The Frisch School
February 14 to 18, 2027
Key Information
This is Costa Rica and our dedicated Team
Five days built around Spanish immersion, cultural exchange, and meaningful community service in the Costa Rican highlands. Students practice Spanish in real daily life, work side by side with a rural Indigenous community on a project that lasts beyond the trip, and spend a day in the wild beauty of the Pacuare River valley. Every meal is fully kosher and coordinated in advance, and the program runs Sunday through Thursday so the group is back home well before Shabbat.
Day 1, Sunday Feb 14 — Arrival
Welcome to Costa Rica. The group lands at Juan Santamaría International Airport, where our team meets you at arrivals and drives you out to your base in the Costa Rican highlands, home for the next four nights. After a long travel day, tonight is about settling in and resting up. We share a first kosher dinner together and run a light orientation so everyone knows what to expect.
Day 2, Monday Feb 15 — Cultural Immersion & Spanish
Today we head out to a nearby village, where the community welcomes the group and the real immersion begins, with students practicing Spanish in real conversations rather than from a textbook. We visit a local cacao farm, learning the full process from pod to chocolate, and a certified fair trade coffee farm, walking the plantation and seeing how a sustainable farm runs. In the evening we head back to base for a kosher dinner together.
Day 3, Tuesday Feb 16 — Community Service
Today is about giving back. Back in the village, students run a community market with clothing and goods they bring from home in good condition, everything priced at a dollar or fifty cents, and all the proceeds go directly to the local Cabécar Indigenous community. It is a simple but powerful project that gets students working alongside the community in a way they remember long after the trip, and the community hosts the group for a shared celebration with music and food before we head back to base.
Day 4, Wednesday Feb 17 — Nature & the Pacuare
An active day out in the Pacuare River valley, one of the most beautiful river settings in Central America. Students can take on a guided rafting run, a zipline course through the rainforest canopy, or a mix of both, surrounded by dense jungle, howler monkeys, and toucans. Everything is optional and the day works just as well at an easier pace. In the evening we return to base for our last night together and a final kosher dinner.
Day 5, Thursday Feb 18 — Departure
Last morning together. After breakfast and a final reflection circle, we drive to the airport in good time. The group flies out on Thursday, home well before Shabbat. Students leave with stronger Spanish, a real connection to a community they helped, and the kind of bond that only comes from sharing five days like these.
