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Costa Rica Holiday (1 Viewer)

ScottishBirder

THE HUNGRY BIRDER
Hey folks, I am heading to Costa Rica in January next year. We are staying at Playa de Matapalo resort. Can anyone tell me if there are good birding area's close to hear or give me any info on bird guides etc.
Thanks in advance.o:Do:Do:D
 
SB-

Sounds like a great idea, wish I were doing it!

Problem is, there are (according to a quick search on TripAdvisor) at least two different "Playas Matapalo" in CR - one in NW Guanacaste, and the other in the Central Pacific Region. Which are you going to?

Peter
 
It is the first one you mentioned

thanks
Ah! Well, that makes a big difference, because I have been to Guanacaste, but I have not ever been down near Dominical (where the latter beach is).

We stayed for 3 days in Guanacaste in 2010, at a place north and a bit inland of Matapalo. We had a car - I don't know if you will - but if you can travel, I highly recommend you get to Santa Rosa N.P. - there are lots of really good trails there, and it's really easy to find birds.

Single-page report on Santa Rosa.

I also recommend Rincon de la Vieja, for an entirely different sort of experience - that park is just west of the continental divide, hence gets a lot more rainfall than others in the region, and is relatively green and lush.

Single-page report on Rincon del la Vieja.

Sorry, have no information about guides. Good luck!
 
I am staying at the Riu Guanacaste and we are doing a four day eco tour then back to this hotel so any info on nearby sites or trip reports or anything would be a help.

thanks
 
It's worth using Ebird to check what's been seen at sites in the area. Nobody seems to have entered anything for Playa Matalpo but nearby Playa Ocotal has quite a few visits:
http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L3157214
Looking at the checklists for that area will probably give a bit of an idea of what you might see within a short distance of your hotel.
 
Hi there

I went to the riu Guanacasta last November on my honeymoon.

Dont take any notice of the reviews on trip adviser the hotel is fantastic and the staff are brilliant.

More importantly the birding and wildlife is superb.

We were there for 14 days and saw four species of monkeys numerous butterflies.

There are numerous birds in the hotel ground ( which are fabulous by the way) hummingbirds, carcaras vultures, tangers, orioles to name but a few.

If you want any more info dont hesitate to pm me.
 
Guide

Hi guys and gals, I have sorted out where I am going etc and now require a guide for a few days. Does anyone know a guide in the Guanacaste area or nearby that can take me a bit further a field. Cheers in advance
 
Hi guys and gals, I have sorted out where I am going etc and now require a guide for a few days. Does anyone know a guide in the Guanacaste area or nearby that can take me a bit further a field. Cheers in advance

Hi, I have also booked 2 weeks at the same hotel in April.

Try the following link :

http://ecoexplorercr.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=19&Itemid=2

Apparently one of the guides is very good. Prices very reasonable too.

I'm a v keen(obsessive) birder but the wife isn't. These trips seem to be ideal for a good balance.
 
We are the same, lol, I can't go a day without birding and my wife likes the pool. If possible could you send me a list of birds seen and any pictures that would help. Any guide you meet or hook up with also their details would be appreciated greatly. I am so looking forward to it and having details from someone at the same place would be awesome. My email is [email protected]
Thanks in advance,
 
I went to the riu Guanacasta last November on my honeymoon.

Dont take any notice of the reviews on trip adviser the hotel is fantastic and the staff are brilliant.

I think the issue on TA, is that the Riu is known to go against everything that is Costa Rican, in that wildlife really isn't their top concern.
 
Just got back from two fantastic weeks in CR staying at the Riu Guanacaste. Loads of great species on the doorstep. & plenty within a 2 hour drive. Ideal place for non birding partner too.

I'll start adding details in the coming days.
 
Hi, the snapper I'll look forward to seeing them also will be going there in a few weeks,can't wait. will do a couple of trips, said Palo Verde for one, plus plenty early walks hotel grounds/beach/trails,any info would be great thanks
 
Hi Andrew & Scottish Birder,

There are plenty of birding opportunities close to the Hotel Riu Guanacaste.

The main areas to look at are as follows :

1).Path along side of hotel bordering wooded hillside.
2).Track starting at far end of beach going up hill towards next bay.
3). Walk from beach to 'Monkeys Bar' following dust track circular meeting above mentioned track.
4). Small path through wood from Monkey's Bar heading back towards hotel area.

Clearly early morning is by far the best. It was light from 05:15 when I was there. Late pm can be good but many more people around.
 
I managed almost 80 species by myself during walks up to 1 mile from hotel. I dare say there could be more to be found but the intense heat does start to increase as mornings progress.

