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Zip Lining Several zip lines, Superman is almost a mile long to soar above the forest canopy.
Animal Sanctuary Discover Costa Rica wildlife species who have been rescued.
Traditional House Learn about the culture with the traditional ways of life.
Horseback Riding Trails through the Park.
ATV Tours Loud, dusty, dirty fun!
The Full Diamante Make it Yours
By John Brockmeier
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had heard about Diamante Eco Adventure Park even before moving to the Gold Coast area of Costa Rica. Looking forward to my first visit to the park, I could barely contain my excitement about the thrill of experiencing Central America’s longest dual action zipline. There had to be a good reason why this so-called Superman line is ranked in the world’s top five of its class. On arrival, we entered the gates and drove to the parking area, where a shuttle bus took us up the steep incline to the Diamante office. Being greeted with the full open Pacific panorama off Playa Matapalo was spectacular. The sense of tranquility was mesmerizing as we relaxed and enjoyed the view until everyone in our group arrived. Still, my anticipation of the coming adrenalin rush was no less intense during the wait.
In due course, I discovered for myself what all the fuss is about. The Superman zipline lived up to all my heart-pounding expectations and then some. One of the interesting features I noticed was the self-braking system. Its advantages became apparent when a couple of older people in front of me were descending, and I wondered how they would handle stopping. Then it was my turn to be put on the line and sent whizzing down.
Gabi Miller enjoying her expectation of a long beautiful ride!
Nearing the end, I realized that almost anyone can enjoy this experience regardless of athletic ability, thanks to the mechanism that automatically slows you down for a comfortable landing. Simulated wildlife habitats After finishing the lines, we made a tour of the Diamante animal sanctuary. It was a rare opportunity to marvel up close at iconic Costa Rican species in natural enclosures that simulate their wildlife habitats. These animals are very well cared for, having been rescued and rehabilitated in circumstances that would make release into the wild not feasible for various reasons. Miles to discover on four-wheeler and horseback rides
Walking over the swinging bridge, we peered down at the hungry crocodiles, in awe of their massive size and power. The jaguar brothers, their playfulness belying a fierce appearance, seemed to be consciously entertaining the onlookers. A puma simply stared us down as we observed. Monkeys chattered and played to their audience’s delight. The highlight was seeing Lucy, Diamante’s legendary sloth and her companions. By lucky coincidence, we encountered her on the ground instead of in the canopy, where sloths spend most of their time. Entering the birdcage, we were also richly rewarded at the sight of so many species, including a stunning toucan. Lots of talkative parrots wanting to converse and a background chorus of chirping enhanced our multisensory experience
We ended our visit to Diamante with a wonderful buffet lunch, again sitting back and relaxing against the magnificent ocean backdrop. We were already planning a future return trip for a horseback riding adventure, either in the backwoods or on the beach, and some ATV fun. Diamante Eco Adventure Park is a short 20-minute drive from Playas Del Coco, and about 40 minutes from the Playa Flamingo area.
See Diamante Here:
Visit the charming casita, replicating a traditional farmhouse, and sample fresh Costa Rican coffee. Long, scenic zips lines
El diamante completo ¡Hágalo suyo! E
l canopy Superman cumplió todas mis expectativas de adrenalina y mucho más.
Yo ya había escuchado de Diamante Eco Adventure Park antes de mudarme a la zona de la Costa Dorada de Costa Rica. Anticipando mi primera visita al parque, apenas podía contener mi entusiasmo por la ganas de tirarme en el canopy de doble acción doble más largo de Centroamérica. Además, tenía que haber una buena razón por la cual este tipo de cable llamado Superman está clasificado entre los cinco mejores del mundo. Al llegar, entramos y nos dirigimos a la zona de estacionamiento, donde un autobús nos recogió y nos llevó por una empinada cuesta hasta la oficina de Diamante. Ser recibido por un panorama abierto del océano Pacífico y ver la playa Matapalo fue espectacular. La sensación de tranquilidad fue fascinante. Nos relajamos y disfrutamos de la vista a la espera de que llegaran los demás integrantes de nuestro grupo. Aún así, mi anticipación de la inminente descarga de adrenalina mantuvo su intensidad durante la espera.
