time with the counciler. All my expectations were high expectations and they definitely met those. I remember everything in good memories