The Wanderlust guide to the best of Costa Rica
Home of the sloth but not for the slothful, Costa Rica is paradise for nature lovers and adrenaline junkies alike. Here’s everything you need to know…
Costa Rica is so rich in wildlife that you’d think it had a monopoly on nature. Home to howling monkeys, toucans, butterflies, hummingbirds, colourful frogs and leatherback turtles, more than 25% of Costa Rica is protected in national parks and reserves.
In the far north-west of Costa Rica the dry forests of Guanacaste are a Unesco Natural World Heritage site. Further south, the beaches of Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula are hidden in secluded coves, while on the central Pacific coast, the laid-back hangout of Jacó is a magnet for sun-worshippers.
In the mountain ranges dividing the Caribbean from the Pacific, the mighty Arenal volcano spews and splutters lava into the Costa Rican night sky.
Twitchers will love the coastal mangroves around Tortuguero, a huge national park comprising coast and jungle-fringed waterways teaming with bird and insect life. And for some of the best rainforest trekking in Latin America, head to Corcovado National Park on the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica’s most remote and possibly most rewarding wilderness.
Looking for inspiration?
Mark Stratton took two-weeks to cycle, raft and walk from Costa Rica’s Pacific cast to its Caribbean one. You probably won’t want to traverse 273 kilometres in his footsteps, but you’ll appreciate his tips and advice on the varied corners of the country.
Costa Rica has been described as a ‘mother lode of eco-diversity’, home to 800 species of birds, 220 reptiles and 10,000 plant species as well as well as jaguars, peccaries and countless monkeys. It is also home to the endangered olive ridley turtle, and Mark Eveleigh travelled to the remote Nancite Beach to witness the incredibly rare arribada (‘coming up’), where the turtles come ashore to lay their eggs.
Finally, Alex Robinson ventured to Costa Rica to test its eco-credentials, and found that it is possible to take a long-haul trip that gives more to planet earth than it takes away.
More information
Crossing Costa Rica with manpower – Mark Stratton
Turtle-watching in Costa Rica – Mark Eveleigh
The Costa Rica conundrum – Alex Robinson
