Highlights of the Day
Mar Inn, a cozy mountainside hotel, offered freshly prepared breakfasts, including large, fluffy pancakes. Despite planning a zipline adventure, poor road conditions and getting stuck in mud pits made us abandon the idea. Instead, we visited Frog Pond of Monteverde, where we explored insect exhibits and searched for camouflaged frogs. Lunch at Sabor Tico provided a taste of traditional Costa Rican cuisine. At Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, our private guide helped us spot wildlife, including the rare Resplendent Quetzal. We ended the day with a stunning sunset view and dinner at a unique Tree House Restaurant with a magical ambiance.
Logistics
Accommodation: MAR INN COSTA RICA
Transportation: Rental Car
The hotel is small, nestled on the mountainside, yet incredibly cozy, and it even includes breakfast. Here, breakfast isn’t a buffet; instead, you order from the menu, and they prepare it fresh right there, making it wonderfully fresh. The breakfast pancakes are large and fluffy—so much so that it’s hard to finish them all! 😊
A light drizzle falls from the sky, as though the wind itself had swept it down from the clouds. Costa Rica is the birthplace of the zipline, and the original canopy here is where this thrilling activity was invented. We planned to buy tickets for tomorrow’s zipline adventure but quickly discovered that the roads were in far worse condition than expected. As we drove up the winding mountain path, our car got stuck in two large mud pits. After much effort, we managed to free ourselves, but our enthusiasm was completely gone, so we decided to forgo the zipline experience.
We then visited Frog Pond of Monteverde, initially just to pass the time, but ended up enjoying it much more than anticipated. Part of the museum features an impressive collection of insect specimens from around the world, including butterflies, rhinoceros beetles, and golden beetles. The guide explained that the eye-like circles on butterfly wings are a defense mechanism designed to scare off predators. He also pointed out that some butterflies have numbers like “8” and “9” on their wings. Interestingly, some locals believe that if they catch a butterfly with a number, they use it to pick lottery numbers.
Another part of the museum was dedicated to finding frogs. Different species were housed in their respective habitats, and each area displayed the name and appearance of the frog. We were challenged to spot them—and managed to find a few!
For lunch, we chose a traditional Costa Rican restaurant Sabor Tico in the commercial center. The food was quite good, with flavors similar to Chinese cuisine.
We arrived at the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve around 1 PM, half an hour early. The guide hadn’t arrived yet, but another guide, Kevin, was called in. As it turned out, the other guests for Kevin’s tour hadn’t shown up, so we had him all to ourselves. The reserve, established in 1972, is home to a diverse range of flora, fauna, and birds. However, because the forest is so vast, spotting wildlife along the walking trails requires sharp eyes and a good set of binoculars. That’s why hiring a guide is essential; without one, you might miss everything.
Our first sighting was a pair of White-nosed Coatis digging enthusiastically at the side of the trail.
Further ahead, a group of people with cameras was focused on something in the trees. Our guide quickly positioned us and adjusted his high-powered binoculars, directing us to look. Through the lens, we spotted a bird perched leisurely in a tree. The guide explained that this was the Resplendent Quetzal, the most famous bird in the park. With only about 300 left in the entire reserve, many people come early just to catch a glimpse of this majestic bird. We were lucky to see it.
We continued to discover more animals and birds, and it was clear that our guide’s hearing and vision were extraordinary. He could sense where animals and birds were, even hundreds of meters away. His expertise made it clear that being a guide here requires incredible skill.
Next, we arrived at the waterfall in the reserve, a picturesque spot surrounded by lush greenery and misty forest scenery.
On our way out of the reserve, we came across a great spot to watch the sunset. With an open plain and the sea in the distance, surrounded by mountains, we decided to stay and enjoy the view—it was truly magnificent.
For dinner, we visited a unique treehouse restaurant in town. The design was imaginative, with a tree incorporated into the center of the building, illuminated by carefully placed lighting, giving the place a charming and novel ambiance.
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