APRIL 1-14, 2024

Costa Rica! The name conjures up visions of steamy rainforests, exotic plant and animal life and miles of sun-drenched beaches. All of that is true, but there is so very much more! Lush jungles, teak, cocoa & coffee plantations, cattle ranges, banana and palm nut farms and stunning active volcanoes exemplify the diversity of this Central American country. From cloud forests to sub-alpine dwarf vegetation to tropical beach, you’ll experience a dizzying array of climatic conditions during the course of our tour. Costa Rica is an exceptional place to study plant, butterfly and bird life (with approximately 12,000, 1,000, and 850 species known respectively). The climate is gentle, ranging from warm and humid (80º – 90º) in the coastal low lands to cool early morning temperatures (40º) near 10,000 feet. Our itinerary provides intimate experiences with many of the country’s best birding and natural areas. Exceptional natural beauty, combined with exotic wildlife and colorful birdlife famous the world over, make our Costa Rican adventure the perfect tropical adventure.

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Daily Itinerary

Birding and Natural History sites visited during tour: 

Braulio Carrillo National Park – Caribbean Foothills
Cope’s Photography Garden – Caribbean Lowlands
Arenal Observatory Lodge & Arenal Volcano area – Caribbean Foothills
Rio Savegre Valley – Talamanca Highlands & Montane Oak Cloud Forest
Batsu’ Preserve – Cloud forest photography garden
Los Quetzales National Park – Talamanca Montane Forest
Cerro de la Muerte – Central American Paramo
Carara National Park, Rio Tarcoles & Villa Lapas – Pacific Lowlands
Rio Sarapiqui – Caribbean Lowlands
OTS La Selva Preserve – Caribbean Lowlands

Day 1, April 1 — Arrive San Jose, to Tapirus Lodge. Group members arrive independently into San Jose, Costa Rica as close to mid-day as possible. Those arriving today will be met at the airport by your guide, Kim Risen. Our meeting location is the nearest point of public entry immediately after you depart the customs area. The airport is small, and our meeting location is obvious. For those who may wish to arrive in Costa Rica in advance of tour’s start, NatureScape Tours will assist you with your travel arrangements in any way possible. Coming from the eastern US, it’s usually possible to arrive in San Jose near mid-day, and that’s what we expect group members to do. With a mid-day arrival, we can transfer directly to our lodge for a fun afternoon, with smiles all around after gaining an extra day of birding! Those whose flights are unable to get them to San Jose by 2:00 PM on April 1, 2024 should plan their arrival for March 31st. We will assist with you arrangements if you like.

After loading our air-conditioned bus we’ll head to a private nature & photography reserve in the Caribbean foothills. Tapirus Lodge offers access to a number of sites offering intimate experiences with birds, butterflies and the natural world. If folks are up to it, an after dark outing is possible. Night Tapirus Lodge. https://tapiruslodge.com/?lang=en

Day 2, April 2 — Cope’s Garden, Lunch at La Quinta de Sarapiqui, PM to Arenal Observatory Lodge. Cope Wildlife is located in Guapiles, which is just over an hour and a half north of the airport, and sits at the northern border of Braulio Carrillo National Park. Cope’s garden is owned by local birder and artist, Jose Albert Perez. It’s an amazing retreat for birders and photographers. Cope’s private reserve/finca hosts a small—but very productive—pond and feeder set up. Common visitors include a nice variety of tanagers, toucans, Pale-vented Pigeon, shy hermits, the retiring Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer in addition to many other hummingbirds and tanagers. 

Other avian visitors to Cope’s garden include Pygmy Kingfisher and the forest-dwelling Russet-naped Wood- Rail. Cope is familiar with the roosting site of several owl species, including Crested Owl, and we will search 
for them. You’ll have time for photographing owls, if there are some in the area. Other species we’ve photographed amidst the gardens and surrounding environs include Semiplumbeous Hawk, Thicket Antpitta, Brown-hooded Parrot, Purple- throated Fruit Crow, White-ringed Flycatcher and a wide variety of tropical species. 

