Costa Rica Wildlife Explorer Holiday

Arrive San Jose

On arrival in San Jose you will be met by our local representatives and transferred to your stylish hotel for your overnight stay, where you can relax, recuperate from your flight and look forward to your imminent adventures.

Overnight: Grano de Oro

San Jose - Tortuguero NP

After your early departure from San Jose, driving through the spectacular Braulio Carrillo National Park, you’ll stop in Rio Danta for a delicious typical breakfast. The bus ride continues through banana plantations to the pier. A two-hour boat ride through the canals will take you to Mawamba Lodge, just in time for lunch. In the afternoon, you’ll enjoy a guided visit of Tortuguero village to learn about the history of this little town and way of living of local residences. Return to the lodge via a walking trail by the famous beach. The rest of the day will be spent at your own leisure, perhaps relaxing in a hammock at the lodge.

Overnight: Mawamba Lodge (B, D)

Tortuguero National Park

Tortuguero’s surrounding network of rainforest and canals are also home to manatees, crocodiles, tapirs, jaguars, monkeys and sloths – a true tropical wildlife haven.  Before breakfast, you’ll enjoy a morning boat tour in Tortuguero canals. After a full breakfast, you’ll explore the Mawamba Park. This guided visit includes the butterfly farm, the frog farm and the iguana farm. After lunch you’ll explore another of Tortuguero’s rainforest canals by canoe, in search of wildlife. The rest of the afternoon and evening may be spent taking an optional night tour (from July to September) to observe the turtle nesting.

Overnight: Mawamba Lodge (B, L, D)

Tortuguero NP - San Gerado de Dota

This morning you will transfer by boat to Tortuguero Airstrip to catch your internal flight back to San Jose and onward to your next picturesque spot in Costa Rica. San Gerardo de Dota is set on the western slopes of the Cerro de La Muerte and is most famous for being the primary habitat for the national emblem of Costa Rica and one of the most arresting birds in the world – the resplendent quetzal – seen most commonly between April and May. The crisp mountain air and unspoilt cloud forest at 2,100 metres above sea level contrast refreshingly to the other coastal areas of the itinerary. Approaching your lodge wonderful views of the Cartago Province and Valley appear before your eyes.

Overnight: Trogon Lodge (B)

San Gerardo de Dota

San Gerardo de Dota is perfect for nature and bird lovers alike, where you can spot peccaries, tanagers, woodpeckers and hummingbirds. Your lodge is a tranquil and charming base for getting out into the countryside and spotting the majestic quetzal. With the Savegre River running through the grounds and a rainbow trout farm onsite it is a truly natural setting. The lodge has many optional activities for its residents to enjoy, such as bird watching and horse riding. The lodge also arranges its own canopy tour where you can get a birds eye perspective of the green landscape while zipping the lines (note that these tours are optional, therefore not included).

Overnight: Trogon Lodge (B)

San Gerardo de Dota - Manuel Antonio National Park

After breakfast, you will begin the next exciting base of your itinerary and be transferred to Manuel Antonio on the Pacific coast. Check in and settle into your charming new rainforest resort, dramatically blending beach and nature and set within walking distance of the park, and enjoy the rest of the day at leisure.

Overnight: Arenas del Mar (B)

Manuel Antonio National Park

Spend the next two days exploring the region in and around Manuel Antonio National Park, which covers 1,700 acres of land and 135,906 acres of marine reserve. This is the only national park in Costa Rica where it is possible to see all four endemic species of primate, and is a great place to spot sloths in the wild, both inside and outside the perimeters of the park itself, as well as appreciating the pristine beaches and coastline. Some of the optional tours available locally include whale watching, horse riding and guided early bird watching.

Overnight: Arenas del Mar (B)

Manuel Antonio National Park - San Jose

Today, after breakfast, you will be driven back to San Jose, a journey of approximately 3 hours 30 minutes, where you will be transferred to Grano de Oro, situated on a shady street just off the city’s main avenue Paseo Colon.

Overnight: Grano de Oro (B)

Depart San Jose

After a leisurely morning and breakfast, reflecting on your varied experiences in Costa Rica, you will be met at your hotel and transferred to the airport for your flight back home.