Green-crowned Brilliant at heliconia

Costa Rica Hummingbirds and More

Special offer for bird and nature lovers: $1,000 Discount for non-photographer spouse or guest

Costa Rica is renowned for its bird life and natural beauty. On this trip we will stay at two comfortable lodges hidden away in the rain and cloud forests with abundant birds and wildlife to photograph.

These locations are also renowned for their numbers and diversity of hummingbirds. You will have the opportunity to see and photograph over 20 species of these stunning birds.

We stay at private ecological reserves dedicated to wildlife and habitat preservation. Accommodations and meals are first rate, and both locations have miles of trails through the forests that you can explore, and guides are available. We will do most of our photography in easy proximity to our rooms, so the exertion level is relatively easy. Our trip takes place during the tropical dry season, with warm and pleasant weather the norm.

You can bring a variety of flash equipment for use at setups, feeders, and for perched birds. We can also provide flash equipment for you. (We will give you equipment guidelines.) Photographers with no prior hummingbird experience have returned with excellent images. Ralph Paonessa will show you his techniques for producing award-winning images of these flying jewels. (You can learn more at our Online Hummingbird Photography Guide.)

We will also encounter a great diversity of birds and wildlife attracted to the flowers and fruit feeders these lodges maintain. A long telephoto lens is ideal. Costa Rica also has an astounding variety of plants and insects with abundant opportunities for macro images. We can attract a great variety of insects to lights at night for macro photography.

This is an ideal trip for a non-photographer spouse or companion, who can join you for a substantial discount (save $1,000) to experience some of the best birding and scenic locations in Costa Rica. We can schedule optional day trips to locations with different habitats and scenery.

Costa Rica is the natural jewel of Central America, with volcanoes and mountains that soar to over twelve thousand feet in between the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, and hundreds of scenic rivers and waterfalls amidst tropical splendor. This is a wonderful winter escape that you won't want to miss.

Option: We are also offering a Costa Rica Quetzals and Hummingbirds extension as an option for this photo tour to photograph the beautiful Resplendent Quetzal as well as several more species of hummingbirds. Read more about this option ...