tropical Archives - Hamaca Tropical Tours

New Year resolutions you can accomplish in a tropical destination

The New Year is just around the corner, and we hope you already have your list of resolutions — because Hamaca is taking you to accomplish them all in Latin America! If you don’t know which goals to set to yourself for next year, don’t worry. We crafted the following list of all the things you’ll be achieving on your next trip.

Travel somewhere new

Tropical Latin America contains over 30 countries, and each of them offers unique cities and landscapes that will leave you breathless. It doesn’t matter if your next place to see in your bucket list includes beaches, mountains, or deserts, Latin America has them all for you to discover a new place every time you go.

Meet a new culture

Tired of the winter blues, the cold days, and the long nights? Immersing yourself into Latin American culture will light up your mood. With colorful townscapes, lively dances, delicious food, and heartwarming people, you’ll widen your horizons and bring some sunshine back home.

Learn to cook something new

Bring new flavors home from your next trip! There are people in every country of Latin America open to teaching foreigners the secrets of their cuisine. This is a perfect opportunity to learn new recipes, such as ceviche’s, to spice up your table with tropical flavors.

Get fit

Maybe the most popular new year resolution of the year. Everyone wants to get fit, and there’s no better way to do so than exercising by the sea or the jungle. With so many physical activities to offer — like hiking, swimming, or doing yoga — Latin America will get you in shape while giving you the time of your life.

Learning a new language

Even when the internet offers hundreds of web pages where you can learn a new language, you’ll never get to speak it fluently if you don’t practice it with a native speaker. Latin Americans love when people try to learn Spanish. We’re always willing to teach you to pronounce words correctly, help you to roll your R’s properly, and show you our singular and funny slang.

Learning a new skill

Choose a new talent, and you’ll find where to learn it in Latin America. Want to learn how to surf, how to dance, or to cook? How about birdwatching or coffee tasting? Return home from your holidays with a new skill that will make everyone jealous.

Get closer to nature

The Tropical Zone holds 70% of the Earth’s biodiversity. So it’s impossible to think of a better place than Tropical Latin America to discover the wonders of nature. If your goal this year is to unplug from technology, the city, and a busy lifestyle more often, join us in any of our destinations and get the chance to reconnect with nature.

We’re excited to have you in Hamaca Tropical Tour next year and to help you achieve all your goals!

By Mariana Arámburu

TWITTER & INSTAGRAM: @M_BURU

BORN AND RAISED IN MEXICO CITY, MARIANA GRADUATED FROM UNIVERSIDAD IBEROAMERICANA WITH A DEGREE IN COMMUNICATION AND FILM. LATER, SHE MOVED TO VANCOUVER, BC, WHERE SHE CURRENTLY RESIDES, AND STUDIED CREATIVE WRITING AT CAPILANO UNIVERSITY. MARIANA LOVES PHOTOGRAPHY AND TO VISIT NEW PLACES. SHE ALSO LOVES ANIMALS AND AIMS TO ONE DAY FOCUS HER WORK ON CONSERVATION ISSUES.

Costa Rica: “Pura Vida” is more than just a slang

If you are planning to take an adventure to Tropical Latin America, Costa Rica might be your best option. From its vibrant culture to its mesmerizing sceneries, this central American country has something new to explore in every corner, making it the perfect destinations for those traveler souls. Gaining its independence from Spain during the first half of the 19th Century, and with a relatively peaceful history, Costa Rica is one of the most economically and politically stable countries of Latin America today.

To convince you into joining us for our next Tican (Costa Rican) adventure, today we bring you some reasons why you would love this country as much as we do.

Two oceans to enjoy

Costa Rica is lucky to be just between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. This makes up more than 700 miles of coastal shore in which you can enjoy different environments. You can find deserted beaches that extend for miles, as well as places crowded with activities. If you want to get the perfect sunbath, go snorkeling, or surfing, traveling here between December and April, the dry season, is your best option.

Happy people

According to the Happy Planet Index, Costa Rica is the happiest country in the world. And we all know happiness makes people beautiful. Since 1949, the nation forbids having a standing army and instead directs those funds to education and health, creating one of the countries with highest literacy and life expectancy in the world. No wonder why the most common Tican salutation is “Pura Vida”, meaning literally pure life, to celebrate their wellbeing.

Nature-loving

Costa Rica contains 5% of the world’s biodiversity and some of the most variate microclimates in Central America. Just by going to the Manuel Antonio National Park, for example, you can tour the coral reefs, the beach, and the rainforest all together in only one day. For the animal lovers, Costa Rica is one of the top places in the world to spot howler monkeys, sloths, sea turtles, and over 50 species of hummingbirds.

Adventure paradise

With a quarter of its territory turned into national parks, Costa Rica is known for its strong environmental and sustainability laws, making it the perfect country for ecotourism. Some all-time favorite activities for travellers are hiking on the Arenal Volcano, wildlife watching in Corcovado National Park, and shopping locally in the Costa Rica Central Market.

Delectable experiences

Due to the country’s heritage and location, Costa Rica offers a rich variety of different foods. Its climate is perfect to grow tropical fruits that are hard to find outside Central America, like soursop, guava, and passion fruit. Its Spanish, Native American, and Afro-Caribbean background bring a mixture of beans, corn, rice, fish, and hundreds of vegetables to the table. Costa Rica is also one of the best places to try some fresh coffee and cacao fresh from the harvest.

Are you ready to travel to a land full of natural wonders and live unforgettable adventures?

By Mariana Arámburu

Twitter & Instagram: @m_buru

Born and raised in Mexico City, Mariana graduated from Universidad Iberoamericana with a degree in Communication and Film. Later, she moved to Vancouver, BC, where she currently resides, and studied Creative Writing at Capilano University. Mariana loves photography and to visit new places. She also loves animals and aims to one day focus her work on conservation issues.

