Nature Up Close and Private with Your Serendipity Naturalist Guide
Nature while comfortably relaxing. Umbrellas for sun or rain. Cool Off with a swim. What a lazy, but effective, way to explore nature.
Nature, Pure, Natural, Undisturbed
We can slip under the overhanging branches to see Trogon nests. Or catch glimpses of the hatchlings of Cayman making their first entry into the water. Watch a Basilica Lizard scurry across the river's surface. And the monkeys — they hardly acknowledge you are there, until you ask them a question.
Only Serendipity Adventures provides such intimacy with nature.
Nature hides. Serendipity guides know how, and where, to find creatures in their natural habitat.
Nature in Private, According to the Season, According to Your Priorities
Nature watching requires a keen eye, and for this ardent bird watchers are in a league of their own. Serendipity has specialist bird watching guides with vast experience in many of the best bird watching regions in our cornucopia of more than 600 permanent avian specials (and 200 more who only spend the winter here... much like the tourists). Serendipity's guide will help even casual bird watchers to find a Resplendent Quetzal and a Rufus Motmot, to see the difference between a Collared Aracari and a Fiery-billed Aracari, to hear the distinct click of a White-collared Manakin. Or spot the eyes of a cayman off the bow of our silent little boat, or monkeys flying in the trees.
The forest canopy is below you, beside you. You feel like a god looking down on your creation -- and it feels good.
Abraham. Our Platform Above the Rain Forest
110 feet above the earth in the lowest branches of Abraham, an ancient Ceiba tree, in an old growth rain forest. From the open platform you look down, and the grandeur of the forest around and below you is overwhelming.
There is a powerful sense of wonder, sitting at eagle height, seeing the forest below you. Do we belong here? Did we come here before? The forest around Abraham has trees more than 500 years old... alive when Columbus landed in the New World.
Monkeys are easy to spot -- they rattle the branches as they leap about. Birds pass below and near the platform, and their colors are clear when illuminated from above rather than viewed against the sky.
This is Old Growth Primary Forest.
Watching your son touch a strange new animal - priceless!
Traverse a rain forest. Noises of Nature Fill the Silence.
Serendipity is privileged to have access to a farm where a new rain forest has been planted, with care and loving attention, by don Claudio. Claudio transformed his land -- wasted chaparral -- to a forest with magnificent diversity. We call this farm, so remote that the "road" is a grassy path, Claudio's Frog Farm. It is a powerful statement on the resilience of nature to recover from neglect, with a little patience and thoughtfulness of a dedicated man.
Come with us. See the miracle of rain forest regrowth. We'll be all alone, seeing what is possible if we make rejuvenation of nature our priority.
Double Click on map for larger, more detailed map
Where Nature Abounds .... Without the Crowds.
Serendipity's relationship with small dedicated naturalist enclaves means nature is in charge, not the zoo keeper. Our favorite places to take you depends on your travel season and other activities you want to explore.
Cloud forest - extreme lush, mountainous, higher altitude, and all private for you
Cloud forests (Monteverde is the famous, and tourist-packed, cloud forest destination) are like islands, defined by altitude (4,600 to 6,000 ft. MSL). There are about 13 places in Costa Rica with the right altitude (climate) and habitat to support unique species like the Resplendent Quetzal, tapir, deer. Cloud forests are filled with massive trees supporting epiphytes (orchids). The cool temperatures and misty valleys create a perfect Dr. Seuss world.
Wetlands (Tortuguero is the most famous) support huge varieties of birds, amphibians, reptiles, monkeys, tapir, and vegetation. Our favorite place is the Caño Negro reserve, almost to the Nicaraguan border, where we operate our silly looking, but silent, electric kayaks.
North, Central Pacific nature is affected by extremes in rain, wind, dry season. But the beaches are marvelous!
Pacific Coastal, down to Dominical wildlife is mainly known for large reptiles (crocodiles) and brilliant birds, including macaws and parrots. The extremes of dry and rainy season weather reduce habitat.
BUT - the rainy season in north Pacific produces one of the most spectacular naturalist events in the world - the arribada. August thru early December hundreds of thousands of turtles arrive to lay their eggs above the tide line, and about 50 days later the hatchlings start popping from below the sand. If you see an arribada, you will never forget it.
Caribbean Coast and Osa Peninsula have milder weather, much less wind, more humidity. Things grow wherever there's a spot of soil.
Caribbean Coastal and Osa Peninsula, on opposite coasts of Costa Rica, strangely have nearly identical weather, terrain, and species. Their major difference is the ocean life on the Atlantic versus the Pacific side. Crocodiles, porpoises, whales, sharks, large game fish abound near the Osa, while the south Caribbean is home to turtles, fresh water dolphin, sea horses and small tropical fish. Migrating species and raptors concentrate on the Caribbean slopes, while the Corcovado National Park, 166 square miles large, holds 2.5% of earth's biodiversity and about half of Costa Rica’s species.
Everything has a season. We're ready to get you to the places, with the right Serendipity guide, to let you explore unrushed the wonders of Costa Rica's flora and fauna.
When you explore with Serendipity's private guide you will comprehend that the natural world is more fragile, more splendid, more valuable than anything mankind can create.
Photos Taken by Our Guides and Our Guests
(Mouse over image for larger image)
The helmeted iguana, only grows to 3-5 inches total length
Green Iguana grows to 4 to 6 feet long and has a viscously powerful tail which is why Serendipity's guide has the machete at the ready to prevent an attack
Howler Monkey (Mono Congo in Spanish).The river float puts you directly beneath the trees where monkeys leap overhead
Silver Argiope spider, with beautiful web
The Plumed Basilisk Lizard can scurry across the surface of water, so it's nickname is the "Jesus Christ Lizard"
Buttercup, a three-toed sloth, lives in a family run rescue center on the Caribbean coast
Monarch butterfly
A young Naked Tail Armadillo is unafraid of people and cameras
Keel billed toucan, common all over Costa Rica, depending on the season and what fruit trees are available
Three toed sloth in grass. Sloths rarely leave trees, and when on Terra firma are in harm's way for vehicles and predators. We picked him up and carried him across the highway.
Green Thorn Tail Hummingbird (Colibrí in Spanish).
Ranita Roja
(Blue Jeans/Red Dart Frog)B has poisonous secretion on its skin, used by Indigenous to tip arrows to stun prey. It's about the size of a U.S. quarter
The Spectacled Caiman can grow almost as large as a real crocodile, but it is not at all a danger to large animals (small dogs, perhaps). It is very common in slow moving rivers in the lowlands of Costa Rica
Larvae of butterflies (in cloud forest)
The Duck-billed Heron hides in the lowest branches overhanding the riverbank. Serendipity's nature boats can slip up undisturbed for a quick photo
What you will NOT experience with Serendipity: a bus-load of nature enthusiasts exiting a bus to see what's available near a parking lot
It's time to call us.