Experience ‘La Pura Vida’ in a land of stunning biodiversity
Costa Rica is right up there on any nature lover’s dream wildlife destinations. For years Think Galapagos searched for a local partner to work with in Costa Rica that we could trust with our guests. We needed to know they would take the same level of care and attention that we do. Happy to say in 2019 we found exactly that partner and in the six years after that thanks to their careful planning and expert knowledge, we have run our most successful small group trips anywhere except Ecuador and Galapagos!
Our Costa Rica partners offer excellent personalised service and have organised some wonderful tailor made trips for our guests too. Guests often ask us where else we help organise trips to after they have travelled with us, and thanks to our local partners, Costa Rica is most certainly one of those places. All of the trips they put together either for our individual guests or for our small group trips combine awe-inspiring landscapes and unforgettable wildlife encounters, all while prioritising sustainability, cultural heritage, and environmental preservation.
“A massive thank you for yet another fabulous trip. As the days went by we didn’t think it could get any better but it did, every single day.”
Jackie Carter, Costa Rica, March 2025
We’ve put together some suggested itineraries with our local partner. These trips are simply to show you some of the possible ways you could experience Costa Rica but they can be tailored to your needs.
Visit the Osa Peninsula and Corcovado National Park, one of the most biodiverse places in the world where tropical rainforest spills down to pristine beaches. Or cruise the canals and swamps of Tortuguero National Park where caiman and otters hunt on the river banks. Experience primary cloud forest teeming with tropical birds, including many species of hummingbird in Monteverde. Include a stop in cloud forests of San Gerardo de Dota, the best place to spot the Resplendent Quetzal, Costa Rica’s most colourful bird. If adventure is your thing, don’t miss the Arenal Volcano, which offers zip lining, white water rafting, hot springs and much more.
Situated between Nicaragua and Panama in the heart of Central America, Costa Rica is a nature lover’s paradise of pristine Caribbean and Pacific beaches, lush tropical rainforests, mist laden cloud forests and active volcanoes.
The wonders of nature abound here, in one of the most environmentally conscious and biodiverse countries in the world. National Parks and wildlife reserves cover over 25% of its land area and locals are proud of their ‘Pura Vida’ or ‘pure life’ way of living that embraces the good things in life; love of others and the world around us.
Compact Costa Rica has something to offer everyone; with a strong focus on ecotourism you can explore the country’s National Parks to discover monkeys, sloths, tapirs, reptiles and a myriad of tropical birds such as the iconic resplendent quetzal.
One of the main reasons for the incredible biodiversity is that the country, together with the land now called Panama formed a bridge connecting the North and South American continents approximately three to five million years ago.This bridge allowed the very different flora and fauna of the two continents to mix and flourish.
You can also embark on exhilarating adventures such as canopy tours, hanging bridges, white water rafting, zip lining or rappelling. Or you can kick back and experience the Pura Vida way of life, lounging on a remote beach or sampling locally grown coffee and chocolate.
Costa Rica is a small country of 51,000 square kilometres (19,700 square miles) but is one of the most biodiverse on earth – it is home to an estimated 500,000 species (let that sink in!), of which 300,000 of those are insects.
Costa Rica boasts over 2,000 species of trees and 9,000 different kinds of flowering plants. There are over 200 species of reptile including many brightly colored toads and frogs, including the poison arrow frog and the semi transparent glass frog. Over 250 species of mammal live in Costa Rica, including 4 species of monkey, 2 species of the iconic sloth, 3 species of anteater, tapir and the opportunistic white-nosed coati.
Over 940 bird species have been recorded in Costa Rica (more than the US and Canada combined!). Notable birds include the Scarlet Macaw, the Resplendent Quetzal whose grey and black tail feathers can stretch up to a meter long and many species of brightly coloured hummingbird.
The best time to visit Costa Rica is between December and April on its Pacific Coast when the weather is at its driest, and between March and September on the Caribbean Coast. If you want to focus on the National Parks and tropical forests, we recommend May, June and November as this is when you catch the seasons in transition and the parks are quieter. September and October are traditionally the rainiest months.
July to October is sea turtle nesting season on the Caribbean coast.
