Crocodiles are in Costa Rica's Rivers

 

 

Crocodiles are in Costa Rica's Rivers so beware before you dive in!  Yes, just like the one you see in this photo!  And they will eat a person alive if given the opportunity.

The Tarcoles River, one of the largest rivers in Costa Rica is full of crocodiles.  This river is on the road to Manuel Antonio not far past Jaco.  Tourist stop by the dozens to photograph these huge crocodiles.   Yesterday  a man actually dived into the Tarcoles river and was sadly eaten by a very large crocodile!  I read in the newspaper today that his head was found floating down the river.

Many tourist want to do white water rafting while visiting Costa Rica.  The rivers with large swift rapids do not seem to have crocodiles.  Maybe it is the rapids that they dislike.

The Rio Frio located in the northern zone is full of crocodiles.  Tourist go on the "Cano Negro Wildlife Reserve" Tour and is navigated by a tour guide in a covered boat.  They see  Lots of crocodiles lazily basking on the sand bars along the river banks.

How can you tell a male crocodile from a female crocodile?  It is very difficult.  Their embryo do not have sex chromosomes . Sex is determined by the temperature during incubation of the eggs.  86F produces females and 90F produces males.

Crocodiles are very vocal. They hiss, bellow, and chirp.  And they love hot weather and do not survive in cold weather.  Crocodiles are a tropical species of reptiles, laying in the sun for hours drawing heat from the sun into their body thru their skin.

If you would like to view these curious creatures in Costa Rica, contact Ann, "The Costa Rica Expert" to help plan your vacation.

Read all about Ann  www.costaricalearn.com

Thanks to Carlos de la Rosa/Ecological society of America for the impressive photo of the butterfly and the bee resting on the nose of the crocodile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Costa Rica is know for it's beautiful wild and and natural rivers.  The Pacuare is famous for river rafting.  And the Savegre, near Manuel Antonio offers thrills to hundreds of tourist enjoying rafting down it's wild wild rapids.

If you drive around Costa Rica you will see many many rivers winding down the mountains.  Costa Rica definitely does not have a shortage of water.

 

 

Sloths Live in Costa Rica

If you want to be sure to see many sloths on you vacation to Costa Rica, you must visit the southern Caribbean Coastline.  This dense jungle setting and hot weather is perfect for sloth habitat.

Sloths move very slow and come down from the trees only to urinate and defecate.

You must visit The Sloth Sanctuary located 30 KM south of the port city of Limon.  It is owned and run by Judy and Lewis Arroyo. They purchased 320 acres of swampland along the Estrella River  and built a home.  One day they found an injured sloth which had been hit by a car.  They took him home and nursed him back to health and named him Buttercup.   Buttercup is now 16 years old and lives happily at the Sloth Sanctuary  with his other sloth friends. This was the beginning of Judy and Lewis's  quest to provide a sanctuary for injured sloths-to nurse them back to health and then release them to the wild.

I would love to share share this wonderful video:    http://www.slothville.com/

Have your vacation to Costa Rica planned by Ann, The Costa Rica Expert, And she will be sure you see sloths!     http://costaricalearn.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee in Costa Rica Must be Picked By Hand

Coffee in Costa Rica must be picked by hand.  It can't be machine picked because the coffee berries would be smashed and damaged.

Coffee is the number one export crop for Costa Rica, and  tourist who vacation in Costa Rica love to visit a coffee plantation-see It's beauty and taste the many blends.

In the central valley of Costa Rica there are two different coffee tours the tourists can take.

First there is Doka Four Generations Coffee Tour located 6 miles north of Alajuela, the second larges city in Costa Rica.  The Vargas Family  has owned and operated this coffee plantation for four generations.  Tours are offered four times a day and costs around $20 per adult.  You see how coffee is picked and harvested and then you taste four different blends of the coffee.  Also you can purchase coffee to take home.  click here to read all about this tour   http://dokaestate.com/

Second is the Britt Coffee Tour located in the central valley fews miles outside the capital city of San Jose.  The town is called Santa Domingo de Heredia.  This is a half day tour and costs $22 per adult.  The tour is inside a large coffee plantation-very scenic and the weather is cool and brisk.  click to read all about it  http://www.coffeetour.com/

Coffee is the crop that made many people wealthy.  However, coffee is not indigenous to Costa Rica.  The first coffee to be planted were for ornamental decoration for the green berries which later turn red.  By 1840 coffee had caught on growing well at 4.000 feet in the cool climate of the central valley,  and was  transported by oxcart over the mountains to Puntarenas and on by boat to Europe.  Today coffee is Costa Rica's number one export.

To take a coffee tour please contact Ann "the Costa Rica Expert"  Vacation Planning to Costa Rica   www.costaricalearn.com

 

 

 

How A Rental Car In Costa Rica Makes Your Vacation Better

Having a rental car while vacationing in Costa Rica allows the tourist  to enjoy more places and see close up the spectacular natural beauty. Costa Rica's infrastructure and friendly local people make it an ideal vacation destination to rent a car.

Tourist want certain things from a vacation:  a relaxing experience and escape from the the nine to five stressful business work week.  They want to learn new things and experience the attractions, thus create wonderful  memories.  A Costa Rica Rental Car allows one to explore on their own and not have to be with a bus filled with other tourist.

