Caño Negro Boat Tour: Wildlife Exploration and Birdwatching in Costa Rica

Embark on a wildlife exploration and birdwatching adventure in Costa Rica’s unique Caño Negro. Discover diverse flora and fauna, including egrets, herons, monkeys, caimans, and more. Don’t forget to bring your own water bottle!

Duration: 9 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Cano Negro Wildlife Refuge - Our tour starts in La Fortuna at 7:30 am. On the way to Caño Negro you will have the opportunity to learn about numerous agricultural plantations of Costa Rica such as yucca, papaya, pineapple, sugar cane and oranges.
    Then we will arrive at the “El Caiman” restaurant, where we will enjoy a welcome drink and snack,…
What's Included
  • Transportation included - refer to ¨Pickup information¨ for more details
  • Professional Driver/Guide provided
  • All taxes, fees, and handling charges covered
  • Complimentary snacks provided
  • Lunch included in the tour
  • No additional fuel surcharges
What's Not Included
  • Dinner
  • Gratuities
  • Bottled water
Additional Information

Unique Caño Negro is one of the most amazing trips for incredible birdwatching in Costa Rica.
Our tour starts in La Fortuna at 7:30 am. On the way to Caño Negro you will have the opportunity to learn about numerous agricultural plantations of Costa Rica such as yucca, papaya, pineapple, sugar cane and oranges.
Then we will arrive at the ‘El Caiman’…

Location
Cano Negro Wildlife Refuge
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.8
(212 Ratings)
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Anniezk
Apr 25, 2025
One of the best wildlife tours ever!! - We took this tour from our hotel in La Fortuna. The van ride to Cano Negro was about 2 hours through beautiful countryside and the guide gave us so much good information about the area and what we were going to see. As for the tour itself, amazing!! It's so pristine, quiet and I could not believe how much wildlife we saw!! So many birds, caimans, capuchin monkeys, bats, howler monkeys, even a rare orange howler monkey. The guide and the captain were so good at spotting everything, made sure everybody was able to see everything and get great pictures! I could have stayed there all day!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lorraine_z
Apr 16, 2025
River Trip - We had a great experience on the river boat trip. We saw many types of birds, two types of monkeys including the orange howler, and lots of caiman alligators. Our guide was knowledgeable and the food was delicious.
Review provided by Viator
Occassionaltravels
Mar 23, 2025
Excellent - Organised through our tour operator, so we don’t choose it. But saw the elusive sloth which made the trip worthwhile. All the pick up Logistics worked well and the trip was excellent, but as expected
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Amber
Mar 20, 2025
Great tour - Great tour. Saw tons of wildlife with great guides. Lunch was delicious. Easy transportation pick up. Nice half day trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Shaoquan_l
Mar 15, 2025
A relaxing trip to see the wildlifes. - The whole trip was very comfortable. A 2+ hour drive took us to the Cano Negro. We had a little rest with some fruits and drinks. We then went on a boat just our group. Our Guild David and the Captain of the boat are both very knowledgeable with the wildlifes. We saw many of them. After the exciting ride we had our nice lunch at the riverside restaurant. Then we drove back. A relaxing trip to see the wildlifes.
Review provided by Viator
Anncathy
Mar 5, 2025
Amazing day trip in the Caño Negro Wetlands - Highly, highly recommend this trip on the Rio Frio through the Caño Negro National Wildlife Refuge. We were astounded at how many species we saw during our approximately 2-hour pontoon-boat trip on the river, including 3 of Costa Rica’s 4 species of monkeys (and in one of the troops of black mantled howlers, we even saw an extremely rare orange howler); a caiman half-submerged in the river; and gigantic iguanas draped on tree branches. And you don’t have to be a serious birdwatcher to be wowed by the rare birds you’re seeing – like the perfectly disguised great potoo, whose coloration exactly mimics the tree trunks it hangs on. Our knowledgeable Canoa Aventura guide (Joshua), and our boat driver (nicknamed “Eagle Eyes”) were great spotters, and took great pains to make sure everyone on the boat saw what they had spotted, repositioning the boat if necessary and allowing plenty of time for good looks and photos before moving on. The day included an enjoyable lunch of typical Tico dishes, and a chocolate tasting. The tour was well organized from start to finish, convincing us that we will definitely sign on for another Canoa Aventura adventure when we next return to Costa Rica.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jasonandwesleyc
Mar 4, 2025
So many monkeys! - What a great trip. Saw so many birds and three kinds of monkeys. And the lunch at the end was tasty. My guide took some amazing pictures with his lens to get up close. Highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
L298eulaura
Mar 3, 2025
Do not miss Cano Negro on your Costa Rica itinerary! - This was an absolute highlight of our trip to Costa Rica. The guides (Bernie and Adrien) were so informative and we saw so much wildlife. The included lunch was tasty too!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laurakj7099fk
Feb 26, 2025
Brilliant wildlife sightings - We had a great boat trip with lots of wildlife sightings. The guides were knowledgeable and friendly. Particularly enjoyed a great view of a family of spider monkeys and seeing howler monkeys and capuchins from the river. The group was pretty big but there was still enough room on the boat to move about and get good photos. We had a nice traditional lunch after the boat trip before being driven back to La Fortuna.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Marjorie_m
Mar 22, 2025
Knowledgeable guide.... - Knowledgeable guide. Didn’t see as many birds as we hoped but saw a rare orange howler monkey. Good chance to see Costa Rican countryside.
Review provided by Viator
From $94
up to 15 guests
2 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).