The Osa Peninsula is considered the area of the most intense biodiversity in the country. Nature is at its best here – exuberant, pristine, remote and fringed by spectacular coastline and mangroves.
Whilst a few of Costa Rica’s parks and nature reserves can get rather busy during the peak dry season months, here all is calm and tranquillity and is our very favourite corner in all of Costa Rica.
This is pristine rainforest bordered by a beautiful ocean. The wildlife is spectacular both on land and at sea and there are some very special places to stay here. There is also no malaria risk, making it the perfect place to explore the wonders of the jungle with your family, even your younger children.
Getting to the incredible lodges and remote national parks here, such as Corcovado or Piedras Blancas, is just the start of your adventure, with a stunning scenic flight by small aircraft along Costa Rica’s coastline followed by a jeep or river boat ride spotting birds and monkeys to reach some really special and remote wilderness lodges.
You may then journey along its rugged Pacific Coast or through the calmer waters of the Golfo Dulce to finally reach your destination. Then all you have to do is decide on a luxurious lodge with a beautiful pool that looks out over the ocean with stunning views across jungle canopy and perfect for spotting scarlet macaws and monkeys first thing, before breakfast. Or perhaps, find yourself in a simpler alternative only accessible by boat where you can kayak along the Gulf’s shores looking out for marine life.
Discover the rich flora and fauna of this fragile environment on leisurely hikes along well-marked trails – refuge to animals in danger of extinction, such as the tapir, panther, and scarlet macaw. Your guides can take you at night into the park to spot tapir.
During the day boat rides out to small offshore islands or kayaking in remote coastal bays will most likely reward you with some snorkelling with manta rays and dolphins or even whale sightings. Then relax at sunset overlooking the ocean with a tropical fruit concoction, and with toucans up in the trees around you or in a hammock overlooking the forest.
Together with the coastline further to the north around Uvita and Domenical, the Osa Peninsula and, particularly the warmer waters of the Golfo Dulce, is an incredible place to spot humpback whales.
This is a critical habitat for these magnificent cetaceans that migrate from both southern and northern colder oceans to this spot from Dec-Mar and again in Jun-Nov, making it a unique destination for whale-watching due to its two migrations.
We’d be delighted to talk to you about which lodges would suit you best in this wonderful part of the country – perhaps our favourite!
Read more about the Golfo Dulce in our blog post >
By Marcela Kunova - 20th April 2017
Nicola Shepherd, founder and CEO of The Exploration Company, organises unusual trips for HNW and UHNW clients ranging from birthday parties at an Indian Maharajah's palace to reliving Sir Vivian Fuchs's 1950s expedition to the South Pole. Citywealth caught ...
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