La Tortuga Feliz

Just imagine: full moon, desolated beach and in front of you a big leatherbackturtle covering her nest. You, sitting there in the sand, staring at her and safeguard a big plastic bag with turtle eggs. For me it was one of the best moments of my life. Tears of happiness, because I never felt so much alive and feeling what we were doing, truly did matter. While she was walking back to the ocean, we waved her goodbye promised her to take good care of her babies. Then our work started. Because we needed to walk back to the hatchery with 25 kg of turtle-eggs, digging a deep nest and guard the nests till the babies will come out. I promise you, you forget the heat, the blisters, mosquitos and rain. Instead you will enjoy the beauty’s of nature: drinking fresh coconutwater, watch the sunrise and (when you’re lucky) see babyturtles walking their first steps into the ocean. You will be accompanied with very passionate people from all over the world, enjoying the Caribbean beach, without getting disturbed by your phone. Just listen to the sounds of birds, calling frogs and howlermonkeys. The accommodation is simple but has everything you need. A hammock, a travel library and very healthy and tasty vegetarian food. For every nature and animallover on this planet, just go and don’t be sorry. Going to La Tortuga Feliz, was one of my best decisions in my life.

LTF is a great organization with an inspiring mission. The Caribbean coast of Costa Rica is gorgeous, and I was able to spend my time working with sea turtles and helping their legacy, as well as see tons of other wildlife, including sloths, which are my absolute favorite! An amazing cultural immersion, as well as rewarding conservation work. Highly recommend!

I went for 2 weeks in July 2013 with one of my teachers. It was one of the most interesting and fun experiences I have ever had. Met some amazing people, got to really study in depth about the sea turtles. The coordinators absolutely love what they do and you can tell that by how they treat all of the people that come to the site. Beautiful location, wonderful people from all over the world come to volunteer at this conservation site, and it is definitely very informative and worth it. I got to see first hand how to tag and take data on the sea turtles and it was a life changing experience. I got to watch a nest of baby turtles make their way down to the ocean and it was just truly beautiful. Would definitely recommend this trip to anyone. Definitely would love to go back one day for a longer period of time.

The first time I volunteered at LTF was in the summer of 2008. I was there for four weeks and loved every minute of it! I can't even explain how it feels to see a turtle crawling up the beach to lay their eggs and know that you are a part of saving an endangered species legacy. Not only are the turtles amazing, but the relationships that you form with other volunteers could not be achieved anywhere else. I now have friends from across the globe that I would never have imagined! One of my favorite parts of the project is the feeling of community that you have while you are there. Everyone chips in to help out around the project site, everyone eats meals together, and everyone can play volleyball together! Not only were the volunteers amazing, but the locals are also quite hospitable as well. Everyone on staff at LTF is a joy to work with in every way. In fact, I have gone back to LTF every year since, and I even took two groups of high school students with me during the 2012 & 2013 summer vacation so they could have this exceptional experience as well. The information that is provided on their website will give you all of the information that you need to pack appropriately and be prepared. I can't wait to bring my fiancee to LTF in 2015!

I recently finished volunteering for 3 months with a non profit organisation protecting sea turtles in Costa Rica and i really want to spread the word. Working with La Tortuga Feliz was definitely one of the most rewarding and life changing experience of my life. The project area is on a unique place at the caribbean with lots of wildlife! My daily activities included beach patrolling and hatchery work. Living conditions were basic as expected, however, the amazing food was a welcome surprise. The rewards not only consisted of the opportunity to bond with a diverse group of people but also to actively participate in an organisation that truly helps both; the marine wildlife and the local community. If anyone is interested in cheap voluntary work in Central America, i couldn't recommend LTF more!

www.latortugafeliz.com