Costa Rica in July

Day 1: The tour begins this evening with an introductory meeting followed by dinner at our hotel just outside San José. Night in Heredia.

Day 2: We’ll depart the San José metropolitan area early and bird our way toward Rancho Naturalista, our base for the next three nights. Stops along the way will give us a chance to get to know many of the common birds of Costa Rica’s Central Valley like Lesson’s Motmot, Common Squirrel-Cuckoo, Barred Antshrike, Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush, and Chestnut-capped Warbler. We'll also make an attempt to see the endemic and localized Cabanis's Ground-Sparrow. After arriving at our lodge we’ll look to see if the lovely Snowcap is visiting the flowering shrubs around the cabins. Night Rancho Naturalista.

Days 3-4: We have two full days to take advantage of the many birding sites located in close proximity to Rancho Naturalista, including the lodge property itself. On one morning we’ll begin the day on the deck listening to the dawn chorus and watching birds such as lanky Gray-headed Chachalacas, noisy Chestnut-headed Oropendolas, and colorful Collared Aracaris visit the feeders below while the hummingbird feeders at eye level are abuzz with the activity of White-necked Jacobins, Green-breasted Mangos, and others. One day we’ll set out very early to visit a nearby site with extensive forest where we should find a wide variety of foothill species, including Tawny-crested Tanager, White-ruffed Manakin, Rufous Mourner, and Ashy-throated Chlorospingus. Several antbirds are possible, with Spotted, Bicolored, Dull-mantled and Zeledon’s among the options. With luck we might even see something truly rare and elusive like a Lanceolated Monklet or Yellow-eared Toucanet. We’ll also bird a picturesque river valley close to the lodge where mixed flocks often include Black-and-yellow and Emerald Tanagers, and the one-of-a-kind Sunbittern can often be found foraging right at the edge of the road. A unique feature of Rancho Naturalista are the hummingbird bathing pools where one can watch Crowned Woodnymphs, Purple-crowned Fairies, and Snowcaps dipping into the creek below. We will certainly spend a little time exploring the trails at Rancho, which begin right outside our rooms and can produce forest species like Fawn-throated Foliage-gleaner, Red-throated Ant-tanager, Black-capped Antthrush, and the local Tawny-chested Flycatcher, sometimes found right around the lodge but can be quite shy. Nights at Rancho Naturalista.

Days 5-6: After another chance to enjoy the activity at the feeders from the balcony of our lodge, we’ll descend the Reventazon Valley to the Caribbean lowlands and towards the Sarapiquí region. We’ll visit local artist and naturalist “Cope,” who has turned his home into a miniature wildlife refuge featuring very productive fruit and hummingbird feeders often loaded with Red-legged Honeycreepers and Orange-chinned Parakeets, and a beautiful water feature sometimes visited by a pair of Russet-naped Wood-Rails. We’ll also spend some time searching with Cope for roosting owls; Crested and Spectacled Owls are both possible. The main event of our time in the lowlands will be La Selva, a biological station operated by the Organization for Tropical Studies. This roughly 1,400-acre reserve is adjacent to Braulio Carrillo National Park and is managed as a natural research laboratory. About 475 species of birds have been recorded at La Selva, and although we'll only see a fraction of that number in a one-day visit, we’ll certainly experience the avian richness of the region. La Selva is an excellent place to see Great Tinamou, Rufous and Broad-billed Motmots, Keel-billed and Yellow-throated Toucans, Black-crowned and Fasciated Antshrikes, Slaty-tailed and Gartered Trogons, Snowy Cotinga, Great Green and Scarlet Macaws, Stripe-breasted and Black-throated Wrens, and Chestnut-colored, Cinnamon, and Rufous-winged Woodpeckers, among many, many others. Our visit to La Selva will be an especially memorable part of the trip. We’ll also take a boat trip on the Sarapiquí River to look for kingfishers, tiger-herons, and the uncommon and timid Sungrebe. Nights in the Sarapiquí region.

Day 7: We’ll have another morning to look for odd and ends that we haven’t seen yet in the Sarapiquí region before heading up into the mountains, driving alongside a dramatic valley where Short-tailed and White Hawks are regularly seen. We’ll visit a middle-elevation site with feeders that attract crowd-pleasers like Prong-billed Barbet, Northern Emerald-Toucanet, Silver-throated Tanager, and hummingbirds such as Brown Violetear, Coppery-headed Emerald, and the flashy Violet Sabrewing before settling into our hotel for one night. Night in Vara Blanca.

