Rainforest Jungles

Day 1: Arrival to Costa Rica – Juan Santamaria´s International Airport

Day 2, 3 & 4: Sarapiquí

Day 5 & 6: Bajos del Toro

Day 7 & 8: Boca Tapada, San Carlos.

Day 9 & 10: Arenal Volcano area.

Overview

Sarapiqui

I’ts a real rainforest experience with vast areas to cover, primary rainforest, active and no active pasture fields, river edges, canopy bridges, thick understory, etc. Cotingas, macaws, oropendolas, guans, eagles, toucans are some of the many species to find. At La Selva Biological Station daily birds to spot are Green Ibis, Sunbittern, Jacamars, Tanagers, Orioles, Woodpeckers, Tityras, etc. Botanical gardens nearby offer great opportunities to spot a dozen or more species of hummingbirds and its adjacent forest always brings good surprises as Little Tinamou, Lattice tailed Trogon, Cinnamon Woodpecker, and much more. The Braulio Carrillo National Park is a real rainforest experience with the largest mixed flocks ever including favorites such as Sharpbills and Umbrellabirds.

Bajos del Toro

Nestled in the intermountain valleys between Poas and Platanar Volcanoes is found in the forest of peace. A private preserve with an enormous biodiversity and one of the few accessible wet forests found in the Caribbean mid elevations. Serenity, exclusiveness for those seeking out a true connection with nature. 11 species of hummingbirds are found within its forests and surroundings. Also home to the always breathtaking Resplendent Quetzal; Bosque de Paz gives you the intimacy and comfort we all have at home. The high extinct volcanoes, waterfalls, mystical cloud forests make this place enchanting beyond words. Here we will learn the principles of birds of flight, all techniques need it to capture award winning images. Dozens of trails are also part of the attraction for those with a Huxley’s best need of exploring by their own. Flowering bushes, fruit trees, streams and gardens are a magnet for bird life.

Boca Tapada – San CarloS

If there is a place that deserves a merit for conservation and restoring natural habitats is this hidden gem near Nicaragua’s rainforest. Very little known Maquenque Mixed Reserve which is a buffer zone for La Selva- San Juan Biological corridor and covers over 50 thousand hectares. This forgotten corner of Costa Rica is by far one of the most successful destinations for bird photographers. The small lodge has been established less than two decades and their achievement in establishing a sanctuary where pastures and deforestation were disappearing the existing rainforests. 

Arenal Volcano

If there ever was a Jurasic Park Arenal should be the one, tangled vines, large canopy trees, damp forest floor, roaring rivers, dozens of kilometers of forested back roads, lush primary, secondary forests are some of the many habitats yet to explore. We have never had a dull day at this fantastic piece of paradise. Bellbirds, Umbrellabirds, Antbirds, Cotingas, Eagles, Curassows, Antpittas, Tanagers, Toucans, are some of the many families of birds found without ever leaving the lodge premises. A short drive out the 400+ hectares of rainforest own by the Observatory is found the Arenal Lake, a partially human made hydro-electrical dam has an enormous diversity of avifauna in every single patch of vegetation, from semi-cultivated lands to tall natural grasses and pristine wet forest. Species such as Keel billed Motmot, White fronted Nunbird, Black Hawk Eagle, Great Antshrike, are a tiny list of the colors, shapes and sounds.