7 animals you can see on a Costa Rica tour

These oddly cute creatures are a crowd favourite, and you’ll have good chances of spotting a sloth in Costa Rica. There are two species of sloth here – Hoffman’s two-toed sloth and brown-throated sloth (which have three toes). You’re most likely to see the three-toed species as they are active in the day (well, as active as a sloth can be!).

Head to the coast of Costa Rica to find turtles. If turtles are a favourite of yours, the best time to visit Costa Rica is between June and October, when huge numbers of Atlantic Green turtle come ashore to nest on the beaches of Tortuguero National Park – the largest Atlantic Green turtle nesting site in the Western Hemisphere. 

Not so well-known to many, but very popular among bird-watchers, the resplendent quetzal is a colourful bird with vibrant plumage and red breast. Though it looks green, its plumage is actually brown - it contains melanin pigment that traps most colours and reflects green (similar to how the common kingfisher’s feathers look blue). The male quetzal has long and slim tail feathers and crested head feathers while the female has much shorter and wider tail feathers, with no crested feathers on the head. Despite their loud colours, quetzals blend in surprisingly well into the rainforest so are difficult to spot, but our expert leaders are on hand to help and have a pretty good track record of helping customers spot them. The best places to spot the elusive quetzal are the Monteverde or Savegre Cloud Forests.

Of the six wild cat species that live in Costa Rica, ocelots are one of the cats you'll have the best chances of spotting. This animal is around twice the size of a house cat and can sometimes be spotted in Monteverde. Similar to the ocelot is the margay, another species of small wild cat. It has similar markings but is smaller and has a longer tail and larger eyes.