Costa Rica offers the best adventure destination in the whole of South America and all its environs.  It offers a rich tropical ecosystem which is diversely colored with different species of birds, plants, animals and many more that would only be experienced if you travel there physically. If you are an adventure enthusiast and you have not made a trip down to the Rainforest of Costa Rica then indeed you haven’t seen nature stripped to its bare majesty. The rain forests are truly a paradise to the eye due to their spectacular beauty for those who have visited Costa Rica and feasted their eyes on these Rainforests. If you have never seen the spider, monkey, fer-de-lance snakes and the three-toed sloth then visit Costa Rica as it harbors them all in one roof, the roof is the Rainforest.

Trips to the Rainforest

Though adults are best suited to enjoy the canopies tours in the Rainforest due to some excursion modes like the zip-lines, some tour guides offer the whole family a package to enjoy these magnificent views. So a family vacation would be a very fun decision as your children will get to enjoy fun learning experience about nature, animals, and birds.

There are different ways through which tourists and other people, who visit the Rainforest in Costa Rica, can use in order to navigate their ways through the forest. Because these forests are expansive and also because it’s argued that most of the Rainforest organisms live in the treetops, there was a need for a special way to view all the Rainforest even at their canopies. Here are some of these special ways to enjoy the Rainforest in Costa Rica from within, above and below the rain forest:

Bird Watching

Costa Rica is one of the most bio-diverse locations in the world and considered as one of the world’s premier bird watching site as over 870 bird species recorded here and it also includes roughly 600 species of permanent residents. Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve is the best place for Resplendent Quetzals and hummingbirds and if you want to watch Scarlet Macaw you can visit Corcovado National Park. There are also many other reserves for bird watching. Costa Rica’s temperate climate and the environment is rich in fruits and flowers support the country’s wealth of birds. You should take binoculars and birding booklet in hand. The Transitional Tropical Rainforest is ideal for birding Costa Rica and is home to native birds including tanagers, warblers, Euphoni, toucans, Scarlet Macaws and more.

Horseback Riding

If you love horseback riding then lucky you, because some tour guides offer horse rides a mode of excursion through the rainforest. It’s worth noting that horse riding has been part and parcel of the Costa Rica culture for decades, hence it’s a popular means of transportation in Costa Rica. This type of tour will let you explore a few beautiful locations over a few hours or days. You can have a great experience while riding through lush rainforest. You can visit a single place to ten with horseback riding and if you are inexperienced riders you can take a guide to enjoy the ride and you can go individually for a horseback riding or can even go with a large group for making the tour more enjoyable. Some favorite locations for horseback riding include Santa Teresa, Montezuma, Monteverde, Arenal, and Rincón de La Vieja.

Night Hikes

If you want to explore many of Costa Rica’s hidden treasures which can be found only at night you can choose a Night Hike tour with an experienced guide. Many nasty things can happen at night without proper guidance so be sure to take a guide with you.  The guide will give you an explanation about the wild creature you will observe all around. Tropical Rain Forests are home to many types of wild species including mammals, reptiles, insects, and amphibians.  You will have to take hiking shoes, mosquito repellent, light rain jacket, long pant and if you wish you can take a camera also.  One of the most popular hiking areas in Costa Rica is the Monteverde Biological Cloud Forest Reserve. 

Raft Trips

The rainforest in Costa Rica is also blessed with rivers that flow even in the interior of the rainforest. Raft trips also offer you a chance to explore these rainforests from a different angle. With a trained guide, you will find raft trips quite exciting and the guide will help show you creatures like toucans and sloths that would be difficult to spot. Having a guide is a good thing as there are species of animals that are dangerous and it requires a trained eye to spot them like the blue jean poison dart frog that discharges poisonous secretion via its skin.

Trips with a guide also ensure that you get to taste some of the edible fruits in the Rainforest without worrying about them being poisonous.

Suspension Bridges

Some Costa Rice tours in the Rainforest also employ suspension bridges to aid in the Rainforest adventure. These bridges are a fun way to also get to learn about the ecology in the Rainforests. Unlike the zip-lines, the suspension bridges offer you the convenience of taking pictures of different animals and birds at the treetops. With regard to the many species of birds, the Rainforest of Costa Rica hosts, the Suspension bridges are the best option to get a glimpse of the different types of birds and still take some pictures or videos along the way.

Sky Tram

This is another relaxing mode to take an excursion over the rain forest of Costa Rica. The sky trams are cabin-like structures that are suspended in the air and they move you around the forest quietly while you enjoy the charming view of the Rainforest treetops. This mode of excursion is very suitable if you are planning to take some pictures or videos along the way.

Walks in the Rainforest

This has to be the best and healthiest ways to explore the rain forests of Costa Rica. A walk in the Rainforests also helps in ensuring that you learn a lot from the expedition. You could visit the newest attraction in Costa Rica CincoCeibas and see the magnificent scenarios it offers.

Just like in every excursion mode it is very important to have a guide with you. The guides, apart from showing you the way around are also able to spot different deadly reptiles within the environs of the Rainforest like the fer-de-lance snakes.

You can also choose to visit the Corcovado National Park, which boasts of being the “most biologically intense place on earth” according to the National Geography. From this park, you will get to enjoy the over 894 species of birds. So if you love bird watching then this is the right place for you as they provide a very powerful microscope to aid you in spotting the birds on the tress. You will also need a trained eye to spot some of the unique species like the Black-throated Trogon.

Waterfall Rappelling

Costa Rica is full of amazing natural beauty and to experience some of Costa Rica’s most magnificent landscapes waterfall rappelling is a safe, fun, exciting and adventurous way. Close to the Arenal Volcano, the rugged mountain terrain is perfect for enjoying waterfall rappelling. While you will be at the top of a magical canyon full of wonderful waterfalls surrounded by tropical rainforest and will watch down into the depths of a 150-ft massive tropical waterfall, you will feel thrilled. When you will rappel down the waterfall, you will get a lifetime experience. If you are a beginner, you can choose a small 10-ft waterfall near the Arenal Volcano with the help of an experienced guide who will give you a brief about the technique of rappelling and down climbing safely. After rappelling four waterfalls and climbing down, you can enjoy going along the river.

Zip Lines / Canopy Tours

Zip-lines are probably the most fun inducing way to take an excursion over the magnificent canopy of the Rainforest of Costa Rica. They offer the chance for you to view the Rainforest treetops in a fun way. It’s one of the most famous ways to stroll over the forest for those who love to push up their adrenalin levels. Though it looks dangerous, respective guides will show you the basics of how to hold on to the cable and positioning your body aptly. The guides also help you in reducing the speed at the end so you don’t have to worry about crashing or anything. This mode of excursion is extremely safe as it has been used by over 1 million visitors to the Rainforest of Costa Rica. With all that knowledge all that will be expected of you is to sit down, relax and enjoy the astounding scenarios above the Rainforest canopy.

When visiting these Rainforests of Costa Rica you can be assured you will find these zip-lines nearly everywhere and riding on them will ensure you learn on the botany and ecology of these rainforests from the top.