COSTA RICA NATIONAL PARKSVOL. 1: ARENAL, TORTUGUERO, AND LA AMISTAD
Wherever you travel on your Costa Rica vacation, Costa Rica National Parks will be near-at-hand because 25% of this little country is set aside in parks, reserves, or protected zones. There are way too many Costa Rica parks and preserves (161 in all) to adequately cover in one place and so you are at Volume 1 covering: Arenal National Park, Tortuguero National Park, La Amistad International Park and more but here's a quick list of national park attractions you'll encounter across the country, click here     And, for great Costa Rica family vacations, be sure to visit Poas Volcano National Park, Irazu Volcano National Park, Manuel Antonio National Park, the fabulous Osa Conservation Area and more Costa Rica National Parks in Volume 2, click here Arenal Volcano National ParkThere are 25 Costa Rica national parks and another 136 reserves and protected areas. Though all Costa Rica vacations are fun, if you travel to Arenal Volcano National Park you may have the thrill of a lifetime if it erupts.The most active volcano in the country, this 30,000 acre park is about 80 miles north of San Jose and a favorite for Costa Rica tourism, for Ticos and tourists alike. It's easy to see why because this is a very special place.
Voted one of Costa Rica's Seven Wonders, Arenal Volcano is a must-see, click here
Wonderful hot-springs where you can sip your margaritas, listen to the thundering volcanic activity, and watch the sky light up with fantastic light-shows. Horseback riding, bungee jumping, four-wheeling, hot air balloon rides, rafting, rappelling, ziplining, and hiking are just a few of the Costa Rica vacation activities offered here. At its base is Lake Arenal, the largest lake in Costa Rica, and a place of adventure all its own. You'll find spectacular fresh-water fishing, world-class windsurfing, aerial trams, kayaking, rafting, canoeing, even a
real Swiss hotel and Swiss train!, click
Tortuguero National Park
When he discovered, and named, Costa Rica, Christopher Columbus landed on the Caribbean Coast just a few dozen miles south of Tortuguero. A little more than 600 years have now passed but, though it's one of the most popular of all Costa Rica national parks, it remains one of the most isolated. Like Columbus--and the "tortuga" in the photo on the left-- you'll probably visit this important wilderness by sea because there are still no roads. You might ask, "Why is Tortuguero so popular if you can't get to it by road?" (You can go to Limon, on the Caribbean coast, and take a boat from there) It's because of its most famous part-time residents: sea turtles. Because of very strong Caribbean currents, you'll find about 22 miles of beach where, from February to July, leatherbacks, the largest sea turtle in the world (up to 1,200 pounds!) come ashore to nest. About the time they return to the sea, hawksbills, loggerheads, and 30,000 or so Pacific green turtles come ashore from June through October. Also one of Costa Rica's Seven Wonders, Tortuguero is one of the most important turtle nesting sites remaining on the entire planet, click There are a number of Costa Rica national parks close to Tortuguero and they share several traits: they're wild and remote, much warmer, much more humid and wet, and with Caribbean weather patterns considerably different from the rest of the country, click But, you'll also find a
great and grand wilderness at Tortuguero, click to see
WHERE TO GO There are a number of private fishing lodges near Tortugero because of some of the most
extraordinary ocean fishing for tarpon and snook in the world, click
You'll find three park stations within Tortuguero, normally open from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. At the north end of the park, you'll find Cuatro Esquinas Headquarters in the little town of Tortuguero. Camping is available and you'll need to pass through here for beach access. On the south end of this 77,000 acre park is the Sector Jalova park headquarters near the Jalova Lagoon just north of the town of Parismina. The El Tucan Nature Trail begins here and parallels the Cano Negro waterway. Two other trails provide short nature hikes, Tragon and La Ranita Roja. The Cano Negro is a fascinating area leading to Nicaragua and plumb filled with critters.
Some of the most incredible river fishing in the world is found here with 200 pound tarpon sometimes landed, click
La Amistad International Park: Caribbean Region
Sometimes misidentified as La Amistad National Park, this huge part extends from Tortuguero National Park south to Panama and nearly entirely from the Caribbean to the Pacific.Unlike Tortuguero, the Caribbean section of La Amistad is easily and readily accessible by car or bus or--as Columbus found--by boat. This is one of Costa Rica's gems (the park continues into Panama), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and so rugged inland that parts of it are still essentially unexplored. Visit La Amistad (Caribbean section) and several other nearby Costa Rica national parks here, click La Amistad International Park: Central RegionIn addition to the Caribbean region, you can reach La Amistad along the Pan-American highway that runs south through the center of Costa Rica to Panama.Unlike the Caribbean influence on the eastern edge of the park, this region is home to a number of indigenous Indian reservations, the intriguing and mysterious disquis balls, magnificent bird-watching, and world-famous Wilson Botanical Gardens, all part of several Costa Rica national parks forming the Costa Rica Biosphere, a U.N. World Heritage site. And much more--- visit La Amistad in Costa Rica's central region, here More Costa Rica National Parks Coming Soon!Barra Honda National Park - explore the limestone cavesBraulio Carrillo National Park - just an hour from San Jose Cahuita National Park - beaches, scuba and coral reefs Chirripo National Park - the tallest mountain in Costa Rica Guanacaste National Park - the largest tropical dry forest Las Baulas National Marine Park - leatherback turtles at Tamarindo Palo Verde National Park - birdwtcher's heaven Piedras Blancas National Park - rainforest biodiversity Rincon de la Vieja National Park - hot springs and mineral baths Tapanti National Park - Quetzal country Turrialba Volcano National Park - the largest volcano craters
What's Your Favorite Park?Have a particular park or preserve that you adore? Or a great story about your park experience? Tell us all about it! Go from Costa Rica National Parks to homepage here
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