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La Casita del Turista
La Casita del Turista is an independent residential learning center in the countryside of Cartago, offering focused two-week programs in Spanish, biodiversity, gastronomy, and arts and culture. Created for curious learners from around the world, our programs combine structured lessons with workshops, field experiences, conversations and educational journeys throughout Costa Rica.
Where Costa Rica becomes the classroom
At La Casita del Turista, learning is rooted in place.
Each of our programs explores a specific field in depth while connecting it with the landscapes, communities, traditions and everyday life of Costa Rica. Classroom sessions provide the academic foundation, while workshops, field visits and guided experiences allow students to observe, practice and investigate what they are learning.
Depending on the program, you might document species in a tropical ecosystem, prepare traditional recipes, learn alongside local artists and community members, or use Spanish in real-life situations.
La Casita remains your home base throughout the experience: a peaceful place among the green mountains and chayote fields of Cartago, where small groups can study, exchange ideas, reflect on their discoveries and feel genuinely welcome.
Each program stands on its own, with its own subject, learning objectives and field experiences. You choose what you want to study and Costa Rica becomes part of how you learn.
Come to study. Leave with a deeper understanding of Costa Rica.
What makes us different?
Learning at La Casita is personal, focused and deeply connected to place. Each two-week program explores a specific field of study through structured lessons, hands-on workshops, field experiences and encounters with local communities. Small groups allow for individual guidance and meaningful participation, while our home in rural Cartago provides a welcoming base from which to study Costa Rica and travel through it as part of the learning process.
Costa Rica awaits: where nature, culture, and magic meet.
our programs
Choose a focused two-week program and explore Costa Rica through structured study, hands-on practice and field-based learning. Each program stands on its own, with its own objectives, learning activities and educational journeys.
Our Programs
Gastronomy & Food Culture
Explore local ingredients, agricultural traditions and Costa Rican culinary knowledge.
Our Programs
Biodiversity & Tropical Ecology
Study Costa Rica’s ecosystems, species and conservation through field-based exploration.
Our Programs
Arts, Culture & Heritage
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Discover Costa Rican identity through history, traditional arts, heritage and creative practice.
LA CASITA
Your home base for learning and exploration
La Casita is the residential heart of every program, a welcoming home hosted by its owners and designed for small groups who value personal attention, shared learning and a peaceful environment. Between lessons and field experiences, you can study in comfortable indoor and outdoor spaces, take part in cooking and creative workshops in our open kitchen, spend time in the garden and vegetable patch, or relax by the swimming pool surrounded by the rural landscape of Cartago. More than a place to stay, La Casita is where each day begins and ends: a space to prepare, exchange ideas, reflect on what you have discovered and feel at home in Costa Rica.
Meet the Founder
La Casita del Turista was founded in Cartago, Costa Rica, by Diego Luna, a professional in sustainable tourism management. He leads the development of the center and oversees its educational programs and residential learning experience.
His work is guided by a shared vision: to create focused, place-based programs that connect structured learning with the landscapes, communities and cultural knowledge of Costa Rica.
La Casita welcomes participants from different countries and backgrounds and is committed to maintaining a respectful, inclusive and collaborative learning environment.