Day 8: This morning’s birding in the Vara Blanca/Poasito area will offer refreshingly cool temperatures and the chance to see some high-elevation species that won’t be available anywhere else on the tour. The birding starts right on the grounds of our hotel, where we can find Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Yellow-thighed Brushfinch, Slaty Flowerpiercer, and the skulky Silver-throated Tapaculo, among others. In patches of cloud forest on the slopes of Poás Volcano we’ll search for mixed flocks that can include Spot-crowned Woodcreeper, Flame-throated Warbler, Yellow-winged Vireo, and the endearing Collared Redstart. Among the new hummingbirds available here are Purple-throated Mountain-gem, Lesser Violetear, and Talamanca, Fiery-throated, Stripe-tailed, Scintillant, and Volcano Hummingbirds. Both Long-tailed and Black-and-yellow Silky-flycatchers are possible. In the afternoon we’ll travel west to Monteverde in the Tilarán Mountains — the longest drive of the trip at close to four hours — arriving in time for dinner. Night in Monteverde.

Days 9-10: We’ll have two full days to explore the varied habitats around Monteverde, one of Costa Rica’s original ecotourism destinations. Situated almost right on the continental divide, here we can find a fascinating mix of species from different regions within a relatively small area. One morning we’ll visit the lush, windswept forests of the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve. Here we’ll target typical cloud forest species like Ruddy Treerunner, Spangle-cheeked Tanager, Gray-breasted Wood-Wren, Red-faced Spinetail, Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush, and Costa Rican Warbler. If we are lucky we might spot a Buff-fronted Quail-Dove, Highland Tinamou, or covey of Black-breasted Wood-Quail crossing the trail. We’ll also hit the productive middle-elevation Curi-Cancha Reserve, a great location to look for the iconic Resplendent Quetzal, though it is always hit-or-miss at this time of year. Mixed flocks at Curi-Cancha can contain Slaty Antwren, Plain Antvireo, Spotted Barbtail, Eye-ringed Flatbill, and Olivaceous and Spotted Woodcreepers. Fruiting trees may attract Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Elegant Euphonia, Mountain Thrush, and Scarlet-thighed Dacnis. Monteverde is one of the best places to find the Three-wattled Bellbird, a strange member of the cotinga family with an ear-shatteringly loud voice, and we’ll be sure to make a special effort to see this species. One afternoon we’ll visit a drier forest where we might find Long-tailed Manakin, Ruddy Woodcreeper, White-eared Ground-Sparrow, and Rufous-and-white Wren. Nights in Monteverde.

Day 11: For our last day we’ll leave Monteverde and head down into the Pacific lowlands to visit a coastal site where we could find a variety of shorebirds on their southbound migration. The woodland here can produce many species typical of the Costa Rica’s dry northwest, such as Black-headed Trogon, Turquoise-browed Motmot, Orange-fronted parakeet, White-lored Gnatcatcher, Banded Wren, Streak-backed Oriole, and Cinnamon Hummingbird. We’ll have lunch on the road and leave time for one more birding stop where we might turn up Nutting’s Flycatcher, Stripe-headed Sparrow, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, or perhaps even a Lesser Ground-Cuckoo or Pearl Kite. By late afternoon we’ll be back to the San José area and ready to check into our hotel for the final night of the tour. Night in Alajuela.

Day 12: Departures from SJO.

2026 Narrative

With this year’s first running of our newly redesigned Costa Rica in July tour, we proved once again that the North American summer is a great time to visit this Central American biodiversity hotspot. Yes, it’s the “green season” and accordingly we did experience some rain, but it didn’t impact our birding all that much and after all, moisture is part of what makes the tropical forests of Costa Rica so lush and diverse. Our itinerary took us across the northern part of the country from the Central Valley down to the Caribbean lowlands, up to the slopes of Poás Volcano in the highlands, and across to the Tilarán Mountain Range in the northwest of the country, with just a taste of the dry northwestern lowlands mixed in to add more variety. Our group got along swimmingly and worked together to get each other on the birds, of which we recorded over 300 species with ease. Highlights included coveted regional endemics like Three-wattled Bellbird, Snowcap, Buff-fronted Quail-Dove, and Tawny-chested Flycatcher, along with more widespread Neotropical favorites like Sunbittern, Crested Owl, Great Curassow, Keel-billed Toucan, Montezuma Oropendola, Scaled Antpitta, and Lesson’s Motmot. We tallied 27 species of hummingbirds, four motmots, four toucans, six owls, 12 wrens, and 20 species in the tanager family. What a haul! Of course, along the way we also enjoyed delicious Costa Rican food, the warm hospitality of local staff and guides, and the services of our excellent driver Enrique. Finally, let’s not forget the amazing wildlife beyond the birds, including memorable sightings of Mantled Howler Monkeys, an amusing Hoffman’s Two-toed Sloth, adorable Honduran White Bats, two remarkable species of poison-dart frogs, and a record five species of snakes seen well. Thanks for joining me on this marvelous visit to the magical birding destination that is Costa Rica. ¡Pura vida!

