One of Costa Rica’s most visited sites is Monteverde in North Puntarenas. Monteverde is home to one of the rarest habitats on Earth, the cloud forest, and an astounding variety of flora and fauna. The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is unique from Costa Rica’s other rainforests, with a constant mist that looks like clouds and gives the forest its name. The high humidity at this spot, 1,600 meters above the ocean, creates the mist and provides a cloud-like cover.
Eight different biological zones are distinguishable in this moisture-rich environment, which shelters several thousand animal and plant species across its 26,000 acres. The reserve is a bird-lover’s paradise, with more than 500 species; bring your binoculars for a view of the quetzal, whose green plumage contrasts nicely with its red chest and belly, the blue-throated toucanet and the three-wattled bellbird.
Be on the lookout for pumas, monkeys and endangered jaguars, as well as the red-eyed tree frog that serves as a Costa Rican icon. If you’re lucky, you can also find the golden toad, known to live only in this forest. Along with the teeming wildlife, the cloud forest offers 420 orchid species and 200 fern species. If you find the Monteverde cloud forest a little busy, the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve is its lesser-known neighbor and offers much the same experience. Similar wildlife species are found here as well, including the spider monkey and sloth.