We’ll begin our day exploring this fabulous private reserve, making time for breakfast might be a bit difficult! With blinds, platforms, trails and tropical plantings, there is much to see and do. I hope to photograph a male Snowcap! We won’t leave the reserve until late morning, so it will be a relaxing, thoroughly enjoyable morning at one of Costa Rica’s newest private photography reserves. https://www.facebook.com/dondecope/ 

We’ll enjoy lunch at the quaint La Quinta de Sarapique before we continue our journey across the Caribbean lowlands and our stay at one of the nicest lodges in all of Costa Rica, the lovely Arenal Observatory Lodge. Set on a ridge facing Volcan Arenal, Costa Rica’s only continuously active volcano, it’s a unique experience to see, hear and feel Arenal’s rumblings, and views throughout our stay should be spectacular. On a clear night the vista from the lodge of this active volcano is breathtaking!
This is one of the most biodiverse regions of Costa Rica and we’ll sample a wide variety of habitats and the special birds and resident wildlife of each. Our lodge has some wonderful feeders, so photographers in our group will be able to spend ample time doing photographic setups of birds utilizing both fruit and natural flower banks. Birders and photographers alike will enjoy intimate looks at the nice variety of colorful species, most at close range, before wandering about trails on the property. I particularly enjoy diminutive Strawberry Poison Dart Frogs and Red-eyed Tree Frogs which are surprisingly common here. During the day’s late afternoon hours we’re likely to wander about with our binoculars and cameras covering open and edge areas in hopes of spotting one. An after-dark walk around the property may yield some cool herps and maybe an owl. 
Everyone will enjoy spending our relaxed two night stay at the Arenal Observatory Lodge & Spa.
https:// www.arenalobservatorylodge.com/ en/ 

Day 3, April 3 — Arenal Observatory Lodge, Volcan Arenal, Arenal National Park, night drive & owling. As sun’s first light hits the flower-filled grounds of our lodge, we’ll be enjoying a wide variety of hummingbirds, tanagers, orioles and butterflies who find these gardens as attractive as our group of birders and photographers. Birders will be entranced by a wide variety of birds who have become acclimated to foot traffic across the grounds. Photographers will be hard to pull from the deck in front of the restaurant where toucans, tanagers and orioles fill up on fruit strategically placed on convenient perches. We’ll add to our list on the lodge grounds during our pre-breakfast wanderings, but much of the remainder of our day is to be spent on forest trails or in neighboring Arenal National Park. Some of our target birds here include Gray-headed Chachalaca, Crested Guan, Great Curassow, Red-billed Pigeon, Green-breasted Mango, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Black-cheeked Woodpecker, Buff-throated Foliage-gleaner, Fasciated Antshrike; Dusky, Spotted, Bicolored and Ocellated Antbirds, Thicket Antpitta, Yellow Tyrannulet, Yellow-bellied Elaenia, Cinnamon Becard and White-throated Magpie-Jay. There’s always hope for an ant swarm and attendant antbirds, topped by the striking Ocellated Antbird, and mixed feeding flocks that can hold a dizzying array of birds. An after-dark owling outing or wildlife night drive is possible. Night Arenal Observatory Lodge & Spa. 

Day 4, April 4 — Arenal Observatory Lodge, PM to Rio Savegre Lodge & Nature Reserve. Another enjoyable morning on the lodge grounds, and we’ll fit in breakfast somewhere! Luckily, we’ll have a full morning to properly explore the site and the lodge’s intricate trail system which give us access not only into the forest understory but also into the canopy where we have a chance to view canopy species at eye level!

In the understory we’ll watch for Purplish-backed Quail-Dove, Spotted Antbird, Streak-crowned Antvireo, White-collared Manakin, White-throated Spadebill, Tawny-faced Gnatwren, White-breasted Wood-Wren, Golden-crowned Warbler and Orange-billed Sparrow.

Mid-canopy flocks can include Spotted Woodcreeper, Buff-throated Foliage-Gleaner, Striped Woodhaunter, Russet Antshrike, White-ruffed Manakin, Slaty-capped Flycatcher, Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrant, White-throated Shrike-Tanager, Bay-headed, the similar but rare Rufous-winged, and Olive Tanagers and Shining and Green Honeycreepers amongst many more. White-fronted Nunbirds are possible here and usually run with canopy flocks. Loners in the forest may include Rufous-tailed Jacamar and three species of motmots including Broad-billed, Rufous and the rare and local Keel-billed. Raptors can also be impressive with Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Swallow-tailed and Double-toothed Kites and resident Black-chested and White Hawks.
Wet-forest gorges may produce Smoky-brown Woodpecker, Olivaceous Woodcreeper, Red-faced Spinetail, Immaculate Antbird, Nightingale Wren, Yellow-margined and Slaty-capped Flycatchers, Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrant, Pale-vented Robin, Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush, Slate-throated and Collared Redstarts and Emerald, Bay-headed and Black-and-yellow Tanagers. 