Costa Rica has a tropical climate that changes depending on altitude (it can get cool in the higher altitude cloud forest) and the influence of the oceans. The northwest-southeast orientation of the central mountain range divides Costa Rica into two sides: the Pacific on the west and the Caribbean on the east. Each one of these has its own precipitation and temperature variation:
Caribbean – The climate on this side of the country does not have a well-defined dry season, since the rains remain steady between 100 and 200 mm even in the driest months. Two relatively dry periods exist in the coastal areas; the first between February and March and the second between September and October.
Pacific – The Pacific region is characterised by a well-defined dry and rainy season. The dry season lasts from December to March. April is a transition month. The driest and hottest month is March. The rainy season goes from May to October, with November being a month of transition. There is a relative decrease in the amount of rain during the months of July and August, which are termed ‘veranillo’, or “little summer.”
Costa Rica boasts a range of habitats from tropical lowlands along its coasts, fertile central plains and mountains including the Talamanca mountain range.
Costa Rica is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire and has numerous volcanoes including active ones such as Arenal, Poas and Irazu. The two coastlines offer very different experiences; surfers flock to its Pacific beaches to the west and the Caribbean to the east offers a more chilled vibe with the joy of turtle watching at the right time of year.
Around 25% of the land in Costa Rica is protected (more than any other country in the world!) and there are 31 National Parks administered by a government organisation called SINAC (Sistema Nacional de Áreas de Conservación). The most notable areas to visit are:
Corcovado National Park, Osa Peninsula – named ‘the most biologically intense place on earth’ by National Geographic, Corcovado National Park covers nearly half of the beautiful and untouched Osa Peninsula and contains one of the last remaining areas of lowland tropical rainforest in the world.
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve – Monteverde is one of Costa Rica’s top destinations for a reason – mist-laden canopies contain plant species found nowhere else and an incredible array of birds and reptiles. Explore its famous treetop suspension bridges or zip line through the canopy. Also try out locally grown coffee and chocolate!
Tortuguero National Park – located on the Caribbean coast, Tortuguero National park is best known for its namesake, the sea turtles which lay their eggs on its sandy beaches every year. A marshy land where fresh water meets the sea, Tortuguero is only accessible by boat or plane. Explore its lagoons, canals and marshes by canoe to witness its incredible biodiversity. July to October is peak turtle nesting season, with several species arriving to lay eggs.
Arenal Volcano National Park – Arenal Volcano National park encompasses the Arenal Volcano, thought to be extinct until a major eruption in 1968. The volcano dominates the landscape which features diverse landscapes including lava fields, rainforests and Lake Arenal. This is a popular area for tourists due to the number of adventure activities on offer from numerous hot springs to zip lining, white water rafting and hanging bridges.
Tenorio Volcano National Park – Tenorio Volcano National Park is probably best known for Rio Celeste Waterfall within the park, an incredible light blue waterfall naturally colored by minerals in two converging rivers. The hiking opportunities in the forests here – cloud forest in the upper reaches and rainforest lower down – are wonderful with chances to see rare birds, plants and mammals. The area is also dotted with hot springs.
Manuel Antonio National Park – located on the Pacific coast, Manuel Antonio is one of the smallest (just seven square miles!) yet most visited national parks because of its beauty and abundance of iconic wildlife such as sloths, monkeys and tropical birds. Wander through rainforest to white sand beaches where iguanas soak up the sun on the rocks.
Ballena Marine National Park – situated on the south Pacific coast, this is a predominantly marine national park with seasonal visits by humpback whales, dolphins, and other marine life. If you’re into whale watching, this is the place to come.
Rincon de la Vieja National Park – Rincon de la Vieja is the tallest and most active volcano in Costa Rica’s north-west region of Guanacaste. The volcano last erupted in 2011 but it boasts lots of geothermal activity with nine volcanic cones, fumaroles, mud pits, and hot springs. It’s a great area for hiking.
Irazu Volcano National Park – located in the central highlands near the capital San José, this popular national park is centred around Irazu, the tallest volcano in the country at a height of 11,260 feet (3,432 meters). Visitors can explore the impressive volcanic landscapes, including the crater, which is often visible with its unique greenish-yellow or rust-red coloring. On clear days, the top of Irazu offers panoramic views of both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
We listen to you. We take the time to understand what you want your trip of a lifetime to be. We then we use our decades of experience and local partners to make it happen.
