Day notes
After collecting your luggage, you will be met by your driver and travel for approximately 45 minutes to spend your first night in Costa Rica at the Hotel Bougainvillea. The Bougainvillea is nestled within a 10-acre award-winning tropical botanical garden, one of the main attractions of the hotel.
Dinner can be taken in the hotel restaurant, overlooking the garden, which offers a range of dishes including traditional Costa Rican, such as White Sea Bass with Shrimp, Ceviche or a Costa Rican "Casado".
Transfer from Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO] to Hotel Bougainvillea
Transfer
Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Hotel Bougainvillea
Check-in to Hotel Bougainvillea
Day notes
This morning, drive to La Povana's Dock which is the port where you will catch your boat to Tortuguero National Park - a three-hour trip into the backwater lagoons and creeks - to our open-front lodge - Mawamba.
Tortuguero is accessible only by small plane or boat, along the famous Tortuguero Canals. This system of rivers and man-made channels parallels the coast and cuts through beautiful primary forest. The area was turned into a national park in 1975 and is one of the areas with the greatest biological diversity of the country. The name Tortuguero relates to the Spanish word for turtle as this is the most important nesting site in the entire western half of the Caribbean for the Green Turtle. Other species of sea turtles like the Leatherback and Hawksbill also nest on the wide beaches of the park and refuge.
Afternoon activity: a boat excursion through the canals. In the early afternoon you may see wildlife foraging until the sun starts to sink. Egrets and tiger Herons move towards their nests, while White Faced Capuchin monkeys keep the party going until sunset. But as the afternoon light dims, the cacophony of the forest comes to a climax and then… quiet.
Check-out from Hotel Bougainvillea
Transfer from Hotel Bougainvillea to La Pavona Dock
Transfer
Hotel Bougainvillea
La Pavona Dock
Cruise from La Pavona Dock to Mawamba Lodge
Cruise
La Pavona Dock
Mawamba Lodge
Check-in to Mawamba Lodge
Expert tips:
Tortuguero National Park is a wilderness area with an extraordinary biological variety. Over 400 species of tree and 2,200 plants.
Diverse mammals, birds and fish live in eleven different defined habitats. Strong Caribbean currents have provided a straight 22-mile expanse of beach which is a favoured nesting ground for sea turtles like the Hawksbill and loggerheads that nest from July through October. The Leatherback, the largest sea turtle in the world, nests from February to July.
The rivers within the park are also home to Spectacled Caiman, Southern River otter, and the endangered West Indian Manatee.
Three of Costa Rica’s four species of monkey: Geoffroy’s Spider Monkey, Mantled Howler, and White-headed Capuchin.
Jaguar
Three-toed sloth
400 different species of birds have been recorded here including the endangered Green Macaw, Amazon Kingfishers, Egrets, Herons, Oropendolas, Violet Sabrewings, Toucans, Northern Jacanas, and Sunbitterns.
Day notes
In the early morning hours, you’re likely to catch wildlife seeking their energy source for the day. Howler monkeys, Northern Jacanas and even river otters will be out hunting, while caimans quietly wait for their next meal.
In the afternoon, hike up Cerro Tortuguero where you can have a birds-eye view of the majestic Caribbean lowlands. Hiking Cerro Tortuguero offers a rare glimpse of the fascinating mixed-wildlife ecosystems unique to the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. Upon arrival at the peak, enjoy the breathtaking 360-degree view of the Caribbean lowlands, vast rainforests and the complex network of rivers stretching eastward to the Atlantic Ocean.
This evening, an opportunity to enjoy the sounds of the rainforest at night, a completely different experience
from your daytime outings. With the guidance of your expert naturalist guide we will leave
Mawamba by boat around 5:30 pm to our private facility near the National Park and just 5 minutes
away. Your 2-hour guided walking tour will take you on a loop inside the rainforest to discover the
magic of the rainforest as it turns dark. The trail has been carefully built raised from the ground
and in cement, to allow your most comfortable walking experience. Return by boat to the Lodge
just in time for dinner.
