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Rainforest Night Tour: Explore Costa Rica's Wildlife
5.0
425 Ratings
Osa
Embark on a captivating Drake Bay Night Tour with Tracie ‘The Bug Lady’ and Gianfranco Gómez. Discover the secrets of the rainforest at night and encounter fascinating creatures. Book now!
Embark on a captivating Drake Bay Night Tour with Tracie ‘The Bug Lady’ and Gianfranco Gómez. Discover the secrets of the rainforest at night and encounter fascinating creatures. Book now!
Duration:
3 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Drake Trail - We will explore a beautiful nature tail in search of nocturnal creatures
- Drake Trail - We will explore a beautiful nature tail in search of nocturnal creatures
What's Included
- Professional Guides equipped with Swarovski Spotting Scope with iPad attachment for group viewing
- Guides equipped with Echo Meter Touch 2 Pro Bat Detector
- The tour is not offered from any accommodations in Ganadito, Caletas, San Josecito or Rincón.
- Professional Guides equipped with Swarovski Spotting Scope with iPad attachment for group viewing
- Guides equipped with Echo Meter Touch 2 Pro Bat Detector
- The tour is not offered from any accommodations in Ganadito, Caletas, San Josecito or Rincón.
What's Not Included
- Bottled water
- Private transportation
- Boots are not included. All guests must wear closed shoes to participate. No sandals permitted.
- Headlamps are not included
- Please tell us where you are lodging. WE DO NOT OFFER THE TOUR FROM ALL AREA RESORTS AND HOTELS!
- Bottled water
- Private transportation
- Boots are not included. All guests must wear closed shoes to participate. No sandals permitted.
- Headlamps are not included
- Please tell us where you are lodging. WE DO NOT OFFER THE TOUR FROM ALL AREA RESORTS AND HOTELS!
Additional Information
Embark on a captivating two and a half hour journey through the rainforest with Biologist Tracie “The Bug Lady” and expert spotter Gianfranco Gómez, coauthor of “Pocket Guide to the Mammals of Costa Rica.” Together, they unveil the fascinating world of moonlit exploration.
Tracie and Gian offer an engaging and witty presentation, blending natural history…
Embark on a captivating two and a half hour journey through the rainforest with Biologist Tracie “The Bug Lady” and expert spotter Gianfranco Gómez, coauthor of “Pocket Guide to the Mammals of Costa Rica.” Together, they unveil the fascinating world of moonlit exploration.
Tracie and Gian offer an engaging and witty presentation, blending natural history with human stories. Participants will discover intriguing insights into creatures ranging from insects to bats, and all that moves in the night.
This is Drake Bay’s original and longest-running nocturnal adventure, boasting over 20 years of operation. Experience one of Costa Rica’s most distinctive excursions. The minimum age requirement is 8 years old. Tennis shoes or hiking boots are necessary. Please inform us of your lodging location, as we do not provide the tour from all area hotels due to logistical reasons.
- Are Children under 4 allowed to participate? No
- Must have a minimum of 2 guests to confirm tour
- Not recommended for travelers with knee problems, balance issues, vision impairment, or poor hiking skills.
