Birding zone 5 of 5 · Macaw country, down to the Osa · Arrive San José (SJO)
From the Tárcoles River south to the Osa Peninsula: the wet Pacific. Carara National Park, where the dry forest of the north meets the wet forest of the south, is where we take people for Scarlet Macaws, and the mangrove boat on the Tárcoles adds the water birds the same day. Further south, the Osa and the Golfo Dulce are the wildest forest we sell.
It is the zone with the most lodges on our list, nineteen of them, because it holds three different trips: Carara and the Tárcoles an hour and three quarters from the San José airport, Bahía Ballena and Dominical in the middle, and the Osa and Piedras Blancas at the bottom, reached by the Golfito airstrip or a long day on the road.
Carara and the Tárcoles belong at the end of a Highlands trip. The Osa is a trip of its own, three or four nights, for the serious list.
The map
Each number is one of the places worth the mornings below; the small dots are the 19 lodges we use here.
Three more places here have their own page: Manuel Antonio National Park, the Wilson Botanical Garden at Las Cruces and the Golfito Wildlife Refuge.
Every place we send birders, in all five zones, is on one map: Costa Rica birding hotspots.
Fiery-billed AracariPteroglossus frantziiThe south Pacific: Uvita, Hacienda Barú, the San Isidro valley and north to Carara. All year.
Collared AracariPteroglossus torquatusRancho Naturalista's morning feeders, Carara, and the canopy at Rincón de la Vieja. All year.
Boat-billed HeronCochlearius cochleariusBy boat in the Tárcoles mangroves, and on the Tortuguero canals after dark. All year.
Keel-billed ToucanRamphastos sulfuratusCaribbean Lowlands and Arenal first, then Monteverde and the Tárcoles river. All year.
SunbitternEurypyga heliasThe river edges of Sarapiquí and Tortuguero, in the Caribbean lowlands. All year.
Northern JacanaJacana spinosaThe yellow-billed bird that walks on lily pads
Ornate Hawk-EagleSpizaetus ornatusHigh over unbroken forest, Turrialba foothills to the Golfo Dulce. All year, with a guide and some luck.
Riverside WrenCantorchilus semibadiusA loud, duetting wren of southern Pacific streams, from Carara to the Osa.The Scarlet Macaw first: loud, red, flying in pairs, and you hear them before you see them, over Carara at dawn and over the Golfo Dulce too. With it the Fiery-billed Aracari, the Pacific cousin of the Collared and a regional endemic, which gives La Cusinga its name, and the Collared Aracari itself at Carara where the two meet.
From the mangrove boat Boat-billed Heron and Keel-billed Toucan along the river, and on the lake at Macaw Lodge Sunbittern and Northern Jacana. In the south the Ornate Hawk-Eagle, the Riverside Wren, the Rusty-margined Flycatcher, and the birds found only on this stretch of the Pacific, every one carrying the official list's regional endemic flag: Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager, Baird's Trogon, Orange-collared Manakin, Golden-naped Woodpecker, Turquoise Cotinga and the Yellow-billed Cotinga of the mangroves.
In the San Isidro valley, Red-legged Honeycreeper and Slaty Spinetail at Talari, and Black Guan, Silver-throated Tanager and Red-fronted Parrotlet at Bosque del Tolomuco.
Each place below has its own page: the birds to look for, getting there, when to go and the lodges we use nearby.
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 placeBahía Ballena and the Marino Ballena park at Uvita: over 200 species on our lodge's hill, the Fiery-billed Aracari, whales from December to March.
See the place330 hectares of rainforest, mangrove and beach north of Dominical, 7 km of trails and a bird watching tower, and one of our lodges inside the refuge.
See the placePiedras Blancas National Park on the Golfo Dulce: over 35,000 acres of lowland wet forest, our lodge bordering it at La Gamba, 30 minutes from Golfito.
See the placeCorcovado and the Osa: 13 major ecosystems in one park, over 400 bird species, macaws and curassows on the trails, our lodges at Drake Bay and Dos Brazos.
See the placeLos Cusingos Bird Sanctuary and the El General valley around San Isidro: two of our lodges, over 200 species at one, Black Guan at the other.
See the placeManuel Antonio National Park: 680 hectares of rainforest, mangrove and beach with 184 bird species, walked with a qualified guide, and our trip there.
See the placeThe Wilson Botanical Garden at the Las Cruces research station near San Vito: over 400 bird species, 472 hectares in La Amistad, and our lodge there.
See the placeThe Golfito Wildlife Refuge on the Golfo Dulce: a hard hike with monkeys, sloths and tropical birds, macaws over the gulf, and our lodge at La Gamba.
See the placeNineteen of our lodges are in this zone, from a five-star hacienda at the edge of Carara to four rooms on the Tigre river: four round Carara and the Tárcoles, five between Dominical, Uvita and San Isidro, and ten on the Osa, the Golfo Dulce and up at San Vito. Each card says why birders stay there.
Photo: Aguila de Osa Inn
Drake Bay
An Exclusive Boutique Hotel in the Wilds of the Osa
★★★★
On a cliff above Drake Bay, with rooms set well apart for privacy, high cathedral ceilings and furniture handcrafted from local hardwoods. Our four-star choice for Corcovado and Caño Island.
Photo: Bosque del Rio Tigre Lodge
Puerto Jiménez
Situated on the Tigre River
★★★
Four rooms and at most 12 guests on the Tigre river at Dos Brazos, in the forest reserve that rings Corcovado, where the river and the howler monkeys are the only sound at night. The smallest lodge on this page, and the one for the serious list.
Photo: Bosque del Tolomuco
San Isidro de El General
Forest of the Tayra and Birdwatching Haven in Costa Rica's Southern Zone!
