Monteverde: A Cloud Forest Adventure with a Few Surprises
As huge fans of Costa Rica, my husband and I have explored it many times. On our last trip, we explored southern Costa Rica, Monteverde, and one of our favorites, La Fortuna.
As I’ve described in my previous blog (here), we like to rent a car and explore at our own pace. I do my usual research and plan activities or specific places that we want to explore. After the first leg of the trip in Southern Costa Rica, we drove up to Monteverde, the Cloud Forest. I was excited to experience the best birdwatching in Costa Rica.
The Scenic Drive to Monteverde
The drive from the Uvita area took us about four and a half hours. We made one stop along the way, in Jaco, for lunch. We ate at Marea Baja, a local buffet-style soda. It had great lunch options at a modest price.
The drive was lovely. I scanned the trees for sloths and monkeys and found quite a few. It was amazing how we went from jungles by the ocean into a rain forest in the sky. The temperature dropped as we ascended, but it was still warm and humid as we passed through the clouds to our hotel, the Cala Lodge.
The Cala Lodge is a family-owned lodge with beautiful lodge-style rooms. The rooms have many windows, and ours had a balcony that looked out into the surrounding forest. The property also has a trail to wander in the forest surrounding it.
Arrival at Cala Lodge: Immersed in Nature
Once in our room, I stepped onto the balcony where a Mot-Mot sat on a tree branch before me. A Mot-Mot is a colorful bird with a long tail feather resembling a colorful grandfather clock’s swinging pendulum! I had read that the bird was all over here in Monteverde, but I didn’t expect to find this beautiful bird sitting in a tree outside our room. It was a telling sign of the magnificent wildlife we would encounter on this leg of our trip.
Mot-Mot outside of our room at Cala Lodge / Photo by Whaldo Digital Content
Brimming with excitement, we settled into our room and set out to explore the forest trail that winds through the lodge’s property. The flora and fauna were breathtaking—lush greenery all around and bursts of color from the many birds we spotted along the way. We were thrilled to see a coati and an agouti among the wildlife. The walk was quiet and peaceful, a perfect way to end the day before turning in for an early night..
Breakfast with Birds: A Feast for the Eyes
The next morning at breakfast, we watched birds feast on fresh fruit from a platform just outside the dining deck. The staff puts fresh fruit on the platform each morning to attract the diverse local bird life. We dined while watching an Emerald Toucanet, a Brown Jay, and more Mot-Mots enjoy their breakfast of fresh fruit.
We planned a very full day exploring the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve. We drove to the preserve and started our self-guided hiking tour. We aimed to find the elusive Resplendent Quetzal, an endangered bird known for its iridescent colors. It is also known as a sacred bird in Aztec and Mayan cultures, where priests and royalty wore quetzal feathers during ceremonies.
Where the Quetzals Sing
Most people hire a guide to spot these elusive birds, but I—perhaps overconfidently—was sure we could manage on our own.
As we searched the Preserve, we found many beautiful birds and other wildlife, including a tarantula in its burrow on the side of a mountain trail. We searched for seven hours, trying to find a Resplendent Quetzal.
Finally, we decided to call it a day and admit defeat. As a last-ditch effort, we took one final forest trail we had not yet tried. We rounded a corner, and I spotted a small group of people looking up into the trees.
We hadn’t seen many people in this thick forest, so my curiosity was piqued. I headed right to them, stopped, and looked up. As my husband came up behind me, he whispered that this was a group with their hired guide. I shushed him and pointed.
In their majestic glory, there were not one, not two, but three Resplendent Quetzals. Two males were posturing, and one juvenile male was watching and learning. We never saw the female, but the guide said she was nearby—or the males wouldn’t act that way.
We all stood there, watching the males jump from branch to branch, their long, elaborate tail feathers trailing behind them. I took a few pictures before they disappeared, though none did justice to their beauty.
Walking the rest of the trail to the preserve’s exit, we heard more Quetzal songs in the distance. I conceded that it does take a guide to find them. We had just lucked out—benefiting from someone else’s hired expert.
We left the forest filled with awe, and at the preserve’s exit, a new kind of magic greeted us: hummingbirds. Dozens zipped around feeders—some the tiniest I’d ever seen, others impressively large—flashing brilliant colors as they danced through the air.
Lost in Translation: A Dining Adventure and the Perils of Spanish Practice
After we left the preserve, we stopped at a local restaurant called Don Luis for an early dinner. Trekking through the forest, we had built up a healthy appetite. Our server was very attentive. He asked if we preferred that he speak English or Spanish. My husband told him I had been taking Spanish lessons, so this would be a great time to practice.
