Undiscovered Costa Rica Eight-Day Adventure

Majestic landscapes will set the scene as you venture off the beaten track with eight days in Costa Rica. Focused on La Amistad Biosphere Reserve and the Caribbean coast, this 8-day tour is privately guided and features a wonderful range of adventurous activities. While destinations like La Fortuna and Guanacaste only grow in popularity, this excursion will celebrate a Costa Rica that remains completely free of crowds. You will travel through the mist to explore the Talamanca Mountains, which is where wildlife hides away and seclusion is guaranteed, before taking to the river to explore indigenous territory, where local communities will welcome you with smiles and waves. You will then connect with Afro-Caribbean history, including gastronomy and dance.

As with all Costa Rica vacations, there will be plenty of activities and many different ways to explore the rainforest. You will be rappelling down waterfalls, riding ziplines and aerial tramways, crossing rivers on jungle hikes, and visiting communities that are only accessible by river. Along the coast, you will be snorkeling pristine reefs, learning to dance and cook with community matriarchs, and relaxing on private beaches. This 8-day adventure will not just be about the places you visit but the journey that you must make to get there. After every day in the rainforest, you will be staying at a boutique lodge perched above the world, where you can wallow in the country’s serenity.

After flying to San Jose, you will spend the first night in Costa Rica’s capital. The city center imparts a certain colonial charm and is an excellent place to meet your private naturalist guide. The same guide will accompany you throughout your eight days, and the first evening will help to ensure that you know exactly what is happening and where you will be going. Braulio Carrillo National Park is a lovely stop en route to La Amistad, where you can search for rainforest wildlife and ease into the Costa Rican adventure. You will check-in to your lodge in the biosphere reserve, where you can enjoy sublime views over the rainforest, and when the mist clears, you can even peer into Panama.

La Amistad is an international biosphere reserve that spans two countries and more protected hectares than anywhere else in Central America. With two full days in this uninterrupted wilderness, you can really immerse yourself in an adventure. Day three will involve a full day’s hike, crossing countless rivers and jumping into river pools along the way. On day four, you will go from the canopy zipline to horseback riding on the rainforest floor, which are the two perspectives that are likely to produce intimate encounters with some of Costa Rica’s rare species. Three nights is a minimum for this biosphere reserve because it can be challenging to get around. Now is an excellent time to enjoy the reserve before its accessibility is improved and the crowds arrive.

On day five, you will venture to the Caribbean coast, beginning with a morning of snorkeling in Cahuita National Park. The reefs and coral gardens are home to a fabulous variety of marine life from snappers and groupers to elkhorn coral and enormous sea fans. Puerto Viejo is your destination, and you will be staying on Cocles Beach, where the sand is quiet, and you can watch the sun rise from the sea. After snorkeling on day five, you will learn some Caribbean-style recipes during a cooking lesson with a community matriarch.

Connections with local culture and history will continue over your final two days. The Talamanca-Bribri indigenous territory can only be reached via a one and a half-hour motorized canoe trip down the Yorkin River. Deep in this territory, you will meet with local communities and learn all about the Bribri Indians, including their customs and mythology. These native communities contrast the culture of former Afro-Caribbean slaves, and on day seven, you will learn about their history before an afternoon of traditional dancing and laid-back beach time. That will still leave you with time to stop at a sloth refuge en route back to San Jose and your outbound flight.

Most Costa Rica vacations revolve around volcanos and the Pacific coastline. By going off the beaten track, you will discover nature that remains untouched and cultures that continue to be forgotten or overlooked. On this side of Costa Rica, you can still find luxury, and the lodges are spacious and sublime with their premium bring on location. They will immerse you in the rainforest, coastline, and in areas where there are very few other accommodation options and visitors. You will also be provided with a private and naturalist guide, so you can customize this itinerary to your energy and interests, including options to switch activities or to make each activity longer or shorter.