After lunch, we begin our journey to the magnificent Rio Savegre Valley and an inspiring four night stay along the Rio Savegre. Our afternoon destination is the impressive Savegre Mountain Lodge sitting at about 7,000 feet altitude astride the Rio Savegre Valley. You’ll notice that climate and birdlife change dramatically from the Caribbean midlands of the past couple of days. Nestled alongside a mountain river, we’ll begin our highland birding as we exit the PanAmerican Highway onto the entrance road to the the Rio Savegre Valley. Following the Rio Savegre, our descent to the lodge makes dramatic twists and turns as the surrounding habitat transitions from epiphyte-laden oaks to more tropical evergreen forest. We’ll make a quick stop at one of my favorite locations, Miriam’s Quetzales, a family run ‘soda’ or snack shop. (We’ll return here at some point during our stay to enjoy a typical Costa Rican lunch!). Most species encountered here will be new for our trip and may include Volcano Hummingbird, Spot-crowned Woodcreeper, Ruddy Treerunner, the elegant Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, Sooty Robin, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Collared Redstart, Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager, Slaty Flowerpiercer and Yellow-thighed Finch.

Arriving at the lodge, and providing there is still light, the hummingbird feeders should be buzzing with 5 species including Green Violet-ear, Gray-tailed Mountain-Gem, Talamanca, Scintillant and Volcano Hummingbirds.

Arriving near dinner time, we’ll enjoy the extravagant gardens surrounding our rooms before dark and dinner. Night at the impressive Savegre Hotel Natural Reserve & Spa. https://www.savegre.com

Day 5, April 5 — Rio Savegre region. The luxury of a full day to explore Savegre Mountain Lodge, its gardens and nearby trails is not to be forgotten…and we will have FOUR of them! During cool morning hours we’ll observe many birds amid the ornately landscaped lodge grounds—birds as diverse as Slaty Flowerpiercer, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush and Spotted Wood Quail have all been seen by our cabins—and the nice collection of hummingbird feeders will be busy with Lesser (Green) Violetear (gorgeous!), Gray-tailed and White-bellied Mountain-gems, Talamanca (Magnificent), Volcano and Scintillant Hummingbirds vying for your attention.

Woodlands around the lodge are excellent for Resplendent Quetzal, a bird considered by many to be the most beautiful in the New World. With patience we should get exceptional views of males and females coming to their favorite aguacatillo trees to feed.

After breakfast we may climb into a truck to take us up a rugged mountain track to the trailhead of forest trails above the lodge. Here, in the oak dominated cloud forest, we’ll look for an array of birds, many of which are Chiriqui Highland endemics—species seen only in the highlands of Costa Rica and extreme Western Panama. We’ll watch for Blue-throated Toucanet, Collared Trogon, the endemic subspecies of Hairy Woodpecker, Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl, Silvery-throated Jay, Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Black-cheeked Warbler and more quetzals to name but a few. Furnariids are well represented, possibilities include Ruddy Treerunner, Spotted Barbtail, Lineated Foliage-Gleaner, Buffy Tufted-cheek and Streak-breasted Treehunter. 

We will have all the time we wish on the forest trails before returning to the lodge for lunch and siesta. After lunch a visit to the nearby Waterfall Trail is possible. This trail follows the river making it good for American Dipper, Torrent Tyrannulet and maybe a late-staying, over-wintering Louisiana Waterthrush. This area is excellent for Yellowish Flycatcher, Black-faced Solitaire, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Brown-capped Vireo, migrant warblers and many others. Before dusk, we may take a short journey uphill to a site that has been excellent for Dusky Nightjar and, with luck, we hope to have excellent views of this highland nightjar at dusk and, perhaps, an owl or two before returning to the lodge for dinner. Night at Savegre Hotel, Natural Reserve & Spa.

