Tours in Monteverde Costa Rica: Two Nature Tours and a Crop Tour

I did several tours in Monteverde when I did my eco-tourism trip to Costa Rica, I did two guided walks. I did a night tour at Santamaria’s Night Walk Tour and a day tour at the Curi-Cancha Reserve. I did a chocolate/coffee/sugarcane tour at Don Juan Coffee Tours and I walked around the area myself. I'm not being paid to advertise any of these places, I'm just relating my experience in Costa Rica.

Guided Tours in Monteverde With Dennis

Dennis was our tour guide for two walks in Monteverde.

Dennis says he prefers private tours with just a couple of people. It worked out really well for us. In a large group, you have people going in different directions, not always hearing or seeing everything, and they make more noise which could scare away the wildlife.

Dennis had tons of knowledge about the area and the local flora and fauna and was happy to share that knowledge with us. You can see in the picture that he was very well prepared. His fanny pack had all kinds of things - extra flashlights for when my flashlight died on the night tour and a UV lamp to see scorpions for example. He carried a tripod with a telescope that allowed us to see wildlife really well

Santamaria’s Night Walk Tour: See Nocturnal Animals

We first met Dennis at Santamaria’s Night Walk It’s a private area owned by the Santamaria family. They nurtured the land to be more wild after being farmland for many years. Dennis commented that not a lot needs to be done for the forest to reclaim itself. Animals and the wind carry seeds that grow rapidly and quickly create lush tropical habitats in areas that used to be open farmland and pasture.

We really wouldn’t have been able to see anything without Dennis’s guidance. He walks these areas all the time and knows where to look for animals and what to look for. Do you see anything in this picture?

It’s a picture of a stick bug. No way would we have seen that if he hadn’t pointed it out to us.

We were able to see birds in the trees.

a snake,

and a scorpion with the UV light.

It was really exciting to see all these animals in their natural environment. It was an amazing first guided tour.

Curi-Cancha Reserve: Nature Reclaiming a Farm

The next tour was during the day at the Curi-Cancha Reserve. This is another place that was allowed to become a natural forest after being used as farmland.

Dennis mentioned that there aren’t four seasons in Costa Rica like there are where we come from. So the trees don't have rings like they do in more temperate climates.

He pointed out how plants grow on trees as birds and other animals spit out or poop out the seeds from up high.

We saw hummingbirds and other birds.

And lots of plants that we can’t see at home.

Tours in Monteverde: Don Juan Coffee Tour Three Tours in One!

We also had a coffee/chocolate/sugar cane tour at Don Juan Coffee Tours. This was the only place we saw that offered all three tours at once. They showed us around their fields and buildings and had exhibits set up so we could learn about the process of making coffee, chocolate, and sugar cane.

Chocolate Tour - How Delicious Chocolate is Made

Here is a cocoa tree.

This is what a cocoa pod looks like.

They take the seeds, ferment them for weeks, roast them, and then grind them, . Then you add sugar and you get the kind of chocolate we like to eat. Most white chocolate doesn’t have cocoa beans at all. It’s made from palm oil or something else that is cheaper than cocoa butter. So if you like white chocolate like I do, check to see if it is actually chocolate you are eating.

These are cocoa beans drying and they get mashed on the stone.

This is what chocolate looks like after it has been ground and before the sugar is added

We got to try out some chocolate. And the white chocolate has real cocoa butter in it. Yum!

Sugar Cane: How Sweetness is Made

They grow sugar cane, which looks like bamboo. The sugar cane gets cut down and juiced with a special machine.

The juice tastes great, especially if you add a little lime to it.

Making Coffee in Costa Rica

They also talked about the making of coffee.

It was disturbing for me to learn how hard it is to pick coffee beans and how poorly the people who do this job get paid. I’m investigating fair trade coffee and other ways to be sure that people get compensated well for their work.

Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve

Instead of going to the famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve we went about 5 km away to the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve. Monteverde tends to be busier, but also lusher. We enjoyed the Santa Elena Reserve. We didn’t have any guided tours so I just have a few pictures.

Just outside of the entrance to the Reserve is a cafe and a hummingbird gallery. We walked about and humming birds flew all around us.

Walking Close to Valle Escondido: Adventures Right Outside Our Room

We also took a stroll close to where the hotel was along some dirt roads.

We found a cool playground and community center.

And cute homes with whimsical statues along the road.

The Town of St Elena

We also walked around the town of St. Elena. They had some street art, some shops, restaurants, and places to stay.

We finally got some Costa Rican money. 

Most people accept credit cards or American dollars, but we wanted to have some cash in case we needed it. It was just hard to find a bank that was open without a lot of lines.

Our Tours in Monteverde and the Next Stop on Our Ecotourism Trip to Costa Rica

We spent several days in the Monteverde area during our Costa Rican eco-tourism trip. We stayed at Valle Escondido farm and hotel. We had a fantastic introduction to guided hikes with Dennis and a great coffee/chocolate/sugar cane tour. We also did some exploring on our own. The temperature was quite pleasant and I was comfortable walking around in a light jacket. After this, we went to the beach at Uvita, Puerto Jimenez and Esterillos Oeste where it was much hotter, especially during the middle of the day.

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