We loved this place! Although we had planned to drive from San José directly to our rental house in the rain forest near Puerto Viejo, on the coast, a day before our departure we reconsidered. Best last minute decision ever! The drive from the capital to the Caribbean is really long and slow... after flying all day and realizing that it gets dark a little after five in December in Costa Rica, we were very happy to stop.
We were greeted by Miguel Delgado, a welcoming, accomplished guide there. After settling into our snug little cabin, he provided us with dinner and then took us on a long, amazing jungle walk in the dark. We realized that we would have walked right past everything he knew to look for: frogs, spiders, tapirs, snakes...
In the morning I went with him on a short walk; after a very nice breakfast, once again we adventured into the jungle, this time over the canopy. At the top of the gondola ride we hiked again, and after descending from this amazing experience continued hiking and learning from Miguel. We had another nice meal (all three meals, and the extraordinary guide service, comes with the price of your overnight stay) and were really sorry to have to leave.
We couldn't have had a better first experience, and want to be sure Miguel knows how much we valued his introduction to Costa Rica.