Sloths in Costa Rica

cailin sloth 01

A Sloth named Oprah

Before visiting Costa Rica I knew that the one thing that I must do to make this a successful trip was to see a Sloth. I wasn’t sure how easy or hard this task would be, but I was determined to make it happen. On our first day in the country as Scott (my friend and camera man for the trip) and I drove with our tour guide from San Jose to our eco lodge Almonds and Corals just past the  the small town of Puerto Viejo we drove past “The Sloth Sanctuary.

We were on a tight schedule but I didn’t care, I was all like “ERMAHGERD!!“. I asked is we could shuffle some of our plans around to include a visit to the Sloth Sanctuary but the only time we had available was on a Monday. The Sloth Sanctuary is closed on Mondays. I was distraught, as we were soon leaving to go to the other side of the country, but I was still determined to see a sloth.

Our tour guide Jorge said he could almost guarantee I would see a wild Sloth in the trees while in Costa Rica, but that wasn’t close enough for me. He was able to arrange a visit to the Jaguar Rescue centre where we went on a tour and got to see many native animals, bugs and snakes and a bucket full of adorable sloths! I couldn’t stop smiling. However we only got to see them for about 10minutes. That was definitely not long enough for me.

bucket of sloths

 A bucket of baby sloths

It wasn’t until we were on the west side of the country that I saw my first Sloth in the wild. He was way high up in the tree tops in the Manuel Antonio National Park, soaking wet from all the rain but adorable looking. Sloths started becoming a constant quest for me. Every where we went I was searching for them high in the trees. I went on the hunt for the perfect sloth stuffed animal to take home with me. I was almost turning into Kristen Bell and I kept thinking about the Sloth Sanctuary back on the other side of the country.

sloth in tree

 Seeing a sloth in the tree tops

Although it didn’t make too much sense for Scott and I to go all the way back there to see the Sloths, it was “only” a 5 hour drive away. We had two days to spare before we had to be at our next planned adventure. The lovely people at Latitudes Adventure ( a travel company that offers highly personalized vacations to Costa Rica) were helping me fill in the gaps in my trip as I wasn’t sure what to see and do in Costa Rica and once I contacted them after landing they knew I had a Sloth problem. They worked as hard as possible to get me back to Cahuita to see the Sloths.

They came back to me a couple times with some different options, they were having a hard time trying to make it work but I was in Kristen Bell mode and I just had to see these Sloths. Then I got a happy email. Latitudes Adventure had not only found a way to get me back to the Sloth Sanctuary but they were also able to book a nights stay for us in their small bed and breakfast and put us on the Insider’s Tour. The best tour available at the Sanctuary.

ERMAHGERD!! BABY SLOTH

Scott had wanted to go to a coffee plantation and see some volcanoes, but unfortunately for him the Sloths won. Which I think he was totally fine with in the end. I’ll write more about our experiences at the Sloth Sanctuary in the next post but for now I leave you with this cute and adorable SLOTH MONTAGE VIDEO! I hope you enjoy!

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13 Comments

  • Reply
    Jeremy Martin
    July 27, 2014 at 2:27 am

    Your opening comment cracked me up. My wife and I recently completed a visit to Costa Rica, and she had virtually identical motivation for visiting.

    We spent most of our time along the Pacific coast (aside from 4 days inland in Arenal), so we were rather bummed about not getting to see the sloth sanctuary, either. Looks like the rescue center made for an amazing alternative, though!

  • Reply
    Mary
    October 9, 2013 at 6:53 am

    These are the cutest things I’ve ever seen! Thanks for sharing these fab pictures :-)

  • Reply
    Nicole @ Suitcase Stories
    March 25, 2013 at 6:28 pm

    Love the video! We are a little obsessed by sloths, have to admit :) And the good news is we are off the Costa Rica in just over a week so Im so excited to read this post!

    This sanctuary is definitely on this list now :)

    Thanks for the info!

  • Reply
    Kat
    February 25, 2013 at 5:15 pm

    Love them they are so darn cute!

    • Reply
      Cailin
      March 6, 2013 at 9:47 pm

      Totally! I’m obsessed! haha

  • Reply
    Peter Parkorr
    February 23, 2013 at 11:56 am

    Amazing inquisitive little sloth faces! That is a great video. :)

    • Reply
      Cailin
      March 6, 2013 at 9:47 pm

      Thanks Peter! You should also check out my Sloth Facts video!! :)

  • Reply
    Monica
    February 21, 2013 at 6:16 pm

    Soo cute, but sooo weird! I love their cheeky little faces but sometimes they do look a bit creepy.

    • Reply
      Cailin
      March 6, 2013 at 9:48 pm

      The older ones definitely look a bit fugly hahaha Its the type of animal that can be so ugly its cute :)

  • Reply
    Tammy
    February 20, 2013 at 11:47 pm

    OMG I love sloths so much. They are the cutest and always look like they are smiling. I so want to go to this sanctuary now!

    • Reply
      Cailin
      March 6, 2013 at 9:48 pm

      You should definitely visit if you ever make it to Costa Rica :)

  • Reply
    Amanda
    February 19, 2013 at 9:16 pm

    SOOOO CUUUUTE!

    I love how they kept reaching out for your camera!

    • Reply
      Cailin
      March 6, 2013 at 9:49 pm

      They like to ham it up! haha

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