A perfect place to start your program is at the Museo de Cultura Popular (Cultural Museum). You will receive your program orientation here while also getting to explore the museum for an introduction to your study abroad experience in Costa Rica.

Learn about wildlife rescue and rehabilitation in Costa Rica and the unique species that call the country home.

Learning to cook traditional dishes while abroad is the best way to take something back from your experience. You will learn how to prepare important Costa Rican dishes such as Gallo Pinto, the national dish. Other recipes include tamales and empanadas. The classes are completely hands-on and are one of our most popular cultural activities!

Create traditional art with natural materials directly from an Indigenous artisan. Learn about the story of an Indigenous, women-owned cooperative.

Learn how to dance popular Latin styles such as salsa, merengue, bachata, and Costa Rica's typical "swing criollo" form of cumbia with our expert instructors.

Spend an evening dancing with your fellow Arcos students and directors at one of Costa Rica's most iconic dance venues for Latin music. This is a chance to put those dance skills you learned in the Latin Dance Class to use!

Costa Rica grows some of the best quality coffee in the world! Learn how your cup of joe is grown, harvested, and roasted - tasting included!

Enjoy the thrill of a live soccer, futbol, game at the stadium. *Depends on availability.

Medicinal plants have always been of great importance to humanity. Tour a farm which specializes in preserving and teaching the traditions of medicinal plant use in Costa Rica.

Explore the vibrant historic center of Heredia! We will visit the plazas, the churches, and learn about the historical aspects of the city, which has so much to tell. During the tour, we will venture in and out of the local markets, the whole time being entertained by local artists and performers. The tour will end at a famous street café, enjoying local pastries and sipping espressos made from the world's best coffee, while the locals hustle back and forth!

Costa Rica is home to many traditional pastries that are sure to satisfy your sweet tooth. Get your hands in the dough and learn how to make home-made spiced bread rolls, cheese sticks, cangrejos (a croissant-shaped cheese-filled pastry) and sweet empanadas with your choice of filling including guayaba, pineapple, or dulce de leche (caramel). Then enjoy your treats fresh from the oven with fresh coffee or fruit juice!

Learn about the fascinating history and story of chocolate - from its influence on the ancient cultures and societies of Latin America to its importance today. Participate in the creation of a chocolate bar from start to finish.

Experience Costa Rica's rich history come alive through this traditional folkloric dance class. First, watch a performance by a local Heredia dance group and then learn about the elements of the music, instruments and traditional dress for men and women including the colors, enaguas (skirt), blouse, and necklace and bandana and chonete (hat). Each dance has its own history, origin, region and each tells a story through movement and music. Then, learn the steps and finally don the traditional dress yourself to dance for classics such as the Punto Guanacasteco and a peasant waltz called Pavo Negro (black turkey).