A su debido tiempo, descubrí por mí mismo de qué se trataba todo ese alboroto. El canopy de Superman cumplió todas mis expectativas y mucho más. Una de las características interesantes que noté fue el sistema de frenado. Sus ventajas se hicieron evidentes cuando, delante de mí, un par de personas mayores descendieron y me pregunté sobre cómo manejarían el aterrizaje. Luego, fue mi turno de tirarme a toda velocidad. Al llegar al final, me di cuenta de que, independientemente de su habilidad atlética, casi que cualquier persona puede disfrutar de esta experiencia, gracias al mecanismo de frenado automático. Hábitats de vida silvestre simulados Después de terminar los cables del canopy, hicimos un recorrido por el santuario de animales de Diamante. Fue una oportunidad única para admirar de cerca las icónicas especies costarricenses en recintos naturales que simulan sus hábitats en la vida silvestre. Estos animales están muy bien cuidados, ya que han sido rescatados y rehabilitados bajo circunstancias que harán que la liberación a la naturaleza no sea factible por diversos motivos.
Mientras caminábamos por el puente colgante, miramos los cocodrilos hambrientos, muy asombrados por su enorme tamaño y poder. Los hermanos jaguar, con su alegría ocultaban su apariencia feroz, hasta parecían estar entreteniendo conscientemente a los espectadores. Un puma simplemente nos miró mientras lo observábamos. Los monos charlataneaban y jugaban para deleitar a su audiencia. Pero lo más destacado fue ver a Lucy, la famosa perezosa de Diamante, y sus compañeros. Por casualidad, la encontramos en el suelo en lugar de colgada de las ramas del árbol, donde los perezosos pasan la mayor parte del tiempo.
Al entrar en la jaula de pájaros, fuimos recompensados al ver una enorme cantidad de especies, incluido un deslumbrante tucán. También había muchos loros hablantines que deseaban conversar y en el fondo un coro que realzaba nuestra experiencia multisensorial. Cerramos nuestra visita en Diamante con un delicioso almuerzo bufé. Terminamos nuevamente sentados y relajados admirando el magnífico océano Pacífico en el fondo. Incluso, por la experiencia vivida, ya estábamos planeando nuestro próximo viaje al parque y que esta vez incluyera una aventura montando a caballo por el bosque o la playa, y un poco de diversión manejando cuadraciclos. Diamante Eco Adventure Park se encuentra a 20 minutos en carro de playas del Coco y a unos 40 minutos de la zona de playa Flamingo.
Leading the way back for Costa Rica Adventure Tourism
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iamante, located in Guanacaste along the Gulf of Papagayo, became a leader in the Costa Rica adventure tourism market with its innovative ziplines and extraordinary animal sanctuary. The park has long been known for its immaculate facilities, top-of-the-line gear and attention to detail, along with a customer-focused staff that is favorably mentioned in a constant stream of positive client reviews.
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iamante, ubicado en Guanacaste a lo largo del Golfo de Papagayo, se convirtió en líder en el mercado de turismo de aventura de Costa Rica con su innovador circuito de zipline y su extraordinario santuario de animales. El parque se ha dado a conocer por sus instalaciones, equipo de primera línea y atención al detalle, junto con un personal enfocado en el cliente que se menciona continuamente en las reseñas positivas de los clientes.
The staff is truly excited to reopen the doors to the park. Over the past few months, the Diamante team has been focused on preparing the facilities and putting systems and protocols in place that comply with all recommended procedures established by the Ministry of Health. We are committed to ensuring the health and safety of our guests and staff.
El personal está realmente emocionado de volver a abrir las puertas del parque. En los últimos meses, el equipo de Diamante se ha concentrado en preparar las instalaciones y establecer sistemas y protocolos que cumplan con todos los procedimientos recomendados establecidos por el Ministerio de Salud. Estamos comprometidos a garantizar la salud y la seguridad de nuestros huéspedes y personal.
When you visit Diamante, you will enjoy the world-class service, facilities and adventure you expect. We’ve added additional operational guidelines for our guests, including temperature screening and social distancing queues. We’ve also implemented other sanitizing procedures for the facilities and the staff.
