Kayla Mae - Costa Rican Vacations

06/06/2024

"My husband and I travelled to Costa Rica for our elopement and Kayla Mae from Costa Rican Vacations was invaluable in planning our 4 day honeymoon in Tamarindo. Kayla kept our trip within our budget, offered so many opportunities and made the planning process seamless for us. Once in Tamarindo, we were able to use What’s App to communicate with the Costa Rican Vacations team whenever we had questions. Would highly recommend booking with Kayla Mae and team if you’re planning a Costa Rican vacation."
💒 🌊 🌴 🌅 🌎 ✈️ 🇨🇷
I'm so glad you enjoyed your honeymoon Carly & Ryan, it was a pleasure to help you plan such a special quick trip!

01/06/2024

And just like that it’s June 1st! I’m back at my laptop 👩‍💻 after maternity leave 🤱🏼💙 planning trips ✈️ here to Costa Rica 🌺 🌊! But on my off time I’ll continue to be found outdoors with my Tico baby! 🌎

27/02/2024

Macaws stopped by for a visit today! Showing Baby Chance mama’s favorite bird! Love that the jungle comes right to us as we rest up postpartum ❤️💙💛

01/02/2024

February! The month we’ve been waiting for! 💙👣🩵
Maternity Leave starts today, so here’s some fun facts about *our experience* as gringos having a baby in Costa Rica!
1. We live in Quepos on the pacific coast. But the best hospitals are in the capital, 3 hours away. So Cody and I have an Airbnb in the city for the month, were we’ll wait for the baby to come and be close to the hospitals when I go into labor!
2. Costa Rica has one of the highest C-section rates in the world, and most are pre-scheduled C-sections. We’ve had to research, fight and switch doctors/hospitals to even have a chance at having a natural birth.
3. With the help of some friends, we were connected to a doula who helped us find a doctor and midwife pair that will help me deliver naturally in a private hospital room (si Dios quiere)!
3. Me and Cody are both tall Americans of European descent. So me and the baby have been above the Latin average charts here the entire pregnancy. “These charts are made for Latin women” they keep saying.
4. Weight is measured in kilos and height measured in centimeters. Cody and I still always have to look at each other to make conversions to pounds and inches 😅
5. Children take both their mother and father’s last name here. So he’ll be a “Johns DeVries” 😀
6. He’ll be born a Costa Rican Citizen
7. We’ll need to head to the American Embassy as soon as possible to register him as an American Citizen as well, get him an American passport so we can travel to the States with him, and file paperwork allowing Cody or I to travel solo with him outside Costa Rica (an anti-trafficking provision).
8. Without insurance, having a baby here in a private hospital costs less than $3,000! This is the out of pocket costs if you have absolutely no insurance to help cover it.
9. Every check up I’ve had throughout pregnancy included an ultrasound and the flat rate was $140.
10. Today is moving day! We pack up all the baby things we are guessing we need, plus all of our things which are foreign objects to us at this point (breast pumps, sound machines, peri-bottles, cooling packs….”mommy items” as Cody calls them) and move to San Jose to await the Baby’s arrival!
💙👣🩵

01/02/2024

28/01/2024

Hidden in the heliconias ❤️ 🐾

27/01/2024

“Kayla, You are so right. Costa Rica gets in your heart and blood, and it was the trip of a lifetime for all of us. We talked about what might have been the best moment, but it's absolutely impossible to pick one day, one adventure, one meal that was the best. Thank you for all your assistance in planning our trip. It was flawless and perfect in every way. I did catch my very first sailfish (I had never been offshore fishing before) and caught a 110 inch sailfish that I'm pretty proud of!! Needless to say, all four of us would like to come back, and we will definitely be contacting you. Thank you again for sharing your love of this beautiful, serene, exciting place.”
🎣 🦜🌴🌊🐠☀️ 🌋
Thanks to this group that shared some awesome pictures and moments along their trip, I’m so glad it was the trip of a lifetime and I love sharing in the memories you made along the way, from Arenal Volcano and rainforest down to the ocean!

