Kids activity pack – Costa Rica edition

Let me tell you, keeping the kids busy in Costa Rica was the easiest thing we’ve ever done (not literally, but you get the idea.) Big S and Lil S were 8 and 6, still at the age where they required plenty of entertainment and plenty of downtime. But surrounded by so much nature and regular animals sightings, they found plenty to do wherever we were, whether it was animal spotting on a hike, or exploring the local terrain of our hotel grounds. They were basically free-range kids our entire trip!

To help keep the kids occupied and keep them engaged, we put together a Costa Rica kids “adventure pack”, which we brought everywhere with us. We got *so* much mileage out of this little kit. If you have elementary school kids and older, consider these items for your kids’ activity bag when travelling to Costa Rica.

Costa Rica pocket animal guides

This was single-handedly the most used “activity” in our arsenal. Many Costa Rican souvenir shops will sell these, for a markup. We bought ours ahead of time from Amazon for around $10 USD per guide. They are basically laminated little brochures with all the animals you can find in Costa Rica. Each animal has a picture, their name/scientific name, and sometimes even a little fact about the animal or species. Are they super comprehensive? Probably not. But definitely more than enough for kids and the casual traveller.

We picked up one for general wildlife, and a more detailed one for birds and also butterflies. We used the wildlife and birds guides the most.

These were fantastic for hikes, as the kids were easily able to “identify” any animal they came across. (Identify is in quotations because some of the animals look very similar… whether they were *correctly* identified is another matter, but it was still a valiant and educational attempt. :P) It kept the kids from getting bored and gave them some sense of agency on long hikes.

The kids even used these while driving or at the hotel. The kids would challenge each other to find a particular type of bird, like a nature Bingo (again, whether they really did find them… well, that’s besides the point. :P) Big S had fun figuring out which type of turkeys were swopping overhead at one hotel, and identified different species of toucans at another.

Binoculars

A very useful addition to the above animal guides while animal spotting. The kids loved having their own pair, and looking at things close up (not even animals) kept them busy and occupied on long hikes. Lil S got a ton of use for hers while on a canoe ride through Tortuguero National Park. (She wasn’t old enough to hold a paddle, so had nothing to do besides use her binoculars!)

Be sure to buy small binoculars for kids that fits the width of their eyes, and ones that are easy to focus.

Digital camera

This was Big S’s best friend our entire trip. We regretted not bringing a separate camera for Lil S, as the kids were so into taking photos, especially when they saw animals, that they kept fighting over who got to use the camera.

It doesn’t have to be a high end camera (in fact, probably better than it is not, if kids are handling it.) We recommend something sturdy with a good zoom. We gave the kids our old point-and-shoot camera that we used on our trip to Tanzania a decade ago. It doesn’t take the best quality pictures, but boy, does it have a wicked optical zoom – up to 600mm! We were able to capture photos of animals from nearly 1 kilometre away! The kids even sometimes used it as binoculars!

We also brought a Go Pro that we sometimes gave the kids. This is also a good option as they are pretty much indestructible, easy to use, and take great videos.

Big S wanted to capture every animals and snapped so many photos. He took pictures of the landscape and all over the hotel grounds. In his downtime, he enjoyed looking at the photos he took. As parents, it is also a treat getting to see things from the kids’ point of views.

Sketchbook and markers/pencil crayons

These are core activity supplies we bring on every trip. Because of the above, these didn’t get quite a much use as they usually do. We really liked the sketchbook idea, as it keeps artwork more contained and also leaves room for open-ended drawing. On a previous trip to Iceland, Lil S drew a ton of spots that we visited, which also made a really cool souvenir after the fact. Costa Rica has a ton of cool places and things to draw – Lil S learned to draw sloths!

(Tablet/iPad)

Not nature related, but we add a tablet to every activity bag packing list, because kids these days. 😛 In all honesty, sometimes you just have to unwind after a tiring activity with a show or movie – that goes for us adults, too! We mostly use our travel iPad to play music and watch shows in the car. (We had on average 3 hour drives between our Costa Rican destinations.) Our kids also really got into chess this year, and enjoyed playing chess on the iPad. (Translating into real world skills at Barcelo Tambor, Costa Rica. :P)

Looking for more tips and recommendations for your family adventure to Costa Rica? Be sure to check out our other articles for more!