Cuando visite Diamante, podrá disfrutar de las instalaciones, las aventuras y el servicio de clase mundial que se merece. Hemos agregado pautas operativas adicionales para nuestros visitantes, que incluyen toma de temperatura y distanciamiento social. También hemos implementado otros procedimientos de desinfección para las instalaciones y el personal.
We look forward to hosting all adventure seekers. We are confident that our guests will enjoy their time at Diamante and feel completely safe during all of our outdoor adventure activities.
Esperamos recibir a todos los que están en busca de aventuras; Estamos seguros de que nuestros visitantes se divertirán en Diamante y se sentirán completamente seguros mientras disfrutan de nuestras actividades al aire libre.
Click here to discover more of Diamante features for the children and family!
Visit with the wild Costa Rica animals in our animal sanctuary
DIAMANTE
DOES IT ALL SO WELL Making Family Memories Was Easy
s a mom and a 15-year veteran of the tourism industry, it takes a lot to impress me when it comes to tourist-centric experiences. In Costa Rica, I’ve experienced every level of service, safety and attention to (or lack of ) details. At Diamante Eco Adventure Park, I found that every expectation was met, and some exceeded. My family of four — each with our different personalities and preferences — agreed it was one of the best places we have been in this country eager to show off and please.
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So what makes the Diamante experience worth the hype? I think it comes down to one thing: attention to details. When Diamante opened in 2015, the park implemented one of the most intensively researched, allencompassing destinations in Costa Rica. And you see this everywhere in the details — from the food and the care of the animals all the way through to the safety features of the ziplines. The check-in process at the open-air Welcome Center, with expansive views of the Pacific Ocean, is quick and easy. Of the three packages to choose from, the best value is the Adventure Pass. This allows you access to all the areas of the park including five ziplines, the animal sanctuary, the new ropes course, the botanical gardens and cultural learning center, the beach, buffet lunch and much more. Photos courtesy of Diamante Eco Adventure Park
by Nicole Rangel
The park’s layout makes it very easy to move between attractions, especially with the Adventure Pass. It all starts with the ziplines. I was a little concerned because my daughter had never ziplined before, but Diamante’s revolutionary self-braking carbon line system calmed my fears and made the experience her favorite of the whole day. The ziplines conclude with a freefall “Quick Jump” and my favorite: a hanging bridge walk over the crocodile habitat. In the animal sanctuary, we were greeted by Mario. He told us that all the animals have been rescued and rehabilitated but are not able to return to the wild for different reasons. As an animal lover, I was impressed that the park works with a team of onsite and international specialists to ensure the greatest care for the animals. As any parent knows, kids have their bucket list of things they want to see and do. My daughter has been talking about jaguars for months now. When I told her we were going to see them in person, she couldn’t believe it until Nico and Sama came into view: beautiful three-year old jaguar brothers, up close through the glass-walled habitat. My son and husband opted not to zipline and met us in the animal sanctuary. On the way there from the Welcome Center in the air-conditioned van, my son had seen the brand new Jungle Course. He couldn’t wait to try it out after visiting the animals. With a safety talk, very similar to the one my
daughter and I had received before ziplining, he was able to climb, jump, swing, and everything in between on the shaded ropes course that had a climbing wall, swings and variety of obsticles. We all joined in and it was fun to see what elements the adults could do or couldn’t do. My son’s favorite part was watching me try to walk across a tightrope. Our appreciation for Diamante’s attention to details continued as we realized how hungry we were.We returned to the Welcome Center for the buffet lunch, included in the Adventure Pass or otherwise available for an additional fee. It was by far one of the best buffet meals we’ve had in Costa Rica. The food quality and selection were exquisite, from the pizza and french fries for the kids to the fresh and full salad bar. There were plenty of typical Costa Rican offerings, finished off with some delicious arroz con leche. Everything was labeled, clean and most important, delicious. I’m still thinking about the ribs and creamy salad dressing. We finished our Diamante visit with a cultural center tour. As someone who studied interpretive experiences, I was excited to see this area of the park. It was the first time traveling anywhere in Costa Rica that I have ever seen signs, in English and Spanish, identifying all the flora and fauna in our midst. Surrounding the casita, a replica of a Costa Rican farmhouse, was an herbal and medicinal garden as well as coffee plants, fruit trees and sugarcane. These plants were chosen to supplement the nutrition for the animals in the sanctuary. My husband’s highlight of the day was observing and learning about the different stages of chocolate processing and making his own hot chocolate. We took a break and got a drink at Diamante’s new restaurant, Adventure Bar & Grill, before heading home. This provided a nice reprieve, with selections from a full bar and snack menu. It gave me time to again reflect on all the attention to details throughout the park. With a degree in tourism management and extensive experience in the hospitality sector, I hold high expectations wearing the tourist hat myself. Diamante exceeded my expectations on so many levels, from safety to the finer points of signage and supported by amazing hospitality. As a family-friendly adventure, Diamante had something for each of us to enjoy. It gave us many memories we will cherish for years. And my children are already asking to return and I can’t wait either, which tells me the experience was well worth it.
