This week has been full of a multitude of things, amazing and eye-opening. Our tours began from a generational organic banana plantation to a large ecotourist resort on the outskirts of the Tortuguero National Park. Out of all the things I have experienced in this week, the ecotourism aspect stuck out to me the most. We have been able to see both sides of the coin, and it’s interesting, to say the least. So, this is an honest review of ecotourist destinations, from someone who has never eco-traveled until now. My family is not much of an eco-traveler family, and we flock to places with white sandy beaches and walkable towns. This is much different from my experience in Costa Rica so far, where the beach is too dangerous to get in the water and things as small as sandals are not the wisest safety decision.
The pros of ecotourism are abundant, for our ecosystem and the economic advancement of rural communities. With any tourism, the community will flourish, making a difference in an entire county or allowing a small business to profit beyond putting food on the table. Once ecological advancements were made in the government of Costa Rica, many natives struggled financially since their jobs were outlawed. Allowing the forest to regenerate allows for locals to become a part of that process. Our guide in Tortuguero was a part of that process, living in both the slaughter and trade of turtles and conservation work as a nature guide. This also allows for rural areas without tourism to have new business opportunities, like gift shops, tourist excursion activities, or upkeep and waitstaff of a resort that any worker could be qualified for. In my book, I would see it more fitting to do any of these jobs rather than working for large-scale money-hungry companies where they hire numbers and not people. The ecotourism business allows safer work environments and freedoms compared to other forms of work, which is beneficial to the working class.
Another pro of ecotourism is an added income to already established businesses. A good example of this would be a small organic pineapple farm we visited earlier this week. While they are already doing business through their export of frozen pineapple chunks and juices, they are adding on extra money by having a tourist attraction. And if I learned anything there, I began to really see up close and personal how wonderful organic foods are.
Adding onto this, the banana farm also integrated the idea of organic into my mind. While I’ve known that organic is so much better, when shopping, I find it hard to pull the trigger on something 20-40% more expensive. I know lots of people who also have celiac disease, and the banana flour they were making there was actually delicious, compared to other gluten-free options. The cooking demonstration shows that there is more to do with bananas and plantains rather than banana bread, and how to support small businesses.
The added benefit of plantations like these is educating people on pesticides and what we can do as consumers. I have definitely been impacted by the benefits of organic and plan to change my grocery habits once back home in the States. I was educated through the course we are taking and data from different students, but others do not have that luxury. So, this is very informative for travelers to see how pesticides affect a local community and an active rainforest.
Another aspect of ecotourism is an easier way for travelers to experience nature in its original setting, especially wildlife. This experience is so much different from zoos, and being able to see the animals in their natural habitat living freely is breathtaking. This constitutes the real question: What qualifies as ecotourism, and what is just tourism? In my opinion, the best example we have gotten of ecotourism is La Selva Biological Station and not so much the resort at Tortuguero. While Tortuguero was beautiful, it felt more touristy than La Selva and felt more disconnected from the rainforest. The best connection I can think of is a vacation with a side of the jungle, rather than a vacation in the jungle. The main example of this would be the white-faced capuchin monkeys in both sites. In La Selva, no monkeys, especially white-faced capuchin monkeys were never seen stalking the dining hall, which were both in open settings. However, at the resort in Tortuguero, the capuchins were heavily eyeing all of the tables and were ready to pounce. We eventually had one jump onto a neighboring table and steal a quick dessert. This shows that the jungle in Tortuguero has had to adapt to the resort, rather than not being seen (and frankly if I were the monkey the La Selva food was by far my favorite, and would’ve stolen that instead).
My last point is the affordability of ecotourism. While prices are not listed for us and we just pay a flat fee for the entire trip, it is pretty obvious which places are more expensive than others. So far, I would guess that Tortuguero and Arenal are way more expensive than La Selva, and are a more family-friendly option for travelers. If I were traveling with my family, I would feel more comfortable in Tortuguero and Arenal as I have younger siblings and the constant paranoia of bullet ants and other things would not coincide with our usual travels. In this case, you would have to break out the big bucks, not including the flights here, in order to feel comfortable in the jungle, but still resulting in a more fake jungle feeling compared to other research stations. Overall, ecotourism is a very good idea for the environment and small communities, as long as it is carried out in a specific way.
Until next week!
Genevieve
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