the monteverde reserve is located 6 km east of the centre of santa elena. this reserve is the home of more than 400 species of birds, thousand of insects, innumerable plants, reptiles and mammals including tapirs, toucans, sloths, frogs and the famous quetzal.

guided walks offered daily.
open daily 7:00 am to 4:pm
entrance US$15.00, students US$7.50

the santa elena reserve is located 7 km northwest of the centre of santa elena. it is a slightly higher elevation than the monteverde reserve (1700 meters) and tends to be cloudier and weather. over 8 miles of trails, three view points and an observation tower with a lookout to the beautiful arenal volcano. you can see animals and dozens of bromelias, orchids and ferns.

guided walks offered daily
open daily from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm
entrance US$12.00, students US$6.00

with a rich diversity of flora and fauna, bajo del tigre trail is a small area of the children´s eternal rain forest. it´s in a transition zone from pre-mountain wet forest to pre-mountain moist forest. it´s also an excellent place to spot birds and mammals from the region.

open daily from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm
entrance US$7.00, students US$4.00

guided nighttour from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm
cost US$17.00 with transportation

private farm with secondary forest, waterfalls, lookout points. this wildlife refuge has four loop trails and receives less rain and is less cloudy than the reserve, so vegetation is less dense. a good place to see some animals like the 3-wattled bell bird, coatis and sloths.

open daily from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm
entrance US$9.00, students $7.00
guided nighttour from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm, cost US$15.00

a good opportunity to explore the cloud forest in a safe manner. with a combination of 4.700 ft. of trails and suspension bridges built in the cloud forest.

open daily from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm
entrance US$20.00, students US$15.00

websites: www.selvatura.comand www.skywalk.co.cr

a free hiking option in monteverde is the way up to cerro amigos (1840 meters) the highest peak in the area. this hill has very good views of the surroundig cloud forest and, on clear days of the arenal volcano and the pacific ocean. the steep road leaves from the gas station. start early for a good view.

a three hours trip.

another free hiking option in monteverde. located 8 km northwest from santa elena el gran mirador has a restaurant and a great view to the lake of arenal and the arenal volcano.  you can even make a tour by horse to the gran mirador.

a three hours trip

you can go horseback riding all over monteverde and enjoy many scenic views of the area, sunsets, waterfalls and nice trails of cloud forest. many of these tours take two hours. but you can even make a fullday excursion.

this tour is suitable for all levels. this tour is off the road through a typical costa rica farm and a private secondary forest with beautiful views of the pacific coast.

duration 2 hours.
cost US$25.00 per person

this trip begins with a two hour ride down into the valley of san luis. great view of the gulf of nicoya. the last part of the trip you must hike 20 min. along the river to reach the spectacular cascade. to return you must hike again and ride another two hours back up to the mountain.

tour duration 5.5 hours
cost US$45.00 per person

this tour consists on traversing from treetop to treetop with specialized climbing equipment over a horizontal cable that is connected between the treetops of the cloud forest. there are four canopy tours in monteverde.

duration 2 hours
entrance US$40.00, students US$30.00
open daily from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm

at the monteverde serpentarium you see a wide variety of snakes and reptiles from all over the country.

website: www.snaketour.com
open daily from 9:00 am to 8:00 pm
entrance US$8.00, students US$6.00

in this guided tour you can admire over 20 species of frogs and provide information about the important role they play in the natural world. you will see extraordinary frogs such as colorful poison arrow and the famous red eyed tree frog.

open daily from 9:00 am to 8:30 pm
entrance US$9.00, students US$7.00

butterflies and other insects are raised and displayed in screened enclosures with beautiful gardens. here you will see 4 gardens with an exhibition of 40 species of local butterflies.

open daily from 9:30 to 4:00 pm
entrance US$9.00, students US$7.00

the orchid garden is a place dedicated to the investigation of orchid plants in the monterverde area. this garden contains more than 400 species of orchids. you can see large ones as the nacional flower (guaria morada) or the smallest known orchid specie in the world.

open daily from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
entrance US$7.00, students US$5.00

at this place you can see a variety of coleopters, arachnids, insects and butterflies.

open daily from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm
entrance US$8.00, students US$7.00

in this guided tour you can learn all about making cheese in
monteverde.

website: www.monteverde.net

open daily from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, monday till saturday
tours con slide show: 9:00 am and 2:00 pm

entrance US$10.00, students US$8.00

it's a guided tour to a coffee farm, where you can see the whole process of coffee from the farm to your cup.

guided tours 8:00 am and 1:30 pm
entrance US$30.00, students US$26.00

los laureles lodge is located half way between the monteverde and santa elena reserve and close to all other local tourist attractions. we give you information and book the tour, whatever you need.