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11 Days Incomparable Costa Rica - featuring Heavenly Honduras Tour Package Few destinations can come close to rivalling the splendour and diversity inherent in Costa Rica's natural environment and we explore every face of it on this incredible 11-day tour. From gliding past lush coastal rainforests on a riverboat canal cruise, to meandering the trails of one of the country's many wildlife-brimming national parks, and from taking it easy in bubbling hotsprings near Arenal Volcano, to being spellbound by the enchanting mists of Monteverde Cloud Forest, we experience the gamut of Costa Rica's natural bounties and see how it warrants a name that is translated as 'rich coast'. We see banana and cocoa plantations, as well as hundreds upon hundreds of species of colourful and endemic flowers and tropical plants; we tour the ever-popular Butterfly Gardens; we have the chance to see Costa Rica from a different perspective on a magical canopy walk; and we spend time in the bustling capital, San Jose. Near the end of our adventure, we cross into Honduras to tour Copan, visit its museum and see ruins that stand as legacies of the once-great ancient Maya civilisation; we even have the rare chance to enter an authentic Mayan pyramid! Tour Itinerary Day 1 Arrival in San Jose Today we arrive in San Jose, Costa Rica. PLEASE NOTE: The hotels indicated in this itinerary reflect our preferred properties in each location. We list these hotels primarily to provide a general sense of overall standard; the final hotel list (which supersedes this itinerary) is not 100% confirmed until approximately 30-45 days prior to departure. We reserve the right to make substitutions of a similar standard if necessary. Overnight in San Jose. Hotel Balmoral or similar. Dinner if required. Day 2 San Jose - Tortuguero This morning we travel by bus from San Jose through Braulio Carillo National Park, one of Costa Rica's largest. Later we visit a working banana plantation and pass through a region known for its cocoa production. We then board our riverboat and spend the afternoon journeying through myriad interconnecting rivers and canals that take us finally to the Caribbean coast and Tortuguero Park. The park is a water thoroughfare which is a 160 km (100 mile) stretch of natural rivers, lagoons and estuaries, and connecting man-made waterways that run almost to the Nicaraguan border. The canal is the main "highway" of the northern coastal region, complete with directional signs and branches from the main trunk route. As we go along the canal, keep a keen lookout for views of pastel-coloured toucans and monkeys of various type; if we're lucky, a lazy sloth hanging from a branch, and maybe a coati or two roaming the forest. Stands of mangroves and water hyacinth appear here and there. Scattered along the way are people, too--fishers and farmers whose dugouts serve all the purposes of pickup trucks elsewhere. Mostly the banks remain wild, and the calls of monkeys and whistles of birds predominate over the noises of humans. Riding a canal boat is probably the easiest way to penetrate the lowland tropical rain forest. Overnight in Tortuguero. Laguna Lodge or similar. All meals. Day 3 Tortuguero: Forest Walk & Village Tortuguero Park is a fascinating place to explore. An early morning boat ride offers an opportunity to observe an awakening coastal rain forest full of lush vegetation and unique bird life. After lunch we visit the village of Tortuguero accessible only by river boat; you may choose to walk on the Caribbean beach where several turtle species lay their eggs each year. We will visit the Tortuguero Museum with its excellent displays pertaining to the ecology of the area and an informative video presentation specific to turtle conservation in Tortuguero and the entire Caribbean region. NOTE: The exact order of our activities in Tortuguero may vary depending on weather and other variables. Overnight in Tortuguero. Laguna Lodge or similar. All meals. Day 4 Tortuguero - Baldi Hotsprings - Arenal Volcano After an early breakfast we travel by boat 1?-hour from Tortuguero to the Cano Blanco dock. From there we continue by road (+/- 5 hours) to the la Fortuna / Arenal area. We travel through rolling hills covered with sugar cane fields to overnight near Arenal Volcano. The volcano's regular eruptions and lava flow can be heard and seen in the night sky from afar on a clear night. We make a stop at the Baldi Hotsprings (located near Arenal and outside the Risk Zones established by the National Prevention of Risks and Emergency Commission). Here a geothermally-heated river flows through beautifully landscaped grounds featuring many plant and tree species and great birdlife. We will have time to relax in or around the various pools (bring a towel). The springs feature ten hot pools with different temperatures fed by individual springs and two swim-up bars. This evening (weather permitting) we can view the volcanic activity which may include explosions and lava flows. Overnight at Arenal. Breakfast and dinner. Day 5 Arenal - Monteverde Cloud Forest Today we travel through a rustic rural countryside to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve area (+/- 4 hours). Covered in a mantle of moss, ferns and orchids, this private reserve is home to over 400 species of birds and a great number of animals. The forest is created by the winds, particular temperature and moisture conditions, and mountainous topography which combine during the dry season to hold a steady cloud cover along the continental divide. The rains and the moisture in the air nourish trees and plants rooted in the ground, as well as many plants that live at the upper levels of the forest, and take their