Location
Hotel Jinetes De Osa
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(425 Ratings)
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Onair775453
Apr 8, 2026
Excellent Tour on a Rainy Night - I had a great time with Gianfranco on a rainy April night. The rain didn't hold us back at all though, if anything it helped us see even more creatures. Dozens of frogs, spiders, some bats, and even a cool vine snake. Gianfranco knew more than could be expected and had an answer for every question. You can tell he has true passion for the creatures of Costa Rica.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Austin
Apr 6, 2026
So many animals. Awesome guides - Saw so much. Amazing tour and very knowledgeable guides. There ability to find so many creatures was honestly astounding. 10/10 must do tour
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Q6026ntcaterinac
Mar 29, 2026
Excellent - Gianfranco and Tracie have created an amazing tour. Their fund of knowledge is beyond impressive. We could have taken the tour every night just to hear all about the animals from Gianfranco; they are really just that cool.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laurak883
Mar 22, 2026
DO NOT MISS THIS TOUR! - The tour was absolutely PHENOMENAL, the best tour I have ever been on (and I've been on many! ) Tracie bring to life the largely invisible world of creatures all around us, and explains their behaviors in the most engaging way. Tracie and her partner, Gian, tag-team...one of them shows you an animal and shares little known insights about their world, while the other sets out to find the next one. You will discover a vibrant, enthralling world you never knew existed, all around you! I was blown away by a particular spider who we found holding its own net, waiting to catch prey. My best advice: Go... no, RUN!..... to Drake Bay if only to take this tour! It will be an unforgettable experience, the absolute highlight of your trip!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Davidrt3272hx
Mar 21, 2026
Best in Costa Rica - This was the best tour we did in Costa Rica and the only one where they followed up with a list of the species we saw, along with a link to more information.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sonia
Mar 21, 2026
Great night tour in Drake - Fantastic tour with Giancarlo. His knowledge was incredible. It was nice to get a guide from a scientist. Very cool to hear the bat echolocation and see the scorpions illuminated by fluorescence.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Alisonjanesanderson
Mar 19, 2026
Exciting Night Tour - We just wanted to thank Gianfranco for such an interesting and informative night walk. He is so knowledgeable and enthusiastic about everything you come across on the walk, spiders, frogs, moths, scorpions, bats and an opossum in our case. The terrain is a bit hilly but the pace was slow and steady to make sure we didn't miss anything along the way. Highly recommended, go along, you wont regret it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
G374yvjoanr
Mar 18, 2026
Wonderful night tour! - My husband and I had a terrific night tour with Gianfranco that started from the LaPaloma lodge on the Osa peninsula. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing and learning about trapdoor spiders and leaf cutter ants. We also saw katydids, army ants, many beautiful frogs and a number of other spiders and their intricate webs.
It was an experience we’ll never forget.
We received so much knowledge from our expert guide.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Brigittebz4671zf
Mar 15, 2026
Wonderful Night Tour! - This was a fantastic tour! Gian was not only able to spot a bunch of fascinating critters, he also shared a wealth of knowledge about them—I'd say above and beyond other tour guides on my trip. If you're interested in learning more in-depth about the animals and rainforest, this is a real treat.
We saw all kinds of spiders and frogs, a hummingbird and some butterflies sleeping, a possum and an arboreal rat out looking for food, a giant parrot snake, crab-eating raccoons...all kinds of wildlife!
Being in the rainforest at night is such a cool experience, especially knowing that you're with a knowledgable guide who will help ensure you stay safe, see some interesting fauna, and come away with a greater appreciation for this unique ecosystem.
Tracie and Gian also communicated well before the trip, providing thorough information and timely messages. After the tour, if asked, they will also send you a list of the species you saw, complete with scientific names and links to read more, so if you want to geek out about the cool frogs you saw, you can.
Side note: Tracie had an injury and was not able to join us on the tour--I'm sure it would have been awesome to have her along, but like I said, Gian was a phenomenal guide!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Y7930
Mar 15, 2026
The ESSENTIAL Costa Rican tour - Absolutely fascinating tour with Tracie’s partner Gianfranco (who also happens to be the author of the excellent guide Mammals of Costa Rica). His depth of knowledge was extraordinary - although he modestly claimed Tracie’s bug knowledge is deeper! We found four different species of bat, incredibly cool Trapdoor spiders, the most venomous spider in Costa Rica- the Central American Wandering Spider, sleeping hummingbirds, a Four Eyed Opossum, two different scorpion species, numerous frogs and many other bugs. I don’t know where the time went.
What is inspired is that during the tour Gianfranco kept a note of all the species we encountered, and on request emailed a list afterwards of further fascinating reading about each of the animals we saw - which is going to keep me going for a few weeks.
I cannot imagine that there is a better bug tour anywhere in Costa Rica. Both Tracie and Gianfranco are professional zoologists whose knowledge is almost limitless having been studying the animals here for decades - unlike other guides we have encountered who have only a superficial knowledge of the animals.
Do it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor