If your kids are even remotely into nature and wildlife, Costa Rica has to be one of the best places to visit. Anywhere you go, you are bound to see some sort of wildlife, whether it’s a sloth, a capuchin monkey or even a whale shark. But the most impressive thing about Costa Rica is the amount of birds you can easily spot, no matter what part of the country.
If you want to introduce your kids to birds, then Costa Rica is the best place to do so: there are apparently 850 bird species in this small Central American country! Interestingly enough, of all the exotic birds to be seen, the unremarkable clay-colored thrush is Costa Rica’s national bird.
One of the main draws for birders to Costa Rica is the resplendent quetzal, found in the aptly named Parque Nacional Los Quetzales. If you are keen on spotting the quetzal though, I’d recommend hiring a guide and getting up early in the morning. Unfortunately, 5am wake up calls to see a bird wasn’t high on our kids’ to-do list, or mine for that matter, despite what the roosters were crowing about!
While we didn’t catch a glimpse of the quetzal during our four days in Los Quetzales, we did spot a number of other birds. And that’s not surprising since approximately 20% of Costa Rica’s birds can be seen in this off-the-beaten path national park.
Our kids loved watching the various tanagers and hummingbirds come up to the birdfeeders set up at the Quetzal Valley Cabins, featuring rustic and inexpensive cabins set on the cliffs atop the valley walls. We just had to put out a few pieces of fruit and the birds came flying over!
Away from the cloud forests and along the coast with its mangrove forests is where we found the scarlet macaws. Their cousin, the green macaw, is also found in many parts of the country. Macaws were on the verge of extinction in Costa Rica less than 20 years ago. Unfortunately, we could never get any to sit still for very long to get a picture.
The keel-billed toucan is one our kids really wanted to see. We didn’t have to worry as we saw plenty in the wild around our airbnb house in Uvita and on a boat ride through the mangrove forests of the Terraba Sierpe National Wetlands.
The loud but elegant groove-billed ani, the regal snowy egret and the turkey vultures were some of our kids’ other favourite birds during the trip.
No matter where you go in the country, Costa Rica is definitely for the birds!
