An epic stunt by the Ecuador tourist board saw it fool a group of 40 visitors into thinking they had flown to Costa Rica to enjoy the delights of its famous port town Golfito . But in fact , the group of tourists were exploring the activities on offer in the country 's Napo Province , in the Amazon rainforest . The publicity stunt saw the tourists enjoy white water rafting , swimming near waterfalls and hiking , but it seems that Costa Rica was not amused by the ruse . The creative prank was executed by the Ecuadorean airline Tame , Ecuador 's Tourism Ministry and Ministry of Transport and Public Works . The unusual video sparked a diplomatic incident , with the Costa Rican government and Ambassador to Ecuador complaining to the authorities and resulting in Ecuador issuing an apology . The creative project was executed by the Ecuadorean airline Tame , Ecuador 's Tourism Ministry and Ministry of Transport and Public Works . But the stunt sparked outrage from the Costa Rican Tourism Institute , the presidential palace and the Foreign Ministry . As Ecuador residents arrived , not in Costa Rica but another Ecuador airport , Tena , where they were given fake stamps in their passports as they went through a staged passport control . No attention to detail was spared as huge posters were placed over the welcome billboards at the airport . Adverts depicting Imperial beer and 'Esencial Costa Rica , ' Costa Rica 's national brand , were displayed in the airport to throw the group off the scent . Even fictitious immigration documents and car licence plates were created to make the group think they were in Golfito , a port town in Costa Rica . On top of all that organisers used mobile phone and GPS blockers to keep passengers from using technology to discover the hoax . The Tame airline staged the prank in a bid to demonstrate that Ecuador should be considered a top tourist destination . A fake passport control was set up , which even gave out fake stamps for passports . The unsuspecting tourists took part in a number of exciting activities , from white water rafting to hiking . The prank was captured by video but following complaints , the tourism organisers in Ecuador took the video down . 'We 're unhappy about their use of our country to trick their people into getting to know their own country , ' Costa Rican tourism minister Wilhelm von Breymann told The Tico Times . The trip aimed to show citizens that Ecuador can be a great tourist destination , featuring many incredible site like the breathtaking volcanic crater lake , Quilotoa . The prank was captured by video but following complaints , the tourism organisers in Ecuador took the video down . In a note posted on the foreign ministry 's website , the government stated : ' The Costa Rican government expressed its discomfort at the use of its image in publicity about Ecuadorean tourism . 'The Ambassador Alejandro Solado spoke with the highest Ecuadorian authorities about the display in the publicity video and the South American country will take the post down from the Internet . ' The Ecuadorain Ambassador Ricardo Patino then followed up with an apology to Costa Rica and confirmed Ecuador had sent a letter to the government to settle the matter . Although they were previously considering legal action , they have since accepted the apology , La Nación reported . Costa Rican outlet La Nación uploaded it on YouTube where it has been viewed by 60,000 people . At the end of the trip , the organiser tore down an 'Esencial Costa Rica ' banner that had been posted at the airport to throw the group off the scent . This revealed the Ecuadorean tourism slogan : 'love life ' Tame , the largest airline of Ecuador , was part of the big-scale prank , and helped the tourism group to fool the visitors .
The stunt was pulled by local tourism groups and an Ecuador airline . Fake signs , passport control , posters and adverts were created in the ruse . It sparked outrage from Costa Rican officials prompting a formal apology . The video was taken down , but was reuploaded by Tourism Ministry .