Compare Costa Rica Experience by Intrepid Travel vs The Panama Canal & Costa Rica - Eastbound 2018 by Tauck

Day 1 San Jose

Hola! Welcome to Costa Rica. Your adventure begins with a welcome meeting at 6 pm today in San Jose. With over half the country's population living within its parameters, San Jose is a dynamic atmosphere. If you arrive early, why not wander around at your own pace – a good place to start exploring is the main plaza, perfect for some people watching. Tonight, maybe head out to get to know your group with an optional welcome dinner.

Day 2 Santa Rosa de Pocosol

Travel by private vehicle to Santa Rosa de Pocosol today, where you’ll spend the night in a homestay. Just down the road is the Juanilama agricultural community, where you can get to know the locals, help with farm chores, and take an informal cooking lesson. Several villagers have built comfortable rooms for guests next to their homes, and you’ll stay in one of them this evening. Please note that these rooms use shared facilities. In order to make the most of this homestay experience, it may take a bit of effort from your side to break the ice first. Learn as many Spanish words as you can before you arrive!

Day 3 La Fortuna

Today, continue to La Fortuna – a small town situated just a few minutes away from Costa Rica's famous Arenal Volcano. Besides its panoramic views, the town offers a range of other activities such as the 70-m-high La Fortuna waterfall, stunning lush forest, rare plants, animal watching and water-based activities on the lake. The volcano’s inner workings also mean that the area has a number of thermal springs where lava-heated water gushes to the surface. These springs have been sculpted into several pools and waterfalls, making them the ideal place to relax. Spend the rest of the day as you please in this exciting town, maybe even testing your balance on a stand-up paddleboard.

Day 4 Monteverde

Today, you’ll take the scenic route to Monteverde. Monteverde was founded as an agricultural community in 1951 by a group of North American Quakers – they cleared virgin forests to create verdant pastures ideal for dairy farming. These environmentally aware settlers were conscious of the danger that unrestricted settling and farming could cause to this precious habitat, so they established a small, privately owned wildlife sanctuary, which has grown to become the internationally renowned Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve. More than 2000 species of plants, 320 bird species and 100 different types of mammals call Montverde home. When you arrive, you can choose from a range of outdoor activities to wildlife spot, hike or cruise on the waters.

Day 5 Monteverde

Today is free for you to choose how you'd like to spend your time in this beautiful area. Maybe start your exploration with a tour of the suspension bridges that hang in the trees, or head to the Serpentarium to see some crawly critters. Watch butterflies at play in the specially created garden, hire a local guide to show you around the area, visit a community cooperative or zip-line through the lush canopy. Whatever you do, be sure to keep an eye out for the resplendent quetzal – one of the most elusive birds in the world.

Day 6 Quepos

Travel through the mountains to Quepos by private minibus. Located close to the beautiful Pacific beaches and exotic wildlife of Manuel Antonio National Park, Quepos is a laidback town with a vibrant nightlife. This afternoon, you'll get the chance to meet three generations of Costa Ricans and tuck into a traditional cooking class for lunch with them in their home. Prior to the pandemic, the family ran one of the most popular restaurants in Quepos for almost 20 years. Now, you're lucky to learn the secret flavours and spices of their traditional dishes and get to know the whole family. Once the sun goes down, why not grab a spot at a waterfront restaurant and sink your teeth into some fresh seafood with your travel crew – this is the life.

Day 7 Quepos - Manuel Antonio NP

Spend your time enjoying all that Manuel Antonio National Park has to offer with a free day today. Perhaps head out for a hike along one of the many trails, keeping one eye on the great views and the other looking for the abundant wildlife. Monkeys, armadillos, sloths and hundreds of birds are among the species you can spot here. The park also boasts turquoise seas and white-sand beaches – perfect for swimming, kayaking, sailing and fishing. It would be easy to spend your whole time here in, or by, the water.

Day 8 San Jose

Take a public bus back to San Jose today, arriving back in time for you to pick up some last-minute souvenirs at the city's colourful and vibrant markets. Then, head out for an optional dinner and a night on the town, getting a taste of the huge variety of nightlife on offer here.

Day 9 San Jose

With no further activities planned, your trip comes to an end after breakfast today. If you’d like to extend your stay, just speak to your booking agent ahead of time.

Day 1 Arrive San José

Tour begins: InterContinental Costa Rica. You will be met upon arrival at San José's Juan Santamaría International Airport and transferred to the InterContinental Costa Rica in the relaxed suburb of Escazú, where you'll enjoy a Club Tower room. Dinner is at your leisure tonight in the hotel.

MEALS : D

LODGING : InterContinental Costa Rica at Multiplaza Mall

PORTOFCALL : San Jose, Costa Rica

Day 2 Coffee, Waterfalls & Wildlife

Near-perfect growing conditions have made coffee one of Costa Rica's most important exports. Begin the land portion of your Costa Rica cruise with a visit to a working coffee plantation located on the fertile slopes of Alajuela's Poas Volcano, where the soil and altitude make for ideal growing conditions. Your guide explains how the beans are produced and roasted and how different microclimates affect the taste. Next, visit a rainforest eco-park known for spectacular waterfalls and flowing white rivers; this protected reserve buzzes with the sounds and sights of wildlife. Residents include toucans, butterflies, spider monkeys, two-toed sloths, red-eyed leaf frogs, pumas and jaguars - to name a few of the 100+ species. Join us this evening for a welcome dinner.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : InterContinental Costa Rica at Multiplaza Mall