Day 6, April 6 — Batsu’ Gardens, Rio Savegre Valley. We’ll enjoy a morning visit to a newly opened garden designed by the grandson of Ephraim Chacon and son of Marino Chacon. Felipe Chacon has taken a corner of the family’s orchard and turned it into a highland oasis complete with exotic flowers and numerous feeders designed to attract a wide variety of colorful birds. Batsu´gets its name from the local Bri-Bri language of Talamanca’s indigenous people. It means “small bird” and is used most commonly to refer to hummingbirds. Hummingbirds are well represented at Batsu’, and typical species include close looks at Volcano and Scintillant Hummingbirds, Lesser Violetear, Gray-tailed Mountain-Gem and Stripe-tailed Hummingbird. Due to the gardens and well situated feeders, montane specialties like Northern Emerald (Blue-throated) Toucanet, Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Large-footed Finch and Yellow-thighed Brushfinch can all be seen and photographed well. After dinner, another nightbird search is possible. Night at Savegre Hotel, Natural Reserve & Spa. http://www.batsucr.com/photography/

Day 7, April 7 — Rio Savegre Valley, Cerro de la Muerte, Paraiso Quetzal. Once more, we’ll start birding around the grounds of our lodge with after breakfast visits to the Paramo and high elevation cloud forest. 

Located at over 11,000 feet—we’ll walk slowly to avoid altitude sickness—the Chusqea Bamboo dominated paramo atop Cerro de la Muerte is perfect for finding several localized highland species. Fiery-throated and Volcano Hummingbirds, Timberline Wren, Large-footed Finch, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Sooty Robin, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Volcano Junco and the uncommon Peg-billed Finch all call this habitat home and we hope to see most of these during our visit.

For lunch our stop is at a family run private nature reserve, Paraiso Quetzal, where we will enjoy the bird feeders and typical Costa Rican lunch. The reserve offers a host of highland species for us to enjoy. The hummingbird feeders are alive with Fiery-throated, Volcano, Talamanca (Magnificent) Hummingbirds and Lesser (Green) Violetear. This is an excellent area for Black-and-yellow Silky-Flycatcher and the difficult-to-locate Ochraceous Pewee is at least not rare. Mixed feeding flocks can hold Barred Becard, Yellow-winged Vireo and Spangle-cheeked Tanager to name a few. We’ll enjoy the grounds, feeders and a tasty lunch before returning to the Rio Savegre Valley. A final nightbird search is possible. Night at Savegre Hotel, Natural Reserve & Spa.

Day 8, April 8 — One last morning to enjoy the Rio Savegre Valley, photograph the now familiar hummingbirds or perhaps one last look at the aptly named Resplendent Quetzal. As morning ends, we must say goodbye to these tranquil highlands and make our way down the mountains to the Pacific Coast for our three night stay at the lovely Villa Lapas.

The birdlife changes dramatically and, as this will be our first real taste of Pacific Lowland birding. Likely possibilities on our drive include Hoffman’s Woodpecker, Tropical Screech-Owl, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Squirrel Cuckoo, Grayish Saltator and Rufous-capped Warbler among the more common Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Red-billed Pigeon, Great Kiskadee, Clay-colored Robin, Blue-gray Tanager, Rose-throated Becard and Yellow-green Vireo amongst other tropical lowland species. We’ll arrive at our riverside lodge in time to enjoy a walk about the superb grounds before dinner. Night Villa Lapas. https://www.villalapas.com/

Day 9, April 9 — Villa Lapas, Carara National Park, Tarcoles River boat cruise. We’ll bird an assortment of habitats during our first full day in Costa Rica’s Pacific Lowlands, beginning on the grounds of our hotel before breakfast. Its stream side location is excellent for birds and these riverside gardens produce a host of exotic, tropical species. Common species we’ll look for include Red-lored and Yellow-naped Parrots, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Scaly-breasted and Cinnamon Hummingbirds, Amazon Kingfisher and Masked Tityra.