My son’s favorite part was watching me try to walk across a tightrope.
by Luciana Smania
TAKING ADVENTURE
TOURISM TO THE TOP
“Th wa an imp adv des
Diamante Finds the Perfect Spot for All to Enjoy Photos courtesy of Diamante Eco Adventure Park
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n a perfectly bright and clear January morning in 2012, while standing on a hilltop 300 feet above the Gulf of Papagayo, Julian Rembert and Jim Correll found the inspiration needed to create Diamante Eco Adventure Park.
The two business partners had been active in the Guanacaste real estate market since 2005, when they moved to Costa Rica with their families. “Our families immediately embraced the active adventure lifestyle,” says Rembert of the place that seemed to offer something for everyone. “The kids fell in love with everything from surfing, mountain biking and scuba diving to horseback riding.” Weekends saw the two families looking for more adventure-packed activities to enjoy together, from riding ATVs to ziplining. They have since hosted hundreds of friends and family members over the years, and seen firsthand the rise of adventure tourism. Costa Rica’s diverse beauty, from rugged terrain and rainforest to warm oceans, combines with friendly people to create nature’s perfect adventure playground destination. It was from the mountain’s edge overlooking the panoramic
Pacific vista that the two partners decided to use their years of personal experience and visitor feedback to create something new, exciting and unique. This property named El Diamante, meaning “the diamond,” had what Rembert and Correll believed were the key attributes of an amazing eco-adventure park. Ocean frontage and mountains stretching down to the water made it easily accessible for the most popular Guanacaste hospitality options. When the time came to name their new adventure park, they opted to keep the historical name intact. “We felt that with the growth in Costa Rica’s adventure tourism and increasing demand for high-quality tour options, the market was ready for a new and improved adventure destination," Correll says. The concept combined their love of nature, the ocean, and thrilling activities into one complete destination, perfect for families and adventure seekers. This vision began to take shape in relation to what friends and clients of Rembert and Correll liked most about activities like ziplining, and nature and wildlife-based parks. They also considered negative feedback from their clients and ways to better satisfy people’s desire for more excitement with high-quality facilities and equipment.
he market as ready for new and proved venture stination.”
Based on many years’ worth of information and insight from travellers, the partners sought to build something new and awe-inspiring. They began to reimagine ziplining, a staple recreational attraction born in Costa Rica and gaining in popularity worldwide. “We wanted a new breed of zipline,” Rembert says, “combined with a world-class animal sanctuary and wildlife education center to become the core attractions for the park." The entrepreneurs also wanted to include a botanical garden, complete with a typical Guanacaste farmhouse replica, where guests could learn more about the culture and history of Costa Rica with hands-on exposure to the production and processing of sugar cane, coffee and chocolate. The oceanfront location makes Diamante the only park of its kind in Costa Rica, Rembert says, “and our guests have the unique option to access the park via boat transportation." Correll adds, “Seeing Costa Rica by water is an adventure in itself,” noting the park also offers ocean activities like kayaking, snorkeling, and paddle-boarding to go along with onsite ATV trails and horseback riding.
