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Boca Pacuare & Turrialba

From £558 - 680pp *(Depending on numbers in your group)

Braulio Carrillo National Park, Costa Rica

4 Nights

2-14

Boca Pacuare & Turrialba

From £558 - 680pp *(Depending on numbers in your group)

What You'll Do

This Boca Pacuare to Turrialba tour takes you off the beaten path to some of the most untouched areas of the country. With locals as your guides, you'll see sides of the country a lot would miss. Your activities include spending the day at a local sea turtle conservation project, touring the array of untouched canals and lagoons, spotting monkeys in the rainforest and learning to cook traditional Costa Rican cuisine with a local family.

Experience
Highlights

Tour the canals of Boca Pacuare  (otherwise known as the Costa Rican Amazon) with a local guide

Enjoy a cooking lesson with local family in Turrialba

Visit to the Pacuare Biological Reserve - home to a sea turtle conservation project, spending time with the locals who volunteer at the reserve

Your Local Host:

Roberto

I was born and raised in Costa Rica and have lived here my entire life. And ever since I could, I’ve been travelling the world. Soon after I left school, I travelled around Costa Rica and discovered every single part of it! Although, we do have a fairly small country, there’s an insane amount to explore, and I’m still exploring Read More

Experience Itinerary

San José To Boca Pacuare

San Jose to Boca Pacuare

We leave first thing from San Jose. Twenty minutes after leaving San José towards the Caribbean lowlands, you will drive into the Braulio Carrillo National Park, one of the largest and most diverse parks in the country. After approximately 30 minutes, you will descend into the lowlands, and you’ll be able to see the transition between the Cloud and the Rain Forest, breakfast will be taken in a restaurant on the way.

At mid-morning you’ll arrive to the port where you’ll get on a river boat. Your vacation begins in Boca Pacuare, as today’s destination is the fascinating canals of the Caribbean coast, considered the Costa Rican Amazon. Your boat will take you up to this area, with its extensive system of canals, and to the lodge where you will spend the next two nights. Your guide will give you detailed explanations of this complex Eco-system. Miles of untouched Caribbean beaches also offer the opportunity to see (when in season) the green sea turtle nesting or the leatherback sea turtle, the world’s largest and second largest sea turtle in the world.

Accommodation: Lirio Lodge Boca Pacuare

Boca Pacuare

A full day to explore the Boca Pacuare area: a floating trip on the canals of the Madre de Dios lagoon is a great opportunity to see a big variety of birds, reptiles, monkeys, and butterflies. To top it off, you will also visit the Pacuare Biological Reserve. You will also visit the Sea Turtle conservation Project and spend time with the volunteers in charge of the program. If you visit during the week days, you will also visit the local rural school.

When in season there is an optional night tour to see the green turtle laying eggs on the beach. All the visits will be done with a local naturalist guide!

  • Kayak the Madre de Dios lagoon: this is probably the best thing to do in the area that most people don’t even know about. You will have a great and peaceful time.

Accommodation: Lirio Lodge Boca Pacuare

Turrialba

After breakfast you will leave the beautiful Caribbean coast, through the beautiful rivers of the North Caribbean, and back to the pier to jump back into the van to drive back to the valleys, but this time you’ll take a detour and will end up in Turrialba, city that was once the gateway to the Atlantic coast, and now it’s an important agricultural region and tourism destination. The drive is very scenic as you cross the green mountains and reach Turrialba, a gateway from the Caribbean Coast to the Pacific Coast, without having to stop in San José. You will stay in a Costarican Old Hacienda. Optionally, you can let a guide show you about the farm animals, enjoy the beautiful topical gardens or just kayak in the beautiful lake of the Reventazón River Dam.

Accommodation: Casa Turire

La Marta Reserve

After breakfast, you’ll spend the full day with a local guide at the beautiful La Marta reserve. This reserve is much less  visited by tourists than the main national parks, but whilst it’s not as popular, it still offers an equally incredible experience. A UNESCO heritage site consisting of 1518 hectares of protected land, this stunning reserve used to be a hub for gold mining and excavation, but the locals have swapped their pick axes for binoculars and books, as it’s now the home to a university that specialises in ecology and natural habitats.

You’ll spend you day hiking around the reserve and paying a visit to the university to learn about the work they carry out there.

After the hike you will have a cooking lesson with a local family and eat lunch together.

(Meals included: breakfast and lunch).

Reviews (3)

Aurélie

Saturday 30th March, 2019

We have told our friends about our great trip with you, and we will certainly give your details if we ever we meet people who want to go to Costa Rica. We loved the country, the people and how we felt welcomed. In an ideal world, if we win the lotter...

We have told our friends about our great trip with you, and we will certainly give your details if we ever we meet people who want to go to Costa Rica. We loved the country, the people and how we felt welcomed. In an ideal world, if we win the lottery tomorrow we leave right away to Costa Rica, with you :)

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Robert

Thursday 14th March, 2019

We had a fabulous trip. The rides and hotels all worked out quite well and everything went smoothy. Thank you for all your help. It made everything easier for us to enjoy our time and not be figuring it out as we go along.

We had a fabulous trip. The rides and hotels all worked out quite well and everything went smoothy. Thank you for all your help. It made everything easier for us to enjoy our time and not be figuring it out as we go along.

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Suzanne

Saturday 2nd February, 2019

Finishing up the BEST WEEK EVER with Alonso and Roberto. Thanks for your time, the beaches and especially for the magical arriabada (sea turtles nesting) Muchas gracias a mis amigos.

Finishing up the BEST WEEK EVER with Alonso and Roberto. Thanks for your time, the beaches and especially for the magical arriabada (sea turtles nesting) Muchas gracias a mis amigos.

Read more
  • Overnight stays with taxes included: 4 nights, in double occupancy with breakfasts in all hotels
  • Other meals per the itinerary
  • All point to point private transfers
  • Tours and entrance fees of programmed activities
  • Drive through Braulio Carrillo National Park
  • Transfer by boat to Boca Pacuare
  • Canal tours by boat in Boca Pacuare with a local guide
  • La Marta reserve with local guide and hike
  • Cooking lessons with a local family and lunch in Turrialba