★★★
Gardens in the Talamanca foothills above San Isidro where Black Guan, Silver-throated Tanager and Red-fronted Parrotlet come in, with Los Cusingos Bird Sanctuary close by. Named for the tayra, the tolomuco, that lives in the forest here.
Photo: Cerro Lodge
Tárcoles
A Birder's Haven near Jaco Will Have You Seeing Red: The Stunning Scarlet Macaw!
★★★★
Ten bungalows and ten rooms on a ridge about 10 minutes from Carara, where scarlet macaws cross the valley in front of the hotel and about 150 species have been counted around it. "Macaws and fascinating hummingbirds on the feeders", in one client's words.
Photo: Corcovado Wilderness Lodge by SCP
Drake Bay
Rainforest villas and treehouses above a Drake Bay beach, next to Corcovado National Park
★★★★
On a 189-acre private reserve bordering Corcovado National Park, with early-morning forest-bird walks and canopy, shore and sea birds to look for.
Photo: Drake Bay Wilderness Resort
Drake Bay
Comfortable Accommodations near Corcovado & Cano Island at Drake Bay Resort!
★★★
The first hotel at Drake Bay, owner-run cabins at the water's edge with a dock instead of a wet beach landing, its own English-speaking guides and three meals a day, close to Corcovado National Park and Caño Island. Four of our recent birding itineraries stay here, and one client called it "our favorite" of the trip.
Photo: Esquinas Rainforest Lodge
Golfito
Immerse Youself in Nature!
★★★
Thirty minutes from the Golfito airstrip, on its own reserve bordering Piedras Blancas National Park, in the valley of La Gamba, with the Golfo Dulce forest at the door. The lodge we use to open the Osa and the Golfo Dulce without a long drive.
Photo: Hacienda Barú Lodge
Dominical
A Superb Lodge with Eco-Excellent Ethos in a Natural Reserve
★★★
A lodge inside the Barú National Wildlife Refuge just north of Dominical, 330 hectares of rainforest, mangrove and beach with 7 km of trails and a bird watching tower. "Lots of birds, butterflies, monkeys and sloths", as one reviewer put it, and the owner has written a book about the place.
Photo: Hotel Cristal Ballena
Uvita
Breath-taking Southern Pacific Ocean Seascapes in Your Paradise Oasis
★★★★
Nineteen suites on a hillside with a 180-degree view of Bahía Ballena, 30 acres of gardens round a 1,300 square foot pool, a spa, and Marino Ballena National Park within walking distance. The comfortable night in the south, between the forest lodges.
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.
Photo: La Cusinga Lodge
Uvita
★★★
High on a ridge over the Pacific inside a 250-hectare private reserve, named for the Fiery-billed Aracari, the cusinga, which lives in it. No air conditioning on purpose, hydro and solar power, and humpback whales in the bay below from December to March.
Photo: Lapa Rios Ecolodge
Cabo Matapalo
A Luxury Model Ecolodge
★★★★
A 1,000-acre private reserve at the tip of the Osa Peninsula, with more than 300 bird species claimed and an early outing made for birders: about two hours with a bilingual naturalist, binoculars and a spotting scope.
Photo: Las Cruces Biological Station
San Vito
A 4.5 hours drive away from San Jose
★★★
The Organization for Tropical Studies' research station near San Vito, close to the Panama border and home to the Wilson Botanical Garden, where the guides are biologists or naturalists. Meals are at set times with the scientists and students, a private deck looks over the gardens, and it is four and a half hours' drive from San José.
Photo: Macaw Lodge
Tárcoles
Beauty and Sustainability not far from the Tarcoles River
★★★★
A lake in front of the lodge and forest on two sides, between Carara and the Tárcoles bridge, with over 300 species on the lodge list, Sunbittern and Northern Jacana among them. Opened in 2011, and our clients mention the owner, Pablo, by name.
Photo: Playa Cativo Eco-Lodge
Golfo Dulce
A great opportunity and experience
★★★
A lodge on the Golfo Dulce where birdwatching is, in its own words, one of the most popular things guests do, with self-guided trails and mangrove kayaking that suits birders.
Photo: Playa Nicuesa Lodge
Golfo Dulce
A Pastoral Oasis in the Wilds of the Osa Peninsula
★★★
Reached only by boat, about half an hour from Golfito or Puerto Jiménez, with a resident naturalist and Piedras Blancas National Park next door. Trogons, a toucan and Orange-collared Manakin are among the birds guests are pointed to.
Photo: Santa Lucía Jungle Hacienda, Autograph Collection
Carara
A hacienda and colonial village on the riverbanks at the edge of Carara National Park
★★★★★
The old Villa Lapas, reopened as Santa Lucía Jungle Hacienda, an Autograph Collection hotel, on the riverbank at the edge of Carara National Park near Tárcoles, where scarlet macaws cross over the grounds. The same birding ground we have used for years, with a five-star hotel on it now.
Photo: Talari Mountain Lodge
San Isidro de El General
Explore a Birdwatching Paradise Far Away from the Crowds!
★★★
Fourteen rooms on 5 hectares of gardens and fruit trees by the Chirripó river, 5 km from San Isidro, with over 200 species recorded on the land, Red-legged Honeycreeper and Slaty Spinetail among them. Two km of trails up from the river, and a pool for the afternoon.
Photo: Tiskita Jungle Lodge
Golfo Dulce
Escape the city
★★★
A family-run lodge on 800 acres above the Golfo Dulce, more than 90 percent forest, with over 15 kilometres of trails and about 200 bird species recorded at or near the lodge. Guided naturalist walks, including after dark.
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