Adventures with Nature

Natural History Highlights of Costa Rica

Explore four different eco-systems of Costa Rica with your naturalist guide. You’ll visit the tourist centers of Arenal Volcano and Monteverde Cloud forest, as well as the less frequented Sarapiqui area and Carara National Park. You’ll enjoy daily tours and sample the best of Costa Rica’s natural history.

2009 Departure dates: Daily with a minimum of 2 passengers

2009 prices:

• $1825 per person/sharing double room
• $600 single supplement
• $1370 for children ages 3-10 sharing with 2 adults

Itinerary:

Day 1 - San José. On arrival you’ll be met by a representative from CANATUR, who will direct your through immigration & customs, and take you outside to meet our local representative. If by chance you miss the CANATUR representative at the plane, please check in with their booth in the baggage claim area, and they will direct you outside to our driver. Transfer to hotel Grano de Oro or similar.

Day 2: San Jose-OTS La Selva-Sarapiqui. Morning pick up by your driver/guide for drive via Braulio Carrillo National Park to Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui. Arrive at La Selva Biological Station for a 2-3 hour hike inside the private reserve, led by a local naturalist from the station. Continue to the Sueno Azul Hotel for overnight. After is free to enjoy the grounds of Sueño Azul or participate in one of the optional activities the Hotel offers. (B)

Day 3: Sarapiqui to Arenal. Morning free to further explore what you may have missed the day before. Enjoy lunch en-route before you continue on to your hotel in Arenal, about a 2-hour drive. Overnight at the Arenal Observatory Lodge. From the Observatory, which is situated only 1.6 miles south of the volcano, visitors have an impressive view of this “giant which rumbles” and erupts with spectacular displays of vapor and lava. The Observatory is the only lodge situated within the Arenal Volcano National Park, which encompasses thousands of acres of pristine rainforest and teems with tropical birds and wildlife. (BL)

Day 4: Arenal.This morning enjoy a hike with your guide inside the Arenal National Park through rainforest where monkeys, toucans and parrots are frequently seen. Continue over a cold blocky lava flow from Arenal Volcano that formed in 1992 and provides panoramic vistas of the volcano, forests, mountains and Arenal Lake. In the afternoon visit the Arenal Hanging Bridges a complex of 6 hanging suspension bridges rising above the jungle canopy, and almost 2 miles of brick & concrete trails through the lush Rain Forest. The bridges provide an excellent vantage point to observe the flora and fauna from the ground level to the top of the trees. The chain link fence on either side of each bridge is about 50” high, so there is little chance of anyone slipping through. Walk the trails where you will see many varieties of heliconias, flowering ginger, hear howler monkeys, and see many varieties of butterflies, as you learn about the complexity and beauty of the Rain Forest. Overnight at Arenal Observatory Lodge (B)

Day 5: Arenal National Park-Monteverde . Free morning to explore the grounds of the Lodge or do an optional activity before being picked up and transferred to Arenal Lake for a 30 minute scenic boat transfer across a section of the lake. On the other side of the lake you will be met for an approximate 2 hour transfer to Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, one of the most diverse and richest tropical cloud forests in the New World.  It is best known as home to the Resplendent Quetzal but also protects hundreds of other birds, mammals and plant species. Overnight in Monteverde at Hotel Fonda Vela or similar—2 night stay. (B)

Day 6: In the morning visit Selvatura's Canopy zip line tour . Considered one of the longest of its kind it is located inside the actual virgin cloud forest of Monteverde The tour starts with a safety talk by the guides and getting fitted with the appropriate equipment, then the adventure begins through each of the 15 cables and 18 platforms, at the end you may choose to take the optional Tarzan Swing. Tour usually takes between 2.5 and 3 hours. In the afternoon, hike through the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve viewing the misty forest with its dense vegetation and majestic trees. Overnight Monteverde at Hotel Fonda Vela or similar.

