Costa Rica DMC :

Ecole Travel

About our Costa Rica partner

Astrid Cremers was one of the fortunate travellers to explore Latin America in the early 1990s. She fell in love with Costa Rica instantly. In 1993, Astrid founded Ecole Travel to help others access the country’s wild and remote destinations, including the then‑hard-to-reach Tortuguero. Today, Tortuguero is easier to visit, but Ecole’s dedication to untamed exploration, cultural access, and environmental stewardship remains unchanged.

Guided by a small, locally based team of experts, Ecole’s decades of on-the-ground experience ensure seamless logistics and thoughtfully crafted itineraries. The team’s passion and care for Costa Rica is reinforced by top-tier accreditations, including the highest level of the Certification for Sustainable Tourism (CST) and Esencial Costa Rica.

Beyond certifications, Ecole has invested in protecting 34 hectares of pristine forest and participates in numerous local conservation initiatives.

Led by Mariana Comandini, Astrid’s niece, and a small team of local experts, Ecole’s decades of on-the-ground experience ensure seamless logistics and thoughtfully crafted itineraries.

Whether planning a rainforest adventure or a culturally immersive tour for clients, Ecole delivers expertise, reliability, and customer care – qualities that make them a partner Americas is proud to represent.

Next Destination:
Costa Rica

With both Pacific and Caribbean coastlines, miles of untouched rainforest, towering volcanic peaks and fast-flowing rivers, it’s no surprise that Costa Rica is the wildlife star of Central America. Resplendent quetzals, once considered divine by pre-Columbian civilisations, flit through the moss-dappled cloud forests. Hummingbirds congregate to drink nectar from a fabulous feast of flora.

Monkeys howl in the rainforest canopy. Jaguars slink across the shady forest floor. And turtles lay their eggs along the coast’s virgin beaches. The capital, San José, has a spectacular setting in the Central Valley, encircled by mountains and volcanoes on all sides. The Pacific coast stretches from Guanacaste in the west, home to the largest remaining dry forest in Central America, to the Osa Peninsula in the east, a remote yet rewarding outcrop of beautiful beaches, tangled mangroves and lush, dense rainforest.

On the Caribbean coast, Tortuguero National Park is an obvious highlight, its coastal rainforest threaded by a maze of canals, swamps and waterways. Dividing the two coasts is a string of mountains and volcanoes, including Arenal, a leaping giant that rises imperiously above the rainforest canopy. Amongst all this are some of Central America’s most innovative lodges, from which a wealth of activities can easily be organised, from trekking, horse riding and white-water rafting to zip-lining, surfing and canyoning.

Mariana Comandini

Head of Sales
Born in San José, Costa Rica, Mariana brings a lifelong passion for meaningful, transformative travel. Coming from a family deeply involved in tourism, she developed an early appreciation for the power of travel to connect people and places. With deep roots in the country’s tourism industry and part of the Ecole Travel team since 2009, she blends local expertise with a global outlook. Her background in business management and analytics, combined with her in-depth knowledge of Costa Rica, fuels her strategic leadership of our sales, operations, and reservations teams.

Valeriane Brabant

Travel specialist
Originally from France, Valériane fell in love with Costa Rica upon arriving in 2014 and now proudly calls it home. With a strong background in customized travel planning and a deep commitment to sustainability and ethical practices, she brings warmth, creativity, and precision to every itinerary. Her academic background in tourism business management supports her role as a Travel Specialist at Ecole Travel with her thoughtful, client-focused approach to sales and account management.

Daniela Vargas

Travel specialist
A tourism professional passionate about showcasing the best of Costa Rica, Daniela was born and raised in Heredia, known as the City of Flowers. With a vast trajectory in tourism, she specializes in tailor-made itineraries with a conscious and sustainable approach. Detail-oriented, deeply knowledgeable about her country, with a warm and empathetic style, she makes sure every client feels truly cared for, creating seamless, personalized travel experiences that reflect the essence of Costa Rica.