Costa Rica, a Must-Visit Place for Nature Lovers
Costa Rica
Located in the heart of this wildlife paradise in Central America,
On one side is the vast icy Pacific Ocean,
On the other side is the tropical Caribbean Sea.
Here is like a kaleidoscope of biological evolution,
It's amazing beyond the word spectacular,
Compared to a country of similar size,
It has the greatest biodiversity in the world!
Maybe you don't know much about Costa Rica,
But you must have seen the movie Jurassic Park,
This is where the film was shot on location;
The Lightning from Zootopia,
It's also home to the prototype sloth.
Why is Costa Rica so rich in species?
A great change in 10 million years ago,
Tectonic movements deep in the ocean create undersea volcanoes,
Volcanoes continue to erupt to form numerous islands,
North and South America, which were not originally connected, are eventually connected together.
Three million years ago the land bridge was formed,
The Great Biological Migration of North and South America began,
The animals meet in a bottleneck in Central America,
This has created an extremely rich biodiversity here.
Costa Rica has at least six active volcanoes,
Volcanic mountains cause regional differences in temperature and precipitation,
Forming different habitats and ecosystems on a small scale,
There are 12 different ecosystems in Costa Rica.
In order to survive in the leafy forest,
Had to evolve all kinds of amazing skills,
To find food, mate, communicate, avoid predators.
There are top predators hidden deep in the jungle,
Crawling on the tree with weird mammals,
"The most beautiful bird in the world" also lives here.
If you want to make a "must travel list",
Costa Rica can definitely squeeze into the Top 3!
Not only because of the flora and fauna here,
It's because here people live in harmony with nature.
This summer
NovalandTours has a new itinerary
Costa Rica
Itinerary Highlights
1. We have carefully designed Costa Rica’s classic wildlife observation route for you to ensure that you can observe and photograph the most local wildlife in two weeks: Two to three hundred species of birds, dozens of species of mammals, as well as colorful amphibians, reptiles and marine life.
The star species in the itinerary include: brown-throated sloth, hawk's sloth, black palm spider monkey, mane-throated monkey, white-throated capuchin monkey, red-eyed tree frog, green iguana, American crocodile, caiman, giant anaconda, Leaf-cutting ants, crimson macaws, cuckoo cuckoo and dozens of beautiful hummingbirds.
2. This trip specially arranged whale watching activities on the Pacific Coast. We will go to sea to find humpback whales. They migrate from Antarctica from July to August each year and thrive here.
3. Not only are the zoologists leading the team, but there are also nature guides who are very familiar with the local wildlife. During the trip, everyone can not only observe various wild animals, but also learn more about them.
4. The accompanying teacher will also provide professional photography guidance to help everyone enjoy watching wild animals while also being able to photograph them and leave good memories.
Tour Summary
Day 1 San Jose Arrival
Meet you at the airport, transfer to hotel for check in. Free on your own for the rest of day.
Overnight in San Jose
Day 2 San Jose - Vara Blanca
Pick up at hotel, heading to La Paz Waterfall Garden, Here are some wild animals rescued after being injured.
Costa Rica is the first country in the world to cancel all zoos. Once the animals recover, they will be released into the wild. Therefore, it has become a great place to learn about Costa Rica's animals.
There are some animals hidden in the jungle, we may not be able to find them during the trip, but here you can observe up close, such as jaguars, cougars, white-throated capuchin monkeys, black palmed spider monkeys, brown-throated trees Lazy wait.
Here you can also observe the beautiful butterflies of Central America such as Helen Morpho, Sleeve Butterfly, and the rare black owl ring butterfly, which is one of the largest butterflies in the world.
We will stop for lunch in a courtyard along the way in the park, and this is a good place to practice shooting hummingbirds. Here it is possible to photograph green top-glow hummingbirds, small purple-eared hummingbirds, purple-throated gem hummingbirds, purple knife-winged hummingbirds, and rare hummingbirds. Green-tailed hummingbirds, orange-bellied oriole, gray-crowned warbler and other birds. Then go to the hotel to rest.
Overnight in Vara Blanca
Day 3 Vara Blanca - La Fortuna de
Get up early and observe and shoot in the hotel garden. There are many birds here. The most attractive thing is the colorful thick-billed tangara on the waist, and there may also be cute Chinese and American hairy-rumped agouti. Sumer raccoon.
After breakfast, go hiking on the nearby Bogarin Natural Ecological Trail to observe and photograph the wild animals here. Here we may see two kinds of naked sparrows, golden-headed tangara, red-footed sparrows, and green sparrows. , White-headed flycatchers dancing courtship to the beat, leaf-cutting ants are carrying leaves, red-eyed tree frogs are resting on the leaves next to you, green double-crowned lizards or mans-bellied lizards are lying on the trunk, brown-throated Sloths may sleep on the canopy of your head.
There is a garden where you can have lunch. There are also many wild birds, such as beautiful yellow-throated songbirds. In addition, red-eyed tree frogs sometimes appear here during the day.
