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Cloud forest of Monteverde, Costa Rica
After visiting Arenal we got picked up by our shared shuttle and made our way to Monteverde Cloud Forest which is roughly 4,500 feet above sea level. When you see the distance from Arenal to Monteverde on a map it looks fairly close however it consists of many many different twists, turns and lots of bumps to get up to the forest. This reserve consists of 6 ecological zones and consists of over 2,500 different plant species with many different animal/insect species as well.
When arriving to the town we were dropped off at our hotel which again, blew our minds with the views we got from our room. The company chose the hotel El Establo Mountain Hotel which we again couldn’t recommend enough. We got settled in and found an amazing taco spot for lunch which we ended up eating at twice during out two night stay in Monteverde called Taco Taco (if you love tacos like us-this is a must and very reasonable pricing and portions) The rest of the day we enjoyed the beautiful sunset from the poolside with margaritas!
We were picked up super early the next morning for our next excursion that was included in our tour. First up was a nice hike through the forest where we learned about different birds species, insects, and trees. During the hike we got to walk across the infamous hanging bridges which was a great experience. Our local guide was super knowledgeable of all the different species in the forest and answered all the questions we were asking along the way.
After our short hike through the hanging bridges we headed to the longest zip line in Latin America (almost a mile long!!!). Flying through the sky for this long was such an experience not to mention we did it SUPERMAN STYLE! after a couple more short zip lines we ended the day with a Tarzan swing at the end which was so scary but also incredible! This company is very well known and takes the safety of everyone very seriously.
After hiking through the hanging bridges and zip lining through the forest we headed back to the town where we enjoyed Taco Taco one more time and bundled up for our night tour through the forest. We went on the tour with a specialized naturalist guide who knew the ins and outs of all the spots to see different species. We highly recommend this tour as many species come out once the sun has set. Close shoe, jackets, long pants and cameras are a must during these tours.
