Wildlife of Costa Rica & Caribbean Coast

After included VIP airport lounge access, you'll board your flight and arrive in the capital to transfer to your hotel, the charming Finca Rosa Blanca. This is eco-luxury at its best, situated on the grounds of a sustainable coffee plantation just half an hour from the capital San José in a protected cloud forest. Perhaps take the coffee and cupping tour through the organic coffee farm before sampling the goods yourself, and in the evening, indulge in a massage at the onsite spa El Tagua Wellness Retreat. Dinner can be enjoyed on an open-air terrace or in a private dining room, with chefs using ingredients from the local greenhouses and gardens to ensure fresh flavours.

Enjoy a private transfer to Monteverde and spend the next two days exploring the spectacular forest. This mountainous jungle in the clouds has myriad trails through thick canopies of ferns and orchids along with misty suspended bridges – the eight that make up the canopy treetop create a walkway that reaches altitudes of 180 feet. You'll also discover one of the world's largest live butterfly exhibitions and embark on a night-time wildlife hike that affords chances to witness bats, insects, birds and nocturnal mammals, with fireflies and phosphorescent mushrooms glowing among the nighttime mist.

Stay: Monteverde Lodge & Gardens (Superior)

Today you'll take a private transfer by road and across the lake to the foothills of the spectacular Arenal volcano, a magnificent stratovolcano surrounded by lava fields and transitional forest (a combination of rainforest and cloud forest). Take advantage of the area and eponymous national park with an included volcano hike, fishing in the lake, and explore the surrounding area with visits to the Tabacon hot springs and La Fortuna waterfall, as well as night walks, hanging bridges, caves, canyoning, horse riding, and a wealth of other optional activities. 

After breakfast, you'll transfer to the spectacular Pacuare Lodge, tucked away in a steep gorge, deep in rainforest-covered mountains on the banks of the Pacuare River. For the adventurous, it's one of the best places in Costa Rica to go white-water rafting – there's even the option of arrival by raft of you choose – or there's a vast array of alternative excursions, from bird watching tours to indigenous hikes. Exquisite suites blend perfectly with outside's verdant roof, from riverside villas with personal spring-fed swimming pools to cabins high in the rainforest canopy. 

After breakfast in the lodge, you'll head to your luxury accommodation for the next four nights. You'll be situated just moments from beautiful beaches framed by Caribbean jungle and the next few days will see you explore the rugged coast that surrounds you, from included kayaking tours to hikes among the spectacular azure-framed peninsula of Punta Uva. You'll traverse a coast comprised of rocky cliffs, deep caves and verdant rainforest, spotting monkeys, sloths, river turtles, bats and iguanas among the dense canopy as you're led by an expert guide. You'll also enjoy a half-day Native Cultural Immersion tour where you'll learn about the Bri Bri indigenous territories, their customs, languages, traditions, methods of cultivation, medicinal plants, and about the chocolate making process.

Stay: Aguas Claras Hotel (Superior)

Enjoy a private transfer back to San José and head to your hotel, Grano de Oro, a spectacular converted mansion featuring grand lobbies, two outdoor Jacuzzis and a charming terrace restaurant that offers fresh French Mediterranean-inspired dishes complemented with wines from their award-winning cellar. 

After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your flight home on day 13, arriving on day 14. Or, you could extend your trip with a visit to the northwest coast of Guanacaste, where rugged beaches and dense, biodiverse forest are wonderfully explored with diving and surfing. Or head south to the remote Osa Peninsula for more wildlife spotting alongside stays in luxury eco-lodges.