North America
COSTA RICA – The Forest Jewel of Central America
A Nicaraguan Grackle in full display mode at Cano Negro (image by Inger Vandyke)
Wild Scarlet Macaw (image by Inger Vandyke)
Although they are not traditionally from Costa Rica, Pink Torch Ginger flowers are grown by many lodges and are great photography subjects (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Spiny Lizard is another of Costa Rica's forest dragons (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning Resplendent Quetzals are the true sylphs of the cloud forests in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a male Crested Guan (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning yellow morph of Eyelash Viper on a Heliconia flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Slaty Flowerpiercers have evolved with a quirky bill designed to pierce the base of flowers to get right at the nectar! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Buff-throated Saltator (image by Inger Vandyke)
Sunrise on the Rio Frio in remote Costa Rica, close to the border of Nicaragua (image by Inger Vandyke)
Cheeky White-nosed Coati (image by Inger Vandyke)
A wild Eyelash Viper curled up on a palm frond in the rainforest (image by Inger Vandyke)
King Vultures would have to be the most beautiful vulture in the world (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Neotropic Cormorant tussles with its dinner of Tchupapiela in Cano Negro (image by Inger Vandyke)
There's only one thing better than one King Vulture and that's a pair (image by Inger Vandyke)
Cheeky White-nosed Coatis trade on their adorable personalities as fun photography subjects in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Eyelash Viper showing off those beautiful eyes (image by Inger Vandyke)
The elegant aigrette feathers of a Great Egret (image by Inger Vandyke)
Fiery-throated Hummingbirds face off over females (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Splendid Tree Frog walks the leaves (image by Inger Vandyke)
Beautiful Ornate Hawk Eagle female (image by Inger Vandyke)
Side view of an Eyed Silk Moth Caterpillar (Automeris Postalbida) (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Golden-hooded Tanager alarm calling after spotting a nearby Central American Pygmy Owl (image by Inger Vandyke)
Although a common bird, the Blue Grey Tanager can look great in the right photographic moment (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a male Great Curassow (image by Inger Vandyke)
Elegant Brown Vine snake opening its jaws to reveal the beautiful navy blue colouration of its mouth (image by Inger Vandyke)
A stunning male Resplendent Quetzal with fruit for his chick (image by Inger Vandyke)
Sunrise in the heavens of Costa Rica's cloud forests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Black-cheeked Woodpecker (image by Inger Vandyke)
The gigantic and otherworldly caterpillar of an Eyed Silk Moth (image by Inger Vandyke)
A female Anhinga drying her wings (image by Inger Vandyke)
Look at that tongue! (image by Inger Vandyke)
A beautiful Automeris moth with its wings open (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Keel-billed Toucan sits out a sudden rain shower in the forest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Fiery-throated Hummingbird in flight (image by Inger Vandyke)
The vast array of tanager species in Costa Rica is a bit like being confronted with an avian rainbow. Portrait of a Silver-throated Tanager (image by Inger Vandyke)
Drymaeus land snail adventure on a Heliconia flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Ghost Glass Frog, one of the most difficult to find and photograph frogs in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Our tour searches for all of Costa Rica's rainforest life including pretty Leaf Beetles (image by Inger Vandyke)
Talamanca Hummingbird flying in the rain (image by Inger Vandyke)
Shy Black Guans are not always the easiest bird to find in the forest but when you come across a photographable one it is a treat (image by Inger Vandyke)
Fiery-throated Hummingbird. When their throats catch their sun it is like a rainbow (image by Inger Vandyke)
Male Resplendent Quetzals are so long they don't fit into their nests. Their tails always tell when they are home (image by Inger Vandyke)
The mesmerising cloud forests of Costa Rica during the rainy season (image by Inger Vandyke)
Acorn Woodpecker in flight (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Yellow-throated Toucan cools off in his tree-trunk plunge pool (image by Inger Vandyke)
Side-striped Palm Pit Viper on its palm leaf home (image by Inger Vandyke)
Strawberry Poison Frog carrying its precious tadpole around on its back (image by Inger Vandyke)
Costa Rica is a bird photographers paradise and Red-legged Honeycreepers are a definite highlight (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Shining Honeycreeper with his funky yellow legs (image by Inger Vandyke)
Ripha Flammans Moth is just one of many stunning moths in Costa Rica's lowland rainforests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Black Vultures fighting over carrion (image by Inger Vandyke)
That telltale sign a frog is on a leaf above your head! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Black-winged Dragonlet in Costa Rica's wetlands (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Keel-billed Toucan watches its back as it approaches a nesting cavity with fruit for its young (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Iguanas might be proof that we still live amongst dinosaurs (image by Inger Vandyke)
The intent stare of a Rainforest Hog-nosed Pit Viper on the dead leaves of the forest floor (image by Inger Vandyke)
Montezuma Oropendola in flight (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Kiskadee feasting on a moth (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Montezuma Oropendola feasting on palm seeds (image by Inger Vandyke)
When the Cecropia trees come into fruit, White-nosed Coatis take to the trees searching for breakfast (image by Inger Vandyke)
It's never wise to move fast through the rainforest, for you might miss creatures like the Blushing Phantom Glasswing butterfly (image by Inger Vandyke)
Nocturnal portrait of a Black Caiman (image by Inger Vandyke)
A cute Black-crowned Tityra doing a display with its leaf gift for its female (image by Inger Vandyke)
A family of Alurnus Ornatus Beetles huddle together in the forest (image by Inger Vandyke)
"That spot is mine!!!" Montezuma Oropendolas fight over the best place to perch (image by Inger Vandyke)
Pretty Yellow-throated Euphonias are always a bird photographer's highlight in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Talamanca Hummingbird hovering at a Fuschia (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Fiery-throated Hummingbird takes an aggressive pose (image by Inger Vandyke)
A stunning Fine-dendiculated (or Peruvian Shield) Mantis (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Black-cheeked Woodpecker enjoys the relief of rain in the Costa Rican heat (image by Inger Vandyke)
Keel-billed Toucans are the ultimate combination of supreme beauty and intelligence (image by Inger Vandyke)
A cheeky Collared Aracari with his fruit breakfast (image by Inger Vandyke)
Smilie Spectacled Cayman (image by Inger Vandyke)
Another stunning bird, the Flame-coloured Tanager (image by Inger Vandyke)
Playing in the rain. Doing a long exposure of creatures in the rain relies on having a very cooperative creature like this Black-cheeked Woodpecker who relished the sudden downpour to cool off (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Variegated Squirrel deep in the Costa Rican rainforest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Yellow-throated Toucan taking berries to his female on the nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A flock of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks on the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