Expert tips:
Cerro Tortuguero :
An intermediate-level hike. Your local guide will point out several species of Costa Rica wildlife as you hike the well-maintained trail through dense rainforest foliage. Howler, Capuchin, and Spider monkeys, Poison Dart frogs, Sloths, and several types of wild cats are among the hundreds of species residing in the park.
Day notes
This morning, fly from Tortuguero Airstrip back to San Jose. From here, you will drive out of the city to San Gerardo de Dota.
En route, you will visit Mirador Quetzals to hike the Cloud Forest to understand the flora and birdlife that exists at this altitude.
After lunch, head to the Savegre area. You will drive through the dramatic scenery of the highlands of Cerro de la Muerte before descending into the valley. This is an amazing spot for bird watching, in particular the opportunity to spot the great Quetzal. The stunning hilltops and cloud forests around Savegre Valley are also famous for being the path to a zone that produces some of the best coffee in the world.
Tucked in the pristine mountain valley of San Gerardo de Dota, beside the Savegre River, Trogon Lodge is a paradise for bird lovers and nature enthusiasts. The San Gerardo area offers fresh mountain air, outstanding cloud forests, beautiful peach, plum and apple orchards and some of the best bird-watching in Costa Rica - brilliantly-coloured tropical hummingbirds, trogons and the famous Resplendent Quetzel are amongst the 170 species of bird to be found here.
The hotel is surrounded by the majestic Talamanca Mountains and its grounds are filled with trees and flowers that draw jewelled birds. There are trout ponds with seating so that you can relax and take in the scenery, or potter around the gardens with your camera to bird and butterfly spot.
Meals in the restaurant has based on a farm-to-table concept with fresh trout from the grounds, vegetables from the hydroponic garden and local fruits.
Check-out from Mawamba Lodge
Transfer from Mawamba Lodge to Tortuguero Airport [TTQ]
Transfer
Mawamba Lodge
Tortuguero Airport [TTQ]
Scheduled Flight from Tortuguero Airport [TTQ] to Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Scheduled Flight
Tortuguero Airport [TTQ]
Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Transfer from Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO] to Trogon Lodge
Transfer
Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Trogon Lodge
Check-in to Trogon Lodge
Day notes
This morning you will head out early on our quest to see the magnificent Resplendent Quetzal. Your guide has excellent local contacts so your chances are good. Back to the hotel for breakfast.
After breakfast, take a short drive to Los Quetzales National Park and spend the morning exploring the Savegre area with your guide to see what birds, insects, mammals and reptiles can be found.
You will walk a short but well-maintained hiking trail to explore within the primary rainforest.
Lunch will be in a local restaurant back in the valley. After lunch you can either head back in the car with the guide to the lodge and relax in the gardens or walk back in your own time, following the winding road down the valley.
Day notes
Today you continue our journey south on the Pacific Ocean, leaving by car and travelling by boat to Casa Corcovado Jungle Lodge.
Tucked away in the rainforest on a 170-acre private reserve bordering Corcovado National Park and the Pacific Ocean, Casa Corcovado Jungle Lodge is an extraordinary place to stay on the Osa Peninsula – a true wildernesses. It is the closest accommodation to the National Park and getting there is an adventure. You will take a boat cruise along the coast through the largest mangrove wetlands on Central America's Pacific Coast. Keep your cameras and binos at the ready as you will be watching out for wildlife as you travel. When you get to Casa Corcovado Lodge, the boat will pull up to the beach and you get off in a “wet landing.” A tractor-pulled wagon transports both you and our luggage up the hill to the lodge, where lunch and a complimentary cocktail will be waiting. Set above the palm-fringed beach in manicured tropical gardens, Casa Corcovado was designed by the naturalist owner to be built in harmony with the landscape.
It is estimated that 2.5 percent of the planet’s biodiversity is contained here. The wealth and natural exuberance of this area is an invitation to hike into the pristine forest and find crystalline creeks and waterfalls on our way. Jungle, history, culture and beauty mix in this fabulous place.