Just a short distance from our hotel is the remarkable Carara National Park, one of the best sites in Central America for wildlife viewing and the birding is world class! We’ll have a full day to explore Carara’s various trails. One of the top three birding destinations in the country—covering the first 300 yards along the River Trail can take a couple hours! Along the River Trail we’ll watch for raptors, Lesson’s (Blue-crowned) Motmot, Slaty-tailed, Violaceous, Baird’s and Black-throated Trogons, Mealy and Red-lored Parrots, woodcreepers, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, antbirds, antwrens, dazzling Orange-collared Manakins dancing at their lek, a multitude of tyrant-flycatchers including Northern Royal, a host of wrens, tanagers and colorful honeycreepers. Further along this trail, an oxbow lake is home to a colony of nocturnal Boat-billed Herons and four species of kingfishers. Mammals are well represented, and the low roar of Howler Monkeys can usually be heard and troops of White-faced Capuchins can sometimes be seen as they scurry through the canopy. Impressive reptiles include the huge Spiny-tailed and Green Iguanas.
https://costa-rica-guide.com/nature/national-parks/carara/

In the afternoon we’ll enjoy a walk near coastal mangroves that should yield Social and Panama Flycatchers, Southern Rough-winged and Mangrove Swallows, Brown Jay, Rufous-naped Wren (here the Rufous-backed form), Yellow-green and Mangrove Vireos, Scrub Greenlet, Mangrove Warbler, Red-legged Honeycreeper, Blue-gray and Palm Tanagers and Grayish Saltator. 

Our delightful boat ride through the Rio Tarcoles tidal estuary and mangrove forests begins in the late afternoon. Cruising along the river is quite relaxing, and the wildlife viewing and photography is simply superb. We’ll search for small groups of roosting Boat-billed Heron, Bare-throated Tiger-Heron, a large variety of shorebirds including Collared Plover, five species of kingfishers, various raptors such as Yellow-headed Caracara, Plumbeous Kite, Zone-tailed Hawk and the local Mangrove Black Hawk which feed primarily on crabs in the mangroves. Along a smaller mangrove-lined canal we’ll look diligently for the aptly named American Pygmy Kingfisher and the local endemic Mangrove Hummingbird. In the warming light of late afternoon, fantastically colored Scarlet Macaws begin their flights to evening roosts in the mangroves providing a flashy and fitting end to a wonderful day. A great way to spend the last hour of daylight before we return to the hotel for a cold drink and doing the checklist. Night Villa Lapas.

Day 10, April 10 — Guacimo Road/Pacific dry forest, Carara National Park, nightbird outing. Guacimo Road, a side road just north of our hotel, leads to the Gulf of Nicoya and will be our first birding stop in the dry forest and scrub more typical of Costa Rica’s Guanacaste region. Specialties abound and include Spot-bellied Bobwhite, Lesser Ground-Cuckoo, Plain-capped Starthroat, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Long-tailed Manakin, Northern Beardless Tyrannulet, Nutting’s, Brown-crested, and Scissor-tailed Flycatchers, White-throated Magpie-Jay, Rufous-naped and Banded Wrens, Olive and Stripe-headed Sparrows and even Painted Bunting on occasion.

Afternoon activities include another walk in Carara along the primary forest trails where we’ll look for skulking denizens of the forest floor. Walking slowly in this well shaded Pacific lowland rainforest, we’ll search for such spectacular species as Great Tinamou, Streak-chested (Spectacled) Antpitta, Black-faced Antthrush and Orange-billed Sparrow. A stop deep within the forest at a regular bird bathing site along a creek usually produces fantastic views of Red-capped and Blue-crowned Manakins, Ochre-bellied and Sulphur-rumped Flycatchers, migrant warblers and Green Honeycreepers along with the very occasional Scaly-throated Leaftosser or Gray-headed Tanager.

After dinner we’ll have an owling session searching for nightbirds which may include Barn, Striped and Pacific Screech-Owls along with Common Pauraque. Night Villa Lapas.

Day 11, April 11 — Carara clean-up, to Caribbean Lowlands and La Quinta de Sarapiqui. Our morning options are many, and we’ll enjoy lunch at Villa Lapas before we begin our four hour drive to the Caribbean lowlands and our home for the next two nights, the La Quinta de Sarapiqui Country Inn. This is one of the most biodiverse regions of Costa Rica and we’ll sample a wide variety of habitats and the special birds of each. Our lodge has some wonderful feeders and photographers in our group will be able to spend ample time doing photography setups of birds utilizing both fruit and hummingbird feeders. Birders will enjoy close looks at colorful species at close range before wandering about rails on the property. Night La Quinta.

