Our English-speaking guide will welcome you in the arrival hall of the airport. Transfer to the hotel near downtown San José.

Today your Costa Rica – Panama – Nicaragua tour starts! Right after breakfast, your natural experience starts with a journey up into the mountains of Monteverde. Near Las Juntas, the 35 km long, bumpy road to Monteverde, one of the most famous cloud forest reserves, starts. You will visit a nature reserve, where a hike of about 2-2.5 hours is on your schedule. The region is well-known for its dense and impressive green and the many species of birds. Among them is the Quetzal, already admired by the Mayans. Afterward, check-in at your hotel. The rest of the afternoon is at your leisure.

Quite early today you will head back to the Panamerican Highway. Via Cañas and Liberia, you reach the border to Nicaragua near Peñas Blancas (approx. 11:30h). After passing the immigration formalities you continue to the North, alongside the largest lake in Nicaragua and Central America. In the harbor town of San Jorge take the ferry and enjoy a one-hour boat trip to the volcanic island of Ometepe in Lake Nicaragua. You arrive at Moyogalpa and continue to Playa Santo Domingo, where you check in at the hotel.

In the morning you return to the ferry, visiting on the way the “El Ceibo” local museum and the legendary lagoon “Charco Verde”. After arriving on the mainland you drive to the famous Panamerican Highway to Granada, the oldest colonial city on the American continent. On a walking tour, you explore the historical center and the most important monuments of this impressive city. Later on, enjoy dinner in a cozy restaurant in the city.

After breakfast, we will take you to the Masaya National Park. Here you can have a look into the impressive crater Santiago. Deep down, the molten lava is boiling. Clouds of different gases rise from the “mouth of the devil”, as the local population calls the crater. Afterward, the trip continues to Catarina, a traditional village with a magnificent view of the “Laguna de Apoyo”. We continue to Catarina’s neighbor village San Juan de Oriente, famous for its artisans and the pottery workshops. Via Granada, you continue to Lake Nicaragua where you take a leisurely boat trip through the tropical “Isletas” islets of Granada. Here you admire the lush vegetation and birdlife. You return to Granada and continue the city tour.

In the early morning, you leave Granada and drive along the Lake of Nicaragua to San Carlos. Enjoy the varied scenery of Chontales and learn more about this part of Nicaragua from your tour guide. From San Carlos, it is not far to Las Tablillas, where you will soon be back in Costa Rica, crossing the bridge over the Rio San Juan. From here, it is about an hour to Muelle and another 20 minutes to La Fortuna at the foot of the active Arenal Volcano. Check-in at your hotel. After your arrival, you can enjoy a bath in the hot springs.

After breakfast, you will take a walking tour through the Arenal Nationalpark, with the volcano always in view. Later, you pass through a small forest until you reach an old lava stream from the year 1992. Afterward, walk across the suspension bridges to look at nature and landscape from another perspective.

After a quick cup of coffee, you leave around 05.30 am and drive via Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí and Horquetas to Guápiles, where you reach the main road to Limón. Here you will enjoy a typical Costa Rican breakfast before you continue to the area of Caño Blanco. This area is important for banana production and you will see huge plantations here. Your guide will tell you about the advantages and disadvantages of the yellow fruit. Near Caño Blanco you will then continue by boat and cruise on rivers and canals along with the beautiful nature of Tortuguero. Check-in at a comfortable lodge and late lunch.

In the afternoon, the choice is yours: Relax at the pool or walk to the village of Tortuguero with your guide. There, you can visit the Turtle Conservation Center (entrance fee approx. USD 2 per person, not included), dedicated to protecting the endangered sea turtles. Enjoy a drink in one of the local “sodas” (typical small restaurants), before returning to the lodge for dinner.
After dinner and from July to September, you have the possibility to book an optional night tour to the beach of Tortuguero, where the endangered Green Sea Turtles lay their eggs in the sand (not included, cost approx. USD 30 per person).

Info 1: Together with our group, there are also other participants on the Tortuguero Tour days 8, 9 and 10. The transfer to Tortuguero is always on seat-in/shared basis.

