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Capture Costa Rica

11-Night, 12-Day Trip

About This Bird Photography Group Tour

Focus: Bird Photography

Scheduled Dates

Dec 3 - Dec 13, 2025
Dec 3 - Dec 13, 2026
Dec 3 - Dec 13, 2027

Maximum number of guests

8 Guests

Pace

Intermediate

Prime Birding Locations

Tour Highlights

Personalized instruction from an expert bird photography guide
Extended time at premium photography locations
Access to private reserves and specialized photography setups
Deliberate pace designed specifically for photographers
Diverse habitats and wide array of possible species

Trip Overview

Day 1:

Arrive San Jose

Days 2-3:

Caribbean Lowlands

Days 4-5:

Caribbean Foothills

Days 6-7:

Central Pacific

Days 8-9:

Talamanca Highlands

Day 10:

San Jose

Day 11:

Return to SJO Airport

Overview
What's Included
Itinerary
Additional Info
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This 10-night, 11-day privately guided bird photography tour is crafted for photographers who want to go beyond casual birding and capture striking images of Costa Rica’s most iconic and colorful species. With the guidance of an expert bird photography guide, you'll travel through diverse habitats—including lush rainforests, volcanic slopes, tropical lowlands, and coastal wetlands—each offering a new range of subjects and photographic challenges. The tour follows a deliberate, photographer-friendly pace, allowing for extended time at premium locations and access to private reserves and specialized setups. Highlights include the renowned feeders at Cinchona, the wild hummingbird activity at La Paz Waterfall Gardens, and a visit to Cope’s Gardens, a favorite for close-up hummingbird shots and surprise wildlife encounters. In Orotina, you’ll search for owls in lesser-known hotspots, while the Tarcoles River Estuary boat tour offers a dynamic opportunity to photograph water birds and mangrove species from the waterline. A stay at Quetzal Paradise Lodge rounds out the experience, with targeted efforts to photograph the magnificent Resplendent Quetzal. Whether you’re refining your technique or expanding your portfolio, this tour offers exceptional access, flexibility, and photographic potential in some of Costa Rica’s most productive birding regions.
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What's Included in Your 11-Night, 12-Day Capture Costa Rica Tour?

  • Small Group Tour – Photography

    On a group tour with a private guide, the guide is with you from your arrival to your departure. You not only enjoy bird photography at the hotels, parks, and reserves on your itinerary, you also have the flexibility to stop with the guide at local spots, and places that only the guides know. You have an expert with you every step of the way. Guests with a Private Guide can expect to see and photograph at least 50% more species than guests using local guides.

    Pros and Cons of a Scheduled Group Trip

    Continuous expert guidance throughout the entire trip

    50% more species typically observed and photographed

    Access to off-the-beaten-track locations

    Flexibility for impromptu stops

    Daily species recap with guide

    Photo identification from your guide during and after your trip.

    Fixed travel dates

    Less individual flexibility

      Ideal for

    • Serious bird photographers aiming to maximize species sightings

    • First-time visitors wanting constant expert guidance

    • Photographers interested in off-the-beaten-path locations

    • Travelers who value having all meals and services included

    • Photographers who enjoy shared experiences with like-minded travelers

    • Travelers looking for an easy, seamless travel experience

      • Capture Costa Rica Itinerary Details

      Day 1: Welcome to Costa Rica

      Arrive at San José International Airport where you’ll be greeted and transferred to your hotel with your private driver. Spend the afternoon exploring the beautiful gardens of Hotel Bougainvillea with your private photography guide, capturing images of garden birds and practicing your settings for the days ahead. In the evening, join your group for a welcome dinner where your guide will provide an overview of the exciting photography opportunities awaiting you.

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Hotel Bougainvillea Gardens

    • Day 2: San José to Sarapiquí

      Depart from San José with your guide to Sarapiquí. En route, visit La Paz Waterfall Gardens, where the strategically placed feeders and natural settings provide excellent opportunities to photograph hummingbirds, tanagers, and other colorful species. In the afternoon, arrive at Tirimbina Lodge and explore its private reserve, offering forest trails and river views for diverse shooting conditions.

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      La Paz Waterfall Gardens

      Birding La Paz Waterfall Gardens

    • Explore

      Tirimbina Lodge Trails

    • Day 3: Sarapiquí Area

      Morning visit to Cope’s Gardens, a photographer-friendly private property with perfectly positioned perches and feeders designed specifically for photography. The afternoon takes you to Pierella Gardens, another specialized photography location where natural gardens provide optimal backgrounds for your top shots. Both locations provide excellent opportunities to capture striking portraits of rainforest species.

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Cope’s Gardens

    • Explore

      Pierella Gardens

    • Day 4: Sarapiquí to Arenal

      Journey from Sarapiquí to the Arenal Volcano region. Stop at the famous Cinchona feeders, where toucans, barbets, and tanagers visit regularly, providing great opportunities to capture Costa Rica’s diverse species. Arrive at Arenal Observatory Lodge in the afternoon, where the expansive grounds and volcano views create a dramatic landscape for bird photography.