Day 1: We started things off with our late afternoon introductory meeting and a cooperative Mottled Owl roosting behind the hotel, followed by a wonderful welcome dinner. 

Day 2: On our first full day we worked on getting familiar with the garden birds of the Central Valley, first on the grounds of our hotel, then at a park near the colonial city of Cartago. Highlights included a pair of Barred Antshrike, flashy Gray-cowled Wood-Rails, and a normally secretive Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush that we spotted bathing in a stream. We next swung by the central park of a nearby small city where we found roosting Tropical Screech-Owls and a sleepy American Barn-Owl, as well as a large statue of the endemic and localized Cabanis’s Ground-Sparrow, which proved to be foreshadowing for our next stop in the nearby farming community of Ujarrás. There we were fortunate to observe a pair of this specialty of the Central Valley as they foraged in a chayote plantation. For lunch we visited a beautiful restaurant in a coffee plantation, which also turned out to be quite birdy and we added several new species, including Common Squirrel-Cuckoo, Brown Violetear, and Golden-hooded Tanager. Later on we had time for a bit of wetland birding at the Angostura Reservoir near Turrialba with waterbirds like Northern Jacana, Southern Lapwing, and Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, as well as a few Snail Kites busily cruising above the marshy habitat. Toward the end of the afternoon we checked into our accommodations at Rancho Naturalista, and gathered for the first of many enjoyable family-style meals.

Day 3: Our morning began with coffee on the deck with the numerous White-necked Jacobins, Crowned Woodnymphs, and a few Bronze-tailed Plumeleteers, followed by some birding on the forest trail behind Rancho; Dull-mantled Antbird and Fawn-throated Foliage-gleaner were among the species that showed well. After breakfast we headed to the nearby San Antonio de Platanillo area for the rest of the morning, where the top highlight by far was seeing at least three Sunbitterns in the wet, grassy areas beside the road. They flashed the hidden eyespots on their wings, gave their melancholy whistled calls, and hunted butterflies. One of these majestic birds even disappointed us by comically choosing to forage in a pile of manure! After lunch at the lodge we took a little down time, then birded our way down the driveway, spotting White-collared Manakins as they bounced around their lek, and Montezuma Oropendolas doing their ridiculous displays, pitching forward while giving their gurgling, swooshing song. We also got our first sighting of the charming Snowcap, a hummingbird that is a must-see at Rancho.

Day 4: Today was our earliest start of the trip, rising before first light for an hour-long drive to the famous El Copal reserve with our local guide Meche. After the logistics of shuttling up the driveway in a 4x4 taxi, we settled in for a somewhat chaotic breakfast on the observation deck. Chaotic because it was hard to eat our delicious breakfast burritos because there was so much activity on the feeders and in the surrounding Miconia trees! The tanager bonanza included Speckled, Emerald, Bay-headed, and Silver-throated Tanagers, as well as Ashy-throated Chlorospingus, while outrageously-colored Keel-billed Toucans tried to steal the show. Later on a couple of rare treats appeared: first the dainty yet striking Black-and-yellow Tanager and then the hulking Blue-and-gold Tanager. Walking on the trails the birding was more challenging, and we worked hard to see forest species like Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush, White-ruffed Manakin, and Checker-throated Stipplethroat. But in fact one of the best sightings turned out to not even be a bird, but a gorgeous and intricately-patterned Eyelash Palm Viper spotted as it was warming up on a log. After lunch we waited out an impressive rainshower and then birded a little more before returning to Rancho, capping off our visit to El Copal with a handsome Laughing Falcon that our driver Enrique located near where our mini-bus was parked. We made it back to Rancho with just enough time for those who wanted to check the activity at the hummingbird pools in the order near the lodge, while others birded from the lodge deck.

