Available to Club Members Only.
Corcovado is located in Costa Rica’s South Pacific region in the Osa Peninsula. National Geographic describes it as the “most biologically intense place on Earth in terms of biodiversity.” It contains over five percent of the world’s animal population and is a perfect location for nature lovers.
Our comfort category features Corcovado Wilderness Lodge, set in 170 acres of private grounds. The lodge offers premium accommodation and is the closest lodge to the national park. Accommodation is in bungalows scattered throughout the gardens. You'll have your own sitting area, en-suite bathroom, and chairs and hammocks on the veranda. Traditional cuisine is offered at Los Vitrales restaurant and there is a thatched, open-sided bar where you'll see fabulous sunsets.
Day 1. Arrive
Upon your arrival in San Jose, you will be met and transferred to the Hilton Garden Inn Santa Ana or similar.
Day 2. Flight San Jose to Drake Bay and Corcovado Wilderness Lodge (B,L,D)
Breakfast. You will be transferred from your hotel to San Jose airport for a Sansa flight from San Jose to Drake Bay, approximately 50 minute flight. On arrival, you will be met and transferred to the Corcovado Wilderness Lodge.
Day 3 - 5 Corcovado National Park at Corcovado Wilderness Lodge (B,L,D)
Your package includes three amazing full-day tours to San Pedrillo Station inside the National Park, Cano Island with snorkeling, and another day to visit Sirena Ranger Station deep within the park.
You can spot species of birds like scarlet macaws and search for rare harpy eagles. there are tapirs, crocodiles, and all 4 species of monkeys found in Costa Rica - the howler monkeys, spider monkeys, the white-faced capuchin, and squirrel monkeys. White-lipped Peccaries, amphibians like the red-eyed tree frog, anteaters, sloths, jaguars and pumas (unlikely, but not impossible) also make their home in these tropical jungles. You can also go snorkeling or diving Cano Island off the Osa Peninsula and spot marine life such as rays, sea turtles, reef and bull sharks, moray eels, and dolphins, as well as an array of corals. Corcovado National Park is the nature lovers best friend. Even experienced beach lovers will be amazed by the incredible Corcovado beaches.
San Pedrillo Station Corcovado National Park Hike: Corcovado is the last remaining Pacific lowland rainforest of sustainable size in Central America and has been called “the most biologically intense place on earth” by no less an authority than the National Geographic Society. Here among Costa Rica’s largest trees can be found Central America’s densest populations of tapir, jaguar and scarlet macaws.
Constrained within this tropical wilderness is an immense biodiversity and this will be your chance to explore it. Starting out from the lodge with your naturalist guide you journey into Corcovado National Park. The cool morning hours offer a good opportunity to spot wildlife and to observe some of the incredible variety of birds that abound in the park. Along the trail your guide will have a chance to tell you some of the fascinating stories about life in the rainforest and point many things out to you. Later, coming down through the forest you will find a river and then discover an incredible waterfall. Now is your chance to cool off in one of the shaded pools of the rushing river. Afterwards, you wind your way down the river until reaching the Park Station at San Pedrillo.
Caño Island Boat & Snorkeling Tour: South into the Osa Peninsula, you will find one of the most unique protected jewels in Costa Rica, the famous Caño Island. This island is located on the continental Pacific platform, 16 km northwest of Corcovado National Park in the province of Puntarenas. The island's extensive coral population is a hot spot for diving and snorkeling. It is also famous for hosting several months of the year migrant humpback whales from the northern and southern hemispheres and several populations of resident species of dolphins. Caño Island was once an important ceremonial site and burial ground for the pre-Colombian Indigenous Tribes. Probably they abandoned the area when pirates began arriving in the mid-16th century. The island has no facilities, and visitors' access to the interior is prohibited. However, the boat can take you close to the shore, and you are welcome to stroll along the beach.
Sirena Ranger Station Corcovado National Park: Sirena ranger station is situated in the heart of Corcovado National Park and is the only station situated on the Corcovado plain, where wildlife is more easily observed. The trails surrounding the Sirena ranger station offer some of the best opportunities in Costa Rica for wildlife viewing. The tour starts after breakfast when you and your guide will meet a chartered boat at the beach. The boat trip, heading south along a beautiful stretch of coast, will take approximately an hour and a half. When the boat arrives there will be a beach landing after which you can decide at what time to break for lunch at the ranger station and which of the trails you are going to explore.
The Guanacaste Trail begins just 600 meters from the ranger station. Approximately 2 km. long, this trail has earned its name from the large number of Guanacaste trees found along the trail. Relatively flat and easy to navigate, the trail initially winds through primary rainforest, which is very dense and possesses taller, older trees. Later, as it nears the Sirena River, it enters into secondary rainforest, where the canopy is noticeably thinner and low lying. There are several rivers and/or streams to cross, leaving the trail quite muddy in low-lying areas, particularly during the rainy season. The hike along the Guanacaste trail takes approximately 1 hour to complete, which will bring you right down to the Sirena River.
The Espuvellas trail, is 2.5 km. long and runs through primary rainforest behind the Sirena Ranger Station. This trail is also quite flat, easy to navigate and crosses several small streams and/or rivers. The canopy overhead is very thick, with little direct sunlight reaching the trail floor. To complete the entire trail, one should expect to hike for approximately 2 hours.
The Rio Claro trail is only 1 km long and connects the ranger station to the beach area, just to the right of the Claro River. The initial portion of this trail is very different than the two previous trails. The canopy overhead is very thin, and the trail has a much more coastal or beach-like feel to it. The first half of the trail is lined with beautiful heliconia plants and colorful berry trees, some of which hang overhead. The ground in this section is considerably drier due to the direct sunlight that hits the trail. Near the midway point of the trail the rainforest becomes denser and begins to resemble the Guanacaste and Espuvellas trails. You will, for a short time, need to straddle a river than runs adjacent to the trail, which can get muddy and wet during the rainy season. Your hike comes to an end as the trail reaches the park station, after approximately 30 minutes of hiking.
To complete these three trails, one should expect to hike for approximately 3.5 - 4 hours, but much depends on the weather, trail conditions and your interest level, you will need time as the rainforest is a very complex community of living organisms, with so much to see.
Day 6 Flight to San Jose (B)
Morning at the lodge. late morning transfer to the Drake Bay airport for the flight to San Jose. Trip concludes, or add an extension.
Due to room and lodge upgrades and renovations scheduled for the Fall of 2023, the price increase for 2024 will be approximately 6%
Included: domestic air San Jose to Drake Bay return, transportation and guide services; accommodation in Deluxe bungalow in Corcovado Wilderness Lodge based on double occupancy (unless indicated otherwise), applicable taxes; meals as indicated where B=breakfast, L=lunch, D=dinner.