16/01/2024

The most magical 7-course culinary experience in the cloud forest during a beautiful sunset hour overlooking the Nicoya Peninsula. Highly recommend for any special occasion while enjoying Monteverde. .treetopdining
⛅️ pro-tip: bring layers! You notice I change from hair up and tang top ☀️ to hair down and leather jacket 🌧️ - another beauty of this magical mountainous forest! 🌳

12/01/2024

12/01/2024

Buenos Dias

09/01/2024

Whether flying out of Arenal, traveling by boat along the lake, or driving the windy roads, believe me when I say - the journey is 100% part of the experience!
💯 🌋 ✈️ 🌳 🌋 ✈️ 🌳 💯

05/01/2024

A client sent me pictures of her massive Tarpon while fishing in Tortuguero, so I had to pull up my last Tarpon to see who’s was bigger - I think it’s the same guy!! Mine caught in October, hers now in January - amazing fishing can be found all year round throughout different parts of the country and fighting a Tarpon on the Caribbean is a unique experience not everyone gets to have with all our Pacific sailfish hype 😉. Plus a bonus Jack Crevalle for her 💪 🎣 Awesome and thanks for sharing!!

17/12/2023

Beach calm after a busy Saturday

15/12/2023

Spent the morning at the newly renovated Blue Mirador Hotel! Iconic ocean views overlooking Manuel Antonio National Park at every turn, two beautiful restaurants, and many pools to enjoy while staying here in the heart of town!

11/12/2023

Golden hour 🌅

06/12/2023

Pacuare River Magic! Throwback to last year celebrating Cody’s 40th birthday with a 3-day rafting trip down the amazing Pacuare River on the Caribbean side of the country! The most beautiful and epic rafting in the country, but also the most remote, making it less visited. Not for the faint of heart!
Here’s to another trip around the sun Cody, and many more adventures to come!

05/12/2023

Hidden gems in the rainforest
💎🌳💎🌴

01/12/2023

Happy December! 🌊 ☀️ 🐠 ☀️ 🌊
Ready for high season in Costa Rica 💃🏽

29/11/2023

"Hands down the best company to use in Costa! Agent Kayla Mae put together the perfect vacation!! From the transfer, personal chef, VIP lounge at the airport for the return flight while waiting for our flight, two golf carts on the resort so there was no need to rent a car. This is the second time I’ve used Costa Rica Vacations and they are second to none. They are truly a 24 hour concierge service while in Costa Rica!! We will be back!"
🎣🌴🎣🌴🎣
Thanks David, can't wait to help you plan your next trip!

17/11/2023

Jungle sunrise 🌅 summer in Costa Rica is starting!

09/11/2023

07/11/2023

Sunset views from the mountainous cloud forest, overlooking the Nicoya Peninsula, cannot be beat! If we were down on the coast we’d be sweating in bathing suits. But up here in the mountains (just a few hours drive), we bundle up in sweaters at this time of night! 🌅💨
Senda Monteverde Costa Rican Vacations

19/10/2023

"Kayla was absolutely amazing from start to finish with helping us with our reservation. We gave her an idea of the areas we’d like to go and some of our hobbies, and she customized the list that was perfect for us. We would highly recommend this agency along with Kayla, any questions we had along the way were answered immediately, any problems were remedied instantly. Such a beautiful trip and everything was thoughtless with Costa Rican Vacations help."
🦋🌳💍🐒💦🌴
Thanks for the review, it was my pleasure Brett! So excited your proposal was a success and hope to see you guys back here someday soon as newlyweds!

18/10/2023

Cafecito anyone?
The coffee farm for the very first Starbucks in Seattle, right here in the hills above Costa Rica’s Central Valley
🍃☕️🇨🇷

10/10/2023

Check out the article I wrote about The Pescadora Billfish Championship! And plan your next fishing trip to a Costa Rica with me!

By Kayla Mae DeVries. The Pescadora Billfish Championship in Quepos The Pescadora Billfish Championship, the only all-women’s billfishing tournament in Costa Rica, takes place right here in Quepos! This three-day event offers women of all experience levels the opportunity to gather at Marina Pez V...

09/10/2023

"Kayla helped me plan this trip for my family. I interviewed two other companies and had an immediate connection to her. She’s very open and honest. She helped make sure my 3 daughters would like all the excursions I selected and answered my many questions as I was nervous about some of them. We started in La Fortuna and second part Manuel Antonio. I booked late and have to say our resorts were still absolutely amazing. She is absolutely THE BEST!!!! I love that her company is always available when you are in country. The excursion companies she works with are phenomenal. Thank you Kayla for a trip of a lifetime!!!"
🌋 ☀️ 🌊 🌴
Thanks Denise! It was such a pleasure helping you plan the perfect family vacation! I hope to help you plan a return trip soon!