Day 1 - Arrival in San José
After the airport pick up, our minibus will carry you to San José, for an overnight stay at the Fleur de Lys Hotel, located in the heart of San José's cultural district. This hotel is an elegant Victorian house built at the turn of the century, completely restored and made into a fine hotel with individually designed and decorated rooms. Welcome dinner and overnight at the Fleur de Lys Hotel.
Day 2 - Monteverde Cloud Forest
After our early morning breakfast we'll depart for Monteverde, Costa Rica's premier cloud forest. Home of the exotic and resplendent quetzal, the cloud forest is also the habitat of many rarely seen endangered species, such as the jaguar. The forest stretches from the lush ferns and mosses that cover the ground, up to the darkest canopy formed by the tallest trees. Today's tour will include a visit to the 765-acre Santa Elena Reserve, located 5 kilometers northeast of the nearby town of Santa Elena, and has 9 kilometers of trails, with one leading to a lookout point over the Arenal Volcano. Birds common at this reserve, but rarely found at the Monteverde Reserve, include the black and yellow silky flycatcher, yellow-throated finch, black-thighed grosbeak, spangled-checked tanager, and silvery-throated jay. Mountain deer, pumas, and peccaries are also occasionally seen. This reserve is owned and maintained by the Santa Elena high school, and youth groups from all over the world help develop trails and the Visitors Center. Your entrance fee benefits environmental education efforts for local students and helps purchase more land. Overnight at Hotel Belmar or similar.
Day 3 - Monteverde's Cloud Forest Canopy Tour and Arenal Volcano
After our early morning breakfast, today's adventure will take us to the original site of the Canopy Tour. The Canopy Tour offers the adventurer the opportunity to ascend into the forest canopy and view jungle life from a perspective previously available only to a select few researchers and photographers. On this tour you traverse from tree to tree and platform to platform using pulleys on horizontal traverse cables, sailing through the treetops and over the trails far below. Expert guides will assist you in this exciting journey through the different layers of the virgin rainforest. After lunch our journey will continue to New Arenal. Here we'll encounter Arenal Lake and Costa Rica's quintessential volcano, Arenal. Its perfect cone emerges from Alajuela's gentle green hills and from time to time loud explosions can be heard, accompanied by mushroom clouds of gray, brown and orange smoke. We'll end the day at Tabacon Resort, soaking away tired muscles in the crystal clear thermal waters emanating from nearby Arenal Volcano. We'll spend the night at comfortable cabins near the base of Arenal where you can view the nightly showers of glowing lava and red hot rocks spewing from the mouth of the crater. Overnight at the Arenal Observatory Lodge or Las Cabañitas Hotel.
Day 4 - Biking toward Sarapiqui
After breakfast, we'll hike through the rainforest near the base of Arenal, stopping to observe the red-hot rocks and steam that periodically spew from the crater. We will then begin a bike trip on a paved road that winds through tropical rainforest to the base of the volcano. After a leisurely picnic lunch, you will have time to swim, relax and enjoy the beauty of nature before our journey continues through the lush lowlands of the northeastern region of Sarapiquí. Virgin tropical rainforest and rich, second-growth habitats are found in this region, which borders Braulio Carrillo National Park and the Organization for Tropical Studies' La Selva Field Station. This biological station is located on Costa Rica's northern plains, near the confluence of the Sarapiquí and Puerto Viejo Rivers. It encompasses over 1,534 hectares of primary forests, swamps and abandoned farmland. Over 500 species of birds, 100 species of mammals, thousands of insects, and 2,000 species of plants, including 800 species of trees (more than Canada and the United States together) have been identified in this biologically rich area. The forests in Sarapiquí provide refuge for such species as the tapir, jaguar, sloth, white-nosed coati and white-faced capuchin and howler monkeys. Overnight stay at Selva Verde or La Quinta de Sarapiquí Lodge.
Day 5 - Kayaking the Sarapiqui River
After our early morning breakfast, we'll take a leisurely hike through jungle trails and enjoy the forest wildlife close around us. Today's kayak trip down the free-flowing crystal clear waters of the Sarapiquí River offers the possibility of sighting parrots, jacamars, hummingbirds, motmots and other exotic lowland tropical birds. During the colonial period, the wide Sarapiquí was used as an embarkation point for boats traveling north to the Rio San Juan, which forms part of Costa Rica's border with Nicaragua, and from there to the Atlantic. Our kayaking trip on the Sarapiquí River will take place on highly stable, two-person, inflatable kayaks. Their strict engineering specifications ensure you of the best-quality inflatable kayaks produced for use in fast-flowing waters. For your added safety, you will be provided with an approved life vest and a safety helmet. Prior to beginning the river excursion, you will receive instructions from our experienced guides on how to maneuver your inflatable kayak, so even beginners can enjoy this marvelous adventure. After a leisurely lunch, we'll head toward the town of Turrialba. Overnight stay at the Turrialtico or similar. |
Day
6 - Rafting the Pacuare River
After the short transfer from Turrialba do Tres Equis, we'll
initiate our two-day Pacuare white-water rafting trip down
one of the most exotic and scenic rivers in the world. This
journey through unspoiled jungle wilderness offers an adventurous
ride filled with stunning natural beauty and exciting rapids.