The sly eye of a crocodile (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a King Vulture in the forest of Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
The Green Dragon! Portrait of an Emerald Basilisk (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal pokes his head out from the nest making sure his surroundings are OK before he leaves (image by Inger Vandyke)
Watch your step! In Costa Rica it is quite common to find lines of Leafcutter Ants transporting their pressure leaves to their nests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Great Curassow (image by Inger Vandyke)
The mirrored face of a Spectacled Cayman (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal preening (image by Inger Vandyke)
Red-headed Barbets are another avian jewel of Costa Rica's cloud forests (image by Inger Vandyke)
The dense forests of Costa Rica are dotted with stunning waterfalls (image by Inger Vandyke)
Flower bokeh in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Great Curassows can be remarkably tame in Costa Rica. As they can be easy to approach you can enjoy the possibilities of photographing their 'perm' style head feathers (image by Inger Vandyke)
On forest walks, the occasional glance upward can reveal the true beauty of the canopy (image by Inger Vandyke)
A bird of the middle and high altitudes in Costa Rica, Emerald Toucanets love lichen covered branches (image by Inger Vandyke)
Talamanca Hummingbird perched on a Salvia flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Chestnut-coloured Woodpecker (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Iguanas are not always green. In fact they can go through several colour phases in their lives - all of them quite becoming (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Roseate Spoonbill takes a break from feeding in Cano Negro near the border of Nicaragua and Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Prong-billed Barbet takes a sneeky peak from the foliage (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pretty Dappled Daggerwing we found by the roadside (image by Inger Vandyke)
Brown-throated Sloth doing what sloths love best (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Cattle Egret in breeding plumage (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal delivering an insect meal to its chick on the nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a large Green Iguana in orange (image by Mojgan Arashvand)
"Oh no! I'm done for!" (image by Inger Vandyke)
A tiny Green & Black Poison Dart frog sitting on a colourful Croton leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Knob-tailed Dragonfly in a rainforest pool (image by Inger Vandyke)
Costa Rica's rainforests are filled with the wildest insects that camouflage themselves as leaves like this Crenulata Sylvan Leaf Katydid (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Green & Black Poison Dart Frog sitting on a dead Cecropia leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Red-eyed Tree Frog on a Shampoo Flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Pretty Brown-hooded Parrot (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of Emerald Toucanets (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Central American Pygmy Owl with his prey of Black-throated Wren (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Central American Pygmy Owl flies off from his nesting hole with his hapless Black-throated Wren (image by Inger Vandyke)
Zany Chestnut-headed Oropendolas at their nesting site (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Red-eyed Tree Frog peers over the edge of a rainforest leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Variable Cracker butterfly. When they take flight the males make a firecracker sound with their wings (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Rufescent Tiger Heron mother preening herself on her nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
Can you ever have too many photos of Keel-billed Toucans? (image by Inger Vandyke)
Manakins are certainly one of our favourite rainforest birds in Costa Rica. This Red-capped Manakin has a wonderful whistling call when it displays to a female (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stately Bare-throated Tiger Heron (image by Inger Vandyke)
The eye of a dinosaur, or Green Iguana (image by Inger Vandyke)
Resplendent Quetzals. When they fly they are so beautiful they almost don't look real (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Blue-throated Toucanet (image by Inger Vandyke)
A baby Geoffroy's Spider Monkey playing with a branch (image by Inger Vandyke)
Keel-billed Toucan portrait (image by Inger Vandyke)
Trees pierce the mist of Costa Rica's rainforests (image by Inger Vandyke)
On the river at Cano Negro we will search for charismatic Boat-billed Herons (image by Inger Vandyke)
A White-naped Jacobin hovering above a rainforest flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Can you ever photograph too many tanagers? No!!!! Crimson-collared Tanager (image by Inger Vandyke)
In the forest clad flanks of Costa Rica's Arenal volcano you might find a beautiful Collared Aracari in stands of gigantic cecropia (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of Nicaraguan Slider Turtles on the side of the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning male Resplendent Quetzal with fruit (image by Inger Vandyke)
King Vultures would have to be the most beautiful vultures in the world (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Fiery-throated Hummingbird's throat catching the sun (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Smooth-skinned Brilliant Forest Frog sitting near spawn in a rainforest pool (image by Inger Vandyke)
Reflections of a shy Sun Grebe on the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
A bold Geoffroy's Spider Monkey perched on a palm seed cluster (image by Inger Vandyke)
An Emerald Basilisk lounging on a branch (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Central American Pygmy Owl peers out from his nesting hole (image by Inger Vandyke)
The charismatic Boat-billed Heron is normally a nocturnal species but we found one at a day roost stretching its wings (image by Inger Vandyke)
Gorgeous Long-tailed Silky Flycatchers in the cloud forests of Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning residents of the forest floor, tiny Green & Black Poison Dart frogs really make you watch your step in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Learn to master birds in flight in low light by spending a morning with the King Vultures of Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal preening his feathers (image by Inger Vandyke)
Before a Montezuma Oropendola sings its melodious song, it cranes its head and rattles. They really are fantastic birds! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Roseate Spoonbill (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Crested Guan pair in the Cecropia trees that characterise the middle altitude mist forests in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Adorable Scarlet-rumped Tanagers are quite common in Costa Rica and also very photogenic! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Black Vulture in a kettle of his species. What fantastic carunculated skin! (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Green Honeycreeper is another avian jewel of Costa Rica's forests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Boa's truly are beautiful snakes (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portait of a Magnificent Hummingbird (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Collared Aracari. Look at that serrated bill! (image by Inger Vandyke)
You need to be careful you don't overlook the lichen covered tree trunks as you might miss the beautiful Spot-crowned Woodcreeper (image by Inger Vandyke)