Day 12, April 12 — LaSelva OTS station. Full day at La Selva OTS, a working biological station in the Caribbean lowland rainforest. Established in 1954, and operated by the Organization of Tropical Studies, La Selva covers about 4,000 acres, most of which is primary tropical rainforest. An average of 13 feet of rain falls here annually and conditions are usually warm and humid. We’ll bird along the entrance road, station proper and forest trails encompassing a variety of habitats including riverine, secondary and primary rainforests. This is considered one of the richest birding sites in Costa Rica and after our day here you’ll certainly see why!

La Selva has miles of trails, some of them paved, and we’ll begin birding around the station which is alive with birds shortly after sunrise. Toucans, parrots, woodpeckers and antshrikes will all be evident along with oropendolas, caciques, tanagers, hummingbirds…the list seems endless here. Specialties of the area include Semiplumbeous Hawk, Great Green Macaw, Chestnut-colored Woodpecker, White-necked and Pied Puffbirds, White-ringed Flycatcher, Snowy Cotinga, Plain-colored Tanager and Yellow-tailed Oriole, all of which are best seen in the vicinity of the station.

As the day begins to warm up, our wanderings lead us into shaded primary forest. Species here are more difficult to see but with patience, and a bit of luck, we hope to find such goodies as Great and Slaty-breasted Tinamous, Great Curassow, Olive-backed Quail-Dove, Slaty-tailed and Black-throated Trogons, Western Slaty-Antshrike, Rufous Mourner and the diminutive Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant among many others. Should fortune shine upon us, and we search carefully, we may find a roosting Great Potoo or Crested Owl.

We’ll enjoy lunch at the station while keeping an eye on the sky for soaring raptors such as King Vulture and Gray-headed Kite. Vervain flowers near the dining hall are excellent for Blue-chested and Violet-headed Hummingbirds, Bananaquit and the occasional Black-crested Coquette. Lunchtime entertainment at its finest!

After lunch we’ll continue to explore forest trails looking for birds, animals and other residents of this spectacular forest. I particularly enjoy diminutive Strawberry Poison Dart Frogs which are surprisingly common here. During the day’s late afternoon hours we’re likely to wander about with our binoculars and cameras covering open and edge areas once more in hopes of spotting such varied species as Little Tinamou, Great Antshrike and Yellow-billed Caçique.

At dusk, from a nearby vantage point, we’ll watch for evening flights of parrots and macaws and as dusk arrives Short-tailed Nighthawks which often forage overhead. After dark we’ll attempt to find a reclusive Vermiculated Screech-Owl or potoo. We’ll return to our lodge for dinner with a long list of memorable bird sightings. Night La Quinta.  https://tropicalstudies.org/portfolio/la-selva-research-station/

Day 13, April 13 — We’ll enjoy the La Quinta grounds, its array of feeders and a tasty Costa Rican lunch before, we must say, “Farewell!” to the delightful Sarapiqui region and make our way southward. There are hummingbird gardens, tropical forest trails and mixed habitats that are likely to be visited along our return to San Jose and our final night in friendly Costa Rica. Seasonal wetlands in the area can produce a host of nice species including Green Ibis, White-throated Crake, Blue Ground-Dove, Purple Gallinule, Gray-crowned and Olive-crowned Yellowthroats and even the rare Pinnated Bittern.

There are several other areas that could capture our attention, one such being Braulio Carrillo National Park. If time allows for a visit, before our arrival we’ll check a stream along the way for the always sneaky Fasciated Tiger-Heron. Braulio Carrillo is a huge, largely inaccessible rainforest covered landscape and we’ll hardly scratch its surface. Its trails contain White Hawk, Rufous-winged Woodpecker, Wedge-billed and Spotted Woodcreepers, Brown-billed Scythebill, Chestnut-backed and Dull-mantled Antbirds, White-ruffed Manakin, Rufous Mourner, Stripe-breasted Wren, Buff-rumped Warbler, Chestnut-headed Oropendola, Tawny-capped, Yellow-crowned and Olive-backed Euphonias, plus possibly ten tanager species. Braulio Carrillo remains the only place I’ve seen White-throated Shrike-Tanager well. Offering one of very few access points into the lush foothill rainforests of the Caribbean slope, even the parking lot at the park entrance can be excellent for mixed species flocks. 

We will arrive at our hotel near the airport in the late afternoon with ample time to refresh for our last dinner together. Night San Jose.

