Native's Way Costa Rica - Tours and Transfers — Local services in Tamarindo

EDIT: The response from the company is not accurate!!!

We took a trip to Tamarindo in CR and used Native's Way for our tours. We had a mixed experience - some were amazing and the others awful. Notes on each tour below. When I demanded a refund for the 3-hour ATV Beach Tour, I was issued a refund and they apologized for our experience. They should have offered to refund everyone. 3 Hour ATV Beach Tour from Tamarindo (2:30pm) Even if the tour had not turned into a nightmare, there were flaws: It is sold as a "beach ATV tour" - over 90% of the tour was driving ATVs on bumpy dirt roads that are also used by cars, so you end up getting passed by cars because the tour is going too slow. Other reviews mention this - you are supposed to go see 3 beaches, but you don't ride ATVs on the beach - you just drive an ATV on rough roads and are supposed to stop at various beaches to swim. Our experience: 1: Within the first ten minutes of the tour, someone crashed and flipped the ATV on top of themselves, and were VERY badly injured. The crew running the tour refused to call an ambulance, even though she clearly needed one and everyone was insisting they call for help. 2: We stood on the side of the road for an HOUR while this woman cried and asked for help. Eventually the guides insisted we leave her behind (a nurse had stopped on the road to help) and we had no choice but to continue. 3: We had to skip at least one stop and then had to drive for almost an hour in the dark, on dangerous roads where no one could see. At the first stop, we stayed way too long because people were doing shots at the bar. 4: It was unsafe. The ATV we rode on had stickers saying “never carry a passenger” but we booked a tour for two adults on one ATV. There were kids under 16 with no license that were driving ATVs. 5: The tour group got separated in the dark and were split into two groups with only one guide each. 6: We returned to the starting point at 7pm in the dark, over 90 minutes after the scheduled time, exhausted and starving. They offered pineapple and water, and apologized for the accident, but no one mentioned refunds. Tamarindo Estuary Boat Tour (departure: 8:30am) This tour was great - the guide was knowledgeable, handled the boat well through the estuary, and made sure to point out wildlife and give us lots of information about what their life is like there. Advice: The guide said earlier is better - the animals tend to hide in the shade and sleep when it's hot. The guide mentioned that the kayak version of this tour is also great, because there's no boat noise so you can sometimes see more animals. Tamarindo Surf Lessons (3-5pm) This was great - they provide a rash guard and a surfboard for you to use. Our instructor, Martin, did a great job helping my husband learn the basics and was very encouraging. Tamarindo Kayak and Snorkel Tour at Captain Island (3-5pm) Mixed bag. As a first-time snorkeler, the difficult conditions made this hard to enjoy. Our guide said the conditions were a bit rough, but it would probably be okay so we proceeded. PROS: Our tour guide was kind, patient, helpful, and did everything he could to make it a pleasant experience. He found cool things for us to see - I got to hold a puffer fish and a starfish. He was very respectful of the wildlife, carefully placing the starfish back on the rock he found it on. CONS: The wind was very high, and the kayaking to and from the small island was surprisingly difficult. The choppy water also made it difficult to snorkel. I ended up having to hold the hand of our guide the whole time because it was very overwhelming. Marlin del Rey Sunset Cruise - Tamarindo (departure: 1:15pm) This was the BEST tour we did during all our time in Costa Rica. The boat was beautiful, the ride out to the private beach was gorgeous. We anchored out from an amazing private beach that you can only access by boat, swam to shore, and had time to explore. Once we got back on the boat, there was a good lunch provided. (Chicken, rice, beans, fresh...

I had the most amazing experience on this tour! The key to this tour is the multiple changes of clothes to bring! Your first outfit is your swimsuit and water shoes. Your tour starts off with an amazing tubing ride down the river. You will get wet during this activity. This activity will benefit from bringing a waterproof camera or dry bag for your phone. During the tubing adventure, the photographers are positioned on the course. If you want to have the best shot of finding your pictures, it would be best to be in the front of the pack while tubing. For the tubing photos, at the end of the tour, if you buy the package you get everyone and need to filter out the ones that just have you. Once the tubing is complete, you will head back to the registration area where they have full-service restrooms and a place to change into your next outfit. Your next outfit should be suitable for zip lining and lunch. For zip lining I recommend cargo pants and a short sleeve shirt. You will also need closed toe shoes with laces, I.e. sneakers or something equivalent. You can’t do zip lining in open toe shoes. Prior to the zip line experience you are treated to a great buffet lunch at the dining area. Your tour guide will identify the table to sit at. You will be called upon when it is your turn to enter the line for the food. Once lunch completes get ready for an amazing zip line experience! It is an amazing engineering marvel. This team has engineered zip lines and platforms that are attached to the rock walls in the canyon! The staff is super nice and safety conscious. Listening to the staff will allow you to have a safe and amazing time! Similar to tubing, the photographers will take your photo. This zip line can move fast so be on the lookout for them on the platform you are headed towards. On previous zip lines I found I could hold my sports type camera in one hand and the harness in the other. This zip line required two hands on the harness and leaning back more when in motion. While the camera can get some quick shots when you land on a platform, the guides are moving the guests quickly from one zip line to the other and there is little time to pose. After the zip line you return to the registration area to drop off your harness. The drop off area has a gratuity box. Take a moment to reflect on the safety and fun you just had and make sure you leave something for the staff. This team just got your down the river, then got you through a zip line in a safe format. It is worth it to leave something for their great service! Once the zip line is complete you will head off for horseback riding. The zip line outfit you are wearing will be sufficient for horseback riding. The final activity you will visit is a hot spring. For this activity you will want another change of clothes that can get wet and a change of clothes after you come out of the hot spring. The hot spring is approximately a 10 minute walk from the parking lot. Once you arrive at the hot spring you will find various degrees to enjoy. You will want to change out of your wet clothes into dry clothes for the ride home.

