Hey Foxhollowmomma!

Thanks so much for your interest in our destination tool! 🙂 You’re absolutely right–you shouldn’t receive a “no results” response. If that happens, it’s likely because at least one criterion has been selected that has a value of “0” beside it. The tool is dynamic, so when you select one criterion, the tool automatically updates the number displayed beside all other criteria. Depending on the speed of your computer or device, it may take a few seconds for those numbers to update, so if you happened to select one in the interim that eventually displays a “0” number, you’ll get a “no results” response on the results page.

The best way to avoid this is to wait a few seconds before selecting each criterion. For example, if your destination parameters are “Caribbean”, “Moderately Popular”, and “Funky/Trendy/Artsy”, first select “Caribbean” and wait for a few seconds, then select “Moderately Popular” and wait for a few more seconds, and lastly select “Funky/Trendy/Artsy” (you should see the numbers change/update with each selection). This should provide you with the applicable destination recommendation(s) on the results page. Alternatively, if you were to select “Caribbean”, then “Moderately Popular”, and then “Exclusive”, you’d get a “no results” response on the results page because the criterion “Exclusive” changes from its original number of “3” to a number of “0” after the “Caribbean” and “Moderately Popular” parameters are set. This is because, while there are normally three Costa Rica destination recommendations that fall within the “Exclusive” category, there are no “Exclusive” destination recommendations that are located in the Caribbean region AND are moderately popular.

Let me know if you’d like further clarification on any of the above. If you’re still having trouble, feel free to respond on this page with the exact parameters you’re selecting and I can let you know where the exact trouble lies. The tool was designed to be dynamic to help travelers narrow down many destinations to only a few perfect choices, but in that process, it’s important to avoid selecting any criteria that have “0” displayed beside them, or else you’ll receive the “no results” response. This response indicates that there isn’t a destination recommendation that fits all of the chosen parameters, and in order to fix that and get at least one destination recommendation, you’ll need to ensure that you haven’t selected any criteria that display the number “0”.

Pura vida! 🙂

Hello Janemurray!

That’s correct! 🙂 Each of the geographical regions is distinct (they don’t overlap), so it isn’t possible for a destination to be categorized under more than one region. As soon as you select one region, such as “Caribbean” (according to your example), all other regions will switch to zeros because there are no destinations in Costa Rica that exist within the Caribbean region AND another geographical region.

If you think you may want to visit two or more geographical regions during your trip, simply use our Destination Tool more than once. For example, let’s say you know you want to visit the Caribbean coast and the Guanacaste region on the Pacific coast but you’re not sure which specific towns you should visit within those regions. The first time you use the tool, focus on the Caribbean. Select the “Caribbean” criterion, then any other criteria that suit your interests. Proceed to the results page to see where we would recommend you visit on the Caribbean side of the country. Then, return to the Destination Tool for a second time and focus on Guanacaste. Select the “Guanacaste” criterion, then any other criteria that suit your interests. Proceed to the results page to see where we would recommend you visit in Guanacaste on the Pacific side of the country. Alternatively, if you don’t yet know which geographical region(s) you want to visit, then simply don’t select one of the regions as a criterion. If you leave all of the region-based criteria blank, but continue to select other criteria that suit your interests, the results page will provide you with all suitable destination recommendations without regard for where they’re located in the country.

Pura vida! 🙂