Welcome to Costa Rica - Poás Volcano
On your arrival, your private guide and driver will be waiting for you outside the terminal to take you to Poás Volcano, which has some of the world's largest geysers with an awesome crater, over 1 mile wide. The volcano is active, but completely safe for viewing. Later, admire La Paz Waterfall Gardens which features the world's largest butterfly observatory, hummingbird and orchid gardens and perfectly designed safe trails along the La Paz River with 5 large waterfalls. Then head to your hotel in San Jose.
Tortuguero National Park
Early in the morning you will depart to Tortuguero. Once you are in Tortuguero, the national park provides an excellent chance to take a close look at the wildlife. Enjoy a refreshing cocktail and a delicious lunch at the lodge in Tortuguero. In the afternoon, visit the Tortuguero village, at the north-eastern corner of the park, on a thin strip of land between the sea and the main canal where the laid-back style, the reggae roots music and the local people combines in this colorful village. At night, dinner will be served in the main restaurant of the lodge.
Lunch & Dinner
Tortuguero Canals
After your breakfast and depending on the weather conditions, enjoy a guided jungle walk to the forest or a boat tour through the Tortuguero Canals, then lunch at the lodge. In the afternoon walk along the hotels' private trails or ride a boat through secondary canals. The park is formed by a navigable network of lakes and canals with a large variety of wildlife, including monkeys, crocodiles, iguanas, sloths, turtles and more than 300 species of birds. Dinner will be served at the Lodge.
Lunch & Dinner
Guapiles and Arenal Area
After your breakfast, you will be transferred by the hotel boat transportation to La Pavona dock. There, the hotel bus will be waiting for you to go to Guapiles town to have a delicious lunch at Rio Danta Restaurant. Next you will head with your private driver to Arenal area in the northern part of the Alajuela province, close to the Nicaraguan border. This region possesses beautiful and varied scenery. Refreshed by gentle tropical rains, this land stays green and humid almost all year round. The lowlands host gushing rivers, hot springs, lagoons, remote national parks, and plentiful wildlife. At the end of the day enjoy the thermal water of Tabacón resort and your dinner at the hotel.
Lunch & Dinner
La Fortuna Waterfall and Arenal Volcano
Today your tour starts with a 2 miles hiking trip through the tropical humid forest. Pass 15 bridges from 5 to 100 meters long and up to 60 meters high: observe spectacular scenery of birds, reptiles, mammals and insects. Then your next stop is La Fortuna Waterfall with its huge swimming hole and the large rocks nearby. Then head to the volcano, hiking through the forest to get to the places where lava use to flow, plants, wildlife and Arenal Lake. Enjoy your lunch during the tour. The afternoon is free for optional activities.
Gulf of Nicoya & Monteverde Cloud Forest
In late morning, you head towards the Santa Elena & Monteverde area. Breathtaking views of the Gulf of Nicoya and the islands below will accompany you as you ascend the hill to Monteverde and Santa Elena. An upward road leads to this forest-covered site whose name, "Green Mountain", is most appropriate to introduce visitors to the wildlife sanctuary it preserves. The community, secluded on a 4594 feet-high plateau, was founded in 1951 by a group of North American Quakers. Although some of the original virgin forest was cleared for dairy farming, the founders’ environmental consciousness, with help from private organizations, led to the creation of a biological preserve that hosts one of the richest ecological systems in the country. Arriving at your hotel, you will have free time for lunch and explore the area or relax.
Later in the afternoon, you will be picked up at your hotel to enjoy a night walk experience through the cloud forest trails surrounded by thick jungle and observe sleeping birds, tarantulas, spiders, grasshoppers, crickets, lizards, frogs, sloths, porcupines, white nose coatis, olingos, kinkajous, snakes and more. You will be returning at the hotel around 7:30 pm.
Monteverde Cloud Forest
Start the day by walking on the hanging bridges of Monteverde, five bridges in total, the longest around 984 feet. The trails extend for slightly over 1.5 miles, making this tour accessible for everyone. You can stop at any point and admire the breathtaking landscapes. The cable platform is located at the highest point on the ridge, and forms the watershed between Pacific and Atlantic and provides a spectacular view of 360 degrees. Continue by flying, get your heart pounding with 1.7 miles of cables slung between towering trees, zip lining through ten zip line cables range in height from 130 feet meters to 300 feet and in length from 300 feet to 2400 feet. After that go to the coffee farm where you will have the opportunity to pick coffee beans and transport them to the grinding machine.
Then discover the sugarcane mill where you will be shown the process of making brown sugar and other types of products which are made from the sugarcane. Enjoy a presentation of the extraction of guaro, a Costa Rican alcohol which is also made of sugarcane. At the end of this tour you will be served a “picadillo de arracache”, a traditional vegetable dish and a cup of coffee or lemonade. After, the tour heads towards the central pacific coast where Manuel Antonio is located. Manuel Antonio is undoubtedly one of the most luxuriant locations in Costa Rica, with spectacular white-grey sandy beaches fringed by thickly forested green hills.
Free day in the area at your leisure.
According to your flight schedule, your private driver will take you to the airport for your flight home. Pura Vida!
