Costa Rica Birding Tour

• Lots of high quality, exciting birding in relatively easy conditions
• Amazingly high diversity in such a small area, in comfortable surroundings and protected areas
• Expect 400+ bird species

Tour Overview

“Pura Vida” is Costa Rica’s unofficial national slogan—you’ll hear it instead of hola or gracias. It means Pure Life and it’s an apt moniker for this vibrant country, only the size of West Virginia or Nova Scotia but holding some of the highest levels of biodiversity on the planet. Indeed, with over 900 bird species recorded, and half-a-million other animal types, it is a compact ecological treasure chest begging to be opened. As a long-time tourism operator in Costa Rica we open up this world to our guests, providing an extensive outing that covers most of the country’s ecosystems. On our Costa Rica birding tour, we include two less-accessible hotspots not included in the Costa Rica Sampler tour— the Osa Peninsula and the Caño Negro wetlands—so birders and naturalists can observe a larger proportion of the country’s avifauna. If nothing else, this itinerary offers more time simply out birding, and should satiate even the most intrepid naturalists! Around 450 species is the norm for our checklist.

Only a few days into the trip you’ll discover why Costa Rica is a naturalist’s dream. We take you beyond the brochure-cover waterfalls and beaches, to hidden hotspots known only to our guides. Beyond the avian gems, the scenery is still breathtaking at these sites, too. Costa Rica with western Panama is a major centre of avian endemism, with nearly 70 species found nowhere else! Resplendent Quetzal is high on our list of target birds, but we also search for rarities like King Vulture, Cabanis’s Ground-Sparrow, Unspotted Saw-whet Owls and Hook-billed Kites, often using our connections with conservation projects and local farmers. We, in turn, support Costa Rica’s extensive conservation network through our visit.

Join us in the Talamanca Mountains, the Caribbean foothills, the Osa Peninsula, and other venues as we explore all of what Costa Rica has to offer, from birds to everything else, including the “Pura Vida” culture!