“This project took years of planning, permitting and design, but our passion and vision never wavered,” said Rembert. The zipline delivered on what the partners imagined and adventure seekers desired. Dual lines meant the experience could be shared by pairs of friends and family riding side by side. Creating the longest lines with an ocean view in the country offered guests the added benefit of a prolonged ride time while testing their limits soaring across the mountains with the Pacific Ocean backdrop. Diamante’s animal sanctuary is regarded as a model site. The owners worked with a team of professionals and the government to construct multiple habitats to care for animals in need. Concern for the well-being of wildlife and environmental protection is reflected in the caliber of information and education visitors receive from bilingual guides and professional staff, eagerly sharing their love and knowledge of nature. Rembert and Correll agree that the process of transforming their vision to reality was intense and not without many difficulties along the way.
We Went for Adventure and Found Culture Too by Nina Chemtob
Needless to say, we were in chocolate heaven!
Costa Rican coffee maker: chorreador
had arrived in Costa Rica looking for adventure and opportunities to learn about the culture. What I didn’t expect was that I’d find so much to do and learn in one location. We had seen the advertisements for the ziplines and adorable rescue animals at Diamante Eco Adventure Park. Diamante was also promoting its botanical gardens and a unique cultural experience featuring some of Costa Rica’s famous export products. The range of activities offered something for everyone in the family to get excited about. Our sense of arrival at the Welcome Center was quite dramatic. We were impressed with the incredible views of the Pacific Ocean and friendly staff ready to help us plan our visit. We opted for the “adventure pass” which includes the zipline, animal sanctuary, botanical garden and cultural experience, beach activities and lunch. This was everything my family and I were looking for. Our excitement heightened when we spotted people flying overhead
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along the mile-long zipline. The guides were helpful and reassuring as they could tell the kids were nervous. While gearing us up, they explained the quality and safety features of the equipment and design of the zipline course. We immediately felt more confident. It was a thrilling trip that exceeded all my expectations. The zipline course ends in the animal sanctuary, where you cross a hanging bridge suspended over the crocodiles. We wandered through the habitats and learned a lot from the staff who take care of
the animals: monkeys, sloths, toucans, jaguars, pumas, butterflies, frogs and more. Our favorite ended up being the two-toed sloths that peeked into the audience when a guide offered a few veggies for a snack. A true highlight was our cultural learning experience in the botanical garden, which is lush with trees, flowers, and plants. It showcases a beautiful and picturesque little casita, replicating a traditional Costa Rican farmhouse, surrounded by many types of vegetation including banana, mango and cashew trees. Our cheerful guide, Alex, began our handson demonstration by directing us to the sugar cane, coffee plants and cacao trees in the garden. The casita has a fireplace, where Alex explained we would be making our own chocolate. After taking us through the steps of roasting the cacao seeds, peeling them and grinding them
Photos courtesty of Diamante Eco Adventure Park
into cacao dust, he coached us through the process of combining the ground cacao with raw sugar and water. It was exciting to see the ingredients come together to create a chocolate mixture. Needless to say, we were in chocolate heaven! We then cut raw sugar cane and extracted the juice with a hand press, each taking a turn tasting the fresh sweetness of what is called agua dulce. Next, we explored the coffee plants and learned about the history and process of making coffee. Alex explained that the traditional way to brew coffee in Costa Rica is using a chorreador. This is a wooden stand with a special cloth sock that serves as a filter. You simply place ground coffee into the sock, pour hot water over it and let the liquid drip into a cup underneath. During a short tour of the gardens outside the house, Alex pointed out the medicinal plant garden and a traditional Costa Rican oxcart. He explained that these brightly painted oxcarts were used in the 1850s to transport goods from Costa Rica’s capital, San José, to the ports for export. We sipped our coffee and headed back to the Welcome Center, waving goodbye to Alex and thanking him for being such a great host. Everyone in the family agreed that Diamante was a highlight of our vacation.
Diamante Eco Adventure Park
BEING GREEN MATTERS Guanacaste's leading adventure park sees CST certification as a key component of its environmental mission.
by Howler Staff
he gorgeous jaguar, Nico, was awake and walking along an upper branch in his habitat when he spotted a small, green lizard cluelessly walking toward him on the same limb. Nico froze and ducked his head in a hunting pose, and I thought, we’re going to see a live kill right here, right now, at Diamante Eco Adventure Park.
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by the Certification for Sustainable Tourism (CST). This program, launched by the Costa Rican Tourism Board, evaluates businesses for their environmental, social and cultural sustainability practices, awarding up to five leaves for those that meet 95% of its exhaustive criteria.
