This action-packed multisport adventure includes mountain biking, snorkeling, a zip-line tour, hiking and white water rafting. With a professional guide, you will bike through the Costa Rican countryside to the Pacific where you’ll board an outrigger canoe and paddle to a secluded beach. Glide on cables through the rainforest canopy. Look for whales and dolphins and snorkel in the Pacific. Search for pre-Columbian artifacts on Caño Island. Hike and bike through tropical sub-alpine forests and meadows. Finally, top it all off rafting down the Class III-IV Pacuare River, recognized as one of the ten best rafting rivers in the world. Meet our Multisport Guides.

Please note: The name of this trip is not marketing hype. Potential participants should carefully judge whether they are up to the pace of this trip.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

Click to enlarge.

Meal codes = (B) Breakfast, (L) Lunch, (D) Dinner.

Day 1: Arrival in San Jose, Costa Rica (No meals.)
Arrive at the International Airport in San José. After passing through Immigration you'll be met by a Costa Rica Expeditions representative who will give you a sticker to facilitate clearing customs. When you leave the building after clearing customs, look for a sign that says, "Costa Rica Expeditions" with your name on it. A CRE guide wearing an orange shirt will be holding the sign. He or she will take you to your hotel. Overnight at Gran Hotel Costa Rica.

Day 2: Villa Lapas / Pacific Coast Bike & Paddle (B,L,D)
This morning you will meet your Multisport Guide and the rest of the group at an early breakfast. This is your opportunity to get to know everyone and resolve any questions you still might have about the trip. Afterward the group will be driven along one of Costa Rica's most scenic roads, the old Spanish route that winds down from the Central Valley to the Pacific Coast (about 2 hours).

Upon arrival in the little town of Orotina, your guide and driver will prepare the bicycles and, after a safety talk and a refresher on biking technique, you'll be on your way. This route takes you through the center of town and then onto less-traveled backroads. You will eventually connect back with the main road for the last eight miles to your final destination, Agujas Beach. Total biking time is about three hours. Distance is 19.4 miles (31 kms).

Once at the beach, you will be introduced to your new mode of transport, the outrigger canoe, whose design is based on the original Polynesian boats. They are fast and stable, but require synchronization and group effort. The ocean here is warm and usually calm. You’ll paddle under spectacular cliffs filled with pelicans and frigate birds to one of our destination beaches for snorkeling or relaxing. Lunch will be served on the beach. The quality of the snorkeling, like the weather, is a variable and over which we have no control. Nevertheless, we will be at the best location for snorkeling on the Central Pacific Coast. After this tour, your guide and driver will take you back to the hotel, where you will have a chance to relax and freshen up before going out for dinner. Overnight at Villa Lapas Hotel (standard room).

Day 3: Villa Lapas / Cristal Ballena / Zip-line Tour (B,L,D)
You will start the morning with breakfast at the hotel and then board the van for a 20 min. ride to the Jacó area for the Waterfalls Canopy Tour. Waterfalls Canopy Tour is outside Jacó and 10 kms from Carara National Park. It is part of an important ecological transition zone between Costa Rica’s dry northwest and the humid southern zone. Much of the Canopy's 46 hectares of protected area is covered with transitional rainforest growing on steep slopes, and studded with massive trees laden with vines and epiphytes. The Canopy Tour consists of 13 platforms, seven cables of varying lengths, a three-story tree house, a Tarzan Swing, a suspension bridge and a 90-foot rappel down at the end.

Continue on a four-hour drive to Hotel Cristal Ballena in the South Pacific region of Costa Rica. The road you’ll be traveling is known by locals as the “Costanera” (coastal road) and follows the Pacific coastline offering beautiful views and good possibilities of spotting a variety of birds, including wood storks, caracaras and a variety of hawks, among others. Stop about half-way at the Rancho Casa Grande for a Costa Rican-style lunch. Overnight at Cristal Ballena Hotel (junior suite).

Day 4: Snorkeling and Hiking on Caño Island (B,L,D)
Today leave early with your guide for a full day of snorkeling and hiking to what may well be mainland Costa Rica's finest diving and snorkeling spot. Not only do the waters surrounding Caño Island contain some of the most abundant and varied marine life in the world, but the island also possesses several pre-Colombian archeological artifacts. These can be explored on several hikes through the lush, tropical vegetation. The almost-perfect spherical stones are believed to have once marked an offshore burial ground and ceremonial site for the indigenous Diquis cultural group, who inhabited the Golfo Dulce area until the Spanish arrived.

Along with the stone spheres, Caño Island is believed to have been a pirate hideout. Some go so far as to claim that the island was the inspiration for Robert Stevenson's book, Treasure Island. Within 15 meters (50 feet) of the beach you can explore the warm, crystal blue waters with snorkel gear and see a variety of brilliantly colored tropical fish and corals. Overnight at Cristal Ballena.

Day 5: Cristal Ballena / Savegre Mountain Lodge (B,L,D)
Ready to ride bikes early in the morning along the main road starting at Hotel Cristal Ballena. The ride has a mix of a slight down hill slopes with a few uphill slopes along the way and views of the forest and Pacific surf. The ride ends at the Barú River Bridge. Total Biking time is about two hours. Distance is approximately 22 miles (35 kms).

Drive for about 15 minutes to the entrance of the Nauyaca Waterfalls where you can change your clothes. Meet Don Lulo, the owner of a large portion of the surrounding property, and hop in a pick-up truck to drive up to the Nauyaca Waterfalls with 3 cascades. Swim under the falls before hiking back (or returning in pick-up truck if you wish) to meet the bus. A typical lunch will be served at Don Lulo’s house. Continue to Savegre after lunch (about 3 hours). Overnight at Savegre Mountain Lodge (junior suite).

Day 6: Cerro de la Muerte Hike (B,L,D)
After an early breakfast, depart by bus for the Cerro de la Muerte Hike. Accompanied by a local guide, you will walk down the mountain - first through sub-alpine meadows and then through the oak forests of Savegre Valley. This is a 5-to-7-hour hike, ending at the Savegre Lodge. Box lunch will be provided en route. Overnight at Savegre Lodge.

Day 7: Savegre / Pacuare White Water Rafting (B,L,D)
Depart early from the Savegre Lodge and head towards Cartago, the oldest city in Costa Rica. Continue east through Turrialba, north to the entrance of Hacienda Tres Equis, which leads to the put-in location on the Pacuare River. Upon your arrival (about 3-½ hours later), the rafts will be rigged and the River Guides will welcome you to one of the most beautiful river canyons in the tropics, one of those rare pockets of wilderness still left on the planet. After orientation and a safety talk, proceed downriver. Mid-afternoon take-out. Total river time about four hours. Return to San José for the Farewell Dinner (2-hour drive). Overnight at Gran Hotel Costa Rica.

Day 8: Departure (B)
Transfer to the International Airport by bus or van, arriving about two hours before your flight's scheduled departure.