scuba dive in the coral reefs of PANAMA

culturally immerse yourself in NICARAGUA

trek across the whole of COSTA RICA

Start off this physically-demanding course on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and hike through the cloudforests and rainforests across the country to a remote village in the middle of the jungle for a cultural homestay with Mestizo families. While staying in this secluded setting, you will participate in cultural and adventure activities such as rappelling down a waterfall, scaling a fifty-foot-high strangler fig tree, picking bananas, harvesting sugar cane, and completing your 48-hour solo. Continue on until you reach the Pacific coast and relish in having hiked across the entire country, learned natural history, back-country skills, First Aid and CPR. There are very few people in the world that can say they have gone from one coast to another, over mountains, by foot. Become one of them!

And this is just the start of your expedition!

Get SCUBA certified in the crystal clear waters and coral reefs of Panamá. You will be staying on Solarte Island in Bocas del Toro with an indigenous community. When you’re not learning to dive you will be interacting with the Guay-Mi tribe—playing soccer with the children and helping them with English. Living on the island is an experience in itself—all energy comes from the sun, all water comes from the rain, the sunsets are picturesque, and any time day or nightt, you can just jump into the Caribbean and snorkel among the beautiful tropical fish and sea turtles.

Costa Rica is renown for it’s thrilling and beautiful rivers. Learn how to guide a raft and whitewater kayak Class III-IV rapids. The Pacuare, the Sarapiqui, the Pejibaye, and the Savegre all flow right through the heart of the rainforest so you will be surrounded by the towering canopy. As toucans fly past, you can hear the unforgettable call of the crested oropendola echo over the sound of the rushing rapids.

Like the wide-open waters? Learn how to surf or improve your surfing skills on the Pacific coast on the outstanding beach breaks in the Nicoya Peninsula with the Outward Bound holistic instructional approach.You will be camping on the beach and learning more than just how to surf. By the end you will understand the physics of the waves, coastal ecology, and the effects lunar cycles and climate have on surf. Every morning for ten days you will wake up to the sound of waves creashing and immediately go surfing on teh early tide, and every night you will see the sun set into the ocean before you go to bed.

Travel north to Nicaragua for cultural immersion. You will visit an artisanal market, learn how to throw pottery, work on a service project, visit an active volcano, and stay in the colonial city of Granada. The Nicaraguan experience is most often the favorite part of our semester courses so we are looking to expand – maybe an expedition down the lush San Juan River, from pirates to 1800-era dredging machines from the 1800s, this river is as rich in history as it is in biodiversity.

Since 1999 our TriCountry Semester Courses have been heralded for incorporating most of the physical and adventure offerings in Central America. If you are looking for a remarkable, once-in-a-lifetime experience that will change your outlook on life (while getting in the best shape of your life), then look no further – this is the course for you!