But the little lizard kept sauntering boldly forward until it was invading the big cat’s space, at which point the jaguar jumped out of its way in fright, like a spooked little kitten.
“It required us to complete an intensive self-audit,” said co-owner Jim Correll. “It's one thing to use the word 'eco', it's another thing to practice it daily. The CST process helped us fine-tune our daily ecorelated operations.”
A jaguar scared of a lizard was one of the more unlikely surprises we found at Diamante, a world-class adventure park with a great animal sanctuary at Playa Matapalo, south of Playas del Coco. Diamante has a major ziplining operation, including a dual, ocean-view Superman cable that is almost a mile long. Diamante also offers ATV rentals, horseback riding, ocean activities and the amazing animal park, built in a partnership with La Paz Waterfall Gardens. Planting a tree at Diamante.
Diamante team having a great time with the kids from Liberia's Center for Special Learning .
We came here on a somewhat unusual mission: to learn about Diamante’s efforts to be recognized
Alexandra Guzmán, Diamante’s marketing assistant, explained the requirements in some detail. The CST certifies hotels, restaurants and other enterprises, but it has a category for adventure parks with four major issues that must be addressed. The first is the physical and biological environment. “This is the environment you create within your company,” she said. “It’s basically how the business is done and run, so it looks like you have a solid company. It looks like
have your statements, that you have a culture within your business, you have your values.” I noted that none of this has anything do with the environment. “Sustainable tourism is not only about the environment,” she said. “It’s about being able to have a business that you grow, and as you grow it, you’re helping the community as well. “It has to do with business, it has to do with the environment, it has to do with culture, it has to do with who you hire, the opportunities you create. It looks for reducing the negative impact that you might have.” The second major category is operations. “That’s how your operation is run,” Alexandra said. “Whether you have policies in place about how you should treat your customer, what your conduct is going to be like, how are you going to educate the customer in what you’re doing here, and how you’re trying to help the environment, help the community and help the culture.” Alexandra said this category is also focused on the environment, on what you do to reduce, reuse and recycle.
“Our single-use items are almost nil,” she said. “All of our buffet is done with reusable plates, cloth napkins, no plastic glasses.” (There are no plastic straws either, Jim noted.) “We have trash cans in every station all around the park, divided between organic, trash, cans, glass and plastic,” Alexandra said. “We have the treatment plant as well, so all the bathroom waters are treated and then they’re used for gardening.” The third category is about the customer: “They want the guests that come in to take something out of it, to have a real Costa Rican experience and have it all very balanced,” Alexandra said. “It’s all about what are you doing to educate your client, how are you giving them something to take away, and how are you also insuring that they know the laws of Costa Rica,” she said. “And it’s also about how are you getting them involved in maintaining a greener planet.” The fourth category is socioeconomic: “What are you doing to help the communities around you?”
For example, Diamante has over 90 employees, of whom almost all are locals, and Diamante does not lay them off in the low season when business is slow. “It’s a great thing to create jobs,” said Jim, originally from San Diego. "Providing yearround employment and opportunity for the local community has been an extremely rewarding aspect of building Diamante.” Alexandra said that Diamante also organizes beach and town cleanups, holds community events like Guanacaste Day, and sponsors low-resource schools to come visit. There’s one group of kids from the Center for Special Learning in Liberia that comes every year to do the ziplining and see the animals. Alexandra said it's very rewarding to see these kids having so much fun. Alexandra went on to outline the CST’s extensive verification process, which requires the business not only to comply with a vast checklist of best practices but to prove they’re complying — and to do so year after year. I asked Jim why Diamante is going to so much trouble to get a certificate with some leaves to hang on the wall.
“The CST is an important recognition for everybody in the business,” he said. “But we did it before we knew what the CST was. "Our early mission, because we had an oceanfront property, was to have minimal impact on the land, and create a special product for people to experience the best of Costa Rica. At the heart of that, we wanted to be very environmentally aware.” Jim said when you see those leaves on the wall, “you know the company has earned it.” He said it’s not like you fill out an online application and they mail you the certification. “We wanted to have that validation. We knew going into the process, it would be a big effort for our team. I am very proud of everybody. They all have worked very hard, putting in extra hours to make this happen,” he said.“ I look at it as an important selfauditing process to hold the company accountable.”
