Costa Rica: Best of Fall Birding in Green Season
Trip Description
Brief Itinerary
Over fifteen days, this birding tour offers a chance for birders to enjoy a variety of sites and habitats key to a successful Costa Rica birding trip. We anticipate we will find from 360 to 400 species on most of our tours. The main tour offers a chance to see over 300 species with the extension adding about 100 more bird species.
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This tour starts on the Caribbean side of the country and is well designed to spend a significant amount of time in the comfortable, cooler and always productive and exciting birding in the foothills of Arenal Volcano and the cloudforest of Bajos del Toro and Talamanca. Besides the spectacular views of two dormant volcanoes, you will also enjoy birding in these areas where a number of bird species converge at middle elevations to support productive and fun birding. You will see birds from the mountain tops and from lowlands, and you will see how many species and their habitats converge at middle elevations. Birding in these sites is always full of many pleasant surprises as birds can be seen from a variety of ecosystems. These areas also provide a chance to see the sought-after Resplendent Quetzal, the mythical Bare-necked Umbrellabird and many regional endemic beauties like the Coopery-headed Emerald, Snowcap and White-bellied Mountain-gem.
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The first ten days of the tour will also offer a chance to bird the diverse Caribbean lowlands, a habitat you cannot skip when birding Costa Rica. This area offers a high number of bird species, filling each birding day with constant excitement. We will visit the extremely pristine and off the beaten path location of Boca Tapada, an area that has produced the best bird reports in the last years. Besides the typical productive birding, rarities like Tiny Hawk, White-bellied Hawk, Black-and-white Hawk-Eagle and Tawny-faced Quail have become relatively frequent in this new unspoiled destination.
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If you want to extend your birding adventure a bit, we recommend you take the extension to the pacific lowlands and Tapanti area. In these areas, you will be able to add at least a hundred more new species and have an excellent experience exploring a few more popular hotspots like Carara National Park and pristine Tapanti National Park.
Day 1: Arrival in San Jose with Airport Transfers and Welcome Supper
Day 2: AM Birding Alberto Manuel Brenes Reserve; Canopy San Luis Feeders at Mid-Day, and PM Begin Birding in Arenal Volcano Area
Day 3: Full Day Birding Arenal Volcano Area and National Park: La Peninsula Road, Bogarin Trails and More
Day 4: AM Final Birding near La Fortuna; Mid-Day Bosque de Paz Hummingbird Feeders; and PM Birding Start Bosque de Paz Cloudforest Area
Day 5: Bosque de Paz and Full Day Cloud Forest Birding
Day 6: AM Final Birding Bosque de Paz Area, Transfer to Caribbean Lowlands and Mid-Day Birding at Laguna del Lagarto; and PM Birding Start in Caribbean Lowlands
Day 7: Full Day Birding Caribbean Lowlands: Birding Walks, Nearby Sites and More of the Fantastic Fruit Feeder Birding at Laguna del Lagarto, and Seeking Owl Species at Night
Day 8: AM Final Birding Caribbean Area, then Transfer to Highlands; PM Start Birding in the Highlands of Talamanca
Day 9: Full Day Birding the Mystic Highlands of Talamanca
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Day 10 for Main Tour and Extension Tour Day 1: AM Start of Transition between Main Tour (Return to San Jose) and Extension Group; the Extension Group Continues to Bird the Ujarras Area, Starting on Central Cloud Forest Birding
Day 11/Extension Day 2: Full Day Birding Central Cloud Forest
Day 12/Extension Day 3: AM Birding Transfer through to the Central Pacific Area; PM Start Birding Central Pacific Area
Day 13/Extension Day 4: Full Day Birding Central Pacific: Mangroves Boat Tour and Carara National Park
Day 14/Extension Day 5: AM Final Birding near Carara National Park, and Full Day of Birding Stops; End Day in San Jose
Day 15/Extension Day 6: Departures from Costa Rica and Flights Home
Detailed Itinerary
Find below our Costa Rica: Best of Fall Birding in Green Season Detailed itinerary or download it.
More details about this Trip: