<p>S2 is going for a week on a school trip. I’m wondering if any of you have specific clothing advice. He’s supposed to have lightweight, quick-drying pants, “wicking” socks, etc. </p>
<p>I’m not sure whether I should get him hiking boots at this point. Would he be able to break them in on time?</p>
<p>Any recommendations for hats, bug spray? Should I get those head-covering nets?</p>
<p>Ex Officio makes some lightweight wicking shirts including some that that are impregnated with long lasting insect repellant.</p>
<p>Most lightweight trekking clothing is quick-drying, so one or two shirts with daily rinse/wash would suffice.</p>
<p>Modern lightweight (non-leather) hiking boots require very little breaking in.</p>
<p>See the CDC site for Costa Rica travel: [Health</a> Information for Travelers to Costa Rica - Travelers’ Health - CDC](<a href=“http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/costa-rica.htm]Health”>Costa Rica - Traveler view | Travelers' Health | CDC)</p>
<p>Note the recommendation for 15-30% DEET. DEET lotion in higher concentration may be less toxic than spray.</p>
<p>It varies wildly by where you are. Do you know what region he’s going to? Is he going all around?</p>
<p>I spent two months there in pretty much every climate. It ranged from down by the coast where it was well over 100 degrees every day to the rain forest where it was hot, humid, and NOTHING dries to the cloud forest where nothing dries but it’s borderline “cold” to the valleys where it’s mid 70s and dry.</p>
<p>Hiking boots are a must no matter where you’re going.</p>
<p>I reread the OP. OP, fwiw, what I and another girl did (that worked out quite well) was went and bought some super cheap (<$5 a piece) shirts and just threw them away at the end of a period of time rather than bothering washing them and such. Since he’s going for only a week, he could easily buy a few and just throw them out when they get too bad. Nothing dries if you’re in a humid region and it’s easier that way.</p>
<p>Oh, fun! One of my kids went with his high school for a week. He got two immunizations before leaving. I think they were recommended on the CDC site. One is a two-shot deal, where you get the second shot when you return. We went to Cabelas and found pants and socks. I also found some of those envelopes, that come in shoe boxes, with the powder that helps dry things out. He also brought hiking boots and Tevas. All the kids brought binoculars. We ended up throwing out most of his socks when he returned, as they were never going to be white again.</p>
<p>My son went to Costa Rica on a student exchange trip last summer. He just brought shorts, tee’s, sneakers, and a bathing suit. I do think that lighter weight shorts are preferable as opposed to jean shorts, for example. My son mostly wears those basketball-type mesh/silky shorts. </p>
<p>Most important though is to remind him to wear sunscreen always. I found out my son was sunburned through photos he posted on Facebook. The sun is extremely strong. My son chose not to have the malaria vaccination, since he was not planning to spend time in areas of the country that had a high level of the disease. But, bug repellent is very important, too.</p>
<p>Agree completely with the poster who said “totally depends on where”. H & I went last year and were in 3 different locations in-country with 3 different eco-zones AND three very different clothing requirements.</p>
<p>The cloud forest area, Monteverde, was chilly and overcast (but awesome and maybe our favorite). Required wearing about 3 layers with the heaviest being a light rain jacket).
We went in late March.</p>
<p>The second area, Arenal where the volcano is, was a bit warmer but much windier and oddly, rained more than the cloud forest area. Might just have been the timing.</p>
<p>The last place we visited, the southern coast on the Pacific, was totally warm and sunny beach weather. Shorts and t-shirts with maybe a longer sleeve for evening. MUCH warmer than the two previous places. This was all within the same week or so!</p>
<p>So definitely I’d suggest doing a little more climate-specific research for the areas he will be visiting. We totally loved the country, food, and the people. It was a fabulous place to explore. It was terrific to see so many of the people there completely focused on protecting their amazing environment.</p>
<p>PS I don’t think hiking boots are necessary. A good pair of trail runners would be perfect and won’t need the breaking in time. I wouldn’t worry about a bug net (unless he’s going somewhere deep in the jungle and they recommend it). But an effective insect repellant, yes, definitely. The wicking socks are a worthwhile investment as are the quick dry pants/shirts. Also recommend a travel pair of binoculars…the wildlife viewing is awesome and we used ours ALL the time.</p>
<p>^ On that same note- if you’re in a part of the country where they want bug nets, they’ll have bug nets there already. Absolutely no need for any kind of head nets.</p>
<p>Truly, the bugs there aren’t THAT bad. I say this as someone who had a HORRIBLE- absolutely terrible (it looked like I had a terrible case of the chicken pox) reaction to the biting ants down there. However, no matter where we went, no one else in our group got really bad bites. </p>
<p>Send him down with the stuff that makes bug bites itch less (why am I completely blanking on this word?). It is super expensive down there.</p>
<p>Also, when I went to the doctor to get my shots, they only recommended the typical booster shots. Malaria there is extremely rare.</p>
<p>My son went for 10 days to a town on the coast. There was a lot of salt in the air and combined with the humidity caused some of his metal items to rust! I recall that the hinges on his camera case rusted and also a few other items. </p>
<p>Camping stores have quick dry clothing. My son did bring a few of these items.</p>
<p>Thank you, everyone, for the great advice! I will look tomorrow at the itinerary and post more details. Too tired to do it tonight.</p>