Bird Watching in Costa Rica, from Guanacaste
Private full days with an ICT-certified naturalist guide, from the dry forest and wetlands near your hotel to the Tenorio rainforest and the quetzal’s cloud forest.
Guanadreams CR guides private, full-day birding from your hotel in Guanacaste, Costa Rica: the dry forest of Rincón de la Vieja (449 species on eBird), the Palo Verde and Tempisque wetlands, the Tenorio rainforest reserves (Tapir Valley and Heliconias) and the cloud forest of Valle de los Quetzales. From $700 per private group of 2 ($350 per person); the Valle de los Quetzales day trip is $1,000 per group of 2.
Four Habitats,
One Local Guide
Guanacaste, Costa Rica is where the Pacific dry forest meets the wetlands of the Tempisque and, an hour inland, the rainforest of Volcán Tenorio. We guide private birding days across all of them, plus the cloud forest of Valle de los Quetzales in San Ramón, with every figure checked against public eBird data, so you know your odds before you book.
Where can you go birding from Guanacaste, Costa Rica?
Six sites, each with its own page: the birds, the best months and how the day runs.
Rincón de la Vieja
The top eBird hotspot in the province, with 449 species at Las Pailas: manakins, motmots and magpie-jays.
ExplorePalo Verde & the Tempisque
A boat through Cipancí, then the Hacienda El Viejo marsh, with 274 species on eBird.
ExploreNear Coco & Papagayo
Dry forest 40 minutes from the Playas del Coco and Papagayo hotels: trogons, motmots and migrants.
ExploreTapir Valley
475 species on eBird, the Snowcap on 56% of checklists, three toucans and the Baird’s tapir.
ExploreHeliconias
488 species on eBird, three hanging bridges and the Tody Motmot on 38% of checklists.
ExploreValle de los Quetzales
Quetzals at about 1,500 m and hummingbirds from covered decks at about 1,200 m, as a day trip or with a night in a cabin.
ExploreThree private birding days
Each one is a private full day with lunch, park entrances, transport and a naturalist guide with a scope.
Wetlands, Dry Forest & Mangrove Birding
The Palo Verde wetlands and the Papagayo mangroves: Jabiru, Roseate Spoonbills and Wood Storks.
See the tourRainforest Birding & Photography
One Tenorio rainforest reserve, the one you choose: toucans, the Snowcap and the Tody Motmot.
See the tourCloud Forest Birding & Photography
Monteverde or Valle de los Quetzales, for the Resplendent Quetzal and the cloud-forest hummingbirds.
See the tourMore than one day of birding
Two ways to go further, planned around the months each bird is easiest.
Costa Rica Birding Trip from Liberia
From the dry forest to the cloud forest, in the order the birds change.
Dry forest, four nights.
The Tempisque wetland by boat, as a day trip.
Rainforest, one night.
Two nights by the volcano.
Cloud forest, one night, then about an hour to San José airport.
Valle de los Quetzales with a night in a cabin
Stay in the valley so the quetzal gets your first light.
Drive from Guanacaste, Costa Rica, then photograph hummingbirds and tanagers from the covered decks at the lodge.
Fifteen minutes up to the cloud-forest reserve for the quetzal, then the drive back.
When to come, and how to photograph
Best Time for Birding in Costa Rica
Migrants, quetzal season and the green season, and what changes in Guanacaste, Costa Rica each month.
Read the guideBird & Wildlife Photography in Guanacaste
Private photo days planned around the light, the distance to the birds and the lens you bring.
See the photo daysNaturalists who photograph
Every one of our guides is a naturalist guide and wildlife photographer. Their eBird records are public, so you can read them before you book.
Miller Contreras
Co-founder. Born and raised in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, guiding for more than 20 years. eBird profile →
Field notes: One Morning at Tapir Valley (October 2026) · Five Motmots and Three Toucans in the Tenorio Rainforest (July 2026) · The Resplendent Quetzal of Costa Rica
Bird Watching in
Costa Rica, from Guanacaste
Send Us Your Dates
and Your Target Birds
Tell us when you are coming and which birds you are after. We will tell you honestly what is realistic for your dates and plan the day around it.
Private groups only · Hotel and LIR pickup · Based in Playas del Coco, Guanacaste, Costa Rica