Limon, Costa Rica excursions: Sloths vs Tortuguero canals

[Miramar]

I am looking for opinions on either of these 2 tours in Costa Rica: Sloth Sanctuary or Eco Adventure boat trip down the Tortuguero Canals. Has anyone done both? Which one did you get to see more variety of wildlife?

The sloth tour says it includes a canoe ride and nature walk-- did you see any other animals besides birds on the canoe trip? I am trying to maximize my chances for seeing a variety of wildlife (hopefully monkeys) and am wondering which of these tours would have the best chances?

Thanks

[mii]

I took the Eco adventure boat trip just this last Feb. and would highly recommend the excursion. The animals we saw were sloths, monkeys, a multitude of birds, an alligator. The guide was very informative and between the guide and the driver of the boat they truely looked out for animals for the passengers. Again I would highly recommend this excursion. Also try to get the early morning tour as it gets later in the day it can be humid.

 

Marilyn

[ahracer]

I agree the Eco river was on of the better excursions i've been on.

 

Scott

[CRUISAYEAR]

Although we did not do the sloth excursion, we heard good things about it. Earliest trip out would be the most desirable, as the more traffic there is, the fewer animals you will see.

We did the pontoon boat excursion, and were not impressed. It did not go very far up or down the river, and we saw very little wildlife.

We did do a trip with Oscar Brown out of Limon, and it was truly awesome, and very inexpensive for a half day private tour. He will take you to the home of one of his friends who lives right next to the road. This fellow had a pet sloth and a pet monkey which the four of us in our party all were able to hold and interact with. He also had local fruits and flowers on display, and offered drinks made with fresh coconut milk. The photo ops were priceless.

You'll find more info about Oscar and his trips on the "Costa Rica" ports of call board.

[travelwoman]

We were on the same cruise as the previous poster.....We had a group of 6 and hired a cab down to a nature sanctuary and went Ziplining !! Basically they hook you up to cables and you zzzzzip thru the treetops of the rain forest. We saw all inds of animals including the monkeys that shared our tree tops. It was great fun ! (a very safety conscious ). You can read more about it on the Ports of call Board. Enjoy !!

[AmyinGA]

We did the Sloth Sanctuary tour and loved it. When we first arrived we took the canoe ride. We saw monkeys in the trees and a lot of different birds. After that we got an overview of the sloth sanctuary, watched a video and got to meet many baby sloths and then Buttercup (the first Sloth they adopted). There were other Sloths that we got to see and get pictures taken with them. We then had a fresh fruit buffet along with some lemonade. Then our guide took us on a nature walk on one of the trails on the property. We learned a lot about the history of the area, the wildlife and plants. Our guide was great and we all learned a lot. After we left the sanctuary we stopped at a resort hotel for some shopping and we stopped a few times at some groves to sample some fruit. This was a great excursion and we were so moved by the great work that they do at the sanctuary that I "adpoted" a baby sloth and I hope to go back and visit many times over the years.

[balanceok]

We did the Tortuguero Canal excursion and loved it. We saw sloths, alligators, incredible birds and monkeys. Its a very enjoyable experience.

 

And if you want to see a sloth up closer, all you have to do is walk into the park in Puerto Limon and you will see them in the trees of the park.

[seastar2]

Did the eco river tour, enjoyed it . Saw all kids of "critters" We saw sloths ina school yard on the fence on our way to the River!!! :p

 

Go my best shots of several sloth in a tree , in the parking lot,after a nature hike in Panama! :D

 

 

Which ever enjoy..but take alot of water! :rolleyes:

[Kittycat]

I agree with AmyinGA, the Sloth tour was wonderful and for me, the highlight of our cruise. The sanctuary was founded by a very dedicated couple, who have really made it their life's work to care for injured and abandoned sloths and to protect the environment surrounding the sanctuary. We were going to do the Pontoon ride, but someone said 'there's nothing like holding a baby sloth' and it's so true! Whatever you do I'm sure you'll enjoy Costa Rica - it's a wonderful country.