Selvatura Canopy Walkways are available for those who do not want to do the Canopy zip line tour.  Selvatura's Treetop Walkways, a 1.9 mile (approximately 3 kilometer) trail that crosses through the cloud forest, visitors walk through eight bridges of various lengths ranging from 150 feet (50 meters) up to 510 feet (170 meters) and altitudes ranging between 36 feet (12 meters) up to 180 feet (60 meters). Each of the bridges features a five foot width and capacity of up to 80 people per bridge. The treetop walkways are suitable for people of all ages and physical condition the duration of the tour is usually between 1.5 and 2 hours. (B)

Day 7: Monteverde-Carara. After breakfast, morning departure to the Central Pacific Coast. Arrive at Club del Mar Hotel near the Carara National Park. Overnight at Club del Mar (B) )

Day 8: Free Day. Day free to enjoy the beach & facilities at Club del Mar. Additonal excursions in the Jaco/Carara area can be added on request (B)

Day 9: Carara National Park- San Jose. Enjoy a hike with your guide inside the Carara National Park, located at the geographical midpoint of the Pacific Coast. Carara has a transitional climate between the hot dry northwest and the rainy region of southwest Costa Rica and so contains flora and fauna from both regions. It is home to parrots, parakeets, toucan, trogons, three species of monkeys, and one of only three viable populations of Scarlet Macaws in Central America. Early afternoon transfer back to San Jose. Overnight at Bougainvillea or similar (B)

Day 10: Departure. Transfer to airport for return flights. (B)

B=Breakfast; L=Lunch; D=Dinner

Trip Notes:

• Latin American Escapes, Inc. offers special contract airline rates to Costa Rica, and all of Latin America, from most cities in the US.  Please ask for a quote based on your trip itinerary.
• We can arrange to transfer you to one of the Pacific Beach areas after this trip, such as Manuel Antonio/Quepos (about an hour down the coast from Club del Mar) or Tamarindo (4 hours overland from Club del Mar), and add hotel and tour arrangements as needed. You can then either fly back to San Jose, or go by overland transfer.

To confirm reservations:

A deposit of $300 per person is required to confirm reservations. In addition, the following payment procedures apply:

Payment for airline tickets is due at the time tickets are issued, but no later than time of final payment.

Last Minute Bookings: Last minute reservations (less than 30 days before departure) will be accepted, subject to availability, if payment has been received, and documents can be delivered. Any special communication costs and delivery charges will be at the client's expense.

Revision Fee: Revision fees will apply once the initial deposit has been received. Charges will vary based on itinerary, and extent of changes, with a minimum charge of $50. Changes requested after documents have been issued (generally with-in 30 days) will incur a minimum $100 change fee, plus additional services requested.

International bookings: We gladly accept bookings from passengers outside the US. However, an additional surcharge of $50 per booking is applied to cover additional shipping charges.

CANCELLATIONS & REFUNDS--At the time we receive written notification that you must cancel your trip, money will be returned less the following cancellation fees:

Trip Documents: Trip documents will be forwarded approximately 3 weeks prior to travel, and once all payments and completed application forms have been received.

Risk and Responsibility

In arranging these trips, Latin American Escapes, Inc. acts only as the agents for the owners, contractors and suppliers actually providing tour services for these trips with whom Latin American Escapes, Inc. has no legal connection or joint ownership. These local tour operators attempt to conduct these trips as described in the preceding itineraries. However, it is possible that due to transportation schedule changes, weather, delays and unforeseeable acts of God, humans or nature, itineraries may vary from what is described. Participants are responsible for extra costs due to travel delay or itinerary changes for reasons beyond our control and assume all risks, whether identified in advance or unforeseen, as described under Limitation of Liability, and Trip Member Responsibility, located in our Terms and Conditions, which all travelers agree to sign. Traveler's insurance is not included, but is offered, and is strongly recommended. CST # 2023695-40.