Costa Rica Gardens Tour

8 days / 7 nights in a tropical paradise

all meals included

SPECIFIC DATES AND PRICING INFORMATION COMING SOON!

DAY 1:  Miami - San José, Costa Rica (D)

Arrange own flight to Miami airport.  Board your flight for Costa Rica at TBA, departing at TBA and arriving at Juan Santamaria International Airport in Alajuela at TBA.  Your friendly Tico guide and driver will be awaiting you as you exit the baggage claim area.  Welcome to Costa Rica!

You'll be transferred by private, air-conditioned coach to Bougainvillea Hotel, situated amidst the coffee fields of Santo Domingo de Heredia, just fifteen minutes from San José, the nation's capital.  Check-in and the rest of the day is free to settle in and relax.  Your hotel has extensive gardens with lush tropical plants for you to enjoy as an introduction to Costa Rican botany, such as heliconias, air plants, birds of paradise and bromelias.

Enjoy a "Welcome Dinner" in the hotel's gourmet restaurant, known for its fine international cuisine.  Fresh flowers from the garden will have found their way indoors to grace your table as you savor your first Costa Rican dinner.

DAY 2:  InBioparque, San José City Tour (B, L, D)

After breakfast at the hotel, we'll drive a short distance to InBioparque, Costa Rica's National Institute of Biodiversity.  InBioparque was created to promote awareness of the value of biodiversity and the importance of its conservation.  We'll watch a brief introductory video to Costa Rica,  take a guided walk down the trails, and enjoy a stimulating light-show presentation on the country's national parks.  While here, you'll also have a chance to explore the park's butterfly garden, lagoon, aquarium, and farm. The farm is a recent addition including 12 plots planted with vegetables, medicinal plants, aromatic plants, flower and foliage, timber trees and fruit trees.  Buffet lunch is included at InBioparque.

This afternoon we'll take a tour of the capital city of San José.  The tour will include stops at the National Theater and the Gold and Jade Museums.

We'll have dinner at Tiquicia, a restaurant with a magnificent view overlooking the San José area, before returning to the hotel for the evening.

DAY 3:  Lankester Botanical Gardens, Cartago, Tehran gardens & SACRO (B, L, D)

We'll have breakfast at the hotel, then board the bus for a day trip to Cartago.  Situated fifteen miles south-east of San José, Cartago is the oldest town and former capital of the country.  Our first stop will be to Lankester Botanical Gardens, where we'll spent the morning meandering along the 2km of trails that wind through this 11 hectare property.  Founded in the 1950's by British naturalist Charles H. Lankester, the gardens are internationally recognized for their vast collection of epiphytes.

Next we'll visit the Basilica de Nuestra Señora de los Angeles, the most famous and unique church in the country.  Every year on August 2nd, thousands of Costa Ricans make a pilgrimage to this church to pay homage to the Virgin black Madonna, known as "La Negrita," to whom the faithful pray for cures and miracles.

We'll have lunch at a restaurant in Cartago, and then you may enjoy a little free time to do some shopping.

This afternoon we'll visit the home of Mrs. Ilena Tehran, whose gardens are perhaps the most enchanting in all of Costa Rica.  Tehran is founder of SACRO (Save Costa Rica's Orchids), an organization dedicated to maintaining natural habitats where orchids grow wild.  Scores of orchid species are endangered, and some species have never been identified.  We'll walk through the sprawling property on stone paved trails leading past colorful blooms and stop at a water garden with a fountain made from colonial relics.  Every inch of terrain abounds with impressive species - there is no grass in the garden.  Let Ileana tour you around and tell you stories about how the garden came to be.  Each plant has a story behind it.  Then sit down for coffee and enjoy views of birds and butterflies attracted by the sweet essence of tropical nectar.

Return to your hotel for dinner and overnight.

DAY 4:  Aerial Tram, National Orchid Show (B, L, D)

This morning after breakfast, we'll experience the Rain Forest Aerial Tram in Braulio Carillo National Park, about an hour from San José.  This gondola tour takes place on a modified ski lift which covers a distance of 2.6 kilometers through primary rainforest.  The tram ride lasts about an hour and twenty minutes, during which time you will be able to view the sub canopy (middle part of the forest), the upper canopy and its hanging gardens.  The rainforest canopy is one of the least seen and most complex communities on the planet.  In their eagerness to find light and open space, many plants have colonized the treetops, turning them into highly complex living ecosystems.  Colorful flowers and an amazing array of shades of green have created a unique, symbiotic relationship with each other in order to capture precious sunlight.  This beautiful world cannot be seen from the forest floor, but it is yours to enjoy from the safely and comfort of the Rain Forest Aerial Tram!

