Fodor's Expert Review Selvatura

If your time in Monteverde is limited, consider spending it at Selvatura, a kind of nature-themed adventure park—complete with a canopy tour and hanging bridges—just outside the Santa Elena Reserve. A 100-bird hummingbird garden, an enclosed 20-species mariposario (butterfly garden), a sloth sanctuary, a herpetario (frog and reptile house), and insect exhibition sit near the visitor center. The only zipline tour built entirely inside the Monteverde Cloud Forest has 12 lines and 18 platforms, with an optional Tarzan swing at the end to round out the excursion. The Tree Top Walkway takes you to heights ranging from 36 feet up to 180 feet on a 3-km (2-mile) walk. These are some of the longest and strongest bridges in the country and run through the same canopy terrain as the zipline tour, which sometimes makes for a not-so-quiet walk.

You can choose from numerous mix-and-match packages, depending on which activities interest you, or take it all in, with lunch included, for $169. Most visitors get by for much less, given that one day isn't enough for all there is to do here.