“Staying with a Costa Rican family made the experience even that much more memorable and unforgettable. I became fully immersed in the culture and my homestay family helped me to learn more about Costa Rica and had plenty of suggestions for places to visit and activities to engage in.”

Christina Custus

Fall, 2015

The idea of homestays can sound unique to new students, but not to people in Central America. It’s a common practice for large families and homes to host international students, workers, or backpackers for long-term stays, especially in a tourism hotspot like Costa Rica. It’s part culture and part friendly, tico hospitality. Unlike renting an apartment or staying at a hotel, homestays are designed and specialized to take care of foreign travelers with the environment and amenities you need for a comfortable, long-term stay. Homestays also go a step further and often provide meals, laundry, and other services that rentals or hotel stays can’t offer.

With many years of hosting international students in accordance with ICDS’ strict requirements, our Homestay Coordinator and our network of host families provide a safe and natural environment for you to enjoy the host culture of Costa Rica. Each accommodation is carefully selected to ensure proximity to the university campus and ICDS office, quality care for students, and flexibility in hosting international students. Homestays are one of the most important parts of your experience in experiential learning. They facilitate immersion and adaptation to the new culture and language, and they help you to integrate faster into local society. Daily immersion with host families provides program participants with a relaxed environment to practice Spanish, ask questions about their surroundings, and get support from another network in addition to their classmates, faculty, and ICDS staff.

Living with your host family includes a private room furnished with all the basic elements for resting, studying, and living comfortably. These include bed and linens, a closet, a well-lit workspace with desk and chair, a private or shared bathroom, two meals a day during the week (breakfast and dinner), 3 meals on weekends, weekly laundry service, and Wi-Fi.

After receiving your housing application, our Homestay Coordinator will match you to a family in accordance with your preferences and special requests to ensure the best fit for an enjoyable stay throughout your program. ICDS also checks in and follows up during the program to ensure that the experience in your homestay is a positive one. Many alumni have formed strong relationships with their homestays and continue to stay in touch with their host families long after they leave Costa Rica.