Ziplining in a Rain Forest
In researching where to zipline in Costa Rica, I was determined to find somewhere with a thrill and an unusual aspect. Because we were basing in Tamarindo and not making the trek to the more popular Arenal region, I narrowed my search to the greater Tamarindo area. I was told that stopping in the Monteverde cloud forest was something that needed to be on the list.
Signing up for package deal or with a tour company seemed to be the only option for ziplining from Tamarindo. It was suggested that we should do a multiple activity package, which gives the option of 4 or more activities packed into one day. My group agreed that if we went white water rafting, we'd like to make a day of it, and the same with ziplining. While it was more economical to smash all of these activities into one day, it wasn't appealing to us.
I determined that stopping by Monteverde on our drive from Tamarindo back to San Jose before our flight would be the best option. One, we'd get to see Monteverde, and two, we could break up the drive with a fun activity in the middle, and three, we could explore more of the countryside along the way. Knowing that no matter how long the GPS said it would take, we could almost guarantee that it would take longer. It took about 45 minutes longer than the GPS stated on the way there, and our way home was made longer because the GPS took the extra long way (hard to determine when you don't have the convenience of cell service and google maps).
While we didn't see any animals as we ziplined through the jungle, it was fun to be in a cloud forest. One member of our group decided against ziplining and chose to do the suspended bridges. She managed to see a monkey up close!
This zipline boasted over 2 miles of cables, among the longest in Costa Rica, and also the only one within the bounds of the cloud forest. The staff of the Selvatura Adventure Park we very friendly and made the experience all the more enjoyable. We chose to do the Tarzan swing, which didn't get my stomach flying, but it did for several members of our group. Overall, it was a great experience. Since I didn't zipline in any other area of Costa Rica, I can't speak about how the scenery compares.
