Waking up in front of the most intense bio-diverse place on the planet was an amazing experience for all of us. The excitement kept growing during breakfast and by 8 a.m. we were all ready for the different hikes at Caletas Private Reserve. As the inflatable boats approached shore a couple of scarlet macaws gave us a warm welcome, and that was the perfect announcement for a great day.

The morning was just perfect: more scarlet macaws, common black-hawks, honeycreepers and many more birds were showing off along the trails, giving everyone the chance to increase their wildlife checklists. By the end of the morning our hotels manager surprised all of us with a delicious barbecue right at the beach.

After we got back on board, National Geographic Sea Lion navigated for a few minutes. Our destination was San Pedrillo’s ranger station. As we all disembarked, the groups got organized; hikes to the waterfall or the Pargo trail were the options for our guests at Corcovado National Park. As time went by, all of us came back from our unique adventures. Everyone was full of stories about their experience in the rain forest; some of us got the chance to see spider monkeys, others got the chance to swim at the waterfall, experiences that none of us will ever forget.

Just to make our day even more special, it ended up with one of the most spectacular sunsets of the season. At the end, smiles were the most common expression among us. A day that exceeded all expectations was slowly coming to an end in the south Pacific of Costa Rica.