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Cinchona Feeders & Trails

    • Explore

      Arenal Observatory Lodge Reserve

    • Day 5: Arenal Area

      Full day dedicated to photography at Arenal Observatory Lodge. The property’s diverse trail system takes you through primary forest, secondary growth, and open areas, each offering different lighting conditions and bird species. The lodge’s balconies and platforms provide stable shooting positions for flying birds with the volcano as a backdrop. 

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Arenal Observatory Lodge Reserve

    • Day 6: Arenal to Central Pacific

      Travel from Arenal to the Central Pacific region. In the afternoon, enjoy a special photography session with local expert Alvaro Guitierrez in Orotina, focusing on owls. This specialized excursion provides rare opportunities to photograph these elusive birds using appropriate techniques. 

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Orotina

    • Day 7: Central Pacific Area

      Morning exploration of Carara National Park, where the transitional forest creates diverse habitat edges perfect for photography. The trails offer opportunities for many forest birds. You’ll be on the look out for the Scarlet Macaws, as this is their territory. In the afternoon, take a boat tour of the Tarcoles River Estuary, providing a stable platform for photographing waterbirds, waders, and mangrove specialists at close range.

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Carara National Park

    • Explore

      Tárcoles River Estuary – by boat

    • Day 8: Central Pacific to San Gerardo de Dota

      Journey from the Pacific lowlands to the highlands of San Gerardo de Dota. Visit Miriam’s Quetzals & Hummingbirds, a site known for the active hummingbird feeders. In the afternoon, explore the grounds of Quetzal Paradise Lodge, where highland species visit the gardens and feeders frequently. Be on the lookout for the beautiful Resplendent Quetzal. 

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Miriam’s Quetzals

    • Explore

      Quetzal Paradise Lodge Trails

    • Day 9: San Gerardo de Dota Area

      Morning visit to Batsu Gardens, a premier bird photography spot with platforms and feeders specifically designed for photographers. In the afternoon, explore the private reserve at Savegre Lodge, where the pristine oak forest provides natural settings for bird photography. Your guide will help you find the top highland species of the area. 

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Batsu Gardens

    • Explore

      Savegre Reserve

    • Day 10: Highlands to San José

      Early morning dedicated to Quetzal photography near the lodge – one of the best locations worldwide to capture images of this spectacular bird. Later, ascend to the Paramo ecosystem for landscape and bird photography in this unique high-altitude habitat with its specialized residents. In the afternoon, return to San José, with time to photograph in the gardens of your hotel.

    • Lodging

    • Explore

      Quetzal Paradise Lodge Trails

    • Explore

      Hotel Buena Vista Chic Trails

    • Day 11: Departure

      After breakfast, transfer to San José International Airport for your international departure, bringing home memory cards full of extraordinary bird images from your Costa Rican adventure.

        "Simply the best!"

        We can’t say enough about how pleased we were that we went with Costa Rica Focus, and thoroughly recommend them in every respect.

        From the very onset, it was a pleasure working with our contact Jess. She always promptly addressed any questions or concerns we had and tailored the vacation to suit our needs and requests. The entire vacation from pick up to drop off was flawless and the various locations gave us a wonderful opportunity to experience the diversity of birds, plants and other wildlife in Costa Rica. …

        As for our guide and driver Andres, what can we say? If a review sheet had a plus and minus column, we would request a third plus-plus column. He was absolutely amazing in every respect.  We arrived to meet Andres as a stranger only to leave two weeks later feeling like we just left our best friend behind. He was the most knowledgeable guide, an extremely careful and diligent driver, plus a delightfully thoughtful fellow in every respect. Nothing was too much trouble and any questions or requests were answered or taken care of immediately.  Many before we even asked the question. His main concern always was that we had the best experience in every respect.

        Without hesitation we highly recommend Costa Rica Focus.

        Richard and Donna,
        San Diego, California.

        Richard B

        San Diego, CA

        "Costa Rica Focus made our first Costa Rica experience perfect."

        What a vacation this turned out to be. I’ve had the best vacation of my life, and a big part of this is down to Costa Rica Focus. Thanks a lot, and I want to recommend this company to everyone with a wish to visit Costa Rica. A thoroughly professional company, which gave my first-time birding experience with the American continent another dimension.

        The drivers brought us safely between the sites. The local birding guides did an excellent job, and I were satisfied to discover the guides were equally nerdy as me. The guides knew bird-ID, song/calls and sites very well. I ended up with a species list of nearly 300, but would certainly have struggled reaching 220-230 without the help by the local birders from Costa Rica Focus. They also included my not-so-nerdy wife in a brilliant way, which made her happy as well.

        I owe a more detailed explanation to those who want to keep up reading, to explain. I’ve been a Norwegian birder for well over 40 years, but my wife doesn’t share this hobby with me. She likes nature but is more interested in the culture part new places. With the possible conflicting interests in mind, I contacted Costa Rica Focus just to get some advice for a Costa Rica-tour we had talked about since even before we got married 27 years ago. We had an idea of which sites we were going to visit and just had a few questions of which order we should do the sites, and how to best move from between the places.

