Undiscovered South America

Take your included flight to Costa Rica where you will be met and transferred to your hotel for an overnight stay

Puntarenas is the capital city in the province Puntarenas, Costa Rica, on the Pacific coast, and is the gateway to the country's National Parks and wildlife reservations.  A mountainous country, Costa Rica ranges from sea level to 13,000 feet high peaks whilst white, sandy beaches follow one another along the Pacific Coast. 

Costa Rica has an international reputation for its success in conserving and presenting its natural treasures. This success has been achieved by both National Parks and private individuals. Excellent examples of these can be accessed from the small tourist settlement of Playa Panama. Playa Panama is a low-key beach resort. Palo Verde National Park protects both a significant wetlands and rare dry tropical forests. The Park varies dramatically with the seasons but is always captivating. During the May to November wet season the floodplain of the Tempisque River expands to create extensive marshes. As the December to April dry season progresses, water shrinks to isolated pools, concentrating wildlife. At any time of the year, birds to see include the Roseate Spoonbill, Glossy Ibis, Black-crowned Night Heron, Anhinga, and the Snail Kite with the extra-long hook on its beak for the extraction of molluscs from their shells (escargot anyone?). Jabiru Storks and Great Curassows are spectacular rarities to seek. Other fauna includes American Crocodiles, fresh-water turtles, Iguanas and White-nosed Coatis. In Costa Rica, some private estates have developed conservation principles for their businesses. They combine farming, and value adding to the farm produce, with providing wildlife refuges. This satisfies the owners’ interests in flora and fauna and provides additional revenue from tourists attracted to the nature. And who could argue against combining wildlife with a little local rum production?

Flora and fauna draw many people to Coast Rica and Herradura provides access to two natural gems. Herradura is a coastal town evolving into a tourist destination. Nearby are Carara National Park with an incredible biodiversity of plants and wildlife, and Pura Vida Gardens with its spectacular floral attractions. What makes Carara National Park special is that it protects a transition zone between high rainfall tropical rainforest and tropical dry forest. Combined with altitudinal variation and river wetlands, this creates a wide variety of habitats for different plants and animals. For example, 400 species of birds have been seen in the Park—a huge number. Not all are seen each visit but perhaps you may spot outstanding birds like motmots and trogons in the trees, or the Giant Tinamou walking on the ground. Everyone wants to see a Scarlet Macaw. White-faced Capuchin monkeys and Mantled Howler Monkeys can be active in the trees. Carara comes from the Indian word for crocodile and large specimens of the American Crocodile can be seen here (safely). At the other end of the size scale are colourful poison dart frogs. Pura Vida translates to ‘pure life’ but in Costa Rica it has become a common expression for enjoying life. Pura Vida Gardens reflects that joy of living. High on the mountains near Herradura, the Gardens present an abundance of botanical splendours. Trails lead visitors past waterfalls and amongst 400 varieties of flowers and lush tropical plants from Costa Rica and beyond. Pura Vida!

Wild, scenic and incredibly bio-diverse, Golfo Dulce is not on most tourists itineraries. The name, says it all, Golfo Dulce or sweet gulf, in English. After a well justified visit to the Golfo Dulce, located in the South Pacific region of Costa Rica, and adjacent to the Osa Peninsula, visitors will be delighted and perplexed, wondering why they would ever leave this wonderland. Several coastal hamlets reside along this enchanting gulf, namely Puerto Jiménez, Golfito, Zancudo and Pavones, as well as the Piedras Blancas National Park. This is one stop on the itinerary that won’t soon be forgotten. Easily one of the wettest and most humid sections in the country, Golfo Dulce and the southwest can receive more than 200 inches (500 cm) of rainfall per year. This assures the surrounding area will be thriving with wild and plant life, perfect for aspiring adventurers. Surrounded by Corcovado National Park to the southwest, and Costa Rica’s mainland to the northeast, Golfo Dulce serves up a large platter of entertainment for all who visit. Sprouting along the edges of the Golfo Dulce are mangroves and estuaries full of wildlife. Explore these ecosystems crowded with crocodiles, river otters, waterfowl, monkeys and much more. Fed by the Coto Colorado River, the Coto River Swamps are an excellent choice for discovering these uncanny wetlands and the secrets that lay within.

Days at sea are the perfect opportunity to relax, unwind and catch up with what you’ve been meaning to do. So whether that is going to the gym, visiting the spa, whale watching, catching up on your reading or simply topping up your tan, these blue sea days are the perfect balance to busy days spent exploring shore side.