Red-lored Parrot at its nesting cavity (image by Inger Vandyke)
When you shine a light below a Spiny Cochran frog you can truly see why it is one of Costa Rica's glass frog species (image by Inger Vandyke)
Adorable baby Honduran White Bats (image by Inger Vandyke)
A beautiful Red-legged Honeycreeper searches for berries (image by Inger Vandyke)
Look at that bill! Portrait of a Keel-billed Toucan (image by Inger Vandyke)
Gorgeous Red-Eyed Frogs live in the wilds of Arenal in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Bare-throated Tiger Heron (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Keel-billed Toucan at its nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of Green Ibises on the shore of the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
In Costa Rica's cloud forests brightly coloured flowers like this Red Hot Poker are a magnet for hummingbirds (image by Inger Vandyke)
Pretty Strawberry Poison Frog sitting on a rainforest leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Smile! Close up of a Black-mandibled Toucan (image by Inger Vandyke)
Black-cheeked Woodpecker at a tree (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of an Acorn Woodpecker (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Talamanca Hummingbird with its wings outstretched in a show of aggression (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Purple Tiger Passionflower surrounded by the flowing waters of a forest stream (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Chestnut-headed Oropendola flying with food for its chick (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of male Green & Black Poison Dart frogs tussle over territory (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Mantled Howler reaches down to snack on leaves (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Heron hunting with reflection (image by Inger Vandyke)
A wild Crimson Passionflower on a forest walk (image by Inger Vandyke)
A stunning Scarlet-thighed Dacnis in the trees at Arenal (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of an Emerald Toucanet (image by Inger Vandyke)
Close up of a Green Crowned Brilliant (image by Inger Vandyke)
Of all the hummingbirds we will meet on tour the Fiery-throated is always a firm favourite (image by Inger Vandyke)
Emerald Basilisk is one of Costa Rica's most charismatic lizards (image by Inger Vandyke)
White-necked Jacobins are just one of many stunning hummingbird species we will photograph on tour (image by Inger Vandyke)
A mother Long-nosed Proboscis bat with her baby (image by Inger Vandyke)
Tri-coloured Heron in Cano Negro National Park near the border of Costa Rica and Nicaragua (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning Green Honeycreeper is a Costa Rican rainforest jewel (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Yellow-bellied Elaenia bringing insect food to its chicks on the nest in a school ground of all places! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Collared Aracaris are truly the clowns of Costa Rica's rainforests. I'd just keep your fingers away from that serrated bill! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a sweet Orange-chinned Parakeet (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Nicaraguan Grackle in full display mode at Cano Negro (image by Inger Vandyke)
Wild Scarlet Macaw (image by Inger Vandyke)
Although they are not traditionally from Costa Rica, Pink Torch Ginger flowers are grown by many lodges and are great photography subjects (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Spiny Lizard is another of Costa Rica's forest dragons (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning Resplendent Quetzals are the true sylphs of the cloud forests in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a male Crested Guan (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning yellow morph of Eyelash Viper on a Heliconia flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Slaty Flowerpiercers have evolved with a quirky bill designed to pierce the base of flowers to get right at the nectar! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Buff-throated Saltator (image by Inger Vandyke)
Sunrise on the Rio Frio in remote Costa Rica, close to the border of Nicaragua (image by Inger Vandyke)
Cheeky White-nosed Coati (image by Inger Vandyke)
A wild Eyelash Viper curled up on a palm frond in the rainforest (image by Inger Vandyke)
King Vultures would have to be the most beautiful vulture in the world (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Neotropic Cormorant tussles with its dinner of Tchupapiela in Cano Negro (image by Inger Vandyke)
There's only one thing better than one King Vulture and that's a pair (image by Inger Vandyke)
Cheeky White-nosed Coatis trade on their adorable personalities as fun photography subjects in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Eyelash Viper showing off those beautiful eyes (image by Inger Vandyke)
The elegant aigrette feathers of a Great Egret (image by Inger Vandyke)
Fiery-throated Hummingbirds face off over females (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Splendid Tree Frog walks the leaves (image by Inger Vandyke)
Beautiful Ornate Hawk Eagle female (image by Inger Vandyke)
Side view of an Eyed Silk Moth Caterpillar (Automeris Postalbida) (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Golden-hooded Tanager alarm calling after spotting a nearby Central American Pygmy Owl (image by Inger Vandyke)
Although a common bird, the Blue Grey Tanager can look great in the right photographic moment (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a male Great Curassow (image by Inger Vandyke)
Elegant Brown Vine snake opening its jaws to reveal the beautiful navy blue colouration of its mouth (image by Inger Vandyke)
A stunning male Resplendent Quetzal with fruit for his chick (image by Inger Vandyke)
Sunrise in the heavens of Costa Rica's cloud forests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Black-cheeked Woodpecker (image by Inger Vandyke)
The gigantic and otherworldly caterpillar of an Eyed Silk Moth (image by Inger Vandyke)
A female Anhinga drying her wings (image by Inger Vandyke)
Look at that tongue! (image by Inger Vandyke)
A beautiful Automeris moth with its wings open (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Keel-billed Toucan sits out a sudden rain shower in the forest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Fiery-throated Hummingbird in flight (image by Inger Vandyke)
The vast array of tanager species in Costa Rica is a bit like being confronted with an avian rainbow. Portrait of a Silver-throated Tanager (image by Inger Vandyke)
Drymaeus land snail adventure on a Heliconia flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Ghost Glass Frog, one of the most difficult to find and photograph frogs in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Our tour searches for all of Costa Rica's rainforest life including pretty Leaf Beetles (image by Inger Vandyke)
Talamanca Hummingbird flying in the rain (image by Inger Vandyke)
Shy Black Guans are not always the easiest bird to find in the forest but when you come across a photographable one it is a treat (image by Inger Vandyke)
Fiery-throated Hummingbird. When their throats catch their sun it is like a rainbow (image by Inger Vandyke)
Male Resplendent Quetzals are so long they don't fit into their nests. Their tails always tell when they are home (image by Inger Vandyke)
The mesmerising cloud forests of Costa Rica during the rainy season (image by Inger Vandyke)
Acorn Woodpecker in flight (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Yellow-throated Toucan cools off in his tree-trunk plunge pool (image by Inger Vandyke)
Side-striped Palm Pit Viper on its palm leaf home (image by Inger Vandyke)
Strawberry Poison Frog carrying its precious tadpole around on its back (image by Inger Vandyke)