Return to San José and have lunch at a local restaurant.

This afternoon we'll head to the San Pedro Mall for the first day of the National Orchid Show.  Here you will find over 1500 local and foreign species and hybrids on display!

Dinner and overnight at the hotel.

DAY 5:  La Paz Waterfall Gardens, Arenal (B, L, D)

After breakfast at the hotel, we'll check out and depart for the Arenal area.  Along the way, we'll stop at a folk market for an opportunity to buy souvenirs.  We'll spend the morning at La Paz Waterfall Gardens.  With over 3.5km of walking trails, there is much to see here!  Not only are there five picturesque waterfalls, but the Gardens are also home to the largest butterfly observatory in the world, spanning the length of a football field and reaching heights of 50 feet!  In addition, there is a hummingbird garden which attracts some 24 different species of the bird, as well as an orchid house.  While here, we'll enjoy a delicious buffet lunch with a four fork rating from the Costa Rica Tourist Council.

We'll continue on to La Fortuna area and check in to Volcano Lodge, a lovely hotel with beautifully landscaped grounds directly facing the Arenal Volcano.  Arenal Volcano had lain dormant for hundreds of years, until in 1968 it surprisingly erupted, destroying the nearby town of Tabacon and killing 80 people. Since this eruption, the 5,358 ft. Arenal has been Costa Rica's most active volcano with daily blasts of lava.

Later today we'll go to Ecotermales Fortuna, a private resort owned by the Hidalgo family.  The family has built a hot spring swimming pool, with water entering the pool from one end and flowing out the other to continue on down the river.  Relax in this luxurious setting as the hot spring mineral waters treat you to a natural massage - truly a paradise on earth!  Our host, Doña Mireya, will prepare a delicious Costa Rican cuisine dinner for us in her rustic kitchen.

Return to Volcano Lodge for overnight.

DAY 6:  Arenal Hanging Bridges, Arenal Lake (B, L, D)

This morning enjoy a typical Costa Rican breakfast at the lodge.  Then we'll visit the Arenal Hanging Bridges, a tourist project consisting of paths and bridges built with the objective of maintaining the utmost harmony between man-made structures and nature.  The trails, which have a maximum grade of 7 degrees, will take you over eight fixed bridges and six hanging bridges.  You will get to see a great diversity of flora and fauna on your guided walk, as you experience the beauty and peacefulness of the rainforest.

We'll have lunch at Volcano Lodge.

This afternoon we'll take a boat tour on the Arenal Lake.  The largest and most important lake in Costa Rica, it was man-made in 1974 to provide hydro-electric energy for the country.  During this two-hour boat ride, you'll have the opportunity to observe many different species of birds, such as flycatchers and kingfishers, as well as mammals like monkeys and sloths along the shoreline.

Dinner and overnight at Volcano Lodge.

DAY 7:  Nectandra Institute and Cloud Forest Garden, Café Britt Coffee Tour (B, L, D)

Breakfast at the hotel, then check-out and we'll drive to the Nectandra Institute and Cloud Forest Garden.  The garden is the centerpiece of 104 hectares of primary and secondary forest.  With few exceptions, most of the plants featured in the horticulturally developed area are from the preserve and its immediate surroundings.  Some of the plants in the design are included as pure aesthetic elements, others for their importance in medicinal, indigenous and cultural uses.    Beyond the confines of the garden, the remaining protected biological preserve is restricted to scientific field research carried out by their affiliate non-profit organization, the Nectandra institute.  Current scientific activities include systematic botanic inventory, preparation and identification into the variables influencing natural reforestation in cloud forests.

We'll have lunch at a local restaurant.

Continue to San José, check-in to the hotel and enjoy your last evening in Costa Rica!  This evening we'll take the Coffee Tour at Café Britt, after which you'll have a chance to buy some coffee and browse the gift shop for your last minute shopping!  Enjoy a delicious "Farewell Dinner" at Café Britt.

Overnight at Bougainvillea Hotel.

DAY 8:  San José - Miami (B)

Departure day!  Enjoy your last Tico breakfast before checking out of the hotel.  You'll be transferred to the airport for your departure flight.  Make sure you have money for your departure tax [currently USD$26].  Your guide will accompany you to the airport to say "Gracias y adios!"

Board flight TBA, arriving at Miami International Airport at TBA.