Being a small country, Costa Rica allows the tourist with a rental car to get from point A to point B with few problems.   Economy Rent A Car makes this possible.  No waiting in line for buses, wasting time picking up other passengers, or stopping for meals which take up a good bit of your time.  Click here to see all the advantages that Economy Car Rental has to offer.     www.economyrentacar.com

Tourist ask:  What kind of car should I rent?  A midsize car is great for visiting San Jose, Costa Rica's capital city.  And the near by suburb of Heredia offers great Coffee Tours.  The National Biodiversity Institute located near Heredia introduces one to the flora and fauna of Costa Rica. These places can be easily accessed by  rental car.

Poas Volcano National Park and La Paz Waterfall Gardens (breathtaking waterfalls and close up views of wildlife) are located forty five  minutes by rental car from San Jose and only thirty minutes by car from Alajuela, and are great choices for day trips.  The roads to these two places are good and easy to get to.

Visiting attractions outside the Central Valley and Metropolitan area, you will need to rent a 4x4 vehicle due to the infrastructure.  Some roads are bumpy and are dirt and gravel.

Costa Rica's beaches are easily accessed by rental car.  Jaco, , located in the Central Pacific- is famous for it's dark volcanic beaches, and is only two hours by rental car from the San Jose International Airport.  You do not need a 4x4 to reach this beach. However, the other beaches such as Manuel Antonio and the NW Guanacaste Beaches have some roads that require a 4x4 vehicle.

Manuel Antonio, a favorite tourist spot  and famous for it's sandy white beaches, is full of wildlife-most famous is the White Face Capuchin Monkey.  This beach is three and one half hours from the San Jose International  Airport and the road is good.   So a rental car is a good option for getting to and around Manuel Antoinio.

I want to thank Rachel Ratcliffe  for contributing this very informative article.  Rachel lives in Heredia, Costa Rica.  She works in tourism and also writes travel articles about the many fascinating places to visit.

Read Rachel's blog  https://www.economyrentacar.com/blog/

To have your vacation planned by "Ann The Costa Rica Expert" and  rent a car from Economy Rental Car in Costa Rica   click here:  http://costaricalearn.com/

 

Getting Around Costa Rica by the Domestic Airlines

Costa Rica has Two Domestic Airline Companies which fly  inside  Costa Rica.

Sansa Air -flies to twelve different popular tourist destinations within Costa Rica.  These small commuter planes have twin engines and hold around nineteen passengers.  Sansa has a very good reputation for service and being on time. You have to check out their web site to see the different fares and also must remember you have to add taxes to the fare shown.  Sansa departs from the San Jose International Airport located two miles outside the city of Alajuela in the central valley.  Read more about Sansa   http://www.flysansa.com/

Nature Air- also small commuter twin engine planes and hold around nineteen passengers.

You can find out everything about Nature Air on their web site   http://www.natureair.com/

 

 

Spectacular Treat for Tourist! Poas Volcano is Putting on A Show!

The Poas Volcano National Park is the most visited National Park in Costa Rica.  It is located in the Central Valley of Costa Rica  and only 30 minutes by car from Alajuela (where the San Jose  International Airport is located).

Today, the Poas Volcano is erupting and throwing hot water and steam high into the air.  The eruptions are not considered dangerous by the park rangers or they would not allow tourist into the Park.

Although from the air , the crater does not look very large, actually it is one mile wide.

If you are visiting  Costa Rica  now, I encourage you to visit Poas Volcano National Park and see this spectacular sight!

[caption id="attachment_5622" align="aligncenter" width="620" caption="View from the air"][/caption]

Arenal has Three Different Zip Line Tours

All the tourist who visit Arenal in Costa Rica want to do a zip line tour.  So which one should they choose?  I will compare the three options.


There are three different choices for a zip line tour in Arenal.

First there is the Sky Tram Sky Trek.  You first get into a glass gondola which takes you up on the top of a very tall mountain and along the way you see the rainforest canopy and  often you can see a family of howler monkeys.  At the top the view of Lake Arenal and Arenal Volcano is spectacular!  There is a hike thru the rainforest and afterwards- if you like you can ride the gondola back down.  Or- you can take the adrenalin pumping zip line back down.  The cables are very long and you get an excellent view of the rainforest canopy. You can combine this one with the Sky Walk which consists of a series of suspended bridges over the top of the rainforest.  This offers beautiful scenery and a great work out!

Just the zip line is 1/2 day tour-combining the Sky Walk makes in a full day.  Children have to be age 8 or older to do the zip line tour.

 

Second, is the Arenal Mundo Adventura.  This one requires that you hike up hill for quite a distance to get to the first platform..so if you are not in really good shape you might want to choose the First option (Sky Tram Sky Trek)  This zip line is also very long lines with great views of the tropical rainforest.

After the zip line you can choose to visit an indigenous Maleku Village.  This is staged by the Maleku Indigenous people in full naive costume.  They perform their native dances and sing in their native language.  You can also buy their art here which is very colorful and beautiful.  Example of their art click here.  http://galerianamu.com/category/shop/indigenous-arts/maleku-arts-crafts.

The Third zip line tour in Arenal is the Vista Arenal Canopy tour.  This one will accept children starting at age 6 years.  It has twelve cables and offers spectacular views of the Arenal Volcano and the surrounding rainforests.  You can combine this one with Lost Canyon canyoneering and Rappelling to make an adventure filled day tour.

To find out more about these zip line tours in Arenal contact Ann, "the Costa Rica Expert" .  She can design your perfect Costa Rica Vacation.  email her at anncreed23@gmail.com and get started today!


You  read all about her at www.costaricalearn.com