Costa Rica is a bird photographers paradise and Red-legged Honeycreepers are a definite highlight (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Shining Honeycreeper with his funky yellow legs (image by Inger Vandyke)
Ripha Flammans Moth is just one of many stunning moths in Costa Rica's lowland rainforests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Black Vultures fighting over carrion (image by Inger Vandyke)
That telltale sign a frog is on a leaf above your head! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Black-winged Dragonlet in Costa Rica's wetlands (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Keel-billed Toucan watches its back as it approaches a nesting cavity with fruit for its young (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Iguanas might be proof that we still live amongst dinosaurs (image by Inger Vandyke)
The intent stare of a Rainforest Hog-nosed Pit Viper on the dead leaves of the forest floor (image by Inger Vandyke)
Montezuma Oropendola in flight (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Kiskadee feasting on a moth (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Montezuma Oropendola feasting on palm seeds (image by Inger Vandyke)
When the Cecropia trees come into fruit, White-nosed Coatis take to the trees searching for breakfast (image by Inger Vandyke)
It's never wise to move fast through the rainforest, for you might miss creatures like the Blushing Phantom Glasswing butterfly (image by Inger Vandyke)
Nocturnal portrait of a Black Caiman (image by Inger Vandyke)
A cute Black-crowned Tityra doing a display with its leaf gift for its female (image by Inger Vandyke)
A family of Alurnus Ornatus Beetles huddle together in the forest (image by Inger Vandyke)
"That spot is mine!!!" Montezuma Oropendolas fight over the best place to perch (image by Inger Vandyke)
Pretty Yellow-throated Euphonias are always a bird photographer's highlight in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Talamanca Hummingbird hovering at a Fuschia (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Fiery-throated Hummingbird takes an aggressive pose (image by Inger Vandyke)
A stunning Fine-dendiculated (or Peruvian Shield) Mantis (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Black-cheeked Woodpecker enjoys the relief of rain in the Costa Rican heat (image by Inger Vandyke)
Keel-billed Toucans are the ultimate combination of supreme beauty and intelligence (image by Inger Vandyke)
A cheeky Collared Aracari with his fruit breakfast (image by Inger Vandyke)
Smilie Spectacled Cayman (image by Inger Vandyke)
Another stunning bird, the Flame-coloured Tanager (image by Inger Vandyke)
Playing in the rain. Doing a long exposure of creatures in the rain relies on having a very cooperative creature like this Black-cheeked Woodpecker who relished the sudden downpour to cool off (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Variegated Squirrel deep in the Costa Rican rainforest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Yellow-throated Toucan taking berries to his female on the nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A flock of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks on the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
The sly eye of a crocodile (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a King Vulture in the forest of Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
The Green Dragon! Portrait of an Emerald Basilisk (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal pokes his head out from the nest making sure his surroundings are OK before he leaves (image by Inger Vandyke)
Watch your step! In Costa Rica it is quite common to find lines of Leafcutter Ants transporting their pressure leaves to their nests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Great Curassow (image by Inger Vandyke)
The mirrored face of a Spectacled Cayman (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal preening (image by Inger Vandyke)
Red-headed Barbets are another avian jewel of Costa Rica's cloud forests (image by Inger Vandyke)
The dense forests of Costa Rica are dotted with stunning waterfalls (image by Inger Vandyke)
Flower bokeh in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Great Curassows can be remarkably tame in Costa Rica. As they can be easy to approach you can enjoy the possibilities of photographing their 'perm' style head feathers (image by Inger Vandyke)
On forest walks, the occasional glance upward can reveal the true beauty of the canopy (image by Inger Vandyke)
A bird of the middle and high altitudes in Costa Rica, Emerald Toucanets love lichen covered branches (image by Inger Vandyke)
Talamanca Hummingbird perched on a Salvia flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Chestnut-coloured Woodpecker (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Iguanas are not always green. In fact they can go through several colour phases in their lives - all of them quite becoming (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Roseate Spoonbill takes a break from feeding in Cano Negro near the border of Nicaragua and Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Prong-billed Barbet takes a sneeky peak from the foliage (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pretty Dappled Daggerwing we found by the roadside (image by Inger Vandyke)
Brown-throated Sloth doing what sloths love best (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Cattle Egret in breeding plumage (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal delivering an insect meal to its chick on the nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a large Green Iguana in orange (image by Mojgan Arashvand)
"Oh no! I'm done for!" (image by Inger Vandyke)
A tiny Green & Black Poison Dart frog sitting on a colourful Croton leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Knob-tailed Dragonfly in a rainforest pool (image by Inger Vandyke)
Costa Rica's rainforests are filled with the wildest insects that camouflage themselves as leaves like this Crenulata Sylvan Leaf Katydid (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Green & Black Poison Dart Frog sitting on a dead Cecropia leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Red-eyed Tree Frog on a Shampoo Flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Pretty Brown-hooded Parrot (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of Emerald Toucanets (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Central American Pygmy Owl with his prey of Black-throated Wren (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Central American Pygmy Owl flies off from his nesting hole with his hapless Black-throated Wren (image by Inger Vandyke)
Zany Chestnut-headed Oropendolas at their nesting site (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Red-eyed Tree Frog peers over the edge of a rainforest leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Variable Cracker butterfly. When they take flight the males make a firecracker sound with their wings (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Rufescent Tiger Heron mother preening herself on her nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
Can you ever have too many photos of Keel-billed Toucans? (image by Inger Vandyke)
Manakins are certainly one of our favourite rainforest birds in Costa Rica. This Red-capped Manakin has a wonderful whistling call when it displays to a female (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stately Bare-throated Tiger Heron (image by Inger Vandyke)
The eye of a dinosaur, or Green Iguana (image by Inger Vandyke)
Resplendent Quetzals. When they fly they are so beautiful they almost don't look real (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Blue-throated Toucanet (image by Inger Vandyke)
A baby Geoffroy's Spider Monkey playing with a branch (image by Inger Vandyke)
Keel-billed Toucan portrait (image by Inger Vandyke)