        Costa Roca Focus quickly responded, and gave us a few options, one of which was to set up a 12-days schedule. I silently asked for the 12-days-tour, and to my complete surprise, my wife accepted on the condition of getting a week on the beach after the Costa Rica Focus journey. I probably won the jackpot.
        This turned out to be the best decision we’ve made in a long time. I can’t praise the company enough, and the money was well spent. The standards of our hotels were around 3 (4) stars, and all breakfast included. About two weeks before our tour started, Costa Rica gave us a must-do-list, which included connecting to a Whatsapp-group, to download an app (Axis) which kept an overview of our schedule and name of the guides for the trip, and a list to remind us of what to pack. These were all useful to us. The contact with Costa Rica Focus during our trip was quick and easy, and through the WhatsApp-group the company always responded quickly to our questions. …

        Jørn Helge M

        Norway

        "Another home run by Costa Rica Focus"

        A 10-day birding trip with a photography focus. Great birding and photography with our fabulous guide Sr. Minor H. despite occasionally iffy weather. Locations were great, accomodations ranged from luxurious to very basic, food from merely very good to excellent, including some pleasant surprises like Pizzeria Los Colibries, on the road to Savegre where we ended up when our destination restaurant turned out to be closed due to a medical emergency in the owner’s family – really good pizza with near-perfect crust and hyper-local ingredients like local mushrooms, herbs from their own gardens, lettuce from their hydroponic gardens, etc. It’s the first pizza place on the right on the road down to San Gerardo de Dota from National Route 2. You can’t miss it:). Logistics were perfect, including arrival and departure.

        Not a lot ot add to the overwhelmingly positive reviews of Costa Rica Focus. This is the fifth trip I’ve taken with them in four years, including one to Ecuador in collaboration with Ecuador Birds Tours, and if I go again to a destination they offer, I can’t think why I would look elsewhere.

        rfichera

        Boston, MA

      Additional Tour Info

      This itinerary requires an intermediate level of physical activity. Guests will traverse a variety of environments, including well-established trails, narrow forest paths, gardens, feeders, and observation platforms. Participants should be comfortable walking at least 2 miles at a steady, relaxed pace without the need for frequent stops or rest.

      Weather

      Weather in Costa Rica varies significantly by region and elevation. Expect different temperatures and rainfall patterns as you travel through the country. While some areas experience brief morning mist or afternoon showers, others may have longer periods of rain. These patterns shift throughout the year and create the perfect conditions for Costa Rica’s rich wildlife. While we plan activities around typical weather patterns, we recommend packing for both sun and rain to ensure your comfort throughout your journey. The temperatures listed below represent typical averages for each region, though daily conditions may vary.

      • Central Valley: Warm daytime temperatures from the high 70s °F to low 80s °F. Evenings pleasant in the high 60s °F to low 70s °F.
      • Caribbean Lowlands: Daytime temperatures will range from the high 80s to low 90s °F. Evening temperatures will be in the high 70s – low 80s °F. Expect high humidity.
      • Mid-Elevation Locations (Foothills): Enjoy temperate weather with daytime highs in the low to mid-80s °F and evenings and early mornings in the low to mid 60s Mid-Elevation Locations: Enjoy temperate weather with daytime highs in the low to mid-80s °F.
      • Pacific Lowlands: Daytime temperatures will range from the high 80s to low 90s °F. Evening temperatures will be in the high 70s – low 80s °F.
      • Highlands (Talamanca Mountains): Cooler conditions prevail here, with daytime temperatures in the mid to high 70s or low 80s °F. Evenings can drop to the high 40s or low 50s °F, so pack appropriately to stay comfortable throughout your journey. We recommend layers and a fleece or jacket. 

      On the Trail

      Please note that some parks and reserves lack seating or designated rest areas once inside the forest. While most trails are relatively flat, certain locations may involve inclines, steps, or uneven terrain with minor elevation changes.

      Trail conditions will vary, and guests should be prepared to navigate narrow forest paths with natural debris such as sticks, leaves, rocks, and roots. In the event of rain, trails may become muddy and slippery, adding to the challenge.This itinerary is designed for participants with an intermediate level of fitness and mobility, ensuring a rewarding experience for those prepared for the natural demands of these environments.

      All guests should be comfortable carrying their own equipment and personal items in the field. We understand that everyone’s pace and energy levels are different. If you ever feel the need for a shorter day, a morning to rest, or time to recharge, please let your guide know. This is your trip, and we’re here to ensure you enjoy it to the fullest.

      This trip would not be recommended for a person with mobility issues.

      Accommodations

      For our group trips, we select hotels based on their prime locations for birding opportunities. Accommodations will range from basic, rustic lodges to mid-range hotels with additional amenities, always with the goal of prioritizing excellent access to birding hotspots.

      It’s important to note that not all hotels will have air conditioning, but all will feature private bathrooms, hot or warm running showers, fans, and Wi-Fi (available at least in reception or dining areas, though signal strength may vary). The level of comfort will align with the descriptions provided in the itinerary.

      In some locations, rooms may be a 5–15 minute walk from the reception or dining areas. If you have physical needs and would prefer a room closer to these facilities, please inform us in advance, and we will do our best to accommodate your request.