Scarlet MacawPhoto: ondrejprosicky
Central and Southern Pacific Lowlands
Punta Leona is a private reserve on the coast between Carara and Manuel Antonio, and the hotel describes its forest as one of the few left in the transition between the dry northwest and the wet southwest. That forest runs down to the hotel's own white sand beach.
What sets it apart from the other lodges around Carara is the macaw work. A Scarlet Macaw conservation project at Punta Leona has used artificial nests since 1994, scientists from Texas A&M University began new studies of the birds' breeding in October 2021, and a camera on a nest streams around the clock.
The hotel has recorded over 330 species of birds. Carara itself is about 16 km away on our map, for the mornings the reserve does not cover, and the family gets the beach and three pools.
The reserve has three marked trails and natural feeding stations for birds, hummingbirds among them. A guided bird walk of about an hour and a half leaves reception shortly after six with a bilingual guide, for a group of no more than twelve, and there is a guided night walk on some evenings; both have to be booked ahead. The macaw project has its own site and a live nest camera, so a birder can watch the nest before seeing the birds.
Photo: Hotel Punta Leona
Punta Leona
Private white sand beach
★★★
A beach resort in one of the country's last transition forests, where the wet Pacific forest meets the dry, just before Jacó and 45 minutes from the San José airport. A private white sand beach, three pools, and Carara and the Tárcoles river a short drive away: the lodge for a birder travelling with a family.
The Scarlet Macaw first, the bird the reserve's project exists for, and the one most likely to fly over the beach. The hotel names no other species, so the rest come from the forest a short drive away at Carara: Collared Aracari and the Fiery-billed Aracari, a regional endemic, where the two forests meet, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Graceful Black-throated Trogon and the King Vulture overhead.
On the Tárcoles boat, the Boat-billed Heron in the mangroves and the Keel-billed Toucan crossing the river.
| English | Scientific | Spanish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scarlet Macaw | Ara macao | Guacamayo Rojo | |
| Collared Aracari | Pteroglossus torquatus | Tucancillo Collarejo | |
| Fiery-billed Aracari | Pteroglossus frantzii | Tucancillo Piquianaranjado | Regional endemic |
| Slaty-tailed Trogon | Trogon massena | Trogón Coliplomizo | |
| Graceful Black-throated Trogon | Trogon tenellus | Trogón Cabeciverde | |
| King Vulture | Sarcoramphus papa | Zopilote Rey | |
| Boat-billed Heron | Cochlearius cochlearius | Pico Cuchara | |
| Keel-billed Toucan | Ramphastos sulfuratus | Tucán Pico Iris |
Punta Leona is big enough to need its own transport: a shuttle runs between the rooms, pools, restaurants and the two beaches. The Selvamar rooms sit in the forest about 800 m from Playa Mantas, with the Superior rooms adding a balcony over the garden. Families and groups take the apartments, some sleeping up to 8 with sea views. A day here mixes an early walk on the trails, the beach, a pool in the afternoon heat and dinner at one of the restaurants. There is a small supermarket on site, and the tap water is safe to drink.
Meals. several restaurants (not named on the FAQ). The resort is not all-inclusive; some stays include meals.
Perfect for: a family where the kids want two beaches and a parent wants trails at dawn.
Where the dry Pacific forest meets the wet, and where we take birders for Scarlet Macaws: the birds, the lodges nearby and the trips that end here.
See the placeThe Tárcoles River and its mangroves by boat, below Carara: Boat-billed Heron, toucans and egrets, crocodiles under the bridge, our lodges and the trips.
See the placeWant to add a luxury stay to your trip? See every hotel we represent on CostaRica.Org (opens in a new window). We plan birding lodges and beach resorts in one trip.
Tell us the birds you want, your dates and how you like to travel, and we will come back with a first itinerary: the lodges in the right order and how many nights each one really needs. That first version is just a place to start.
Or call us: 1 (800) 996-1139 from the US and Canada, +506 4052-2140 in Costa Rica.
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