PORTOFCALL : San José, Costa Rica

Day 3 San José Sites & Your Windstar Cruise

San José city sightseeing today includes visits to the Baroque-style, 19th-century National Theatre, a grand symbol of civic pride dating back to 1897 - its interior glistens with Baroque gold overlays and Carrara marble - and the Gold Museum, which houses pre-Columbian works of gold crafted by indigenous islanders. After lunch at a private ranch house, visit Sarchi, an artisans' hamlet outside of San José where workshops display the traditional painted carretas (ox carts) and other handmade products bearing the colorful starburst designs that have become a symbol of Costa Rica. Embark your Windstar yacht in Puerto Caldera late this afternoon for the start of your 7-night Costa Rica cruise and Panama Canal crossing.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Sarchi, Costa Rica

Day 4 Manuel Antonio National Park

Call on the city of Quepos this morning, a perfect jumping off point for your excursion to Manuel Antonio National Park, where you'll find coral reefs and white sand beaches, considered among the most beautiful in Costa Rica, lined with rainforest. Explore with your local guide. After lunch, go on an exciting river float trip* on the Savegre River. Back aboard the ship, join the captain for a welcome cocktail reception and dinner tonight, as your yacht sets out for Puerto Jimenez.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica

Day 5 Dolphins, chocolate & zip lining

Today, your Windstar yacht calls at Puerto Jimenez on the Golfo Dulce. Transfer to shore, then set out on a morning boating adventure in search of dolphins. After returning to your yacht for lunch onboard ship, you have a choice of fun this afternoon: go zip lining through the treetops of the rainforest canopy... or learn about chocolate on a visit to a local cacao farm.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica

Day 6 A beach party on Isla Parida

Get set for a day of fun in the sun on Isla Parida, part of an archipelago within Panama's Gulf of Chiriquí, an area rich in sea life and exotic bird species including parrots and toucans. Isla Parida is blessed with a wealth of virgin rainforest, beautiful white-sand beaches and warm, clear waters (with temperatures around 82º F year-round) that prove irresistible for swimming, kayaking*, snorkeling, and sunning... which you can enjoy after a wet landing by tender or Zodiac raft. Join us for a flavor-filled beach buffet barbecue on the island today.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Isla Parida, Panama

Day 7 A day spent cruising the Pacific

Spend an entire relaxing day at sea aboard Wind Star as you make your way across the Pacific Ocean waters off Panama's southern coast, bound for Balboa. As you take advantage of your yacht's many amenities, your Tauck Director and Tauck Naturalist circulate about the ship, answering questions, sharing their experiences and helping you stay on the lookout for marine mammals and seabirds.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Isla Parida, Panama

Day 8 Balboa & Panama City

Call at Balboa and visit the Biomuseo, the biodiversity museum designed by renowned architect Frank Gehry. Next, in the former Canal Zone, drive through Ancon Hill, a lush residential enclave that was home to US military facilities until a 1977 treaty granted Panamanian sovereignty over the "Zone;" Albrook, a former US Air Force Base; and Clayton, once a US Army base. After lunch, visit Panama City's historic district, Casco Viejo. A walking tour will show you this walled cobblestoned city, built in the 1670s at the foot of Ancon Hill, to provide safety from attack. The area is a gem of Spanish colonial architecture, in various stages of redevelopment, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site; you'll also have free time to explore on your own.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Casco Viejo, Panama

Day 9 Transiting the Panama Canal

This morning, Wind Star begins to position for her transit of the Panama Canal. Opened in 1914 and considered an engineering marvel of the 20th century, the Panama Canal opened trade to the Americas by creating a transit path between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Thanks to the canal, today ships traveling from New York to San Francisco save over 7,000 miles by not having to chart a course around South America. Before our crossing, we'll welcome aboard a canal pilot, the local navigation professional who will guide our ship under the Bridge of the Americas, through Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locks, into the narrow Gaillard cut and into Gatun lake, before finally clearing the Gatun Locks on the Atlantic side of the isthmus. Your Tauck Director, Tauck Naturalist and an official of the Panama Canal Authority will provide both technical and historical information about this engineering wonder.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Aboard Wind Star

PORTOFCALL : Transiting the Panama Canal, Panama

Day 10 Visit a rainforest & cross the Isthmus

After completing the Panama Canal crossing, Wind Star arrives this morning at the port of Colón, where you'll disembark and bid your ship and its crew a fond farewell. Once ashore, learn about plans for the Canal's future on a visit to the Panama Canal Expansion Observation Center. Then start across across the Isthmus of Panama; at the Gamboa Rainforest Resort, you'll choose between an aerial tram ride with a naturalist through the rainforest at eye-level with exotic birds and animals (aboard the only gondola of its kind in Panama), or a boat cruise along waterways leading to hidden islands, where you might spot monkeys at play. Arrive in Panama City for more exploration; check in to hotel in the city's heart late afternoon. Tonight, share favorite moments of your Panama Canal crossing and Costa Rica cruise at this evening's farewell reception and dinner at the hotel.

MEALS : B, L, D

LODGING : Hilton Panama

PORTOFCALL : Panama City, Panama

Day 11 Journey Home

Fly home anytime. A transfer from the Hilton Panama to Tocumen International Airport is included. Please allow a minimum of 3 hours for flight check-in.

MEALS : B

PORTOFCALL : Panama City, Panama