Monteverde

Visit the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, where the Caribbean climate brushes against the eastern face of the continental divide creating unequaled, lush, green cloud forest. Alternatively, visit the famous Monteverde Cloud Reserve and stand on a ridge looking out over both sides of the continental divide. Explore trails among towering, hundred year old trees ripe with moss and bromeliads while keeping an eye out for furry forest creatures like agoutis and coatis or feathered friends like the three-wattled bellbird and the quetzal.

But there's more to Monteverde than hiking. The canopy tours are unequaled; bigger, faster and longer than anywhere else in the country. Horseback riding and ATV tours take visitors through back country on muddy roads and dirt trails to some of the most difficult to access spots in the cloud forest.

ATV Tours

Fling mud on your friends from the tires of your ATV as you ride the trails through the private and public roads around Monteverde. After a brief practice session, the Monteverde ATV tour sets out on a two-hour, 12.5-mile journey through winding muddy trails, across streams and narrow dirt paths.

Bird & Wildlife Watching

More than five percent of the world's bird species can be found in the cloud forest around Monteverde. Explore the area's reserves in search of the trogans, tanagers, three-wattled bellbirds, black guans, black-faced solitaites, hummingbirds, toucans and the world famous resplendent quetzal.

The Monteverde Cloud Reserve is only a small fraction of the largest collection of protected forest in all of Costa Rica known as the Children's Eternal Rain Forest. Within this collection of reserves, hide Costa Rica's few surviving jaguars as well as tapirs, agoutis, peccaries, sloths and 130 species of mammals, 60 species of bats, 700 species of butterflies and 5,000 species of moths.

Guided hikes offer the deepest insights into Monteverde's reserves as well as a finely-honed pair of eyes capable of seeing forest fauna that most visitors would never catch. The Monteverde Cloud Forest, Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, Bajo del Tigre, Curi Cancha and the Children's Eternal Rainforest reserves have the best bird and wildlife watching tours.

Canopy Tours

Monteverde is the single best location in all of Costa Rica for zip lining with the highest, longest and fastest cables. Home to Costa Rica’s first canopy tour, today zip lines trace through cloud forest across the continental divide. Canopy tours come in all shapes in sizes – some are big on adrenaline, while others incorporate the landscape into the day’s events. Monteverde’s canopy tours range from 10 to 15 cables, the longest of which reaches more than 5,000 feet over a valley. Visitors can reach speeds well over 40 mph and, drop more than a hundred feet on rappel and swing through the air on Tarzan swing ranging from 30 to 200 feet high.

100 percent Aventura features the longest line (a superman cable nearly a mile long), SkyTrek boasts the highest cables suspended above the cloud forest, Selvatura leads guests through the greenest part of the cloud forest while Extremos takes guests on a three-hour tour that includes 15 different cables..

Coffee Tours

Join a coffee tour for a taste of Costa Rican culture and the bold, rich java that residents have spent the last hundred years growing in the fertile valleys surrounding Monteverde. Area coffee tours teach visitors about Costa Rican traditions in addition to the coffee growing and making processes following a red coffee fruit on its journey from the plant into the cup. No tour is complete until you try the farm's specialty roasted and brewed coffee.

Day Spas

After a long hike or a challenging canopy tour, your muscles may cry out for a bit of rest and relaxation. Several spas, in addition to a few on-site hotel spas, provide  treatments like deep-tissue massages, mud masks and seaweed wraps.

Hanging Bridges

Explore the different layers of the cloud forest on the hanging bridges. Three different tours are available leading guests from the forest floors up through the canopies; a unique habitat home to orchids, bromeliads, monkeys, birds, sloths and snakes. Trails include bridges of different heights and lengths– the highest reaches more than 300 feet and the longest stretches for more than 500 feet. 

Hiking

Hiking is the best way to traverse the cloud forest and no trip to Monteverde would be complete without trekking through at least one of the area's reserves.

The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve has eight miles of groomed trails; a map is included in the entrance fee. For a comprehensive park overview, take the trail triangle – a link between the Cloud Forest Trail, The Road, and Swamp Trail – for three and a half miles of pretty waterfalls.

Not to be outdone, the Santa Elena Reserve has seven and a half miles of rugged trails, each with varying lengths and difficulty levels. The reserve also provides a few handicap-accessible trails. The park’s knowledgeable guides can find even the best-camouflaged animals hidden amid the cloud forest.