What does TROPICAL mean?

What do you imagine when you plan a tropical vacation?

When hearing the word “tropical,” most people have three concepts in mind: white sand, turquoise ocean, and palm trees. It’s not bad at all to find these luxuries in your vacation, but if they are the only three things that come to your mind when you’re going on a tropical destination, you are missing a lot of other enriching experiences you might not get in any other part of the world.

In Hamaca Tropical Tours we want to show you all of what the tropics have to offer. Don’t worry, we are still taking you to your dreamy beach in the Caribbean, but we also want to expand your mind and show you that when traveling with us, you are in for a treat!

What does TROPICAL mean?

The tropical zone of the world encompasses every place south of the Tropic of Cancer and north to the Tropic of Capricorn. Because this region surrounds the Equator, it is also the zone of the globe that gets more sunlight throughout the year. Despite this last fact, the tropics have different sub-climates that vary according to the location’s altitude. This creates ecosystems that you might not be aware existed in these regions. So, when you are going on a tropical vacation, you might find yourself sun tanning in a sandy beach of Costa Rica, hiking in the alpine tundra in the Ecuadorian Andes, or sandboarding in the San Pedro de Atacama desert of Chile.

What makes this zone unique?

The tropics represent 36% of the global landmass and contain roughly 40% of the world’s population, making it home to hundreds of different traditions, towns, and cities. Just by walking through the border of one country to another, you might be speaking in a different language, eating dishes made of unfamiliar food, and making friends that can trace their heritage to the opposite side of the world.

Because of the Earth’s position towards the Sun, the Equator receives the most substantial amount of sunlight throughout the whole year, and there’s never a season of complete darkness or full daylight. As a result, the soil is more fertile in the tropical zone, making it the holder of 70% of Earth’s biodiversity.
Tropical islands are the best places to find unique animals and plants, as their isolation has made it impossible to interbreed with species from the continents. The Galapagos alone holds 600 plant types and more than 100 animal species endemic to the islands.

What’s in Tropical Latin America?

Contrary to the common belief, not all Latin American countries speak Spanish. Other Latin-derived languages you can find in this region are Portuguese and French, not to mention the dozens of native tongues unique to each country.

In the Americas, the Tropic of Cancer passes through Mexico, the Bahamas, and Hawaii, while the Tropic of Capricorn passes by Paraguay, Brazil, and the north of Argentina and Chile. See it for yourself: open up a map and see if you can name the more than 30 countries that extend north and south the Equator!

By Mariana Arámburu

Twitter & Instagram: @m_buru

Born and raised in Mexico City, Mariana graduated from Universidad Iberoamericana with a degree in Communication and Film. Later, she moved to Vancouver, BC, where she currently resides, and studied Creative Writing at Capilano University. Mariana loves photography and to visit new places. She also loves animals and aims to one day focus her work on conservation issues.

Welcome to Hamaca Tropical Tours!

We’re delighted to have you here today. We are looking forward to giving you everything you need for your next tropical adventure. First of all, we would like to introduce our company and tell you some useful information about who we are and what we do.

Our company’s origins trace back to 2004 when Peter Rodríguez-Pontón founded Hamaca Tours, a tour operator that assembled the best tours for travelers to the Ecuadorian coast.

Peter, born in Toronto from Ecuadorian parents, was raised in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s main port. Growing up in the center of the tropics and in a coastal city, there’s no wonder why he grew such a love for this paradise and decided to build a career as a Tropical Expeditioner. Even though he leaves far from Ecuador now, he still remembers how his grandmother used to nestle him in her hammock (or hamaca, in Spanish) to help him fall asleep as one of his most cherished childhood memories.

With Carol Villao, our Chief of Operations, added to our team, Hamaca Tours was dedicated to offering the Ecuadorian coast and the Galapagos as a travel destination for American and Canadian tourists for years. It was in 2018 when we decided to take the next step and expand our company outside Ecuador, adding more Latin American Destinations, starting next summer with Costa Rica and its wonders to our list of paradises. With this in mind, the name Hamaca Tropical Tours was created now offering a broad catalog of tropical vacations all across Latin America. To fully immerse you in these places, we provide with tours combining soft adventure, wellness, cultural and local experiences, and of course a hammock: the icon of a well-deserved tropical rest!

Hamaca Tropical Tours is committed to the conservation of the environment and the local communities we visit. That’s why we partner with companies and operators who share our same values. Some of our partners include:

Specialized local guides. Tour guides experts on different fields and native to the place, to teach you about the costumes of the community and make you feel like a traveler more than a tourist.
Naturalists. Biologists, zoologists, conservationists, and environmentalists, between other expert fields, to guide you through our wildlife adventures.
Reiki Masters. Expert practitioners in alternative medicine that focus not only on your body but in your mind’s well-being.
Yoga teachers. Certified instructors to guide you through our yoga retreats, teaching you how yo practice this ancestral Indian discipline to unify the mind and body.
Soft Sports Instructors. Skillful and talented surfers, bikers, divers, and other adventurers to take you in unique and daring recreational activities.

So, here you go! Whatever path you choose for your adventure, we have over 14 years of experience to help you plan your perfect vacation. Whatever your interests are, we’ve got you covered in putting together the trip of a lifetime for you!

Now it’s your turn: Who are you, and what do you envision as the perfect tropical destination?

By Mariana Arámburu

Twitter & Instagram: @m_buru

Born and raised in Mexico City, Mariana graduated from Universidad Iberoamericana with a degree in Communication and Film. Later, she moved to Vancouver, BC, where she currently resides, and studied Creative Writing at Capilano University. Mariana loves photography and to visit new places. She also loves animals and aims to one day focus her work on conservation issues.