11 nights, 6 stops — the country’s birding highlights, end to end.
Sarapiquí → Savegre Valley → Tarcoles → Arenal → Monteverde → Boca Tapada.
Arrive in Sarapiquí, met and transferred to your accommodation. Sarapiquí's feeders bring toucans and hummingbirds to within camera range — a flying start to any trip.
A full day of lowland Caribbean birds along the Sarapiquí. Feeders, frogs and rainforest trails for macaws and sloths.
Transfer to Savegre Valley. A dawn quetzal search, then the highland feeders. Cloud-forest birding for endemics and hummingbirds.
Cloud-forest birding for endemics and hummingbirds. Quetzals at first light and oak-forest trails. No bird in the Americas is more sought-after than the quetzal — and Savegre is the surest place to find it.
Transfer to Tarcoles. A river boat safari for crocodiles and waterbirds. Mangrove birding and the giant Tárcoles crocodiles.
Mangrove birding and the giant Tárcoles crocodiles. The Tárcoles' big American crocodiles, seen from the boat, are a thrilling counterpoint to the birds.
Transfer to Arenal. Walk the hanging bridges, then a night walk for frogs. Rainforest birding and a soak in the hot springs.
Rainforest birding and a soak in the hot springs. Arenal's iconic volcano, wrapped in rainforest, is one of Costa Rica's signature sights.
Transfer to Monteverde. Cloud-forest birding for quetzals and bellbirds. Hummingbird gallery and canopy bridges in the mist.
Hummingbird gallery and canopy bridges in the mist. Monteverde's misty reserves are the archetypal cloud forest — a place of quetzals, bellbirds and dripping green.
Transfer to Boca Tapada. Long sessions in the photography hides for macaws and ground birds. Hide and feeder photography in the lowland rainforest.
A final morning in Boca Tapada — a last outing or a slow start as time allows — before the transfer onward and the journey home.
The dry season — easiest access and reliable feeder activity.
The green season — lush, with excellent birding and fewer visitors.
The only lodge inside Arenal Volcano National Park — unmatched cone views and trails.
A riverside rainforest lodge on a private reserve, strong on lowland birding.
A stylish, sustainable cloud-forest hotel with valley views above Monteverde.
A comfortable garden hotel in Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí, handy for the feeders.
A rustic highland lodge built around reliable quetzal viewing and feeders.
A rainforest hotel between Carara and the Tárcoles river, central to both.
Add nights, swap a park, extend to the coast — this route is a starting point, not a fixed menu. Tell us how you travel and we'll route the rest.