In summary, you will need the following clothes: Clothes to ride on the shuttle bus that keep you comfortable in air conditioning Swimsuit or equivalent that you can go tubing in A dry set of clothes for lunch, ziplining and horseback riding A new swimsuit for the hotsprint A new dry set of clothes for the shuttle bus ride home

This tour has many highlights but one of the standouts is the lunch! Prior to the zip lining you are served a delicious lunch with several local favorites! This tour takes place at the Guachipelin Hotel with a great restaurant. If you heeded the advice from this article, you will be sitting in dry clothes for lunch! If not, you are sitting in your wet swimsuit.

Although the tubing, zip line and horseback riding team got you through a fun day, don’t forget a gratuity for you van driver and tour guide that got you from your hotel to the...

Nature's Way and the Guachipelin Adventure Combo were EXCELLENT. 10/10 recommend.

First, the company picked us up at the gate of our resort at the specified time. We rode in a comfortable van, with a driver and a tour guide and about 10 other people. The tour guide, Alfy, was friendly, professional, and shared very interesting facts about Costa Rica as we traveled to our destination.

When we arrived, we were able to put our belongings in a free locker, use the bathroom, get water, etc. We were offered the opportunity to have someone take professional photos of us all day for $50. We could view the photos at the end to make the final decision, and then the photos were shared via Google Drive. The pictures were incredible and we did end up buying them. There were hundreds of photos.

Our first adventure was Zip-lining. There are about 9 clip ins, above the tree tops, over a river, etc. There's an optional repelling and rock climbing portion. There's also a tarzan swing from cliff to cliff. We took our adventurous 8 year old and we all had a blast. The guides were SO impressive - competent, professional, hard-working, reassuring... just incredible. You will need to be moderately fit for this adventure.

In between Zip-lining and Horseback riding, we were near the bathrooms and locker again. We needed to make sure that we were in bathing suits, sunscreened up, using the bathroom, perhaps eating a granola bar, etc. because we wouldn't be back to this area until the end of the adventure.

The second adventure was horseback riding. We rode horses through the forest and then at the end, we loaded onto a bus, which took us to the tubing. Before we loaded the bus, they had ice cold water bottles for us. At this point, we handed over our phones and anything that couldn't get wet to our tour guide.

The third adventure was tubing. Everyone has their own individual tube and is going through rapids. You'll want to wear shoes that can get wet but are secure, such as Chacos or Keens. We went through the river with many guides, so if we ever needed help, there was a guide there to support you immediately. Again, the guides were incredibly helpful, professional, and experts at what they are doing. I felt so taken care of. It was hard to stay together with my family, and I felt so grateful that the guides were looking out for my 8 year old when I couldn't be right by her!

Next, we were driven to the restaurant on the grounds for a buffet lunch. (Bring cash or credit card if you want to order any drinks other than water.) The food was good and plentiful. This was mid-afternoon (2:30ish?), so this is why I'd recommend eating a granola bar or something after zip-lining.

Finally, we got back in our small 15 passenger van and were driven to the hot springs. On our way, our guide stopped the van to show us a troupe of monkeys in the trees. I'm so glad they did this for us!

At the hot springs, there's a river and approximately 10 hot tubs of different temperatures, that are fed by natural springs. We were given the option to cover ourselves with volcanic mud, let it dry, then shower it off, and then relax in the natural springs. It was very relaxing and beautiful. They provided towels for us. There's a private place to use the bathroom and change into dry clothes afterward.

The only suggestion I would make is that the guides would let you know between each activity what you need in terms of money, clothes, shoes, sunscreen, etc. because you're not quite sure what's needed as you transition from activity to activity. But - it all worked out just fine in the end and we were VERY well cared for. We had the best time.

Muchas gracias, to all of the guides, for everything you did to give us an incredible...