Trees pierce the mist of Costa Rica's rainforests (image by Inger Vandyke)
On the river at Cano Negro we will search for charismatic Boat-billed Herons (image by Inger Vandyke)
A White-naped Jacobin hovering above a rainforest flower (image by Inger Vandyke)
Can you ever photograph too many tanagers? No!!!! Crimson-collared Tanager (image by Inger Vandyke)
In the forest clad flanks of Costa Rica's Arenal volcano you might find a beautiful Collared Aracari in stands of gigantic cecropia (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of Nicaraguan Slider Turtles on the side of the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning male Resplendent Quetzal with fruit (image by Inger Vandyke)
King Vultures would have to be the most beautiful vultures in the world (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Fiery-throated Hummingbird's throat catching the sun (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Smooth-skinned Brilliant Forest Frog sitting near spawn in a rainforest pool (image by Inger Vandyke)
Reflections of a shy Sun Grebe on the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
A bold Geoffroy's Spider Monkey perched on a palm seed cluster (image by Inger Vandyke)
An Emerald Basilisk lounging on a branch (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Central American Pygmy Owl peers out from his nesting hole (image by Inger Vandyke)
The charismatic Boat-billed Heron is normally a nocturnal species but we found one at a day roost stretching its wings (image by Inger Vandyke)
Gorgeous Long-tailed Silky Flycatchers in the cloud forests of Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning residents of the forest floor, tiny Green & Black Poison Dart frogs really make you watch your step in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Learn to master birds in flight in low light by spending a morning with the King Vultures of Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Resplendent Quetzal preening his feathers (image by Inger Vandyke)
Before a Montezuma Oropendola sings its melodious song, it cranes its head and rattles. They really are fantastic birds! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Roseate Spoonbill (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Crested Guan pair in the Cecropia trees that characterise the middle altitude mist forests in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Adorable Scarlet-rumped Tanagers are quite common in Costa Rica and also very photogenic! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Black Vulture in a kettle of his species. What fantastic carunculated skin! (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Green Honeycreeper is another avian jewel of Costa Rica's forests (image by Inger Vandyke)
Boa's truly are beautiful snakes (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portait of a Magnificent Hummingbird (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Collared Aracari. Look at that serrated bill! (image by Inger Vandyke)
You need to be careful you don't overlook the lichen covered tree trunks as you might miss the beautiful Spot-crowned Woodcreeper (image by Inger Vandyke)
Red-lored Parrot at its nesting cavity (image by Inger Vandyke)
When you shine a light below a Spiny Cochran frog you can truly see why it is one of Costa Rica's glass frog species (image by Inger Vandyke)
Adorable baby Honduran White Bats (image by Inger Vandyke)
A beautiful Red-legged Honeycreeper searches for berries (image by Inger Vandyke)
Look at that bill! Portrait of a Keel-billed Toucan (image by Inger Vandyke)
Gorgeous Red-Eyed Frogs live in the wilds of Arenal in Costa Rica (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a Bare-throated Tiger Heron (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Keel-billed Toucan at its nest (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of Green Ibises on the shore of the Rio Frio (image by Inger Vandyke)
In Costa Rica's cloud forests brightly coloured flowers like this Red Hot Poker are a magnet for hummingbirds (image by Inger Vandyke)
Pretty Strawberry Poison Frog sitting on a rainforest leaf (image by Inger Vandyke)
Smile! Close up of a Black-mandibled Toucan (image by Inger Vandyke)
Black-cheeked Woodpecker at a tree (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of an Acorn Woodpecker (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Talamanca Hummingbird with its wings outstretched in a show of aggression (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Purple Tiger Passionflower surrounded by the flowing waters of a forest stream (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Chestnut-headed Oropendola flying with food for its chick (image by Inger Vandyke)
A pair of male Green & Black Poison Dart frogs tussle over territory (image by Inger Vandyke)
A male Mantled Howler reaches down to snack on leaves (image by Inger Vandyke)
Green Heron hunting with reflection (image by Inger Vandyke)
A wild Crimson Passionflower on a forest walk (image by Inger Vandyke)
A stunning Scarlet-thighed Dacnis in the trees at Arenal (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of an Emerald Toucanet (image by Inger Vandyke)
Close up of a Green Crowned Brilliant (image by Inger Vandyke)
Of all the hummingbirds we will meet on tour the Fiery-throated is always a firm favourite (image by Inger Vandyke)
Emerald Basilisk is one of Costa Rica's most charismatic lizards (image by Inger Vandyke)
White-necked Jacobins are just one of many stunning hummingbird species we will photograph on tour (image by Inger Vandyke)
A mother Long-nosed Proboscis bat with her baby (image by Inger Vandyke)
Tri-coloured Heron in Cano Negro National Park near the border of Costa Rica and Nicaragua (image by Inger Vandyke)
Stunning Green Honeycreeper is a Costa Rican rainforest jewel (image by Inger Vandyke)
A Yellow-bellied Elaenia bringing insect food to its chicks on the nest in a school ground of all places! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Collared Aracaris are truly the clowns of Costa Rica's rainforests. I'd just keep your fingers away from that serrated bill! (image by Inger Vandyke)
Portrait of a sweet Orange-chinned Parakeet (image by Inger Vandyke)
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Sunday 4th May –
Friday 16th May 2025 Leaders: Virginia Wilde and and local naturalist guides |
13 Days | Group Size Limit 7 (full) |
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Monday 4th May –
Saturday 16th May 2026 Leaders: Wild Images leader to be announced and local naturalist guides |
13 Days | Group Size Limit 7 |
COSTA RICA: WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY TOURS WITH WILD IMAGES
Imagine a world filled with vast and largely unexplored rainforests, one that is filled with a kaleidoscope of creatures, making it one of the premier destinations for wildlife photography on earth. This is Costa Rica! Join us in going off the beaten track in this stunning country, exploring remote rivers, cloud forests and rainforests, searching for some of the most glorious birds, reptiles, insects, plants, mammals and amphibians of this natural wonderland.
Costa Rica is well known for being one of the finest destinations for wildlife photography tours in the world. Where else can you capture incredible photos of spectacular birds like toucans, tanagers, hummingbirds and quetzals, alongside a vast array of other creatures including coatis, sloths, caiman, lizards, frogs and insects, all at relatively close range in a perfect conservation setting?
This carefully crafted itinerary of two weeks duration takes in the best photography locations that Costa Rica has to offer and then goes off the beaten track to explore some remote wetlands and riverine woodlands near the border of Costa Rica with Nicaragua. Superb photography, good accommodations and generally good roads make photography in this small but incredibly rich country a real pleasure.
