Costa Rica: Rainforests, Volcanoes & Wildlife

Welcome to Costa Rica! Touch down in San José and transfer to your hotel. Settle in, then sit down to a light dinner before turning in for the evening.

Please note: If you arrive after 9pm, dinner will be served in your hotel room.

Board your bus and drive through Braulio Carrillo National Park, winding through cloud forests and the peaks of the Cordillera Central mountain range en route to Tortuguero. But before you arrive, you’ll trade your coach for a boat—the only way to reach this national park is by air or water!

Cruise along the Tortuguero River, keeping your eyes peeled for caimans, common basilisks, and more jungle wildlife. Soon, you’ll dock at your eco-lodge—a cozy, quiet property in the heart of the rainforest—where you’ll check in and share lunch with your group. You’ll have the rest of the day to relax before reconvening for an included welcome dinner, served with beer or rum punch.

After, return to your room for the evening—or, if it’s nesting season, talk to your Tour Director to book an optional nighttime excursion and walk along the beach to spot green sea turtles. (Tortuguero’s home to one of the world’s largest nesting populations.)

Please note: The night beach walk is available from July to September, during nesting season. To join, book your spot directly with your Tour Director.

Spanning more than 124,000 acres of wetlands along Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast, Tortuguero National Park encompasses 11 distinct habitat types, ranging from rainforests to swamps. This morning, strike out into the wild with a naturalist guide to learn more about this thriving ecosystem.

• Begin by walking through Tortuguero’s rainforests, part of one of the largest remaining tracts in Central America, and watching for the flora and fauna your guide points out. (Sloths, macaws, tapirs—what’ll you see?)
• Board an open-top boat for a nature cruise. As you sail across placid lagoons and along tranquil canals, you might notice a mix of nocturnal and diurnal animals, all crossing paths in the early hours of the day.

Return to your lodge, where you’ll enjoy an included three-course lunch of typical Costa Rican foods. (Think: rice, beans, plantains, and more.) Then, spend a free afternoon however you’d like. To get a little closer to Tortuguero’s aquatic residents, add our optional rainforest kayaking excursion to your itinerary. Otherwise, fill a few happy hours listening to the rumble of waves crashing against the beach.

This evening, you’ll come together as a group for a traditional Costa Rican dinner, served with beer or rum punch, before calling it a night.

Today, you’ll boat out of Tortuguero National Park, meeting back up with your bus to journey to Arenal Volcano National Park. As you head west, you’ll stop in the Sarapiqui region—an important ecotourism destination replete with lush nature preserves, thriving wildlife, and flourishing farms.

Upon arrival, savor an included lunch before visiting an organic pineapple plantation and learning about sustainable and eco-friendly practices unique to the area.

• Climb aboard a tractor for a guided tour of the farm and its sprawling fields.
• Learn how the farmers grow pineapples using eco-friendly methods, like compost fertilization and crop rotation, and why they use natural herbicides to protect their harvest.
• Nibble on freshly sliced pineapple and sip fresh juice or a homemade piña colada. (You can enjoy yours virgin or with an added splash of rum.)

Afterward, transfer to your hotel in the Arenal region and head out for some dinner in your free time. Make sure you fuel up—this evening, you’ll trade your hiking boots for dancing shoes and meet with a local salsa instructor for a class at their private studio. Find out how Costa Rica’s most popular dance was introduced to the country, then learn some basic steps and spins. Hit the floor and practice your moves to some traditional salsa music before returning to your hotel for the night.

Get a brisk start to your day during a Tour Director-led hike through Arenal Volcano National Park. Established in 1991, this preserve lays claim to a pair of dormant volcanoes and shelters hundreds of different species of birds.