Remote, roadless and some say terrifying, the Darien Jungle is one of the last true undiscovered places left on Earth. The Darien has an almost mythical quality to it; it is the only break in the 30,000-mile Pan-American Highway, which passes through 14 countries as it winds from Alaska to Argentina. The Jungle’s reputation precedes it; one of dangerous paramilitary groups, poisonous frogs and impenetrable vegetation. Certainly the Darien has to be undertaken with caution. But the beauty of this forgotten 60-mile stretch of land is that it is largely untouched by modern society. Plant life is rife, wildlife (yes, even those poisonous frogs) is wildly exotic, and with no roads, transport is by dugout canoe. Unsurprisingly, it is one of the world’s top ten birding sites: the colourful Crimson-collared Tanager, Chestnut-fronted Macaws and Snow-bellied Hummingbirds all call the Darien home, as does the endangered Great-green Macaw. Mammals include black-headed spider monkeys flying from treetop to treetop and stealthy Pumas padding silently in the shadows. The exceptionally ecologically diverse flora and fauna earnt the Darien National Park its place as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park welcomes fewer than 1,000 annual visitors, so those who have stepped foot on this hallowed land are considered very, very special. The park can and does sustain human life, with three tribes, the Embera, the Kuna and the Wounaan living traditionally in open-sided thatched huts along the side of the river.

Nuqui is a coastal town and municipal area in Colombia’s Choco department. Located on the shore of Utria Cove, Nuqui has a small airport, a high school and hospital and serves as one of the entry points to the Utria National Park. From the coast and tropical rainforest to the mountains in the interior the park covers an area of 54,300 hectares. This is one of the wettest regions in the world with around 10,000 millimeters of rain per year. October is the rainiest month, but on an average 300 days per year have rain. Some 3,000 inhabitants live in the municipal capital. The majority of the 3,000 inhabitants are Afro-Colombians and members of indigenous tribes are also present. Utria National Park’s forested area has a rich and diverse fauna and flora with seven different mangrove species along its shore -yet it is the ocean and marine wildlife and specifically marine mammals that attract visitors. Dolphins can be found year-round, whale sharks have been registered, and humpback whales are common visitors between June and November, giving birth to calves from August to October.

Utria National Park’s forested area has a rich and diverse fauna and flora with seven different mangrove species along its shore -yet it is the ocean and marine wildlife and specifically marine mammals that attract visitors. Dolphins can be found year-round, whale sharks have been registered, and humpback whales are common visitors between June and November, giving birth to calves from August to October.

Isla Gorgona is a beautiful tropical island and a national park. Packed with lush green rainforest, palm trees and beaches full of black volcanic rocks, this little island off the Colombian coast was used by Pizarro and his thirteen followers before they eventually went south to inspect and later conquer Peru. The island is named after its plentiful supply of snakes, which might have been one of the reasons to utilize the island until the 1980s as a prison. Today only limited amounts of visitors are allowed ashore to explore the prison ruins, hike in the rainforest or snorkel.

Fishing is the dominant enterprise in Puerto Lopez, which also provides access to nearby highlights. Dry tropical forests and scrub, with Opuntia cactus, Algaroba trees, Kapok trees, and Palo Santo trees, grow in this region of Ecuador. Machalilla National Park protects one of the last stands of dry forest and scrub remaining after centuries of farming activity. The fauna also benefits from protection. People have lived in the area for a long time. Villages of the pre-Columbian Manteño civilization flourished from 850 to 1600 CE (AD). They traded vegetables and valuable Spondyles (Thorny Oyster) shells to the Incas. Their ruins include a solar calendar used to time ceremonies on the summer and winter solstice. The descendants still live here today. Agriculture of the region includes bananas, sugarcane and the ivory nut palm that produces the hard creamy tagua nut, known as vegetable ivory. Another key tree is the Torquilla Palm. Fibre from the stems of the fronds is used to make the famed Panama hats. Panama hats, also called Torquilla hats were not invented in Panama. They originated here. Appreciating the lightness, style and quality of the hats, Panama imported them. They were popular during the building of the canal. The hat became so identifiable with Panama that the name Panama Hat developed and stuck. The weaving of the hats in Ecuador is so skilled and culturally focused it has been inscribed by UNESCO on the List of Intangible Heritage of Mankind. We can take our hats off to them.

Go bananas in Machala, and we mean that literally. Welcome to the Banana capital of South America, if not the world. Not an overstatement, the city is the home of the World Banana Fair every September, attracting buyers from all over the planet, looking for the best “oro verde” (green gold, or in this case, banana plantations). The city itself is quite small and easy to navigate on foot, which is surprising as Machala is the fourth-biggest city in Ecuador. Apart from all things banana (naturally the fruit features heavily in the gastronomy in everything from thick, sweet juices to fried, served with meat), Machala also boasts some stunning nature reserves. Local steppe weather of around 25°C, low rainfall and acres of mangrove forests have proved perfect conditions for flora and fauna. An abundance of Pelicans, Frigatebirds, and Egrets nest nearby, while Blue-footed Boobies dive for fish further out to sea. Huge Petrified trees tower above you in the nearby 2,658 hectare Petrified Forest, which features fossil deposits from as far back as the Mesozoic era. Isla del Amour, just a five-minute boat ride from the port, is another sanctuary for nature lovers. Although beach lovers are welcome too – the island is ringed by wide, quiet, sandy beaches and lapped by warm seas. The island is yet to be discovered by tourists, so don’t be disappointed to discover that Isla del Amour is a quiet haven, made for discovering or rediscovering the love of your life.