Papa's Place – Night Tour

Papa's Place is a small family-run rainforest reserve just outside La Fortuna that has quietly become the region's densest frog and reptile hotspot after dark. This 2-hour guided night tour is designed specifically for nocturnal wildlife: with a bilingual naturalist and low-impact LED flashlights, you walk short, well-maintained trails through a private garden and forest edge where cecropia, heliconia and bromeliad plantings concentrate amphibians in a small, photographable area. Expect red-eyed tree frogs (the classic Costa Rican poster species), gliding tree frogs, hourglass tree frogs, masked tree frogs, glass frogs on stream leaves, poison-dart frogs still active at dusk, and — with luck — the eyelash pit viper coiled over a leaf, sleeping brown-throated sloths, tarantulas, katydids, stick insects, kinkajous and olingos moving through the canopy. Because the reserve is compact and reserved for small groups, the pace is calm and unhurried, ideal for photography and for travelers who want a shorter, easier alternative to longer forest night walks. Rubber boots and flashlights are provided; round-trip transport from La Fortuna hotels is included on private departures. Rain and humidity actually improve amphibian activity, so the tour runs year-round and rarely disappoints.