• Marvel at the mile-high Arenal Volcano, a near-perfect cone that rises above the Sierra de Tilaran mountain range. It hasn’t erupted since 2010—though steam still snakes skyward from its caldera.
• Try to spot sloths slowly moving through the trees, snakes coiling around tree limbs, and spiders resting in their webs as you trek along a loop trail.
• Gaze at Lake Arenal—the largest lake in Costa Rica—and watch for birds like northern jacanas, woodpeckers, and kingfishers. If you’re lucky, you might even come across a resplendent quetzal, distinguishable by its iridescent emerald plumage.

With your hike on the books, board your bus and travel to a nearby eco-tourism project for lunch and a tour.

• Dig into an included farm-to-table meal, made using fresh ingredients harvested within walking distance of the kitchen and served with beer or wine.
• Set out on a tour of the ranch’s coffee and chocolate plantations—and don’t leave without sampling both!

Looking to unwind after a busy day? Add today’s optional excursion to go for a soak in one of the Arenal region’s famous hot springs. Alternatively, take it easy at your hotel and enjoy a moment to yourself.

Please note: In Arenal Volcano National Park, you should be able to hike for about two miles over occasionally uneven terrain. Also, the volcano may be obscured by clouds and mist during the rainy season, which runs from May through November. We can’t guarantee that you’ll be able to see its peak.

Start your trip to Monteverde with a boat ride on Lake Arenal, a natural body of water that tripled in size with the construction of a dam in 1979. Ease into your day with a bit of birdwatching. After spying herons and more, return to your bus and drive to the first stop on your journey: Rancho Heliconia.

Standing just south of Lake Arenal, this farm plays a key role in Costa Rica’s fight against deforestation. Meet with a rancher to learn more about its history and efforts, then sit down with your group for a lunch prepared with ingredients harvested on-site, accompanied by a traditional dance performance.

Bid farewell to Rancho Heliconia—but before you arrive in Monteverde, detour to a nearby coffee and chocolate plantation for an energizing treat.

• Discover the differences between coffee beans and roasting techniques before sipping a freshly brewed cup of joe.
• Learn how cocoa is cultivated and transformed into the sweets you love, then end with a tasting of homemade, ready-to-eat chocolates before returning to your bus for the final leg of your drive to Monteverde.

Check into your hotel and relax for the night. Tomorrow, you’ll head out on yet another hike through Costa Rica’s legendary landscapes.

Sitting at an elevation of roughly a mile above sea level, the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve is permanently shrouded in fog—and that only adds to its majesty. With your Tour Director in the lead, hike into the jungle to observe Costa Rica’s biodiversity in full bloom.

• Learn about, and keep a lookout for, the reserve’s array of flora and fauna. Orchids and ferns dot the forest floor, while 30 types of hummingbirds—as well as three-wattled bellbirds, black-faced solitaires, and other hard-to-spot bird species—flit about overhead.
• Hear why reforestation is vital to this patch of jungle, then contribute to the conservation effort by planting a native tree.

To view the cloud forest from a different angle, add our optional sky walk to your itinerary to explore the canopy from a series of suspension bridges. If you’d rather roam at your own pace, use your free time to see more of the reserve at ground level.

Once your group’s reunited, you’ll end your day with an included dinner at a local restaurant, served with beer or rum punch.

Please note: In the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, you should be able to hike around two miles over wet, and potentially slippery, paths.

Spend your final day on tour drinking in even more Costa Rican scenery as you travel to San José. En route, you’ll stop to tour a wildlife sanctuary dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating animals harmed by human activity.

• Meet with a local guide to tour the property. Jaguars, ocelots, white-tailed deer, and other creatures call it home, and you’ll see some of them as you walk.
• Come to understand the sanctuary’s mission, discover the importance of conservation in Costa Rica, and hear the stories of its resident animals.

Finally, arrive in San José and join your group for a farewell dinner at a local restaurant—complete with live music, folkloric dancing, scenic vistas, and a glass of either beer or rum punch.

Transfer to the airport for your flight home. Prefer to keep sightseeing on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast? Extend your stay to visit Manuel Antonio National Park and marvel at just how deep this country’s biodiversity goes.