This section is dedicated to take away all your "I wish someone had told me that before I went!" experiences. This way, you can spend less time settling in, and more time making new friends in your chosen hostel.
Monteverde is a giant natural wonderland and playground! There is so much to see and do here, but keep in mind that much of it can be quite expensive! Compared to some other prices in the world, however, it is fairly reasonably priced so leave a hundred or so dollars in the budget to fully experience all that this place has to offer!
Ziplining and canyoning tours are super popular here and you will find a variety of different companies that do these kinds of tours -- just ask at your Monteverde hostel and they should be able to help you out and even book tours for you. One of these companies offers the tallest bungee in Central America at just over one hundred forty meters.
The other popular thing to do here in Monteverde is take a night tour into the forest with a guide and look for the amazing variety of wildlife for which Costa Rica is renowned, such as sloths, macaws, tarantulas, porcupines, armadillos, and some amazing insects. The night tour guide is great at helping you spot these animals and understands the habitats and where to find them.
You can get buses from Santa Elena into the park and back at different times of the day (for bus schedules, see your hostel staff) and you can do some self-guided hiking through cloud forest in the Monteverde National Park. For those on a budget, there are some walks in and around the town of Santa Elena and there is an amazing Hollow Tree that you can climb a good sixty feet up from the inside of the tree and peek out over the canopies and this is an amazing free activity.
The town of Santa Elena is pretty much triangular in the shape of its streets. You can walk around this in five minutes and all of the shops, supermarkets, banks, Monteverde hostels, and tour companies can be found around this area. Some Monteverde hostels can be found further out of the town in the surrounding areas, so use the maps to determine where they are before choosing where you stay.
No matter what it is you choose to do here, you will have an amazing time and see some incredible nature. Monteverde is not to be missed!!
Written by local expertz for Monteverde
Globetrotter