Located between the Santa Elena Reserve and the Monteverde Cloud Forest, the Children’s Eternal Forest dwarfs both in size: at 54,000 acres, it's the largest reserve in the area. The forest is crisscrossed with hiking trails ideal for day and night (guided only) walks. The two-mile Jaguar Canyon Trail is well suited to bird watching, and is an easy hike.

Several other reserves dot the Monteverde area, including the Cerro Plano Ecological Sanctuary, the Hidden Valley Trail and the Tranquil Path Reserve. Each offers trails through primary and secondary forest, and several pathways lead to scenic overlooks, waterfalls and impressive strangler fig trees.

Horseback riding

Trot through the dusty back roads of Monteverde on noble steeds like the days of old or just enjoy a ride through the cloud forest, coffee fields and plains that drape the hills and mountains of Monteverde.  Several established companies offer guided tours lasting anywhere from two to six hours.

Monteverde Cloud Forest Train

The Monteverde Cloud Forest Train rolls through meadows and cloud forest that carpet the Tilaran Mountains. An excellent alternative to hiking, the train takes visitors on a four-mile journey on a clear day, riders will also enjoy scenic vistas of Lake Arenal and the magnificent Arenal Volcano in the distance. 90-minute train tours depart every hour between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Night Hike Tours

See the other side of the rainforest as night settles on Monteverde and the other half of the rainforest wakes up. Keep your flashlight level with your eyes and scan the forest looking for the glinting eyes of sloths, porcupines, armadillos , kinkajous, frogs, snakes, owls and tarantulas stare back from the darkness. Each of Monteverde's large reserves offers night tours, starting at dusk and lasting around two hours. 

Sky Tram

An aerial tram tour is ideal for visitors that wish to experience the forest canopy at a slow pace, or for those who have trouble negotiating the cloud forest’s rugged trails. For a slower journey, one local tram travels almost one mile through forest canopy, offering both day and night tram tours. The cars hold up to two individuals and may be stopped at one’s pleasure. The area’s more thrilling tram trip offers a bit more adventure, fantastic views and a little less nature, traveling up to one mile high on almost 5,250 feet of cable.

Trapiche Tour

Make your own toffee on the Trapiche tour. Built around an old sugar mill, this tour takes guests on through the sugar cane fields teaching them how sugar is processed. En route, guests will have the opportunity to chew on raw sugar cane, try a shot of distilled sugar-cane alcohol and work with freshly boiled molasses to make their own candy. In addition to sugar, guides give brief descriptions on coffee and cocoa production.

Monteverde is a web of mostly dirt roads besides the main streets that run through downtown Santa Elena. The town itself is small enough to walk around on foot and the distance between downtown Santa Elena and Cerro Plano is only a twenty minute walk.  The reserves are outside walking distance from downtown Santa Elena but buses and shuttles are available throughout the day.

On Foot:

Monteverde’s cool mountain air and spectacular sights make it ideal for walking around, and the area’s bumpy roads also encourage travelers to hop out of the car and hoof it. Luckily, many visitors do get around on foot, and most vehicles graciously make way for pedestrians. Be ready to huff and puff though – Monteverde’s steep hills can present a challenging climb in the thin mountain air.

Car:

Pick up a free map at the visitor’s center, located in downtown Santa Elena, offering local route information. Cars may be rented in most major towns, including San Jose and Puntarenas, or in Santa Elena itself. Keep in mind that 4WD is necessary in the wet season (May through Oct.).

Taxi:

Taxis are widely available in Santa Elena and Monteverde; any hotel or tourist attraction will happily call one for you. Unlike the rest of Costa Rica, taxis in the Monteverde area do not use a meter – set prices (according to destination) are listed in the vehicle, but make sure to negotiate the price before you get in. 

Sample Taxi Fares:

• Santa Elena downtown to Monteverde Cloud Forest: $10

• Santa Elena downtown to Santa Elena Cloud Forest: $13

• Santa Elena downtown to Cerro Plano: $3 

Public Bus:

A slower but more economical method is traveling via public bus:

Santa Elena downtown-Monteverde Cloud Forest: 6:00 a.m., 7:30 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.; $1. Buses pick up anywhere within the triangle of downtown Santa Elena and along the road through Cerro Plano en route to the Monteverde Cloud Reserve.

Santa Elena Cloud Forest: 6:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m.; $2.  These shuttles must be reserved in advance and will pick guests up from their hotels. The number for the shuttle service is 2645-6332.

