by Lauren Coffelt

TCM Travel Tips from the Tropics

A Guide to Staying Well in Central America

My wife Esther and I recently traveled from Portland to Costa Rica to meet up with her dad and his wife for a tropical getaway. As someone who works in the world of Traditional Chinese Medicine and travels with a suitcase full of herbs, I wanted to share what I packed, what I learned, and what I’d recommend to anyone planning a similar trip, or advising patients who are traveling, along with a few fun highlights in case you’re also planning to visit Costa Rica.

Prepping for the Trip: Stomach Sensitivities & Plane Plagues 

Traveling with a sensitive stomach, and knowing both my wife and I tend to catch something on planes, I knew we had to go in prepared. I consulted with practitioner colleagues, double-checked my travel kit, and packed a few formulas to cover all the bases. 

In my TCM travel kit: 

• Curing Pills - For food stagnation and stomach upset.
• Yin Chiao/Yin Qiao - For early signs of Wind-Heat. 
• Ban Lan Gen Tablets - Immune support and sore throat relief. 
• Huo Xiang Zheng Qi Teapills - For digestive issues.  
• Coptis Teapills - To clear Heat and inflammation in stomach and skin. 
• Lian Qiao Bai Du Wan - For clearing Heat and toxicity. 
• Xiao Yao San - For stress, emotional upheaval, and Liver Qi stagnation on the go. 

Travel Day: Plane Food, Pills, and Puffy Faces 

The flight meal was… an experience. A defrosted burger with a mysterious sauce. My wife and I took Curing Pills before and after eating it and had no issues at all. Judging by the bathroom line, I don’t think our fellow passengers were as lucky. 

Once we landed in Liberia, Costa Rica, we picked up a rental car and drove two hours in the dark through lightning storms to reach our rental in Sámara. The roads weren’t as rough as we’d been warned, which was a nice surprise. It was just the last half-mile of bumpy off-roading (which we later realized made our 4-wheel drive a very good idea, since many roads were not fully paved). 

By the time we got to our rental, my face felt a little swollen and puffy, maybe lymphatic stagnation or general travel inflammation. It cleared up the next morning with some rest, hydration, and a dose of Free & Easy Wanderer to soothe my Liver Qi after a long and slightly stressful travel day.

Sámara: Bugs, Heat & Beauty 

The next day was hot, 94°F with 100% humidity at times. That seemed to be the daily norm, with scattered showers and brief lightning storms throughout our stay. We frequented the beach, explored the town, and soaked in the magic of the place. But oh, the bugs.

I had a natural bug spray with geranium, but it didn’t stand a chance. Everyone else had a few bites, and I had fifteen plus by nightfall. They were incredibly itchy, and I don’t usually react so strongly, so I added Lian Qiao Bai Du Wan and Yin Chiao to the rotation to manage skin inflammation. A coworker (thank you Janet!) also recommended applying lime juice to the bites, which surprisingly helped a lot.

Despite the bites, it was beautiful. The beaches were lined with palms and rocks that created tide pools, and the water felt like bathwater. I’d never been in ocean water that warm, especially on the Pacific side, but being so close to the equator made perfect sense. 

Sámara had so much to offer: lush plants, howler monkeys, reef fish, and a whole new list of birds I added to my life list. I’m an avid birder, and this was a major reason I’d been so excited for Costa Rica. That said, no one else in the group was as into the birds, so I ended up staying out in the sun longer than planned and got sunburned. Thankfully, I had aloe lotion on hand, so it didn’t feel too bad, though I definitely looked like a tomato. 

We ate a lot of traditional casado plates, beans, rice, plantains, salad, and meat. Everything was delicious, super fresh, and felt very clean to my digestion. Bonus tip: if you have any leftover meat, save it for the very polite street dogs. 

The Macaw Recovery Network 

While in Sámara, we also made the trek to the Macaw Recovery Network, a conservation NGO dedicated to protecting and restoring populations of Scarlet and Great Green Macaws in the Neotropics. We drove a very wild off-road route for about 45 minutes to reach Punta Islita. 

They gave a wonderful talk on their efforts to preserve the macaws: Scarlet on the Pacific side and Great Green on the Caribbean side. I highly recommend visiting and supporting them if you’re in the area. 