The following is the list seen from hotel walks :

Magnificent Frigatebird, Neotropic Cormorant, Brown Pelican, Great Egret, Cattle Egret, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, King Vulture, Osprey, Common Black Hawk, Roadside Hawk, Grey Hawk, Short-Tailed Hawk, Zone-Tailed Hawk, Double-Striped Thick-Knee, Spotted Sand, Red-Billed Pigeon, White-Winged Dove, Inca Dove, Common Ground-Dove, Ruddy Ground-Dove, White-Tipped Dove, Squirrel Cuckoo, Black-Billed Cuckoo, Groove-Billed Ani, Spectacled Owl, Lesser Nighthawk, Common Paraque, White-Collared Swift, Plain-Capped Starthroat, Canivet's Emerald, Steely-Vented Hummingbird, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Black-Headed Trogon, Elegant Trogon, Ringed Kingfisher, Hoffman's Woodpecker, Lineated Woodpecker, Pale-Billed Woodpecker, Crested Caracara, Orange-Fronted Parakeet, Orange-Chinned Parakeet, White-Fronted Parrot, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Yellow-Olive Flycatcher, Brown-Crested Flycatcher, Great Kiskadee, Boat-Billed Flycatcher, Social Flycatcher, Sulphur-Bellied Flycatcher, Piratic Flycatcher, Tropical Kingbird, Eastern Kingbird, Long-Tailed Manakin, Rose-Throated Becard, Yellow-Green Vireo, Lesser Greenlet, White-Throated Magpie-Jay, Grey-Breasted Martin, Mangrove Swallow, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Rufous-Naped Wren, Banded Wren, White-Lored Gnatcatcher, Swainson's Thrush, Clay-Coloured Thrush, Yellow Warbler, Rufous-Capped Warbler, Blue-Grey Tanager, Olive Sparrow, Stripe-Headed Sparrow, Melodious Blackbird, Great-Tailed Grackle, Streak-Backed Oriole, Scrub Euphonia.
 
We had guided tours to Palo Verde(boat cruise) and all day rain forest(Heliconias Lodge) with Olivier Esquivel. These were excellent and secured many more highlight species especially given Olivier's knowledge of calls in dense forest.

We visited the hot springs at Vandara(ideal for none birding partner) & jammed in on nest building Royal Flycatcher.

I also hired a driver to go to Rincon de la Vieja NP very early. This paid off as we scored with 3 Great Currasows and Tody Motmot amongst many others.
 
Hi Andy,

If you want any gen on specific species, just let me know.

With 7 hours time difference, we were up early every day and early to bed.

Will post further details on species seen on trips out next few days.

Cheers

Steve
 
I managed almost 80 species by myself during walks up to 1 mile from hotel. I dare say there could be more to be found but the intense heat does start to increase as mornings progress.

The following is the list seen from hotel walks :

Magnificent Frigatebird, Neotropic Cormorant, Brown Pelican, Great Egret, Cattle Egret, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, King Vulture, Osprey, Common Black Hawk, Roadside Hawk, Grey Hawk, Short-Tailed Hawk, Zone-Tailed Hawk, Double-Striped Thick-Knee, Spotted Sand, Red-Billed Pigeon, White-Winged Dove, Inca Dove, Common Ground-Dove, Ruddy Ground-Dove, White-Tipped Dove, Squirrel Cuckoo, Black-Billed Cuckoo, Groove-Billed Ani, Spectacled Owl, Lesser Nighthawk, Common Paraque, White-Collared Swift, Plain-Capped Starthroat, Canivet's Emerald, Steely-Vented Hummingbird, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Black-Headed Trogon, Elegant Trogon, Ringed Kingfisher, Hoffman's Woodpecker, Lineated Woodpecker, Pale-Billed Woodpecker, Crested Caracara, Orange-Fronted Parakeet, Orange-Chinned Parakeet, White-Fronted Parrot, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Yellow-Olive Flycatcher, Brown-Crested Flycatcher, Great Kiskadee, Boat-Billed Flycatcher, Social Flycatcher, Sulphur-Bellied Flycatcher, Piratic Flycatcher, Tropical Kingbird, Eastern Kingbird, Long-Tailed Manakin, Rose-Throated Becard, Yellow-Green Vireo, Lesser Greenlet, White-Throated Magpie-Jay, Grey-Breasted Martin, Mangrove Swallow, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Rufous-Naped Wren, Banded Wren, White-Lored Gnatcatcher, Swainson's Thrush, Clay-Coloured Thrush, Yellow Warbler, Rufous-Capped Warbler, Blue-Grey Tanager, Olive Sparrow, Stripe-Headed Sparrow, Melodious Blackbird, Great-Tailed Grackle, Streak-Backed Oriole, Scrub Euphonia.

I am staying here in august (riu palace) for two weeks and this is a brilliant brilliant thing to read. Thank you.
 
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