Day 5: Our final morning at Rancho featured some real highlight birds like the understated Tawny-chested Flycatcher, a local specialty with a limited range almost entirely contained in the borders of Costa Rica. Then after breakfast we hiked up one of the trails from the lodge with Meche to see a normally-reclusive Thicket Antpitta that has become habituated to worm-feeding. The rest of the morning was spent driving down to the hot and steamy Caribbean lowlands for a visit with Cope, a local artist and naturalist who has transformed his home into a magical oasis for birds in the middle of a densely built neighborhood. We ate lunch by Cope’s fruit feeders while watching the antics of Orange-chinned Parakeets and a seemingly endless parade of three species of dazzling honeycreepers. A gaudy Russet-naped Wood-Rail strolled by, while a couple of juvenile Giant Cowbirds begged for food from the Montezuma and Chestnut-headed Oropendolas. Cope also took us out to the nearby patch of forest that he knows well and showed roosting Spectacled and Crested Owls, a Great Potoo, and a family of tiny and adorable Honduran White Bats roosting beneath a leaf. At the end of the afternoon before checking into our jungle hotel, we stopped at a tree by the roadside where Enrique knew that macaws might be coming in to roost and sure enough we were treated to the magnificent sight of about 20 Scarlet Macaws flying in pair by pair, as well as smaller groups of Red-lored and Mealy Amazons. The action continued right through until after dinner, when our evening ritual of reviewing the bird list for the day was interrupted by another guest announcing he had spotted a snake — it turned out to be a beautiful Costa Rica Coral Snake!

Day 6: This was the day of our long-awaited visit to La Selva Biological Station, a famous birding site and also the setting for many studies of tropical forest ecology. Upon arrival we were immediately greeted by our local guide for the morning Joel and our first Yellow-throated Toucan. The birding was action-packed, and before we had even made it out of sight of the parking area we were sifting through an impressive mixed flock with Eye-ringed Flatbill, Bright-rumped Attila, Stripe-breasted Wren, Black-crowned Antshrike, and a fast-moving group of Dusky-faced Tanagers. Rufous-tailed Jacamar and White-whispered Puffbird showed nicely nearby, and a pair of Fasciated Antshrikes gave us glimpses as they moved through dense vine tangles above us. A Snowy Cotinga obliged us by sitting in a treetop by the river for a somewhat distant study in the scope, while in the forest interior we got great views of Pale-billed Woodpecker and Slaty-tailed Trogons. By late morning we ventured across the river, noting a large and very healthy-looking American Crocodile as we traversed the suspension bridge, and continued to turn up new birds on the other side, including White-ringed Flycatcher and both Cinnamon and Rufous-winged Woodpeckers. Finally rain rolled in late in the morning, and after waiting out one shower under the roof of one of the classroom buildings we returned to the dining hall for lunch and another downpour. When the rain let up we ventured out one more time, and lucked into an impressive Great Curassow strolling through the clearing. After La Selva we headed for the Sarapiquí River for some birding by boat. Noisy Great Green Macaws, a Ringed Kingfisher, an excitable group of White-fronted Nunbirds, and a handsome Bare-throated Tiger-Heron were all nice, but were upstaged by an amazing observation of a Hoffman’s Two-toed Sloth spotted as it was moving through low branches by the river. Red-eyed Treefrogs and an Emerald Basilisk after dinner at the hotel capped off a memorable day.

Day 7: We started with pre-breakfast birding around the hotel grounds, headlined by the best views yet of Red-throated Ant-Tanagers, a shy Lineated Woodpecker that stayed partly hidden in the treetops, a cooperative Long-billed Hermit, and a stately Rufous Motmot that posed for a great study. Stunning Crimson-collared Tanagers appeared at the fruit feeder during breakfast, and then it was time to head upslope. A walk on a quiet road in the foothills was not as birdy as we might have hoped, but did produce some new species like Blue-black Grosbeak and the tiny Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrant. Lunch was a huge success, when we stopped at a small outdoor cafe with fruit and nectar feeders. Before and during our meal we were entertained by Northern Emerald-Toucanets, a variety of tanagers, and both Red-headed and Prong-billed Barbets. Hummingbirds included Violet Sabrewings and Coppery-headed Emeralds, among the largest and smallest hummingbirds we would see during the tour, both completely dazzling in their own way. Stops at higher elevations in the afternoon gave us our first encounters with mountain birds like Common Chlorospingus, Tufted Flycatcher, Purple-throated Mountain-gem, and Volcano Hummingbird, as well as a very cooperative Bicolored Hawk that gave us fantastic views. After arrival at our lodge in the highlands our owling excursion did not prove successful, but we enjoyed our first starry sky of the trip before dinner. 

