Fodor's Expert Review Rancho Primicias

Next to the national park is this privately-owned nature preserve where several dozen giant tortoises roam freely. If you're on a cruise or package tour, you're likely to come here. If you're traveling independently, add this to your list of Santa Cruz sites, and combine it with a visit to the neighboring national park. It's great fun to walk around here and get moderately close to these incredible creatures, and this is among the best places to take photos of and with them. You could spend 15 minutes here taking quick snaps or an hour or more walking the grounds in awe. There's an open-air café where you can sit for tea, coffee, and small snack like empanadas, as well as a souvenir shop.

You'll be offer rubber boots to wear; take them or you'll sink right into the mud.