People Make the Difference Diamante Eco-Adventure Park
by Howler Staff
“An employee’s passion and happiness will translate across all language and cultural barriers.”
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osta Rica and adventure: this connection is immediate, real and known to travelers around the world. With its incredible climate, mountains, oceans, and rainforests, Costa Rica is a world-class setting for those offering up sought-after adventure activities. But what makes the country a world-renowned destination and one of the happiest places on earth is its people.
effort in the beginning to align the right person with the right position. We believe anyone with a great attitude can be matched with a job that will allow them to excel. An employee’s passion and happiness will translate across all language and cultural barriers.”
Diamante Eco Adventure Park is well known for Costa Rica’s longest zipline with an ocean view, as well as a first-class animal sanctuary and wildlife education center. The park receives rave reviews from adventure seekers of all ages, including families with small kids. Reviewers frequently describe the thrill of the ziplines, the beauty of the animals and the handson experience making chocolate in the cultural learning center.
“I was one of the first employees at Diamante,” Smania says. “We all had many jobs to do and I was in charge of finding and training 20 zipline guides. I had a few simple requirements — a great attitude, love of people and the outdoors and basic English.”
These reviews often stand out for another reason: they feature high praises to the Diamante employees for making their park experience memorable. “The sheer volume of reviews and times employees are thanked by name or by activity tells you that Diamante has a special group of employees,” says Jesus Gonzalez, General Manager. “We make every
Luciana Smania, Director of Activities, agrees.
The hiring process turned out to be less straightforward than expected, Smania recalls. “Staff were screening candidates by phone and we brought in those who we thought sounded the best. I soon realized that we had one guy who spoke no English and was not even on the list. I went to tell him that he would need to leave, but instead found myself trying to find a way to keep him because his energy, attitude, and desire were contagious.”
Photos courtesy of Diamante Eco Adventure Park
Smania seems to have made a good call in retaining that employee. Danny, nicknamed “Hancock,” is not only still at Diamante but speaks English and has become a leader on the zipline team. Smania also speaks highly of Diamante’s zipline supervisor, Aristides Crilio. “He was in the first group I ever hired. He has worked his way into this leadership position with his attention to detail and respect among his peers for his hard work and great attitude.” Biologist Valerie Valdelomar leads the animal sanctuary team at Diamante. “I am proud to see the sanctuary staff thanked so frequently for sharing their passion and knowledge of the animals that they care for,” Valdelomar says. “We see Juan Jose [Juanjo] mentioned frequently. Juanjo has been taking care of our jaguars, Nico and Sama, for years. He is consistently popular with guests who know him by name.” Valdelomar says one of her guides, Bryan, was so popular with guests that she ended up having to promote him. “He was promoted to a new role within the park. I am always happy to see my staff improve, learn and grow within the company.” Alejandro Guerrero leads the maintenance team at Diamante and was on the team that built the ziplines, Smania notes. “Alejandro was instrumental in creating a safety device used at the park. The owners were so impressed that they created the “Ali” award. This is given to any employee who shows initiative in creating solutions the park adopts.”
Alejandro also got special praise in a park review for an unusual reason, recalls Gonzalez. “We had a guest arrive at the park with a flat tire, and was really stressed. That was until Alejandro calmly told the visitor, ‘just go enjoy the park … I'll take care of it.’ After finishing his tour, the guest was thrilled to see his car in perfect condition. He could not believe the staff cared so much.” So much of its guest feedback affirms that Diamante truly is a place where you feel comfortable and cared for from the time you arrive until you leave. This is all because of the caring people at Diamante, and Diamante cares for its people by keeping local staff employed year-round, regardless if it is high or low season. Some lucky visitors get to meet the famous Jorge “Gato” as everyone calls him. Gato started as one of the park’s first drivers and is now the transportation supervisor. “There is no one better at welcoming you to Diamante than Gato,” Smania and Gonzalez agree. “His smile and energy radiate and you just know you're going to have a great day!” Gonzalez encourages all park visitors to engage with their hosts. “Feel free to ask questions and interact with the staff. They love their jobs and sharing everything you are interested in knowing. You may soon find your own favorite employee connection at Diamante.”