Day 8: We started by birding around the lodge, with Black-faced Grosbeak, Mountain Thrush, a stately Black Guan, and a somewhat cooperative Silvery-fronted Tapaculo among the new additions to our trip list. The remainder of the morning was spent birding the highland forests along the road to Poás National Park. In this novel habitat new species were numerous, and included Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Yellow-winged Vireo, Large-footed Finch, Black-and-yellow Silky-flycatcher, and Sooty-capped Chlorospingus, and the showy Fiery-throated Hummingbird, all regional endemic species found only in the highlands of Costa Rica and western Panama. Lunch at a local restaurant was a total cultural experience, with the local specialty strawberry juice on the table and the World Cup semifinal between Argentina and England on TV. The afternoon brought our longest drive of the tour, to Monteverde. Roadwork interrupted the traffic flow and prolonged the trip even more, but in one of the slowdowns we managed to spot multiple Turquoise-browed Motmots perched on utility wires and the roadside earth banks.

Day 9: For our first morning in the Monteverde area we visited the Santa Elena Reserve, without a doubt the lushest, most moss-covered cloud forest of the trip. The weather made birding difficult at times, with gusty wind in the canopy and some periods of light rain. We worked hard for all the birds we saw, and there were some great sightings, like Buff-fronted Quail-Doves walking on the forest floor and Sooty-faced Finch and both Slaty-backed and Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrushes in the understory. Mixed flocks were tough to come by but we did find a couple, and managed to tease out Costa Rican Warblers, Spotted Barbtails, Spangle-cheeked Tanagers, and adorable Collared Whitestarts. In the afternoon we birded an open area nearby, adding several new species, including Vaux’s Swifts zipping overhead, Bronzed Cowbirds doing their strange helicoptering displays, and White-throated Magpie-Jays moving through the treetops.

Day 10: Our second full day in Monteverde featured an amazingly productive visit to Curi-Cancha Reserve. One of the most enduring memories will surely be the Three-wattled Bellbird giving its ear-shattering “bonk” vocalization from a favorite perch inside the forest. The opportunity to watch this strange creature channel all of its energy into its impressive proclamation is a major highlight of a visit to Costa Rica this time of year. In addition, we spent time at the hummingbird garden and studied dozens of individuals of nine species as they competed for nectar. We spent quite a bit of time staking out a favorite fruiting tree, hoping for a quetzal sighting, but alas it was not to be. The consolation prize was a pair of Golden-browed Chlorophonias blending into the canopy. A family of roosting Mottled Owls captured our attention for a while, and we managed to see several other species that were new for our trip, including Rufous-and-white Wren, White-naped Brushfinch. Plain Antvireo, and Olivaceous Woodcreeper. After lunch at the reserve we went back out on the trails with a tip from another guide, and found a charming Scaled Antpitta on a nest. Later in the afternoon we visited another nearby reserve where we saw more bellbirds and spotted an Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush singing in the understory.

Day 11: Our last full day! We left the windy and wet weather of Monteverde behind and drove down to the coast, where we found a variety of waterbirds in the salt evaporating ponds and shrimp farms of Punta Morales. Even in mid-July local residents like Roseate Spoonbill and Black-necked Stilts are joined by some migratory shorebirds, with Hudsonian Whimbrels and a single Stilt Sandpiper being among the visitors that day. In the trees above us we added some characteristic birds of Costa Rica’s dry northwestern region like Orange-fronted Parakeet, White-lored Gnatcatcher, Northern Scrub-Flycatcher, Cinnamon Hummingbird, and Scrub Euphonia. Next we headed for our lunch stop at El Ceibo, suffering another not-as-lengthy delay while passing through the construction zone, but still arriving in time for a delicious home-cooked meal! Of course there was birding to be done there as well, with Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl and Black-headed Trogon being a couple of the top standouts. Black Spiny-tailed Iguana was also a favorite. Then before we knew it we were headed back to San José and our final night of the tour. We said goodbye to Enrique (about a minute away from the hotel!) and at dinner we reminisced about the sightings of the trip. As voted on by the group, the top bird of the trip was Three-wattled Bellbird, totally fitting considering the amazing observations we had. Thanks for the company and the memories, everyone! 

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