Monteverde features an eclectic mix of hotels, eco-lodges, hostels, B&B's and cabins. Budget travelers will find the best deals in the hostels in and around downtown Santa Elena. For luxury, views, spacious rooms and family-oriented hotels, look for hotels in Cerro Plano – located halfway between the Monteverde Cloud Reserve and downtown Santa Elena.  For closer contact with nature, get out of Santa Elena and stay near to either the Monteverde or Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserves where a variety of eco-lodges and ranches feature comfortable lodging with an emphasis on natural beauty.

Santa Elena

Santa Elena's downtown is the central hub at the heart of Monteverde located a few miles west of the actual Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. Downtown forms a triangle where most of the area's restaurants, bars, stores and services can be found. Many of the area's hostels are also located in and around downtown; only a five-minute walk from the bus station and the most convenient location for visitors without cars.

• For about $10, you can find private rooms with either private or shared bathrooms, kitchen facilities, common rooms, Wi-Fi and hot water.

• For about $40, you'll find simple and clean private rooms that include breakfast, Wi-Fi, private bathrooms and hot water.

• For about $100, you can find private cottages with patios and rainforest views, Wi-Fi and breakfast.

Cerro Plano

Cerro Plano gets its name from the landscape; a plateau raised between downtown Santa Elena and the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. A collection of mid- to luxury resorts and hotels line the main street that runs through the center of Cerro Plano as well as a handful of restaurants and shops. Cerro Plano is ideal for travelers who want to be outside of town, but still close to restaurants and exhibits.

• For about $90, you can find hotels with private rooms, TVs, and gardens in the dirt side roads of Cerro Plano.

• For about $ 200, you'll find spacious luxury rooms with flat-screen TVs, coffee makers, king-size beds and views of either downtown Santa Elena or the Nicoya Gulf. Often, these hotels have gardens, pools, fitness centers and Jacuzzis.

Monteverde

Hotels and lodges of all prices and sizes from boutiques to resorts hide in the outlying areas around Monteverde, covered by forest or surrounded by pastures. These locations feature the kind of seclusion that lets you see all the stars in the sky when you look up at night. While there are fewer restaurants and no nightlife, visitors are rewarded with lush, scenic panoramas and more frequent wildlife sightings.

• For about $60, you can stay in rustic , cabins with private rooms and hot showers on the ranches around Monteverde.

• For about $100, you can find private rooms close to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve with private baths, cable and coffee makers.

• For about $300, you can stay in a luxury boutique hotel rooms with forest views, mini fridges, coffee bars and king size beds.

Santa Elena is the central hub of Monteverde. The downtown area (a triangle of three different streets) is where you'll find the majority of Monteverde's supermarkets, pharmacies, banks, stores and Internet cafes.

Cell Phones 

Cell phone service is spotty in Monteverde, Cerro Plano and Santa Elena. Downtown Santa Elena is the best bet for a strong cell signal, but traveling just 1/4 mile from the downtown triangle can result in poor signal strength. Neither the Santa Elena nor the Monteverde reserve has cell phone service coverage.

Public Phones

There are a few public phones around Santa Elena and Cerro Plano mostly located along the main roads. Note that they are operated by phone card, not coins. Purchase a phone card in any pharmacy or grocery store in Costa Rica.

Internet

Internet cafes can be found in downtown Santa Elena. Cost range from $1 to $2 an hour. Most hotels offer free Wi-Fi in their lobbies. The Tree House Restaurant offers free WiFi or Internet cafe time with any meal purchase.

Post Office

The Santa Elena post office is located on the road between Santa Elena and Cerro Plano. It is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Banks

Three banks – Banco de Costa Rica, Banco Popular and Banco Nacional – serve the Santa Elena and Monteverde areas. All three are located in the Santa Elena triangle that forms downtown Santa Elena. Banco de Costa Rica offers a second ATM on the road between Cerro Plano and Monteverde.

Medical Facilities

For minor health concerns, visitors can call the local Red Cross (Santa Elena; 2645-6128), or be treated at one of several small medical clinics (Consultorio Medico Emergencias Monteverde in Cerro Plano; 2645-7778). The main pharmacy is located in downtown Santa Elena and can treat and prescribe medicines for minor maladies. In an emergency, always call 911.

Monteverde's cloud forests drip with life creating hiking experiences unlike any other place in Costa Rica. Trek through the forest that carpets the continental divide where light dappled trails lead through verdant valleys brimming with ancient oaks and gnarled fig trees; their canopies dense with emerald leaves, their roots sprawled over the forest floor scattered with leaves.

