Rancho Naturalista, near Turrialba

Every birder should go to this specifically birding lodge at least once. There are many varieties of birds on property and a few nearby places the excellent guides can take you. The rooms are clean and basic and the food was excellent both times I visited! Read what they say about it on their Rancho Naturalista Website.

Would I go there again?

Yes!

Likes

  • The large number of bird species there & nearby
  • The guides
  • The food

Dislikes

  • Nothing in particular. Just be aware that it is not my #1 birding location based on the number of species. I see more bird species at Maquenque Eco Lodge & Arenal Observatory Lodge. But I still like this place!

Nature & Other Activities

  • Everything there is focused on birding but outside the lodge there are other activities for spouses or any non-birders in a group.
  • Day & Night Guided Hikes or you can see a lot of birds on your own with several trails and a country gravel road.
  • At night a Moth Light (bright light on a hung white sheet) which attracts a lot of moths you can photograph and/or the birds that come to eat the moths. 🙂
  • Their Activities Page lists many things including a few nearby non-birding activities like white water rafting, canyoneering, coffee farm tour, etc.
  • I enjoyed going to CATIE, a national university research center and botanical gardens in Turrialba that gave me several species of birds not at the lodge.
  • Also, a guide took me to the nearby La Mina Stream to photograph my first Sunbittern!

Rooms & Food

  • Very comfortable rooms and Excellent Food! One of the better birding places for human food! 🙂

Getting There

  • My first time there I drove a rental car. Using a GPS of your choice from Atenas it is 117 km ot 122 km and 3 to 3 1/2 hours +. The least traffic is through Guácima and Ruta 10 through Cartago as opposed to Ruta 1 (interamerican hwy) through the outskirts of San Jose which has heavy traffic!
  • My second visit there I went by Public Bus through San Jose then a direct, non-stop to Turrialba. It is the same distance as above in a car but time length depends on time of day and your connection wait in San Jose where you change buses. See your options on https://thebusschedule.com/cr/ At the very nice Turrialba Bus Station you get a taxi to Rancho Naturalista. Easy!
A really nice non-stop bus from San Jose to Turrialba.

My 2 Trip Galleries

CLICK image to visit gallery.
CLICK image to visit gallery.

My Photo Book on Rancho Naturalista

Covering both trips there. See free preview at: https://www.blurb.com/b/8065912-rancho-naturalista

CLICK cover image for free preview of all pages.

¡Pura Vida!

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Great food served family style!