A Rainforest Wonderland
Costa Rica’s rainforests are one of the main reasons why photographers flock to the country each year. The breathtaking scenery and outstanding biodiversity of Costa Rican rainforests makes you feel like you’re entering a magical dimension. These forests are some of the most biologically diverse terrestrial ecosystems on earth.
About 51% of Costa Rica’s territory is rainforest and almost 24% of this is primary forest. So much of it is undisturbed by humans that walking in these forests is like a waking dream. The sights, sounds, and smells are unlike anything else. It’s a feast for the senses. Fantastic birds that you would swear cannot be real, appear in the trees and dare you to believe your own eyes. Leafcutter ants march across the forest floor, carrying umbrellas of vegetation back to their nests. It’s always dark there as if the lights were dimmed before a film you cannot wait to see, and as each scene unfolds, the story gets ever deeper. Tiny poison dart frogs leap around the leaf litter while a chorus of tropical birds serenade your stroll.
A highlight of our tour is the chance to photograph some of the more difficult species of frogs and snakes of Costa Rica both in the wild and at unique conservation projects. We’ve teamed up with an expert local tracker who can show us around known habitats for Honduran White Bats, Strawberry Poison frogs, Brown-throated Sloths, a variety of insects and butterflies. He has an avid interest in all of the wildlife of his area and through his intimate first-hand knowledge we may see cute little White-collard Manakins and Crested Oropendolas, alongside a raft of other forest critters that are awesome to photograph. At his home are some wonderful natural feeders which are visited by lovely birds, including Orange-chinned Parakeet and white-necked Jacobins.
During our time in this stunning environment, we will enjoy photo shoots with some of Costa Rica’s most beautiful reptiles and amphibians in a unique conservation project. Creatures we might photograph here include the remarkable Ornate and Emerald Glass Frogs, Barred Leaf Frog, Eyelash Viper and Green Pit Vipers.
A highlight of our Costa Rican rainforest odyssey will be two nights at the spectacular lodge in Laguna Lagarto, home to some of the most fantastic bird, caiman and wildlife photography opportunities in the country. Here we will be able to photograph Collared Aracaris, Keel-billed Toucans and a host of other incredible birds like Montezuma Oropendula, honeycreepers, parrots and even curassows against a magnificent verdant forest backdrop. During our time at Laguna Lagarto we will go off on a night search for pretty Black Caiman in the pools close to the lodge. We will also spend one morning at a hide created by award-winning photographer Bence Maté to photograph Black and King Vultures at a vulture dinner station. The array of photographic subjects here is so vast that it will be difficult to tear ourselves away. After all, where on earth can you photograph amazing rainforest birds in such a sublime setting while you even eat breakfast?
Waters that feed Life
From Lagarto we travel north to the remote reserve of Caño Negro, situated in the wild borderlands of Nicaragua and Costa Rica. A stunning natural refuge, Caño Negro is considered by many to be one of the most important wetland areas of the Americas. It is the only place in Costa Rica where you can see the rare Nicaraguan Grackle and also spot the largest bird of the Americas, the Jabiru.
Covering a region of over 800 hectares, Caño Negro is home to over 200 bird species as well as unique and distinct plants and animals. Here we will take to the rivers and wetlands searching for caiman, iguanas, Emerald Basilisk lizards, Howler Monkeys and a host of wetland birds including Roseate Spoonbills, Limpkin, Northern Jacana, Ibises, Jabirus, Anhingas, Cattle Egrets, Swamp Hens, Sun Grebe and Cormorants. Floating along these rivers, looking for wildlife in the fringing riverine woodlands is almost like being immersed in another world. These forests are dense and untouched. It is possible that we may see large howler monkeys swinging above our heads while dinosaur-like iguanas sun themselves on the river banks. We will search for Slider Turtles and stunning Emerald Basilisk Lizards to photograph from our comfortable boats.
Where Volcanoes Sleep
Costa Rica is home to a great number of volcanoes including six active volcanoes and another 61 dormant or extinct ones. For the past 50 years, the spectacular massif of Arenal was the country’s most active volcano, but it entered into a resting phase in 2010, so its eruptions have ceased for the time being.
Normally shrouded in mist, our final stop on the tour is at a lodge that enjoys spectacular views of Arenal’s near-perfect conical summit when she dares to show herself to the world.
From our comfortable lodge, we will explore ancient forests, azure streams and hot springs that will introduce us to another realm of photographic subjects. The lodge grounds are dotted with flowering and fruiting trees that, when they bring forth their bounties, attract a myriad of wonderful birds like beautiful Scarlet-thighed Dacnis’. Other avian jewels we might find in these forests include Yellow-throated Toucan, Green Honeycreeper, Blue Grey Tanager, Black-crested Coquette and Shining Honeycreeper. If you are lucky enough to have a ground-floor room it is sometimes possible to see the lodge’s tame Great Curassows wandering past your door on their way to feast at the lodge’s feeders.
Each day, a breakfast of fresh fruit is served to the forest wildlife. Here we have a chance to capture incredible photos of Montezuma Oropendola, Crested Guan, Keel-billed Toucan and Collared Aracari. Whatever the birds don’t eat, a group of cheeky White-nosed Coatis might come and clean up from the ground below the feeders.
The feeders sit at the edge of a grove of the largest cecropia trees on our tour and it is worth searching their lush foliage for beautiful birds like the aracaris and oropendolas roosting in the umbrella-like leaf structures of these trees. Complementing the botanical wonderland of the lodge grounds is numerous varieties of ginger flowers which attract the resident hummingbirds.
One of the unique highlights of our lodge is an active frog pool. There are never two nights the same at this pool and each evening we will head out and go ‘frogging’ where we will try to spot wild Red-eyed Tree Frogs, Masked Tree Frog, American Bull Frog and even Vine Snakes.
A Forest in the Clouds
Shrouded in clouds and mist with pointed volcanic cones piercing the skies, the hauntingly beautiful cloud forests of Costa Rica are home to one of the most spectacular birds in all of the Americas, the Resplendent Quetzal.
Towards the end of our tour we travel into the mystical cloud forests to spend three mornings staked out at a regular roosting site for these magnificent birds, waiting for them to fly in, feed and perch in the forests close to our lodge.
During the afternoons we will spend time at a series of hummingbird feeders that Volcano, Fiery-throated and Talamanca Hummingbirds regularly visit to feast on the sugar syrup that is refreshed for them daily.
