Trey Parker developed the idea for this episode after his trip to Costa Rica with his girlfriend at the time, on advice from Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Parker hated the trip, and most of the episode parodies the experiences he had, where to an extent "everything he [Cartman] says in this about Costa Rica is just me [Trey] saying that."
When the crowd at Save the Rain Forest is chanting "start the show," various celebrities including Spike Lee and Stevie Wonder can be seen in the front row.