Check-out from Trogon Lodge
Transfer from Trogon Lodge to Drake Bay Boat Ramp
Transfer
Trogon Lodge
Drake Bay Boat Ramp
Cruise from Drake Bay Boat Ramp to SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge
Cruise
Drake Bay Boat Ramp
SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge
Check-in to SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge
Day notes
Today get ready to explore Isla del Caño with a snorkelling adventure. Caño Island was once an important ceremonial site and burial ground for the pre-Colombian Indians. It's possible they abandoned the area when pirates began arriving - the first, according to legend, being Sir Francis Drake back in 1579. The island is now a National Park.
The snorkelling site is located within a marine reserve and is a good place for spotting a wide variety of fish and marine mammals, including - if you are lucky - manta rays, turtles and small white-tipped sharks. Inflatable diving vests can be adjusted to allow you to bob on the surface, fully supported, or dive down below, whichever you prefer. Accompanied by a guide, this is a great tour for beginners and experienced snorkelers alike. You usually snorkel for around an hour.
Day notes
Hike to Corcovado National Park
Corcovado is the last remaining Pacific lowland rainforest of sustainable size in Central America and has been called "the most biologically intense place on earth" by no less an authority than the National Geographic Society. Here among Costa Rica's largest trees can be found Central America's densest populations of tapir, jaguar and Scarlet Macaws. Constrained within this tropical wilderness is an immense biodiversity and this will be your chance to explore it. The cool morning hours offer a good opportunity to spot wildlife and to observe some of the incredible variety of birds that abound in the park.
Along the trail your guide will tell you some of the fascinating stories about life in the rainforest. Afterwards it’s a short distance along the coastal trail to return to Casa Corcovado where you will be served a delicious lunch at the picnic area on their secluded beach.
Drink a frosty margarita and watch the sunset. As you watch the sun melt into the sea you can reflect upon the wonders of the most intricate and intense place on earth, the rainforest of the Osa Península.
Expert tips:
Corcovado National Park encompasses the only remaining old growth wet forests on the Pacific coast of Central America. 13 major ecosystems including lowland rain forest, highland cloud forest, jolillo palm forest, and mangrove swamps, as well as coastal marine and beach habitats.
Inhabitants:
All four of the monkey species: Central American Spider Monkey, Mantled Howler Monkey, White-faced Capuchin and the highly endangered Red-backed Squirrel Monkey
All six of the feline species: Jaguar, Puma, Ocelot, Margay, Oncilla, Jagarundi
Other mammals: Baird’s Tapirs, White-lipped Peccaries
More than 400 species of birds including Harpy Eagles, 16 different hummingbirds and the largest number of Scarlet Macaws anywhere in Central America.
Day notes
Free day....Take time with your guide to explore the grounds. There is plenty to see just wandering the trails, hiking down to the shore and spending time walking the well-marked path along with beach.
You are welcome to head out on your own as well - in the early mornings, expect to see Coatimundi foraging and listen out for Toucans calling. The gardens are full of tropical plants and trees with plenty of birds and butterflies to spot. Or just relax in the garden outside your chalet and see what you can spot.
Day notes
Today you leave this Pacific Ocean paradise and take a short flight back to San Jose. You will head back to Hotel Bougainvillea for your last night. Afternoon at leisure.
Check-out from SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge
Cruise from SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge to Drake Bay Boat Ramp
Cruise
SCP Corcovado Wilderness Lodge
Drake Bay Boat Ramp
Scheduled Flight from Drake Bay Boat Ramp to Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Scheduled Flight
Drake Bay Boat Ramp
Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Transfer from Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO] to Hotel Bougainvillea
Transfer
Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Hotel Bougainvillea
Check-in to Hotel Bougainvillea
Day notes
Transfer back to the airport for your international flight home
Check-out from Hotel Bougainvillea
Transfer from Hotel Bougainvillea to Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
Transfer
Hotel Bougainvillea
Juan Santamaria International Airport [SJO]