If you can tear yourself away from the myriad of photographic opportunities at the feeders a short walk around the lodge grounds may see you capturing images of lovely Golden-browed Chlorophonias, Acorn Woodpeckeers, Large-footed Finch, Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher and also Slaty Flowerpeckers.
From our lodge, it sometimes feels like you could touch the clouds from its lofty location. Sunrises are magical here at times with the orange glow of dawn rising above the cloud layers to the blue peaks in the distance. It’s a view that would take the breath away from even the most jaded traveller and one that always feels so hard to leave.
This incredible landscape is truly the crowning glory of our stunningly diverse wildlife photography tour in this forest wonderland that is Costa Rica.
Why Travel to Costa Rica with Wild Images
Right now a number of photographers and photography touring companies offer tours to Costa Rica. Our tour is different!
– We visit five different lodges offering the broadest variety of habitats for photography including wetlands, rainforests, riverine woodlands and mist forests
– We spend three mornings with the Resplendent Quetzal. Getting the perfect image of these amazing birds is not as easy as one might think and it is best to have a couple of opportunities to photograph them
– We will be visiting a frog and reptile conservation program for an entire day, rather than a fleeting visit, allowing us enough time to photograph a broad variety of creatures in different settings
– Wild Images has teamed up with one of the leading natural history guides in the country who is extremely well versed in rainforest habitats, the creatures that call them home and how to photograph them well
– Journey with us to the remote wilderness close to the border of Nicaragua where the riverine woodlands are like a lost world.
Accommodation & Road Transport
The hotels/lodges used during our Costa Rica wildlife photography tour are almost all of good standard. Road transport is by small coach or minibus mostly good quality bitumen and dirt roads.
Walking
The walking effort during our Costa Rica photography tour is mostly easy.
Climate
At lower altitudes in Costa Rica it will be hot, humid and sunny. At higher altitudes the weather is similar but temperatures are cool to warm. As Costa Rica is largely tropical we may experience a few rain showers in the afternoons.
Photographic Equipment
For wildlife photography of birds we recommend a telephoto (with or without converter) with a focal length of 500–600mm on a full-frame DSLR . (If you cannot run to large primes, a 400mm f.5.6 or a 100-400mm zoom lens on a crop-sensor body makes for a perfectly reasonable substitute.) There will also be some very approachable wildlife in range of anything from 100-200mm upwards. Opportunities for macro photography of herptiles for instance are particularly good, but with limited light in the forests, fill-in flash may be desirable.
You can also get great results with many subjects with a high quality digital bridge camera with an optical zoom of 18-20x or more and a wide-angle equivalent to around 24mm.
The tour will be moving through mostly forested environments that are unsuitable for drone photography.
If you have questions about what equipment you ought to bring, please contact us.
Photographic Highlights
- One of the largest arrays of photography subjects offered on tour in Costa Rica including insects, birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles
- Photograph magnificent Resplendent Quetzals in the wild during a time when they are nesting and actively bringing food to their young
- Journey to remote Caño Negro, one of Costa Rica's least accessible reserves, to photograph riverine and wetland wildlife
- Chances to photograph some of Costa Rica's stunning frogs and snakes in the wild and on a conservation program
- Enjoy a rainbow of hummingbird species including the near-endemic Fiery-throated Hummingbird, surely one of the country's most beautiful hummers!
- Enjoy a morning of King and Black vulture photography in a hide designed by award-winning photographer Bence Maté
- Photograph Keel-billed Toucans while you eat breakfast at the wonderful Laguna Lagartos lodge
- Join one of Costa Rica's most experienced naturalists to search for Honduran White Bat, Strawberry Poison Dart Frog, insects, butterflies and birds in the vicinity of his home
- Numerous hide and feeder photography opportunities of jewel like birds including hummingbirds, dacnis, honeycreepers, tanagers, toucans, aracaris and oropendolas
- Meet tame White-nosed Coatis and Great Curassow at one of our lodges
- Night spotting for Black Caiman, Red Eyed Frogs, Barred Tree Frog and Central American Bullfrog
- Photograph incredible Glass Frogs on a carefully considered conservation project
- Photograph Eyelash Vipers, arguably one of Costa Rica's most beautiful snakes
OUTLINE ITINERARY
- Day 1: Arrive in San Jose and overnight
- Day 2: Drive to the lowland rainforests for an afternoon of photographing, frogs, mammals, birds and other wildlife
- Day 3: Full day of photography with one of Costa Rica's most experienced naturalist guides
- Day 4: Morning and afternoon photography of frogs and snakes on a conservation program
- Day 5: Drive to our lodge at Laguna Lagarto arriving in time for some sunset bird and wildlife photography
- Day 6: Full day of wildlife photography in the region of Laguna Lagarto
- Day 7: After a final morning of bird photography we will drive to Caño Negro, arriving in time for sunset photography on the river
- Day 8: Morning photography on a remote riverine woodland, drive to Arenal Volcano
- Day 9: Full day of wildlife photography around Arenal region
- Day 10: Travel to the cloud forests of the Cerro De La Muerte and enjoy our first afternoon of photography at our lodge's hummingbird feeders
- Days 11 & 12: Morning photography sessions with the magnificent Resplendent Quetzals. Afternoons photographing the hummingbirds and a variety of cloud forest birds in the vicinity of the lodge
- Day 13: After a final morning of photography at our lodge, return to San Jose airport where our tour will end after lunch
To see a larger map, click on the square-like ‘enlarge’ icon in the upper right of the map box.
To see (or hide) the ‘map legend’, click on the icon with an arrow in the upper left of the map box.
To change to a satellite view, which is great for seeing the physical terrain (and for seeing really fine details by repetitive use of the + button), click on the square ‘map view’ icon in the lower left corner of the ‘map legend’.
PRICE INFORMATION
Wild Images Inclusions: Our tour prices include surface transportation, accommodations, meals and entrance fees.
Our tour prices also include all tips for our driver/naturalist guide and accommodation/restaurant staff.
Deposit: 20% of the total tour price. Our office will let you know what deposit amount is due, in order to confirm your booking, following receipt of your online booking form.
TO BOOK THIS TOUR: Click here (you will need the tour dates)
2025: confirmed £5190, $6790, €6240, AUD10250. San José/San José.
2026: provisional £5270, $6890, €6330, AUD10400. San José/San José.
Single Supplement: 2025: £600, $790, €720, AUD1190.