Our server immediately turned to me and asked me, “Como te llamas?” I was clueless and blankly stared at him. He slowly repeated the question, and I still blankly stared at him. I felt my face flush as he and my husband stared at me expectantly. Finally, my husband interpreted, “What is your name?” I had only learned that “nombre” meant name. I had not encountered ‘llamas’ in my lessons.
Needless to say, the rest of the conversation was in English.
A Day of Adventure and Dining in Monteverde
After a delicious dinner, we returned to our hotel for showers and an early night. The following morning, we enjoyed another excellent breakfast with the birds at the lodge before heading to Selvatura Adventure Park. We spent the entire day walking the hanging bridges and hiking the Monteverde Cloud Forest trails there.
On our way back to the lodge, we stopped for dinner at Gusticos Monteverde. It was a delicious meal at a restaurant that was, at the time, a popular dining spot with even late-night entertainment. (It has since closed.) Once we returned to the lodge, we freshened up and relaxed a bit before heading out again. We had plans that night: a wildlife night tour.
A Night to Remember: Exploring Monteverde’s Nocturnal Wildlife
I had read about how interesting it could be to do a wildlife night tour in Costa Rica. Monteverde was the perfect place since it has so much wildlife, and 80% of those are more active at night.
We arrived at the Wildlife Refuge Monteverde and checked in for our small group night hike. There were many people there. We were broken up into small groups of six and assigned a guide. Our guide had a telescope and a bright flashlight, and we had a small, dimmer flashlight (to see where we were walking).
Small Viper found on a Monteverde Wildlife Night Tour / Photo by Whaldo Digital Content
I suggest you do a wildlife night tour in Monteverde if you ever have the opportunity. We saw so much wildlife that we would not have seen during the day, and some that we had seen but were now sleeping or settling in safe havens for the night. We saw mammals, insects, reptiles, frogs, and even fauna and flora that come alive at night. It was a side of nature that, to this day, I consider myself very lucky to have witnessed.
The Scorpion Incident: A Midnight Adventure
Later that night, back in our room, we settled in for our last night’s sleep in Monteverde. At some point during the night, I got up to use the toilet. Not being at home, I turned the light on in the bathroom. As I sat down, movement caught my eye. I froze.
I was alarmed to see a brown appendage slowly move into the fold of the white bath towel on the rack before me. I thought it was a tarantula, and I had seen one of its eight arachnid legs.
Despite my urge to pee, this seemed more important to tend to. I crept out of the bathroom and woke my sleeping husband.
He looked at me sleepily as I explained that something was on the bathroom towel. I described what I saw and exactly what I needed from him: bravery to move the towel and see what we were dealing with.
My darling husband is not used to me asking for help with these things. At home, I take care of spiders, geckos, snakes—anything other than roaches—on my own. But this was different. We were in Costa Rica.
We put on shoes, just in case the creature fell or jumped to the floor and bit us, my husband explained. Quietly, we crept back into the bathroom, as if it could hear us coming and prepare to attack. Nothing had changed. There was nothing on the floor, wall, or ceiling.
I pointed at the towel and whispered for him to carefully move the top layer so I could see what was underneath. We weren’t about to use our hands, so I quickly scanned the room and handed him my hairbrush—it was small, but it was all I could find to serve as a stick. (In hindsight, a toothbrush would’ve been a better tool.)
Slowly, my brave husband moved the top layer slightly, and I craned my neck to see what was there. It was a large brown scorpion clinging to the towel. Immediately, I knew it didn’t want to be in our bathroom, and it was up to us to help it.
We didn’t know much about scorpions in Costa Rica, but my husband knew me well. Killing something other than a roach was not an option for me.
So, very slowly, my husband carefully removed the towel from the rack, trying not to disturb the creature. I opened the front door, and he carried the towel as far from his body as possible. He laid it down and gave it a little shake.
Nothing happened.
We stood there, waiting for it to emerge. Still no movement.
I decided we needed to uncover it so it could see that it was outdoors and free to go. Turns out, scorpions don’t think that way. It was perfectly comfortable in the towel.
My husband rolled his eyes at my logic but bravely flicked the towel with one swift movement, fully exposing the scorpion.
The little guy raised his tail in self-defense, and we both jumped back, ready to slam the door in case he charged us.
He just sat there, looking at us. Or maybe not looking at us—his eyes might have been darting around looking for an escape route. I’m not a scorpion expert.
This was the moment my husband truly showed his bravery.
He took a tentative step towards the scorpion, stretched his arm across the towel, grabbed it, and shook it quickly before immediately dropping it.
We heard the scorpion land on the forest floor, and quickly slammed the door—just in case it suddenly grew wings.
