Getting To Rara Avis
Because of its isolation you'll have to spend at least one night in the reserve, though two or three would be preferable. If time is short, a package to Rara Avis including transport from San Jose may be worth considering, but with a little planning it's perfectly possible - and more economical - to get there independently . To do this you need to take the bus from San Jose to near the small village of Las Horquetas, then a taxi to the village, from where a tractor-pulled cart makes the final 15km of the journey. You'll need to reserve accommodation at the reserve in advance, however you arrive. As the tractor for Rara Avis leaves daily at 9am, you have to take the 7am bus to Rio Frio/Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui from San Jose. Make sure you get the express ( directo ) service via the Guapiles Highway (the bus via Heredia leaves thirty minutes earlier and takes the long western route to Puerto Viejo). It takes between an hour and ninety minutes from San Jose to reach the turn-off ( cruce ) for Las Horquetas - ask the driver to let you off. From here, a five-minute taxi ride will take you to the Rara Avis office in Las Horquetas (since all accommodation at the lodge must be pre-booked, they'll know you are coming, though it's worth calling 253-0844 to double-check that a taxi will be waiting for you). From the office, the tractor-cart will take you to Rara Avis. If you come with your own transport, there's a car park at the office, where you can leave your vehicle. Getting to Rara Avis from Las Horquetas is at least half the fun, though not exactly comfortable. The uphill flatbed-tractor journey to the lodges takes two to four hours depending both on the condition of the "road" (actually a muddy rutted track) and on where you're staying. The pluses of this mode of transport include the sheer excitement - there's much multi-lingual cheering when the driver revs up the tractor and, squelching and spluttering, gets to the top of each slippery hill - and an exhilarating open-air view of the surrounding landscape, with plenty of time for toucan-spotting. Minuses include bumps and bruises, choking diesel fumes and a few worrying moments as the tractor slithers and slides up pitted hills. If you miss the tractor, horses are available for hire from the villagers until noon (US$15) - any time after that is too late, as the trip takes several hours. Ask at the Rara Avis office when you arrive. The horses can get as far as the El Plastico Lodge , but if you're staying at the Waterfall Lodge or the Riverside Cabin , you'll have to walk the last 3km on a rainforest trail. Leaving Rara Avis , the tractor departs at about 2pm from the Waterfall Lodge , passing the Plastico lodge at around 3pm. This means that it often arrives in Horquetas too late to rendezvous with the last bus for San Jose, which passes through at 5.15pm daily. If you miss this bus, the Rara Avis office in Horquetas can arrange for a taxi (about US$25 per carload) to the Guapiles Highway, from where you can flag down a Guapiles-San Jose bus, which pass by hourly until 7pm.
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