Meanwhile, a variety of different exhibits close to Santa Elena showcase Monteverde's unique plant and animal life. Visit the Monteverde Butterfly Garden for a close-up look at glass-wing butterflies, stop by the Bat Jungle to watch the fruit and nectar-eating bats or drop in the Orchid Garden to see some of the 400 species of orchids that live in the canopy of Monteverde's cloud forest. 

Peppered with Peruvian, Mexican, Argentinean, Italian and even Japanese cuisine, Monteverde has culinary options to suit every taste and budget. The majority of Monteverde's restaurants lie in the triangle of streets that make up downtown Santa Elena and on the paved roads nearby, but a slew of restaurants dot the main street leading through Cerro Plano all the way from downtown Santa Elena to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve.

Downtown Santa Elena

For visitors looking to stretch their dollars without compromising on flavor check out the sodas that have popped up in town over the last few years. These little family-owned restaurants serve Costa Rican classics like casado (a choice of meat, rice, beans and veggies), arroz con pollo (fried rice with chicken) and chifrijo (beans, rice, pico de gallo and fried pork belly). Alternatively, stop by Taco Taco for a basket of fresh-made tacos at a reasonable price.

For a night on the town, try the contemporary fusion of Trio; a chic restaurant hanging over the backside of downtown Santa Elena with forest views. If you have a craving for sushi, stop by Musashis, or head over to Inka Verde for some Pervuvian-style ceviche. For cocktails, stop by the Tree House. Located in the center of downtown underneath a giant fig tree, the restaurant's fantastic patio is perfect for enjoying the sunset and crisp, cool mountain climate.

Cerro Plano

Budget travelers and foodies alike, will enjoy the lunch counter at Raulito's Pollo where they serve fresh roasted chicken and pork beside steaming corn tortillas, located on the main road to Cerro Plano. Johnhny's pizzeria is right next door to Raulito's, but locals tend to prefer the pizza over at Tramonti's.

For adventurous foodies, stop by Chimera for Latin-infused tapas or enjoy a hearty meal at its sister restaurant Sofia where creative chefs play with local ingredients to create mouthwatering dishes like the cassava croquets and savory cocktails like the mango ginger mojito.

Monteverde (Fewer restaurants close to the Monteverde Cloud Reserve)

Tramonti's one of the few restaurants visitors can find solace in - outside of their hotels - this far from Santa Elena. Luckily, Tramonti's an Italian restaurant known for its wood-oven pizza and surprisingly authentic Italian cuisine. Drop in at Café Cabure, (just across the street from Tramonti) for a special bag of chocolaty treats made from scratch using fresh roasted cocoa beans, or stick around for dinner and try the chicken mole.

Bus:

From San Jose: $6; departures at 6:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m daily.; 4.5 hours. Departs from Calle 14 between Avenida 9 and 11. Tel: 2645-5159/2645-5644.

Car:

From San Jose, the drive to Monteverde takes approximately four hours, depending on traffic and road conditions. A high-clearance 4WD vehicle is recommended year-round due to its potholed, gravel and dirt roads.

Take the Pan American highway (Route 1) north, following signs to Liberia. Continue pass the entrance to Miramar and El Caballo Blanco restaurant on the right.

At the Rancho Grande gas station, turn right. Stay on this road for a few miles and turn left after the soccer field. Follow this road, which turns to gravel and make a right following signs to Santa Elena and Monteverde.

Shuttle bus:

Shuttle bus companies like Grayline and Interbus offer door-to-door service between most major tourist destinations. Comfortable, air-conditioned buses seat 10 to 15 passengers and have a bilingual driver. There are both morning and afternoon departures for Monteverde daily, and cost about $45 per person.

Private driver:

From the international airport or downtown San Jose, transportation via private mini-van is available. Most companies charge between $130-$190 each way (up to four guests), and provide a bilingual driver. This option is more expensive, but allows you to set your own schedule and enjoy the scenery en route to Monteverde.

From Arenal:

Horse: When arriving from Arenal, tourists may choose to travel via horseback. Several area companies will outfit the trip ($80-$100 per person); usually combining horseback trail rides with Jeep travel.

Taxi-Boat-Taxi: The transportation method of choice for those traveling to or from Arenal, the fun taxi-boat-taxi route saves time and energy. Costing around $32 per person, the land-lake-land trip lasts three hours, a welcome alternative to a half-day car ride. Mini-vans depart Arenal at 8:30 a.m. daily for the scenic trip to Monteverde.