Day 14, April 14 — Tour ends, transfer to SJO for return flights. We’ll enjoy our final morning with breakfast at the hotel before transferring to the airport and departing flights. While folks may be on differing flights, rest assured we’ll arrive at the San Jose airport with ample time before your departure flights. Everyone is sure to fly home a bit tired from our tropical birding & photography adventure. Tired, but with photo-cards and minds filled with images and happy memories of Costa Rica, its people, birds and wildlife! A supply sure to last until our next voyage together, Pura Vida!

COSTA RICA: TROPICAL BIRDING & PHOTOGRAPHY ADVENTURE TOUR COSTS

EXTRA LOGISTICAL SERVICES

Should you wish NatureScape Tours to put arrangements in place for an early arrival into San Jose prior to the tour’s start or extend your stay after the tour’s conclusion, please contact our office prior to your tour’s scheduled departure date as far in advance as possible. Such arrangements could range from something as simple as an extra night at our first hotel of the tour to an extended stay anywhere in Costa Rica of a week or more. Our staff can easily make seamless arrangements for you that could include transfers, hotel rooms, transportation and excursions. We can often provide these services at our contracted group rates — as long as we receive your request far enough in advance. 

All amounts are quoted in United States dollars and are based upon double occupancy.

TOUR COST  

Tour Cost – $3,785.00 Single Supplement – $ 725.00

The cost of this trip, based on a minimum group size of TEN, is $3,785.00 from San Jose, Costa Rica.  If the final group is smaller than ten participants, a small group supplement may be charged. All costs are quoted in US dollars and are based on double occupancy.

COST INCLUDES

Accommodations based on two persons sharing a two-bedded room. We select good hotels and lodges convenient to our birding destinations, but at times the only convenient accommodations may be rather simple. For single rooms a single supplement will be charged. We try to supply roommates when possible, but we cannot always find one. If we cannot find you a roommate, you will be charged the added cost of single accommodations. All meals from dinner the evening of Day One through breakfast on Day Fourteen. Expert guide service throughout.  All ground and water transportation once the tour begins. Transportation may be by private or chartered plane, private or chartered car, private or chartered boat, station wagon, van, bus, truck or ATV. All state and local taxes & fees along with all local & native land access permits and fees. All group admissions, park entry and permit fees are included in the tour price.

MEAL COSTS

Meals ARE included in the cost of this tour.

TIPS

All expected gratuities encountered during your tour (staff, luggage porters, bus drivers and local guides) is included in the cost of your tour. However, if you feel your NatureScape Tours leader, local guide or lodge personnel have given you exceptional service, it is perfectly suitable for you to bestow any gratuity you elect. We strongly stress that such tips are completely optional and solely at your discretion.

COST DOES NOT INCLUDE…

Not included are transportation to or from Costa Rica, international airfare or departure taxes (NOTE, this should already be included in your airfare), laundry, personal tips, alcoholic drinks, soft drinks, juices, mineral waters and other beverages not included with your meals, room service charges, souvenirs, insurance of any kind, telephone calls and use of TV not included in the room rate and baggage or overweight baggage fees. Any expenses incurred due to Covid related tests, stays or medical attention.

DATE OF COST QUOTATION

July 1, 2023. We can only quote current costs. Tour planning often begins more than a year before the tour runs. While we try to arrive at our best estimates, we can’t predict fluctuation of currency exchange rates, increases in hotel or vehicle rates outside of our negotiated contracts, etc. Therefore, we reserve the right to increase the tour cost when there are justifiable reasons. However, we make a sincere effort to arrive at the closest possible estimate and have even absorbed small increases at times to avoid raising tour costs to participants. Many of our suppliers have gone to surcharges in their contracts with NatureScape Tours as a means to offset the uncertainties inherent in long distance planning. The two most prevalent are:

FUEL

In today’s volatile oil market, it’s difficult, nay, impossible, to accurately project fuel costs into the distant future. Prices for our tours are based upon fuel rates reasonably expected at the time of your tour’s start. While NatureScape Tours does everything possible to maintain the quoted price of your tour, with a dramatic shift in fuel prices, it may be necessary to charge a fuel surcharge. If such a surcharge is levied, every effort will be made to minimize the cost passed along to you. In almost all cases, these are additional charges being assessed NatureScape Tours by our service suppliers and vendors who have exercised their right, under their contracts with NatureScape Tours, to increase prices caused by substantial changes in the cost of fuel. 