My brave husband, the hero!
That towel wasn’t allowed back into our room until the morning, when we could inspect it in the daylight to ensure it was scorpion-free. I was glad we hadn’t harmed the little guy, but the next day at breakfast, I learned it wouldn’t have harmed us. The sting might’ve hurt, but we were in no danger. It was a common bark scorpion.
Navigating Fear: The Road to La Fortuna
After our last delicious breakfast at the Cala Lodge, it was time to check out and drive to La Fortuna. We had driven up one side of the mountains to get there, and now we would drive down the opposite side to reach our next destination. True to its name, the clouds were very thick, and it was raining.
The clouds moved even lower as we drove down the winding mountain road, and visibility decreased. At this point, I started concentrating very hard on not having a panic attack.
I can hike through forests in the dark, poke my head into holes hoping to find tarantulas, and track down poisonous frogs and snakes without blinking. I even braved the hanging bridges suspended in the Cloud Forest canopy. But put me on a winding mountain road with a steep drop-off, and I’m a trembling mess—because my fear of heights apparently didn’t get the memo about my bravery.
The rain started coming down harder, and visibility became even less. It was too much for me. I started shaking, hyperventilating, and crying. My dear husband always takes excellent care to help me deal with this phobia.
He told me that he was going to pull over. I sobbed! In my mind, we'd pull over... and drive off the side of the mountain. I closed my eyes and accepted our fate.
I felt the car come to a stop, and he gently touched me to comfort me until I could get control of my breathing. I opened my eyes as he announced that the rain was slowing down, and my sobbing quieted right along with it.
I sat there, taking deep breaths and wiping the snot off my face. My husband pointed out that the cloud was thinning. We quietly watched as the cloud dissipated, and we regained visibility. I looked around to see that we were safely on the side of the road, surrounded by farmland—no cliffside near us.
My sweet husband smiled, leaned over, and gave me a reassuring kiss. I laughed at myself—puffy-eyed and snot-nosed—as we rolled back onto the road, startling a few cows who gave us the slow turn of mild judgment. The rest of the drive was pure magic, winding our way from the clouds of Monteverde to the sparkling shores of Lake Arenal, en route to the final leg of our Costa Rica adventure in La Fortuna.
Monteverde: Worth Every Panic-Induced Breath
My husband and I still discuss all the fantastic things we saw in Monteverde’s Cloud Forest. We laugh at our scorpion experience and reminisce about the many kind people we encountered on this leg of the trip.
Despite my fear of heights, I know we’ll go back. I’ll brave the mountain roads all over again because Monteverde is that special—a misty, magical corner of Costa Rica that’s absolutely worth every panic-induced breath and dramatic roadside meltdown!
Practical Travel Notes
Monteverde may be misty and magical, but it’s not necessarily budget-friendly. While Costa Rica was once considered an affordable destination, its popularity has brought prices closer to those in the U.S. With thoughtful planning—renting a car, choosing simple accommodations, and prioritizing experiences—you can still travel economically and meaningfully.
Hotels:
Cala Lodge – A cozy, family-owned lodge surrounded by nature, with forest-view balconies, walking trails, and daily birdwatching from the breakfast deck. A peaceful retreat perfect for couples and nature lovers.
Los Pinos - Cabanas & Reserva - Air-conditioned cabins, immersed in nature, surrounded by beautiful native gardens and lush forests, with plenty of space between them and equipped with all the essentials for cooking.
Restaurants:
Don Luis
Local sodas (Costa Rican diners) offer hearty, affordable meals and authentic flavors.
Notes about Food and Water:
The food in Monteverde is simple and satisfying—think fresh fruit, grilled meats, rice and beans, and lots of plantains. The tap water is generally safe to drink in Monteverde, but if you’re unsure, stick to bottled or filtered water.
Things to Do:
Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve
Selvatura Adventure Park (hanging bridges + trails)
Monteverde Wildlife Refuge Night Tour
About Guides in Monteverde:
Hiring a local guide can enrich your visit—especially when it comes to wildlife spotting. Guides are knowledgeable, often carry telescopes, and know where elusive animals like the Resplendent Quetzal tend to show up. While it’s entirely possible to explore independently (as we did), we lucked into sightings we might have missed otherwise. If your goal is to see specific wildlife, a guide is worth considering.
Packing Tips:
A lightweight rain jacket or poncho (cloud forest = damp)
Closed-toe hiking shoes with a good grip
Small flashlight or headlamp for night tours
Reusable water bottle (tap water is safe in most areas)
Binoculars for birdwatching
Quick-dry clothing for humid hikes
- J.S. Whaldo