After lunch, we will head to Arenal Volcano Suspension Bridge Park, where we may encounter brown-throated sloths, spider monkeys, long-haired howler monkeys, and Chinese and American xihuan animals. In addition, there are also some beautiful birds hidden in the forest, such as brown cuihua, long-mouthed cuihua and other birds.
After dinner, we will look for owls on the way back. If we are lucky, we can see Spectacled Owl, Striped Owl, Spotted Wood Owl, Variegated Wood Owl, and Great Wood Owl.
Overnight in La Fortuna de
Day 4 La Fortuna de - Arenal Volcano - Los Chiles
In the morning, we will go to the natural ecological trails of Arenal Lake. Here, we will also have the opportunity to observe and photograph two toucans: black-billed toucans and thick-billed toucans; there is also a brown starling with a strange call. A white-throated magpie with beautiful crested feathers and huge purple-crowned pheasants.
After that, we will drive to the Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge. Along the way, we will find several suitable places to rest and photograph the green iguanas. After arriving in the Caño Negro area, we will take a boat cruise in the Rio Frio wetland. Here you may encounter birds such as American cormorants, naked-throated tiger herons, Amazonian green fish dogs, as well as caiman, green iguana, and long-haired Howler monkeys, white-throated capuchin monkeys and even Huo's sloths.
After dinner, we will have a night view near the Caño Negro area. It is possible to find birds such as Pacific horned owls. If you are lucky, encountering giant anacondas will also happen.
Overnight in Los Chiles
Day 5 Los Chiles - Tárcoles
In the morning, take a boat cruise in the Caño Negro Wildlife Sanctuary. There are a lot of herons, plovers and other waterbirds. If you are lucky, you can see all five kinds of fish dogs: green fish dog, American pygmy green fish dog, Amazon green fish dog , Brown-bellied fish dog, white-bellied fish dog. At the same time, you can see green iguanas climbing on the trees on both sides of the bank, and occasionally a few caiman swimming in the water.
In the afternoon we will head to the Pacific Coast and pass Villa Lapas along the way. Here we will have the opportunity to encounter the famous bird on the cover of the "Birds of Costa Rica" Illustrated Book: Red-billed Toucan, if we are lucky, here You can also see a particularly domineering bird of prey-the king vulture.
Overnight in Quebrada Ganado
Day 6 Tárcoles
On this day, we will head to Carara National Park, where we will hike, looking for red-billed toucans, laughing falcons, and several very beautiful flycatchers and other birds.
There are also some timid antbirds and antbirds here. If you are lucky, you may encounter two kinds of sloths, the brown-throated sloth and the Huo's sloth. In addition, there are a large number of black spiny-tailed iguanas, and some small anole lizards and poison dart frogs can be found in the jungle.
In the afternoon, observe the wild animals near the village trail of the hotel and have plenty of time for everyone to take pictures. Of course, we still have the opportunity to encounter some beautiful birds, such as Turquoise-browed Motmot, Squirrel Cuckoo and so on.
In the evening, we will arrange to look for a cute owl: Ferruginous Pygmy-owl, its size is only slightly larger than the palm of your hand, close your eyes and brain to make up for it, it is really super cute.
Overnight in Quebrada Ganado
Day 7 Quebrada Ganado - Dominical
After breakfast, head to the mangrove forest of Talcross River. This is the place where American crocodiles are most concentrated in the world. We will take a cruise ship to observe them at close range. It may appear next to our boat. In addition, there may be green iguanas and brown crown lizards here.
It is also a great spot for bird watching, black chicken buzzard, gorgeous frigate bird, orange-billed tern, brown pelican, roseate spoonbill, tricolor heron, snowy egret, mangrove hummingbird, South American gray iris, spot-tailed buzzard At least thirty kinds of birds may appear here, and these birds are very easy to observe and photograph.
In the afternoon, we will head to the next destination: Dominica Beach. Upon arrival, we will explore freely. There are some special birds here: purple-crowned pheasant, great pheasant, etc., as well as cute variegated squirrels and red tails Squirrel, of course you can also enjoy the hotel swimming pool.
In the evening, we will watch the river near the hotel, looking for some amphibians, such as the largest toad in the world: the giant sea toad.
Overnight in Dominical
Day 8 Dominical
Today, we will take a boat along the coast to look for humpback whales (big-winged whales), and dolphins will play with our boats along the way. If you are lucky, you can shoot humpback whales jumping out of the water, but taking pictures on a rickety boat is definitely a challenge for you.
We will also look for dolphins and other creatures that also live in this area, such as bottlenose dolphins and spotted porpoises. Brown boobies may also be found on nearby islands.
After whale watching, we will return to the hotel for rest. In the afternoon, go to the beach to look for some special wild animals, such as Pecari tajacu and white-tailed deer. At night, we can still explore the nocturnal creatures by the river near the hotel.
Overnight in Dominical