Costa Rica | Birding in Your Bubble: A Privately Guided Sarapiquí Experience

Arrive into San José. After clearing customs and immigration, meet the naturalist guide who will accompany you throughout your birding adventure. Together you will transfer to your home base for your program, Selva Verde Lodge & Rainforest Reserve, located approximately two hours from San José. Depending on your flight arrival time, there will be opportunities for birding en route, so be sure to pack your binoculars in your carry-on. Also pending flight arrival time, lunch can be enjoyed en route (at your own cost). Selva Verde is situated in the Caribbean lowlands at elevations of 180 to 220 feet. Founded by the Holbrook family in 1985, Selva Verde is renowned for its commitment to ecological preservation and sustainability. The reserve is home to a large assortment of avian life, including several types of herons, egrets, hawks, falcons, macaws, hummingbirds, flycatchers, warblers, sparrows, and tanagers. Specific species that are often spotted at Selva Verde include the Keel-billed Toucan, Sunbittern, Crimson Tanager, Wood Thrush, Violet-crowned Woodnymph, and Gray-necked Wood-Rail. Selva Verde is also home to the endangered Great Green Macaw, which feeds on the giant fruiting almond trees in the rainforest. After settling in at the lodge and refreshing yourself, join your naturalist guide for a brief orientation to your program and a briefing for the next day's activities. This evening, dinner will be on own.

This morning, meet at the restaurant for a cup of Costa Rican coffee before your first morning of birding around the lodge grounds. Return for breakfast at the lodge. Afterwards, explore other great birding spots in the Chilamate area such as La Linda, accessible within a very short drive from the lodge. Have lunch (at your own expense) at Selva Verde Lodge or another restaurant in the region. This afternoon's activity will be aboard a boat on the Río Sarapiquí. Located a short drive east of the lodge is the town of Puerto Viejo (not to be confused with the town of the same name on the Atlantic coast). This town is the capital of the county and was historically an important stop along the trade route connecting the two coasts. At the river port, board the covered, stable, motorized vessel with your naturalist guide. As you wind down the river bordered with forests and cultivated fields, look for aquatic animals, birds, and reptiles in their natural habitat. You may also see residents going about their daily lives and witness the impact local banana plantations have on this watershed. Afterwards, return to the lodge to review your checklist with your guide and prepare for another exciting day of birding in Sarapiquí.

Depart at dawn for early morning birding in the tropical wet forests of the world-famous Organization for Tropical Studies La Selva Biological Station. Upon arrival at La Selva, you will bird around the grounds surrounding the facilities and road. Enjoy breakfast at the station, followed by a private birding walk guided by one of La Selva's on-site naturalist guides. La Selva consists of nearly 4,000 acres of land, more than half of which is virgin forest. The area averages over 13 feet of rainfall each year, making it a prime spot to observe water birds. Over half of Costa Rica's recorded bird species have been spotted at La Selva, including the Bare-necked Umbrellabird, Red-capped Manakin, Great Antshrike, Chestnut-backed Antbird, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Striped Cuckoo, Slaty Spinetail, Yellow-tailed Oriole, and Rufous-tailed Jacamar. After your morning birding at La Selva, enjoy lunch at your own expense at Selva Verde Lodge or at another restaurant in the region. This afternoon, you will be at leisure to enjoy any number of optional activities such as additional birding at the lodge or in the region, a delicious sustainable chocolate tour, or just relaxing around the pool at Selva Verde. There are many activities that your guide can suggest. For those interested, there are rural tourism activities available with a local non-profit called the Sarapiquí Conservation Learning Center such as cooking classes, visiting a local farm, or dance classes. These activities help ensure that local people can enter the tourism economy, an important part of sustainability for Sarapiquí. This evening, review your checklist with your guide followed by dinner on own.

This morning after a cold breakfast (or boxed breakfast) at Selva Verde, depart very early and head to Braulio Carrillo National Park, about 45 minutes' drive south of Selva Verde. Straddling the eastern ridge of the Central Volcanic Mountain Range, Braulio Carrillo covers 118,000 acres of mostly virgin rainforest, making it the second largest national park in Costa Rica. Bird along the way, and upon arrival at the Quebrada Gonzalez (Gonzalez Creek) entrance, begin your hike. After your morning birding experience, take a 20-minute drive toward Guápiles to the home and private reserve of Costa Rican naturalist and wildlife artist José Alberto Pérez, also known as Cope. Cope's property is designed to maximize opportunities for birding and photography. His ponds attract aquatic species, and the property also features blinds for bird photography. Cope's incredibly fine-tuned knowledge of bird behavior and the local habitat, including his neighbors' reserves, provides unique access to some wonderful species. Lunch today can either be arranged at Cope's home or at a local restaurant in the region. After your visit, head back to Selva Verde for rest and relaxation. Dinner will either be at Selva Verde Lodge or at a nearby restaurant.

This morning, depart Selva Verde at daybreak after a cold breakfast or with a boxed breakfast and drive about 40 minutes west. You will begin ascending into the folds of Poás Volcano into an area known as La Virgen del Socorro, a middle-elevation habitat that is both accessible from the road and that abuts Braulio Carrillo National Park. Interesting sightings at this location include Tufted Flycatchers, Rufous-browed Tyrannulets, tanagers, and euphonias. You will also have a good chance of seeing some interesting raptors. After birding at El Socorro, head toward the "soda" restaurant in Cinchona. This small, roadside café has a balcony that offers a stunning view of the valley and a giant waterfall on the other side of the valley. An impressive array of hummingbirds can be seen here at the feeders. Also, it offers delicious hot chocolate, coffee, and other treats. After your visit here, continue up the mountain another 45 minutes to an even higher elevation of roughly 3,000 feet, to an area known as Bajos del Toro. Here you will bird in actual cloud forest on the trails of El Silencio Rainforest Reserve. After lunch (at your own expense) at the Catarata del Toro Restaurant, head back to your home base for your last evening at Selva Verde Lodge to review your checklist a final time. Dinner will be on own at Selva Verde or at a local restaurant.

This morning bid farewell to Selva Verde Lodge and Sarapiquí. Your guide will take you to the international airport for your departure.