Santa Elena Reserve

Santa Elena Reserve is a 765 acre community managed reserve, built in 1989 to protect a cloud forest area in Costa Rica. This cloud forest is located around four miles away from the Santa Elena Village. Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, together with the Children’s Eternal Rainforest, the Arenal Conservation Area, and the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve constitute a large conservation area of approximately 69 000 acres. This exuberant cloud forest reserve is less visited than its neighboring reserves, Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve and Arenal Conservation area, not because it lacks charm but mainly because it is less heard of.

The four hiking trails at this lively cloud forest are well tended and have an overall distance of eight miles; these hiking trails connect you to three overview points and an observation tower.  From certain spots of this quaint Cloud Forest you might be able to see Arenal Volcano exploding. Of course, there are a number of elements you will need to have in your favor to see the Arenal Volcano, a clear day in a cloud forest, and the volcano to be exploding at the same time the sky is clear. Note that your chances of seeing the Arenal Volcano from Santa Elena Reserve are better in the morning.

Overall it is usually during the early morning that you will be able to watch most of the lush cloud forest fauna and flora from Costa Rica come to life. Clouds and rain usually overtake the Santa Elena Reserve in the afternoons, letting you only glimpse at the forest’s fauna and flora from between curtains of thick moist clouds. Seeing the rainforest through the clouds is also a nice experience also, and after all you are visiting a cloud forest, so clouds should be an asset. Night tours are also available with prior reservation. A night tour will let you experience the sleeping cloud forest, which is most definitely an enthralling experience to say the least.

Santa Elena Reserve also has a gift shop and a small coffee shop to grab a light meal. For accommodations you can book a lodge at Monteverde Town or at Santa Elena Town. Most of the lodges will offer you transportation to Santa Elena Reserve for an extra cost. The same weather conditions found at Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve are to be found here in Santa Elena, which means remember to bring insect repellent, sunblock, a light rain poncho, and bottled water. Actually, this is a recommendation that should be followed whenever visiting any natural destination in Costa Rica.