Regarded as some of the finest white water in Latin America,
this wild, untamed river may be the ultimate wilderness experience
in the tropics. The Pacuare is a swiftly running and rapidly
changing river, making it one of Aventuras Naturales' most
invigorating rafting trips. Today's rafting journey will take
you down remote rapids, where you will work as a team, skillfully
running your small raft past steep canyons where cascading
waterfalls plummet hundreds of feet into the river below.
A stately jungle rises thousands of feet above the river banks,
and rare birds and animals hide in the forest cover. Day 1
of rafting is filled with excitement as you squeeze through
narrow openings between huge boulders and run long stretches
of powerful rapids. Action-packed adventure fills each moment
of the day as the river weaves and bends, providing a stimulating
ride. Your rafting adventure on the first day ends at our
private jungle oasis, the Pacuare Lodge. Upon arrival at the
Pacuare Lodge, you will find a jungle lodge nestled in the
middle of an enchanting and captivating rainforest. Here,
you are completely surrounded by nature in her purest and
most primitive state. The two-story Pacuare Lodge has comfortable,
rustic dining facilities on the first floor and lots of relaxing
hammocks in an open-air lounge on the second floor. Modern
wooden bungalows with thatched palm roofs have been carefully
designed to blend into the forest. Each bungalow hides beneath
giant trees that have stood guard over this forest for eons.
As twilight descends, Happy Hour begins, followed by a delicious
hot dinner served with wine. When you feel like calling it
a day, you'll grab a lantern and head off to your bungalow,
furnished with clean linens and private bathrooms.
Day 7 - The Pacuare River
Morning arrives with a deep stillness as you wake to the
songs of exotic tropical birds and the rushing rapids of
the Pacuare River. After a hearty breakfast, you'll experience
the excitement of the bigger and more challenging rapids
to come. At a designated point along the way, you will stop
to visit pristine waterfalls and natural waterslides. Lunch
will be served along the river. Upon our arrival at our
take out point, we'll transfer to the Suerre Hotel and Resort
in Guapiles for our overnight stay.
Day 8 - Tortuguero National Park
This morning you will be picked up for a scenic drive to
the Caribbean coast, passing through a rich mixture of tropical
forest, countless rivers and lowland banana plantations
on the way to the embarkation point. There, we'll board
a boat for a three-hour ride to our jungle adventure. Imagine
a natural environment, with fresh air, exotic birds, sloths,
monkeys, iguanas, turtles and incredibly colored butterflies,
all in one of the most unspoiled jungles existing. You will
meander through canals, rivers and lagoons of incomparable
beauty during the next two days. Tortuguero National Park
is located on Costa Rica's northern Caribbean coast, with
the larger Tortuguero region a navigable network of lakes
and channels crossing the national park. The region is the
most important western Caribbean nesting site for the green
turtle (Chelonia mydas). We'll arrive at our destination
mid-afternoon, leaving the afternoon and early evening for
you to experience the local culture and habitat at your
leisure.
Optional tours: Fishing, night tours and turtle watching
(seasonal, July-September).
Day 9 - Tortuguero Canals - San José
After a hearty breakfast, we'll take a boat through the
smaller canals in Tortuguero in order to explore plant-
and wildlife more difficult to find on the main waterways.
You will have the chance to get a closer look at the area
by hiking into the lush rainforests, accompanied by specially
trained, naturalist guides. We will start back to San José
at mid-morning, with lunch en route. Overnight at the Fleur
de Lys Hotel. Dinner on your own.
Day 10 - After breakfast, Transfer to the airport for your
flight back home.
10-DAY ITINERARY
Price per person: US$2500 (With 2 participants); US$2050
(With 3 participants); US$1895 (With 4 participants)
SINGLE SUPPLEMENT: $264.00 RESERVE ONLINE!
INCLUDES: All meals, lodging, ground transportation, bilingual
guide at all times, entrance fees to parks visited, and
use of mountain biking, kayaking and rafting equipment.
NOTE: Single occupancy at Pacuare Lodge not guaranteed.
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