Feature: Chinese tourists enjoy "extreme" Spring Festival in Costa Rica

by Xinhua Writers Dang Qi, Wang Pei

SAN JOSE, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- Costa Rica is becoming ever more popular among Chinese tourists and offers an alternative way for Spring Festival holidays that mark the start of the lunar new year.

Zip lining, Tarzan swinging, waterfall rappelling, and free-fall jumping on the canopy tree tops in Costa Rica's tropical forests are part of the extreme sports experiences for tourists. Such attractions especially appeal to young Chinese tourists.

"Costa Rica is a small country, but it has fantastic tropical forests and is world-renowned for its volcanoes as well as hot springs," said Chinese tourist Fu Xuan.

"Coming to Costa Rica has been a fantastic experience especially during the spring break. We took our children and the entire family here during our Chinese New Year holiday. It's a great experience," Fu added.

Costa Rica is one of the most exotic and appreciated tourist destinations in the world. The country is recognized for its nature conservation efforts and for giving tourists a marvelous adventurous experience in its forests.

"I have visited various places ... but I have never seen the species (of animals), volcanoes and waterfalls like those here. It is very different from the other regions of the world," said Chinese tourist Xi Xiaojie.

In 2014, a total of 7,395 Chinese tourists visited Costa Rica. The number surged by 29 percent to 9,552 in 2015, according to the Costa Rican Tourism Institute.

During the first years of formal relations between the two countries, the majority of Chinese people who travelled to Costa Rica were government employees and exchange students, but this has changed in recent years, Isabel Yung, managing director of Orientul travel agency in Costa Rica, told Xinhua.

Now many Chinese visitors come with their family and in general they leave very satisfied with their experience in Costa Rica, according to Yung.

Costa Rica is a destination that offers multiple possibilities for tourists. For example, tourists can swiftly shift between beaches, mountains and tropical rain forests. This offers a wide range of experiences.

Efforts are now being made to attract more young tourists, as they are interested in extreme sports the country is being able to offer, according to Yung.

"Chinese going to Costa Rica are usually experienced tourists that have already travelled to other parts of the world like the United States and Europe. However, they want to get to know this destination because it is famous all over the world for its conservation efforts," added Yung.