Duration: 3 days/2 nights
Price 2012: $575 per person (based on double occupancy), single supplement $ 105
Departs: Daily with a minimum of 2 participants

Poas Volcano

This tour combines visits to an active steaming volcano, a beautiful lush and cool mountain cloud forest, and an operating sugar mill in farming communities founded by Quakers and Costa Ricans- each a unique experience!

• Day 1: Poas Volcano, Monteverde
• Day 2: Monteverde Reserve, Sugar Mill and Coffee Tour
• Day 3: To San Jose, departure or beach extension

Day 1: POAS VOLCANO; TRANSFER TO MONTEVERDE

Morning pick-up for scenic drive to Poas Volcano National Park, a high elevation park at 9,000 feet, it is often chilly so bring a jacket! The active volcano’s main crater is one of the widest and deepest in the world and has a turquoise-colored hot-acid lake which you can see from the fenced-edge or a viewing platform at the crater’s rim. Bring binoculars for a closer look at the yellow sulphur deposits at the base of steaming fumaroles in the crater walls above the lake. The vegetation is in places dwarfed by winds and the effects of volcanic acid rain!

If time permits, Botos Lake, an ancient extinct crater lake surrounded by highland forest in the park is worth seeing following a 20 to 30 minute uphill hike on trails within a picturesque “elfin” forest. After exploring Poas Park, continue on to Monteverde. As you journey to Monteverde you will pass through small Costa Rican villages and coffee and dairy farms. You will be arriving to Monteverde in the afternoon.

Monteverde is both a community and forest reserve. The world-famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve protects a mountain forest characterized by majestic trees densely covered by thick, wet and heavy “carpets” of epiphytes, including orchids and wild relatives of familiar tropical house plants – philodendrons, ferns and ficus trees.

The beautiful Resplendent Quetzal spends about ½ the year here and the forest is home to hundreds of other bird and mammal species.This private reserve has been intensely studied by scientists since its founding in 1972, and is the site of important pioneering research on the effects of climate change in tropical ecosystems. Several resident biologists are renowned experts on tropical bats, plants and amphibians. The reserve staff strives to educate international as well as local students about ecology and the importance of its conservation, and the reserve serves as an example of how a protected forest can be of great value to the region’s residents.

The communities outside the reserve include Monteverde, Cerro Plano, and Santa Elena. The small mountain farms of these towns are owned by “campesinos” (country farmers) who grow a small variety of crops. The most important farm products are organic coffee (which can be purchased in local stores) and milk for the local Monteverde Cheese Factory. The factory has been producing a variety of high-quality cheeses in Costa Rica since shortly after Quakers from the United States settled the area in 1950´s. Many visitors and local residents visit the cheese factory to buy cheese or enjoy their delicious milk shakes and ice cream! Near and around the community centers, a large selection of restaurants, and other visitor attractions are found, such as butterfly gardens, horse rentals, treetop forest canopy tours, an orchid garden, art galleries, and an excellent educational bat exhibit among others.

Hotel: Fonda Vela
Meals Incl: 2B

Day 2: MONTEVERDE RESERVE; SUGAR MILL & COFFEE TOUR

Coffee Tour

In the morning you will visit the Trapiche (‘sugar mill’) and coffee farm, that first began operation in 1948. The Monteverde Trapiche is run by a local family, and on your tour you will not only learn about the local process of making sugar, but also about the other most important agricultural products of the region. Your tour will be partly ‘hands-on,’ and your hosts may invite you to participate in the processing of the sugar cane! You will also have a short walk on the farm and see how tilapia fish are raised, and also learn about the production of coffee (and if in season, pick some). Following your walk, you will then take a ride back to the main building in a traditional farm ox cart! There you will enjoy a refreshment of sugar cane juice or lemonade, eat picadillo de arracache (a typical Costa Rican food) and make candy out of sugar cane (everyone makes their own candy!).

After lunch enjoy a guided visit to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, entrance fee included. Located in the Tilaran Mountain Range of Puntarenas Province, the Reserve is one of the premier natural history destinations in Costa Rica. Later in the afternoon the forest may be cool and misty from low cloud cover, so bring a light jacket for your walk. The forest consists of lush, verdant vegetation containing understory palms, majestic canopy trees, arching “ropy” lianas, bizarre “strangler” fig trees and epiphytes-small plants that grow on the trees. Outstanding among the epiphytes are orchids-although most are small and high in the tree canopy, more orchid species are found in Monteverde for its size than any other place yet known (some 500!). As you walk through the forest, you may encounter a variety of wildlife. Frequently-sighted mammals include white-faced capuchin and howler monkeys, white-nosed coatis, two-toed sloths, kinkajous, and agoutis. Of the 400 bird species found in or nearby the reserve, outstanding species you may see include the legendary crimson and iridescent-green Resplendent Quetzal (which spends about ½ the year in the area during its breeding season from February or March to July), Emerald Toucanets, Black guans, Keel-billed toucans, Blue-crowned Motmots, Orange-bellied Trogons, Three-wattled Bellbirds (approximately April to August), and hummingbirds such as Purple-throated Mountain-gems, Violet Sabrewings, and Magenta-throated Woodstars. The wonderful songs of many of these birds will accompany you as you travel through the forest.

Day 3: TRANSFER TO SAN JOSE (OR BEACH EXTENTION)

Manuel Antonio

Explore the main community of the area, Santa Elena, before going back to San Jose or being transferred to the beach or other destination. You may just want to take advantage of banks and supermarkets or visit the local cheese factory, women’s cooperative (CASEM) or one of the many art and craft galleries to purchase some souvenirs or gifts for the folks back home. Local coffee, wood sculptures, embroidered clothing, and paintings by resident artists are just some of the offerings available.

Included: As specified in the above itinerary, arrival, lodging, transportation within Costa Rica, meals [B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner], specified entrance fees to National Parks & Private Reserves, bilingual naturalist licensed guide services, ground operator support within Costa Rica 24/7, and taxes.

Not Included: International airfare, airport departure taxes, meals not specified in the itinerary, alcoholic beverages, personal equipment, extras in hotels (laundry, phone calls, room service), gratuities, or costs associated with changes in your itinerary for reasons beyond our control.