Natural Treasures of Costa Rica

Having made your way to San Jose, you will be met by a representative of Aurora Expeditions and transferred to ourgroup hotel. Please visit the Aurora Expeditions hospitality desk to collect your luggage cabin tags and to speak withour ground operations team, who may have information to share with you about pre-embarkation or to provide youwith information about where to dine, withdraw cash or purchase last minute items from a local pharmacy orsupermarket.Enjoy free time, and in the evening, dine at your leisure (dinner not included).Assigned accommodation: TBC

San José is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica, located in the central valley region. It serves as the country’s political, economic, and cultural center. The city is known for its museums, theaters, and lively urban atmosphere surrounded by mountains. San José blends modern development with historic architecture and local traditions. It is also a major gateway for travelers exploring the rest of Costa Rica.

This morning, your luggage will be collected from the hotel and transferred directly to the port for sanitisation,clearance and delivered to your cabin ahead of your arrival on board. There is time to settle into your cabin beforeattending important safety briefings. Enjoy the thrill of departure as we ‘throw the lines’ and set sail for an excitingtropical adventure.

San José is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica, located in the central valley region. It serves as the country’s political, economic, and cultural center. The city is known for its museums, theaters, and lively urban atmosphere surrounded by mountains. San José blends modern development with historic architecture and local traditions. It is also a major gateway for travelers exploring the rest of Costa Rica.

Boasting over 100 species of mammals, 184 species of birds and an impressive variety flora, Manuel AntonioNational Park understandably attracts wildlife enthusiasts from all over the world. Costa Rica’s star attractions - twoand three toed sloths, as well as white-faced monkeys, toucans, agoutis, armadillos and coatis are a few of theexciting animals that you may encounter within the park. We explore the park in the cool, early hours of the morningbefore returning to the vessel for lunch. In the afternoon, you have the option to explore Quepos town or enjoysome water activities.

Manuel Antonio National Park is Costa Rica's most popular destination, famous for its rare combination of lush tropical rainforest and pristine white-sand beaches. Located on the Central Pacific coast near the town of Quepos, it offers exceptionally high biodiversity, including all four of Costa Rica's monkey species and both types of sloths.

The untamed Osa Peninsula is considered by National Geographic to be ‘one of the most biologically intense placeson earth’. We plan to hike the trails at Rio Claro Wildlife Refuge, a sanctuary that encompasses 500 hectares oftropical rainforests, making it one of the most important natural preserves in Central America. Rio Claro is one of thelast refuges for pumas, ocelot, jaguarundis, tapirs, white-lipped peccaries and a host of other rainforest animals. Thehigh plateau forests, with trees towering over 43 m (140 ft), supports hundreds of species of ferns, bromeliads andorchids, and creates a biological corridor between palm swamps and mangroves. It is an extension of CorcovadoNational Park, the country's largest and one of the most remote parks in Costa Rica.

Punta Leona is home to one of the last remaining forests that are found in the transitional life zone between therainforests of the Southwest and the dry forests of the Northwest. Created over 25 years ago to protect the region’svaried flora and fauna, the Punta Leona Refuge is a 300-hectare (750 acres) private nature reserve mainly consistingof lush primary and secondary forests.Also functioning as a centre for bird and mammal research, this reserve is the habitat of over 330 migratory andnative bird species. Home to rare and endangered Scarlet Macaw, the reserve is also the dwelling place of a numberof indigenous birds and animals like the Marbled Wood Quail, the Three-wattled Bellbird, Hummingbirds, Toucans,Spider Monkeys, White-faced Monkeys, White-nosed Coatimundis, iguanas and a variety of beautiful butterflies.Located near a pristine white sand beach, Punta Leona has three varied walking and hiking trails, all of which areeasily accessible and perfect for bird watching.

Curú National Wildlife Refuge is a privately-owned nature reserve offering visitors outstanding eco-tourismexperiences. The refuge is the first privately-owned refuge in Costa Rica, encompassing more than 3,700 acres oftropical forests, mangroves, and well-marked paths. 17 hiking trails wind through the varied terrain within thereserve, where you may see white-tail deer, armadillos and iguanas. Various monkey species are prolific withinrefuge including native capuchin, spider, and howler monkeys. Located on the southern Nicoya Peninsula of north-western Costa Rica, the refuge is brimming with wildlife and hosts one of the most beautiful beaches and protectedbays on the Nicoya Peninsula, a great place to enjoy water activities.Afterwards, enjoy lunch on board as you sail to nearby Isla Tortuga (Turtle Island), where you can snorkel, swim,paddle or relax. The water is teeming with a dizzying array of tropical fish, big pufferfish, turtles, sting rays, white tipreef sharks, and occasionally dolphins.This evening, celebrate a memorable journey at Captain’s Farewell reception.

Located on the southeast tip of the Nicoya Peninsula, the Curu Wildlife Refuge is known for its pristine, white-sand beaches and impressive variety of species ranging from monkeys to sand crabs. In total the refuge covers 3,707 total acres and 656 feet of coastline. Travelers to the Curu Wildlife Refuge will quickly notice that they are in the minority at the site, with only a few people in the area among the abundance of animals and sea creatures. All of your senses will be captivated by this overwhelming amount of wildlife at the reserve, which offers some of the best eco-tourism in Costa Rica. Curu officially received support from the Costa Rican government to protect its wildlife in 1981 and the area officially became known as the Curu Wildlife Refuge in 1983. Today, the refuge is privately owned, extremely-well cared for and even more exclusive than many of the national parks in the country. If you're looking to participate in some of the vast eco-tourism opportunities in Costa Rica, the refuge should be a top priority because of its exclusivity and the ability of visitors to personally interact with the diverse animal population. The refuge also features 17 peaceful trails, where travellers can check out this abundant wildlife in a number of different ecosystems, including mangrove swamps and both dry and wet tropical forests.

Disembark in Puntarenas, where you'll farewell your expedition team before transferring to San Jose.Note: At the conclusion of the voyage, we do not recommend booking flights departing San Jose prior to 12.00 pm.Please advise your departure flight information to your reservations consultant.

Punta Arenas was founded as a penal colony by Chile in 1848. Nestled amid spectacular mountain vistas on the eastern shores of the Brunswick Peninsula, it played host to mariners crossing the continent by ship. Europeans followed, searching for newly discovered gold and establishing vast swaths of sheep farms locally and throughout the surrounding region. Over time, Punta Arenas became one of Chile’s most important ports as, before the opening of the Panama Canal, it laid on the northernmost transcontinental shipping route.