Single Supplement: 2026: £610, $800, €730, AUD1200.
If you are travelling alone, the single supplement will not apply if you are willing to share a room and there is a room-mate of the same sex available.
This tour is priced in US Dollars. Amounts shown in other currencies are indicative.
Air Travel To & From The Tour: Our in-house IATA ticket agency will be pleased to arrange your air travel on request, or you may arrange this yourself if you prefer.
COSTA RICA: THE FOREST JEWEL OF NORTH AMERICA WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY TOUR: DETAILED ITINERARY
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 1
Our Costa Rica wildlife photography adventure starts this evening at the comfortable Bougainvillea Lodge, located in the quiet outskirts of Costa Rica’s capital, San Jose.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 2
This morning we will drive out of the city anddrive to Sarapiqui at the edge of the wilds in Braulio Carillo National Park. Arriving in time for lunch we will dip our toes in to the wildlife of this area by exploring the network of trails in the grounds of our lodge.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 3
We will spend a full day with our guide visiting the hide and feeders he has at his home and walking the forest trails in search of wildlife. His extensive experience as a spotter is almost unrivalled in the country and the region around his home is home to some absolutely wonderful wildlife. From his feeders alone we might see Orange-chinned Parakeet, Crested Oropendola, White-necked Jacobin and a variety of tanager species to add to our growing portfolio from the tour.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 4
Today we will spend a full day doing photography in a carefully considered conservation program for Costa Rica’s frogs and snakes. It is here we will meet incredible frog species including Ghost Glass Frog, Barred Tree Frog, Strawberry Poison Dart Frog and the famous Red-eyed Frog of Costa Rica. The reptilian highlights of our day may include the stunning Eyelash Viper, Side-striped Palm Pit Viper, Fer-de-lance, False Coral snake and Boa Constrictors. This family owned project sits on a large property that also has Brown-throated Sloths, many tropical flowers, insects, anolus lizards and a large variety of birds.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 5
Our rainforest exploration continues as we drive to the wonderful Laguna del Lagarto Eco Lodge where we will arrive to enjoy some afternoon photography in the lodge grounds of this rainforest paradise.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 6
Situated in a valley amidst 500 hectares of protected rainforest, over 350 species of birds have been recorded here and one of the absolute highlights is the ability to photograph incredibly beautiful birds like Collared Aracaris, Keel-billed Toucans, Montezuma Oropendola, Green Honeycreeper, Shining and Red-legged Honeycreepers, all while you sit and eat breakfast. The lodge has two small lagoons that are home to a number of Caiman which we will visit for night photography. It also has a spectacular and well set up hide to photograph Black and King Vultures at a vulture dinner daily. If these locations alone are not enough, the lodge grounds might produce Giant Curassows, White-nosed Coatis, Chestnut-coloured Woodpecker, Central American Pygmy Owl and Brown-hooded Parrot.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 7
After a final morning of photography at our wonderful lodge, we will drive north to the remote Caño Negro reserve, close to the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua. This area is one of the only accessible places to see the rare Nicaraguan Grackle. Arriving in time for a sunset cruise at a diverse wetlands we will be looking out for birds including Limpkin, Northern Jacana, Wood Stork, crakes, rails, herons, egrets, anhingas and kingfishers to photograph until sunset.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 8
The following morning we will take to the water again in quiet boats exploring some incredibly untouched riverine systems that are home to Proboscis Bat, Green Iguana, Emerald Basilisk Lizard, Howler Monkeys and many species of birds. Simply floating quietly on these rivers is a like immersing yourself in a forest wonderland with vines falling over the river, gigantic trees and many beautiful rainforest creatures. The sights and sounds are mesmerising. This afternoon we will sadly leave our rainforest wildlife behind as we ascend towards the mid-altitude forested flanks of Mount Arenal, Costa Rica’s most active volcano. If we are lucky here the clouds will give way so we can see the lofty cone-like mountain from our comfortable lodge and we will arrive in time to do some photography in the lodge grounds. This evening, after dinner, we will have a chance to visit the lodge’s wonderful frog pond and enjoy our first photography with wild Red-eyed Frogs, Masked Tree Frog, Central American Bullfrog and even the occasional snake.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 9
Today we will enjoy a full day of photography in the spectacular Arenal region. Our lodge alone is home to some very tame coatis and curassows and if you are lucky enough to have a ground floor room, you might even wake up to a curious curassow wandering past your door. The curassows and coatis join up to feed on the dropped fruit underneath the lodges feeders, effectively enjoying a complimentary breakfast each day alongside the lodge guests. The grounds have been carefully planted with huge stands of ginger flowers, flowering and fruiting trees which all attract a myriad of birds. Perhaps one of the most spectacular backdrops here is the giant cecropia trees. It is really worth keeping an eye out in them for perching aracaris, toucans and oropendolas. Tonight we will enjoy a wonderful meal at our lodge to celebrate some of the amazing wildlife experiences of the tour and, just in case you haven’t had enough of Costa Rica’s incredible frogs, we will revisit the frog pool to see if we can photograph even more species before our time around Arenal ends.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 10
We will ascend to the cloud forests of Cerro de la Muerte. Our lodge is perched on a hillside with a series of wonderful hummingbird feeders. Opportunities abound to capture wonderful images of some stunning hummingbirds including Magnificent, Fiery-throated and Volcano hummingbirds, amongst others. If we tire of the myriad of hummingbird photographic opportunities, short walks in the lodge grounds might introduce us to avian jewels including Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Acorn Woodpecker and others. If we are lucky with the weather we may see our first sunset above the clouds on our first evening.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Days 11-12
Over the next three days we will spend our mornings at a stakeout for roosting and feeding Resplendent Quetzals, surely one of the most spectacular birds of the Americas. While we quietly sit and wait, we will also be keeping an eye out for other birds to photograph nearby. During the afternoons we will return to the lodge for more bird photography.
Costa Rica: Wildlife Photography Tour Day 13
Today we will enjoy a final morning of the tour at a wonderful cafe in the highlands which has feeders attracting some of the more elusive birds we may have not yet seen on the tour including Emerald Toucanet, Acorn Woodpecker, Volcano Hummingbird, Slaty Flowerpiercer and the gawdy Flame-coloured Tanager. After a sumptuous lunch here we will return to San Jose where our tour will end at the airport.
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