Info 2: The luggage limit is 12 kg per person. We recommend to pack the things you need for days 8 to 10 into a smaller bag and send the main luggage with the driver to San José. You will get it back on day 10.

Today you will explore the narrow canals of Tortuguero together with your guide and try to spot animals. The vegetation sometimes is so dense that it seems your boat moves through a tunnel. With a little bit of luck, you will see crocodiles, monkeys, turtles, sloths, bats, iguanas and a lot of birds. Also, the flora will surprise you with an incredible diversity. Return to the lodge for breakfast. Before lunch, a walk in the hotel reserve is on your schedule. In the afternoon hours, you will enjoy another boat tour through the park and the narrow canals. After sunset, enjoy your dinner in the open restaurant of the lodge.

After breakfast, you leave the beautiful area of Tortuguero by boat. Near Caño Blanco, the bus is waiting for you. You drive to the Caribbean coast, passing the port town of Limón. If you are lucky, you can see one of the huge transatlantic freighters or cruise liners passing by. You follow the coast to the South to Cahuita, a small village with a typical Caribbean atmosphere. Check-in at the hotel. The rest of the afternoon is at your leisure. Enjoy it with a drink in a reggae bar and visit a local restaurant for dinner.

After breakfast, the bus takes you to nearby Cahuita National Park, where you go on a walking tour. Besides many species of birds, you have the chance to discover sloths, monkeys, and more inhabitants of the jungle. Afterward, you continue to Sixaola, the border town of Costa Rica. Your Costa Rica – Panama – Nicaragua tour continues with a visit to Panama. Your guide helps you with the immigration formalities and you cross over a bridge (approx. 2 pm). From Guabito, the Panamanian border town, you continue to Almirante. Here, you will load the luggage on a boat and drive about 30 minutes by boat to the islands of Bocas del Toro, a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. After a short walk, check-in at your hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure.
On the main island Colón (Columbus) with the little town Bocas, you will find bars, restaurants, shops, and souvenir stands in a relaxed Caribbean atmosphere. The main attraction of the area is the beaches and the underwater world.

INFO: You can break off the roundtrip on the 11th day. After dropping the clients traveling on to Panama at the border in Sixaola, the bus returns to Cahuita, where you can join the transfer back to San José. Overnight day 11 / 12 at Palma Real Hotel & Casino and transfer out to the airport.

Today you will enjoy a boat ride. The boat takes you through abundant mangroves. Keep an eye out for water birds! Afterward, you head to Coral Cay where you have the possibility to taste delicious seafood dishes in a little restaurant (not included). The area is also suitable for swimming and snorkeling. Later the boat trip continues to Isla Bastimentos. Mangroves, nature, and fresh air surround the island. Isla Bastimentos consists mainly of a jungle. There are no roads or runways, therefore, one can only get to the island by boat. It is the perfect place for adventure and nature lovers. You also find one of Bocas del Toro‘s most famous beaches, the “Red Frog Beach”, named after the red arrow-poison frog. On the island, there are many trails through the jungle that invite you to explore the area. Don‘t forget about the most famous activity on the beautiful island “let the soul dangle” and listen to the sounds of the ocean. In the afternoon, ride back to the main island.

Transfer to the airstrip of the island. Then you will enjoy a 1-hour flight from Bocas del Toro to Panama City. After your arrival, your guide will take you for a city tour, where you visit the ruins of the old city, destroyed in 1671 by the pirate Sir Henry Morgan. Later on, you will visit the beautifully restored Casco Antiguo, the old town of Panama City. No visit to Panama is complete without a visit to the world-famous Panama Canal. In the afternoon, you drive to Miraflores to get a first impression of the Panama Canal. Miraflores is one of the three locks, and you can watch the large ships cruising through this technical miracle.

Early in the morning, a driver will take you to the pier where you board a larger boat for the unforgettable partial cruise of the Panama Canal. While passing some of the world´s most famous locks, you will get interesting information about the construction, the problems, and stories of this miracle of techniques. You can also look at other ships passing the locks. You will have lunch on the boat and afterward return to the hotel.

In the course of the day, transfer out to the international airport Tocumen of Panama City where our Costa Rica – Panama – Nicaragua tour ends.