Now back to the TCM part: the bugs were brutal in this area. I picked up another ten plus bites and was back on Lian Qiao Bai Du Wan, Yin Chiao, and lime juice to manage it all. 

The Cloud Forest in Monteverde 

After our stay in Sámara, we drove three hours up a very steep, pothole-covered mountain to reach Monteverde, where we spent a few days in the cloud forest at a lovely eco-hotel called Hotel Belmar. It’s a family-owned, sustainability-focused retreat that hosts resident artists and journalists, and offers a wide range of eco-tourism experiences and guided tours through the cloud forest. 

We went on a birdwatching tour with a kind, incredibly knowledgeable guide named Walter, who clearly loved his country and its wildlife. Hearing about local conservation efforts firsthand was inspiring. During the tour, we even had breakfast 60 feet up in a tree, surrounded by hummingbirds and incredible views. I took Curing Pills in advance (just in case) and was happy to feel great throughout. Good thing, too, as I couldn’t exactly climb down halfway through the meal.

Walter also taught us about the native plants growing on the hotel’s farm and in the forest. Many of the trees are in the avocado family. The fruit isn’t edible for humans, but birds and animals love it. We also passed a mushroom cultivation area where they were growing Crown-Tipped Coral Mushroom (Artomyces pyxidatus), which our guide mentioned is valued for its immune-supportive and antioxidant properties. While it’s not used in TCM, its actions could be compared to those of mushrooms like Reishi or Fu Ling in terms of supporting immunity and clearing dampness or heat. 

We also encountered a striking plant with vivid green, black-speckled leaves that our guide identified as a member of the Solanaceae family, the same family as tomatoes and peppers. Locally, it’s used for digestive issues and mild inflammatory conditions.  

If you go to this area, I highly recommend taking a guided nature tour. There’s no substitute for hearing these stories from someone passionate and knowledgeable. I learned so much more than I ever could from books alone. 

Monteverde Coffee & TCM 

We also visited a family-owned coffee shop that grows its beans just down the road. As Portlanders, we’re serious about our coffee, and I have to say, this might have been better. It was light, fruity, and smooth, without the intense caffeine punch I usually get back home. 

Wifredey, the son of the farm owner and now the CEO and barista-extraordinaire, gave us a demonstration of how to make the perfect iced pour-over. If you find yourself in Monteverde, check out Montanoa Coffee Shop or their farm for a tour of their coffee grove. 

Wrapping Up the Trip 

Before the flight home, we took Ban Lan Gen and Yin Chiao for extra immune support, since we hadn’t packed Yu Ping Feng San (Jade Windscreen) this time. After a week of heat, hikes, new foods, bug bites, and long travel days, I expected us to feel a little worn down, but we both made it back feeling great, no post-travel colds, no lingering bugs, just a deep appreciation for having the right formulas at the right time in such a beautiful and diverse country. We packed a lot of formulas we didn’t end up needing, but I’d always rather have them on hand than wish we did. 

Final Takeaways 

Whether you’re heading out on your own adventure or advising patients, here’s my quick list of herbal travel recommendations for tropical climates: 

• Curing Pills - For food stagnation and stomach upset. 
• Yin Chiao - For early signs of Wind-Heat. 
• Ban Lan Gen - Immune support and sore throat relief. 
• Huo Xiang Zheng Qi Teapills - For digestive issues.  
• Coptis Teapills - To clear Heat and inflammation in stomach and skin. 
• Lian Qiao Bai Du - For clearing Heat and toxicity. 
• Xiao Yao San - For stress, emotional upheaval, and Liver Qi stagnation on the go. 

Bonus Formulas I Wish I’d Brought: 

• Yu Ping Feng San (Jade Windscreen) - For ongoing immune support. Ideally taken in the weeks before the trip as well. 
• Bi Yan Pian Tablets - For nasal irritation from unfamiliar pollens. You never know what will hit you, especially with the many microclimates you’ll encounter. 
• Bi Yan Qing Du Chong Ji - For sipping out in nature. Great for respiratory support and allergy protection. 

And beyond the herbs, be ready for heat, drink more water than you think you need, and don’t underestimate how grounding TCM can be, wherever you are in the world.