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Capturing Costa Rica: a safe return to paradise
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Our trip began with a stretch of the legs on a tropical beach near Drake Bay, on the Osa Peninsula...
Read Thomas's blog articles
Co-founder & CEO of Pura Aventura
Thomas has run a café in northern Mexico, lived on a Honduran island, guided tour groups throughout Spain and worked for the UN in Santiago. But it was in the mid-nineties that the seeds for Pura Aventura were sown, through a chance meeting with fellow co-founders in Chile's Torres del Paine and his experiences hitchhiking up through Patagonia along the Carretera Austral. So beautiful were the landscapes through which he passed, and so warm was the hospitality he received, that he decided to start a tour operator primarily dedicated to sharing these special places, no matter how unknown they were at the time.
20 years on, and many more special places later, Pura Aventura is still dedicated to protecting and benefiting their destinations and partners overseas, enabling clients to experience both the ‘bumpy beauty’ and iconic highlights of Spain, Portugal and Latin America.
Pura Aventura has been recommended by The Independent, Wanderlust and Condé Nast for innovative sustainability initiatives, is trusted by BBC Radio 4, The Financial Times & CNN as a voice for certifiably responsible travel, and praised by Which? for commitment to fair and open customer service during the Covid-19 pandemic. Handpicked as the official European launch partner of Patagonia's Route of Parks, the world’s most ambitious conservation tourism project, in 2020 Pura Aventura became one of the first UK travel companies to achieve B Corp certification.
Our trip began with a stretch of the legs on a tropical beach near Drake Bay, on the Osa Peninsula...
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...and a close ecounter with a Tapir happily bathing in the swamps of the Corcovado National Park.
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As we returned, the high tide started to roll in...
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... and soon became a very high tide!
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We kicked off the next morning with a 'breakfast of champions'.
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Then soon came across a 'municipal' diving board near Puerto Jiménez...
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... and what passes for a 'municipal' pool in these parts.
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Here's one long-legged creature we found in the forests...
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... and another we found on the road at Rancho Quemado.
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We’re not in Kansas anymore - we had to look out for falling coconuts on the Golfo Dulce...
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... before swapping forest floor for the narrow creeks of mangrove forests.
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In the afternoon, the rains came with a vengeance.
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But the sun soon shines again and the pool beckons - if you can find it amid the camouflage.
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Endangered Scarlet Macaws have a rare stronghold at Matapalo on the Osa Peninsula.
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Hummingbirds are likewise always a treat to watch but a devil to photograph when not sat so still...
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... coatis on the otherhand are more obliging.
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After a walk in someone else's footsteps at Matapalo...
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... the sun slipped away and the moon rose, with a toucan posing for a lovely photo.
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The primary forests of the Piedras Blancas National Park were our next port of call...
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... a crucial wildlife corridor between the continental highlands and Osa Peninsula.
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Here we're introduced to Hot lips (the plant, not the person).
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Moving north, our next port of call was Dominical and a Ceviche lunch overlooking the Pacific...
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... as well as an introduction to Juliet the parrot.
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Such is the world we now live in, there's plumbing for handwashing in even the remotest forests.
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But the beer is still as cold...
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... and the roadside snacks as fresh as ever.
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Up through the Central Valley we drove, passing the spectacular Miravalles Volcano.
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Drifting clouds welcomed us to Tenorio up in the north.
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All we had to do what locate the lodge, hidden in the thick foliage.
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The diurnal welcome party included this Eyelash viper in the Tapir Valley...
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... whilst the nocturnal creatures were just as plentiful and wonderful.
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Our guide Donald and his two young daughters introduced us to them all...
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... including an incredible array of tiny tree frogs.
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The next day was our last and time to say goodbye. But not before one last bit of research...
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Making sure coconuts still fit in the cup holders. A success, all around. I can't wait until it's your turn.
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