nutrients directly from the mist and dust that pass through the air. The result is an enchanted fairy-tale environment where trees are laden with orchids, bromeliads, mosses and ferns that obscure their branches, where the moisture and mild temperatures and sunlight filtered by the forest canopy encourage the exuberance of begonias, heliconias, philodendron and many other tropical plants in every available space on the ground. This afternoon we have a guided tour of the "Butterfly Garden" where butterflies and other endemic insects are raised and protected in a controlled environment allowing scientists to study them--their place in the food chain and their response to things like increased pollution and climate change. Overnight at Monteverde. Heliconia Hotel or similar. Breakfast and dinner. Day 6 Monteverde Cloud Forest We have a full morning exploring the cloud forest reserve with the help of a local naturalist guide. There is more to the forest than the trees and lesser plants. Of over 320 bird species, the most notable is the quetzal with its long arc of tail feathers. It nests in the trunks of dead trees. Other visually spectacular species include the three-wattled bellbird, the great green macaw, the bare-necked umbrellabird, and the ornate hawk-eagle. Assorted trogons in addition to the quetzal inhabit the reserve, along with more than 50 varieties of hummingbird. About 500 kinds of butterfly are found at Monteverde. Among the more than 100 mammalian species are howler, white-faced and spider monkeys, coatis and their cousins, raccoons; as well as the rarely observed pumas, ocelots, jaguars, tapirs, and kinkajous. This afternoon you may choose to go on an optional "Canopy Walk" excursion, located within the cloud forest. Suspension foot-bridges are strung across deep gorges allowing one to get a bird's eye view of the forest from a totally different perspective than we experienced this morning. At a leisurely pace, one can complete this easy and fascinating walk in about 90 minutes. Your Tour Leader can help you plan this activity (optional cost approx $25-40, subject to change). REMEMBER: This can be a wet and windy place by definition. You should be prepared for varied conditions. Overnight at Monteverde. Heliconia Hotel or similar. Breakfast and dinner. Day 7 Monteverde - San Jose Today we return by road to San Jose. Time permitting, we recommend a visit to the Gold Museum in downtown San Jose (optional), easily the country's best with thousands of different examples of Pre-Columbian gold artifacts (the museum closes at 16:30). Overnight in San Jose. Breakfast and dinner. Day 8 San Jose, Costa Rica - San Pedro Sula, Honduras Today we fly from San Jose to San Pedro Sula and transfer to our hotel. Honduras is an agricultural country of succulent tropical forests with much to offer the visitor. As a nation situated in a region of turbulent political and economic history, Honduras is known by many as one of the participants in the so-called Football War of 1969 when disagreements between fans of El Salvador and Honduras football teams escalated into a full-scale if short-lived war. Today the country is peaceful and beginning to develop a tourist infrastructure partly based on eco-tourism. Overnight in San Pedro Sula. Breakfast and dinner. Day 9 San Pedro Sula - Copan Today we travel by road from San Pedro Sula to Copan. During our time in Copan we will visit the World Bank funded Children's Museum in the town centre. Small but informative, it displays a Mayan rubber ball used in the famous ball games and a video presentation offers visitors the oppurtunity to see a re-enactment of the game. Overnight in Copan. Breakfast and dinner. Day 10 Copan: Site Tour Copan is a superb site and the highlight if any visit to Honduras. The Copan Maya created a ceremonial center that is unparalleled in its architectural beauty. The architects who planned Copan wanted it to be distinctive, unlike any other Maya city, and the design for this ceremonial center was meant to be impressive. We will tour the legendary Archaeological Park of Copan, which consists of two main sites: the ruins and the sepulchres. We also learn about the impressive 63-step stairway with over 2,500 hieroglyphs and masterfully carved stelae, most of which date from AD 613 to 738. Many had vaults beneath them in which sacrifices and offerings could be placed. The Ball Court at Copan is the second largest in Central America; and nearby is Copan's most famous monument, the Hieroglyphic Stairway, the work of King Smoke Shell. The flight of 63 steps bears a history, in several thousand glyphs, of the royal house of Copan. One of the most interesting reliefs shows the 16 great kings of Copan, ending with its creator, Yax Pac. Nearby was a sacrificial vault in which archaeologists discovered the bones of 15 jaguars and several macaws which were probably sacrificed to the glory of Yax Pac and his ancestors. We have a guided walk through the Rosalia and Jaguar tunnels, one of the few opportunities to enter a Mayan pyramid to see upclose the layers upon layers of temples that make up these magical structures. Overnight in Copan. Breakfast and dinner. Day 11 Copan - San Pedro Sula - Departure Today we travel by road to San Pedro Sula. Departure from San Pedro Sula* Breakfast. * NOTE: LAND ONLY participants must take into account the journey time back to San Pedro Sula (+/- 2.5 hours) when booking their flights. Passengers with early flights may have to spend an additional night in S.P.S. at their expense. BUEN VIAJE! Save time, money and stress! For reservations: Fill out the vacation planner to be contacted by our Costa Rica Vacation specialist Contact: Travelwizard.com |
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