Costa Rica

DAY 01 U.S.A-COSTA RICA:

Depart U.S.A. for San Jose, Capital of Costa Rica. Upon arrival you will be met and transferred to hotel IRAZU. (4 stars)

Day 02 SAN JOSE-TORTUGUERO:

In the morning, your guide will pick up from your hotel and from San Jose you will travel via bus going through high mountain plateaus, passing by Braulio Carrillo National Park and eventually winding down to the coastal plain with its rich banana plantations. Then by boat to Mawamba or Pachira Lodge for overnight. (B, L, D)

Day 03 TORTUGUERO:

After breakfast, you will board the riverboat for a 3-hour voyage through the quiet river and canal system that connects it with Costa Rica’s rich tropical rain forest. You are likely to glimpse birds of startling beauty, including toucans and brilliantly colored parrots. Costa Rica has more than 800 species of birds, more than all of the United States and Canada combined, and your guide will help you identify them. Afternoon hike along the trail or visit the village of Tortuguero. (B, L, D.)

Day 04 TORTUGUERO-SAN JOSE-ARENAL:

You’ll waken to the sounds of howler monkeys in the forest behind the Lodge. Then, after breakfast transfer by boat to the local airport for flight to San Jose where your naturalist tour guide will be waiting for you. Then, a scenic 3-hour drive through mountains and rich agricultural lands to the Arenal area - with impressive views of the Arenal Volcano.

Your first stop is the renowned La Paz Waterfall Gardens. This unique, enchanting location boasts a comprehensive rescued wildlife preserve, which includes jungle cats, monkeys, birds, butterflies, reptiles and amphibians. Enjoy a walk along a sparkling clear mountain river on a trail that provides easy access and great views of gorgeous waterfalls framed by serene forested mountains. Enjoy an appetizing lunch at the facility’s restaurant set amid the lush beauty of their gardens. Then continue your journey through the tropical plantations and cattle ranches of the northern central lowland plains before arriving at your hotel in the Arenal region. (B,L) Hotel: Arenal Observatory Lodge or Arenal Manoa. (B)

Day 05 ARENAL VOLCANO TOUR, ORGANIC FARM LUNCH, & FORTUNA WATERFALLS

In the morning, traverse a landscape shaped by old lava flows with your naturalist guide. The Arenal Volcano erupted in 1968 devastating the village and farmlands in the western foothills at its base. After slightly more than four decades of activity which included smaller eruptions, hot rock avalanches (termed pyroclastic flows), and lava flows, Arenal Volcano today steams quietly, and heats numerous local rivers that flow near its base. These natural hot rivers have been channeled into pools to create hot springs. The volcano will likely undergo another similar active phase several hundred years from now. Rainforests are now regenerating in the areas cleared by the explosion. During your visit, you may see parrots, toucans and other forest wildlife.

La Fortuna Waterfall: After exploring the lava flows, you will tour an organic farm and educational center managed by a rural family and dedicated to preserving the traditional Costa Rican lifestyle. Here you will have a lovingly prepared typical Costa Rican lunch. Walk off your lunch with a short afternoon hike to the La Fortuna Waterfall. This beautiful 200 foot-tall waterfall receives its cool, clear waters from the pristine forested mountains of Arenal National Park. The steep trail leads you down through dense, lush rainforest with the objective of reaching a large pool at the base of the falls. (B,L)

Day 6: ARENAL HANGING BRIDGES, TRANSFER TO MONTEVERDE

Today you will visit the Arenal Hanging Bridges. This is a complex of suspended bridges and trails through a beautiful rain forest. The lush vegetation contains palms, heliconias and tall trees that you will view from ground level to above the tree tops as you meander along the trails and on the bridges. From some of the bridges there are also panoramic views of nearby Arenal Volcano. As you walk through the forest, you may encounter a variety of the forest wildlife, including toucans, motmots, trogons, poison dart frogs, howling monkeys, spider monkeys and white-faced capuchin monkeys. After your rainforest bridges walk, you will travel up into the mountains on your way to Monteverde. Your journey will bring you through small rural Costa Rican villages passing coffee and dairy farms. Monteverde is both a community and forest reserve. The world-famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve protects a mountain forest characterized by majestic trees densely covered by thick, wet and heavy “carpets” of epiphytes, including orchids and wild relatives of familiar tropical house plants – philodendrons, ferns and ficus trees.The beautiful Resplendent Quetzal spends about ½ the year here and the forest is home to hundreds of other bird and mammal species.This private reserve has been intensely studied by scientists since its founding in 1972, and is the site of important pioneering research on the effects of climate change in tropical ecosystems. Several resident biologists are renowned experts on tropical bats, plants and amphibians. The reserve staff strives to educate international as well as local students about ecology and the importance of its conservation, and the reserve serves as an example of how a protected forest can be of great value to the region’s residents.The communities outside the reserve include Monteverde, Cerro Plano, and Santa Elena. The most important farm products are organic coffee (which can be purchased in local stores) and milk for the local Monteverde Cheese Factory. The factory has been producing a variety of high-quality cheeses in Costa Rica since shortly after Quakers from the United States settled the area in 1950´s. (B)

Day 7: MONTEVERDE RESERVE, SUGAR MILL AND COFFEE TOUR
In the morning you will visit the Trapiche (‘sugar mill’) and coffee farm, that first began operation in 1948. The Monteverde Trapiche is run by a local family, and on your tour you will not only learn about the local process of making sugar, but also about the other most important agricultural products of the region. Your tour will be partly ‘hands-on,’ and your hosts may invite you to participate in the processing of the sugar cane! You will also have a short walk on the farm and see how tilapia fish are raised, and also learn about the production of coffee (and if in season, pick some). Following your walk, you will then take a ride back to the main building in a traditional farm ox cart! There you will enjoy a refreshment of sugar cane juice or lemonade, eat picadillo de arracache (a typical Costa Rican food) and make candy out of sugar cane (everyone makes their own candy!).
After lunch enjoy a guided visit to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, entrance fee included. Located in the Tilaran Mountain Range of Puntarenas Province, the Reserve is one of the premier natural history destinations in Costa Rica. Later in the afternoon the forest may be cool and misty from low cloud cover, so bring a light jacket for your walk.
The forest consists of lush, verdant vegetation containing understory palms, majestic canopy trees, arching “ropy” lianas, bizarre “strangler” fig trees and epiphytes-small plants that grow on the trees. Frequently-sighted mammals include white-faced capuchin and howler monkeys, white-nosed coatis, two-toed sloths, kinkajous, and agoutis. Of the 400 bird species found in or nearby the reserve, outstanding species you may see include the legendary crimson and iridescent-green Resplendent Quetzal (which spends about ½ the year in the area during its breeding season from February or March to July), Emerald Toucanets, Black guans, Keel-billed toucans, Blue-crowned Motmots, Orange-bellied Trogons, Three-wattled Bellbirds (approximately April to August), and hummingbirds such as Purple-throated Mountain-gems, Violet Sabrewings, and Magenta-throated Woodstars. The wonderful songs of many of these birds will accompany you as you travel. (B,L)

Day 8: DEPARTURE MONTEVERDE-SAN JOSE-USA
Transfer to San Jose or Liberia International Airport to check in 3 hours before your scheduled flight home. (B)

Optionals available to visit other areas in Costa Rica.

INCLUDED: As specified in the above itinerary, arrival, lodging, transportation within Costa Rica, meals [B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner], specified entrance fees to National Parks & Private Reserves, bilingual naturalist licensed guide services, ground operator support within Costa Rica 24/7, and taxes.