11 days from £5,100, based on 2 adults and 2 children
A real adventure holiday for the family, where you'll learn about the natural world while enjoying thrilling outdoor activities. Kayak in Tortuguero and visit Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. You can easily extend to visit Poas volcano, and white-water raft the Reventazón River, or book these excursions for day 2.
Regular departures from the UK
Holiday itinerary
Day 1 Fly to San José, arriving the same evening. Overnight at Hotel Don Carlos.
Day 2 At leisure in the capital or take an optional excursion
Days 3,4 Drive to the Atlantic lowlands and board a boat to Tortuga Lodge. During your 2 day stay you'll glide through the mangroves by canoe or kayak along the maze of canals and natural waterways at Tortuguero on the Caribbean coast. Sloths, otters, iguanas and poison-dart frogs are among the wildlife to be spied here, and between June and October you can watch a nesting turtle laying up to 100 eggs.
Days 5,6 2 flights by light aircraft to Carate via San José. Get that true explorer feel at the La Leona Ecolodge, a unique lodge, with tent-cabins built on platforms where unsullied rainforest meets a sandy beach in a wildlife wilderness just a short flight from the capital, San José. Expert guides will take you up forest trails in Corcovado National Park seeking out tapirs and scarlet macaws.
Days 7,8 Fly and drive to the cool, misty Monteverde Cloudforest Reserve where there are 6 different habitats, and hike easy trails through a fairyland landscape of dripping forest and twisting creepers, tinkling streams and waterfalls, enlivened with hummingbirds, butterflies and the shy Resplendent quetzal. Stay at the renowned Monteverde Lodge.
Day 9 retuner to San José by road (4.5 hrs), overnight.
Day 10 Transfer to airport for flight to Uk, arriving day 11
How about?
- extending your stay for a bit of adventure close to San José - peer into the crater of Póas volcano, and raft the white water of the Reventazón river - suitable for beginners and experts alike. These excursions can be arranged locally for day 2 of the holiday. Horse-riding, biking and gentle hiking, guided by local experts, are available all over Costa Rica and can be built in to your itinerary with ease.
- heading for the beach (bear in mind it can rain in July and August) - broad sands and breaking rollers on the Pacific coast provide radical conditions for surfers. Excellent hotels and resorts are available offering pools and water-sports
We've been there
"I have visited many rainforest environments, but saw so much wildlife in a 3-hour boat ride from Tortuguero that this lodge went right to the top of my list. There were loads of howler monkeys, spider monkeys, turtles, otters and legions of tropical birds." Sarah Bradley, Managing Director
Top Tips
Take a canopy zip-line experience: you can get a bird's eye view of the forest on a safe yet still exhilarating ride.
Costa Rica has two seasons: the dry season, from Dec to Apr; and the wet (‘green’) season, from May to Nov, although it can rain any day of the year in the rainforest.
Did You Know?
Costa Rica is one of the most peaceful nations in the world (its armed forces were abolished in 1948). | 
Exploring from Tortuga Lodge
Toucans are commonly spotted in Costa Rica
Monteverde Lodge
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