EXCHANGE RATES

As with oil, it’s impossible, to accurately project foreign currency exchange rates into the distant future. Prices for our tours are based upon the rate of exchange reasonably expected at the time of your tour’s start. While NatureScape Tours does everything possible to maintain the quoted price of your tour, with a dramatic shift in exchange rates, it may be necessary to charge a surcharge. If such a surcharge is levied, every effort will be made to minimize the cost passed along to you. In almost all cases, these are additional charges being assessed NatureScape Tours by our service suppliers and vendors who have exercised their right, under their contracts with NatureScape Tours, to increase prices caused by substantial changes in foreign currency exchange rates. 

PLEASE NOTE…

In more than 38 years of running tours, we’ve NEVER had to assess an additional charge or surcharge to a client. We feel strongly that our staff’s careful planning and negotiation will continue our unblemished record.

UNANTICIPATED COSTS

Rarely we have had unexpected costs. Cancellation of a flight has required staying in a hotel an extra night, hiring vehicles for extra birding excursions, and other services. A few times, when all of the birds expected at an area were found more quickly than anticipated, the tour leader has proposed shortening the visit to that location, adding flights to new destinations, etc. If such changes are proposed and accepted by participants, it is with the understanding that they accept the obligation to pay any extra unanticipated costs.

On all of our tours, participants are responsible for any extra expenses incurred from deviations to our scheduled tour itinerary which result from events out of our control (examples include, but are not limited to, additional hotel nights, transfers and transportation by air, water or ground). During March/April in Costa Rica this typically refers to WEATHER DELAYS!, but could be a result of flight cancellations, labor strikes, acts of God or the like. Therefore, we STRONGLY advise you to buy trip cancellation or interruption insurance that may reimburse you the entire unrecovered amount should you have to cancel because of illness, weather cancellations or other delay/trip interruption.

While restrictions are not currently in place, we are not responsible for any deviations to our planned itinerary due to COVID related changes, tests or medical attention.

REGISTRATION

THIS TRIP IS STRICTLY LIMITED TO A MAXIMUM OF FOURTEEN PARTICIPANTS!

A deposit of $735.00, completed registration form and a copy of the photo page from your passport are required to confirm your space. Without these, no one is considered registered. Registrations are taken on a first-come first-served basis with priority based on the postmark date.

CANCELLATION

To cover the work and expense of handling registrations and canceling your arrangements for you, $335.00 will be deducted from all deposits if we are notified in writing at least 121 days before departure date. Fees deducted for later cancellations: within 120-91 days prior to departure date, your entire deposit plus all inseparable costs (i.e., vehicle rental, leaders expenses); due to contractual obligations with our hotels, bus and van rentals, boat charters and other costs where we have contracted payment dates there can be no refunds for cancellations within 90 days prior to our departure. Some participants have lost substantial sums when illness or other circumstances prevented them from taking a tour. Therefore, we advise you to buy trip cancellation insurance that may reimburse the entire unrecovered amount if it becomes necessary for you to cancel. Such insurance can be purchased through your local travel agent, AAA, CAA or AARP. 

Covid-19 has greatly affected travel in recent years. While we anticipate the travel situation continues to be normalized by the time of our tour, IF TRAVEL TO COSTA RICA IS NOT POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF NEWLY CREATED COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS, WE WILL RESCHEDULE YOUR TOUR AT NO COST TO YOU.

UNUSED PORTIONS OF A TOUR

We cannot offer refunds for unused portions of a tour unless agreed to before the tour. If you fail to show up or meet the tour regardless of the reason, we are under no obligation to provide any refund. Trip cancellation insurance may reimburse losses if you must leave a tour early for illness or other valid reason.

COMPLETION OF PAYMENT

Foreign travel agents, hotels, boat operators etc require advance payment. We can offer better rates on our tours because of contracted payment dates with our service providers. Your cooperation with timely payment helps avoid problems with your arrangements. For this tour, in order to make it easier for everyone’s budget, your final tour cost will be made in two payments. You will be invoiced via email for these payments—$1,000 due November 1, 2023, leaving your final payment of $2,000 due January 1, 2024.