No trip to another country can be complete without touristy adventures! On our recent trip to Costa Rica, we made sure to hit all the hot spots near the little town of Dominical where we were staying. As you can see from this first photo, which is only the top half, the waterfalls are breathtaking and are a must when visiting. I know there are many tucked away throughout the country in national parks, but being the tourists that we are, we went to the lovely, guided Nauyaca Waterfalls and it did not disappoint.
Here's the whole waterfall from their website. You can ride horseback, pickup truck, or just walk to the falls. The walk is pretty far, though, and I'm a lazy American...what do I know about walking. So we took the pickup and it was an exciting, bumpy ride up hills with lots of monkeys and animals to see. Once you get to the walking paths to the waterfall, you go up to the top half first, and then down to the second half to jump right in. There's a guide there to help you climb up and show you where to jump. You do have to know how to swim, but if you do, I would highly recommend.
...or you can simply hang out in the cool water like me and enjoy!
Next up: Zip line! So this is a place I highly recommend. The guides were fabulous and extremely knowledgeable about the rain forest. Our guide pointed out sloth and monkeys on our way up to the zip line platforms. He even had snacks...termites! They are very high in protein apparently. My high school son jumped at the chance, as he'll eat pretty much anything. The zip lines are for the beginner and moderate zip liner, so don't be afraid. Everyone from the age of 50 to 11 loved it. They've also got a lot of other fun stuff to do there, AND they have a restaurant for food when you're done. I need me some grub after zipping.
We also visited the Alturas Wildlife Sanctuary. This place was very small and you could not touch the animals, but the guide was an awesome story teller. Each animal has a rescue story that simply melts your heart, and it does your soul good to know the admission goes directly to helping all the animals that are in need when humans go stomping on their territory. Check out their website below for cooler photos, but here's one of my own of this little birdie.
The last touristy adventure on my list was back near San Jose before going to the airport. We visited the Starbucks plantation and it was simply awesome. Eco-friendly, self-sustaining, giving back to the community ... you name it they do it, and they even have a beautiful cafe where you can eat the lemon pound cake.
The plantation was beautiful, and the tour guide was phenomenal, explaining the entire process from planting to mug. It was even interactive for the kids, who thought this would be strictly an adult preferred tour. Here they are working the fields with our guide. More work than they do at home, that's for sure!
The website will tell you so much more about what they do. I know it's the Starbucks corporation, but this little corner of the world it's pretty impressive how they give back to ensure delicious coffee for many generations to come.
Hope you enjoyed all our touristy adventures! Part Three - Nature Calls coming soon!
nauyaca website
hacienda baru website
alturas sanctuary
hacienda alsacia