- Program
- Pura Vida Service, Costa Rica
- Traveled
- July 2026
- Hometown
- Northbrook, Illinois
In this first-person account, MJ Seay of Northbrook, Illinois, looks back on Rustic Pathways’ Pura Vida Service program in Costa Rica in July 2026, with photos from the trip.
MJ describes immersing in the community and helping out alongside locals, becoming good friends with people from all over the world, and a thrilling day of white water rafting and a shared “birthday party” on the trip.
MJ’s Pura Vida Service Trip in Costa Rica
Hi! I’m MJ and I’m going into my senior year and this summer I went on the Pura Vida Service trip!
One of the most amazing things that I feel like I got out of this trip was the way we immersed in the community. It took traveling to a whole new level to be able to interact with locals and help out. I look forward to traveling similarly in the future!
Friends From All Over the World in Costa Rica
It was so amazing to get to be with people all over the world and to be able to share our own experiences and become really good friends with each other!
White Water Rafting and a Birthday Party: What MJ Took Home
One of my favorite memories was white water rafting. It was so much fun and so thrilling. Also having a “birthday party” for the two of us with birthdays on the trip was super special.
MJ describes a new way of traveling, immersed in the community. The memories concern the July 2026 session, and MJ first shared them on the Rustic Pathways Instagram account on August 1, 2026.
The program still runs as Costa Rica: Pura Vida Service. It runs 8 days for students ages 14–18 and includes about 16 hours of community service near Arenal Volcano, with improvements at Escuela Linda Vista, a local elementary school, and trail maintenance in Arenal Volcano National Park. See the program page for the current itinerary, dates and activities.
