Palo Verde National Park Tour
This tour will introduce you to Palo Verde's wildlife as well as its indigenous culture. Have your camera handy as you search the riverbanks for monkeys, crocodiles, and a myriad of birds on this nature cruise through the Palo Verde National Park.
- Duration:
- 8 hrs
- Available Days:
- Sun Mon Wed
- Schedule:
- 7:00 AM
- Hotel Transport Included
- Mobile Ticket Included
- Offered in English, Spanish
After a scenic guided drive through Guanacaste's sabanero (cowboy) country, you'll hop into a boat and begin your cruise down the Tempisque River. Best known for its murky water and spectacular wetlands, this area acts as a sanctuary for both resident and migrating marine bird species.
Appropriately, this tour is a real treat for bird watchers, as you'll have the chance of spotting a wide range of fowl that includes storks, egrets, spoonbills, grebes and more. Also be on the lookout for monkeys, iguanas, scarlet macaws, anteaters, crocodiles and caimans, which can often be seen lingering along the banks of the river.
Your tour will continue to a rustic Costa Rican restaurant. While you eat a traditional meal you'll get to see a presentation on pottery made by the indigenous Guaitil people. You'll have the opportunity to take some of their one-of-a-kind pottery home with you.
This is an all day tour and ends by 2PM approximately, you will be back at your hotel by 3:30 - 4:00PM depending on where you are staying.
Important: A minimum of two people is required for booking.
Attraction Visited
This remote sanctuary for neotropical birds is located at the mouth of the murky Tempisque River where the sluggish waterway pushes sediment into the Gulf of Nicoya (Gulfo de Nicoya). A vast network of mangrove-rich swamp, lagoons, marshes, grassland, limestone outcrops, and forests comprise the 32,266 acre (13,058 ha) Palo Verde National Park. Flanking the Dr Rafael Lucas Rodriguez Caballero Wildlife Refuge and the Lomas Barbudal Biological Refuge to the south, the three parks encompass similar habitats that form the Tempisque Conservation Area (Area Conservacion Tempisque), along with Barra Honda National Park.
Read more:Palo Verde National Park
What to Bring
Camera, binoculars, sunscreen, shorts, and hat.
What's included
Naturalist guide, lunch and transportation.
Transportation
Many of our tours and activities offer transportation pick up & drop off options from several locations and destinations. Options vary by tour, see “BOOKING REQUEST” for full details.
Traveler Comments
One of the most fun tours we had. Our tour guide, Andy, spoke perfect English and showed us so many different animals, snakes, reptiles, and flora. He didn’t just show us but explained what it was, what it ate, predators, and basically how it functioned within the its environment. So fun and saw so much HIGHLY RECOMMENDED —Ask for Andy—you won’t miss anything.
Good park
Wonderful! We saw many animals such as macaws, crocodiles, howler monkeys, spider monkey, iguanas, basilisk and many different types of birds. Our tour guide Mario had a guide book of the animals to show us exactly what we were looking at. The boat driver, was referred to the eagle eye as he spotted so many of the animals. Lunch was served at a local ranch, the food was delicious and a traditional meal of Costa Rica. The ceramic art demonstration was also very interesting. The whole process was cool to watch.
Similar things to do
On this 1.5-hour tour you’ll explore the wetlands of Palo Verde in a covered boat. Your guides can tell you more about this complex habitat and point out the many species of rare birds that call this reserve home.
To learn about how far Costa Rica has come, you need to understand the nation's history. The Palo Verde Boat Expedition and Cultural Tour will teach you about the country's cowboy and agrarian history, as well as how this tradition influenced the emphasis Costa Rica now places on sustainability.
Enjoy the fruits of the sustainability movement when you explore protected wetlands. See a variety of animals in their native habitat. Don't worry, you'll have the opportunity to enjoy refreshments before your tour and after.
