When they stepped off the plane in Costa Rica, Englewood students breathed in fresh air, and lush green vegetation, and heard songs of birds, and screams of howler monkeys.  

More than thirty students took the spring break trip with EF Tours. The trip was originally offered during Erin Altenhofen’s junior year but was pushed back for reasons she isn’t sure of. Nonetheless, the idea remained in her mind, “My parents and I just thought it was a really good opportunity. So we took it and decided to go.” 

This would also be Altenhofen’s first international trip, “It was really amazing. We’ve been all over the country but being out of the country was a super different experience. It was just amazing and unique.”

White water rafting, adrenaline-inducing zip lining, suspension bridges, La Fortuna waterfall, snorkeling, mouth-watering food, and amazing culture, “Yeah, the culture there was really different. It was kind of like culture shock being in there, but the people were super nice and super accepting.”

Altenhofen and the other students spent time at the pools and walked through the cities experiencing the beauty of Costa Rica, “Well, just basically, everything about their culture is super different from America and I’ve never been put in that situation.”

There were four different areas that the tour visited during their week-long experience; San Jose, Sarapiqui, Arenal, and Guanacaste.  

Altenhofen is the EHS valedictorian and Daniels Fund winner. She has experienced a lot in her short life but this really opened her mind to new opportunities, “This experience kind of made me want to travel more in my life and maybe do a foreign program or travel abroad.”

EF tours is taking Englewood students to Italy in the summer of 2025.