<h1>Artist Painting Tours Costa Rica, Join award winning artist Mindy Lighthipe & Photographer Nancy Richmond for 10 day artist/photographer tour to Costa Rica </h1>
Price includes:
•All lodging & meals + taxes on lodging (13%) and meals (23%) included in this program.
•Full operational support services by Horizontes Nature Tours- 24 hour phone service
•Radio communication with the motor coach
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• All entry fees to parks, zoos and guided tours
Price does not include:
• Personal expenses such as laundry service, liquor, phone calls
•Alcoholic beverages of any kind
• Airport departure tax (currently US$ 26.00 per person)
• Meals, snacks and others not specified
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• Tips or gratuities for maids, bellboys, and all local guides while in the program
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• Airfare to or from the tour
The word “ Ave” means bird in spanish. Costa Rica is home to more than 850 species of birds. This is more than the United States and Canada combined. This zoo is host to an amazing number of bird species native to Costa Rica, as well as a variety of other animals. The place is a non-profit organization that teaches about conservation, rescues and cares for endangered birds.
La Paz waterfall gardens is host to 5 waterfalls, cloud forest and rain forest, safe hiking trails, an aviary with 40 species of birds, toucan feeding, marmoset monkeys, insect exhibit, butterfly observatory and butterfly gardens, butterfly laboratory, two-toed sloths, Capuchin (white-faced) monkeys, black-handed spider monkeys, hummingbird garden with 26 documented species, hummingbird hand feeding in the mornings and afternoons, serpentarium (snake exhibit), Jaguar, pumas, ocelots, jaguarundi, margays, casita de la paz with petting zoo and ox cart, ranarium (frog exhibit), orchid exhibit, heliconia exhibit, bromeliad exhibit.
All of these exhibits are located in one place!
During the presentation, visitors are invited to sample chocolate confections and tasting squares made on the premises with 100% organic Costa Rican cacao. Guests will also enjoy a demonstration on how to temper chocolate by hand, as well as glimpse artisan chocolate production.
For over 30 years, the Selva Verde Lodge has been a haven for nature enthusiasts from around the world. The abundant biodiversity, and comfortable rainforest lodge, are ideal for adventure seekers, bird and wildlife watchers, artists and photographers. Selva Verde is home to 500 acres of vibrant tropical forest. They are committed to a sustainable future - not only for Selva Verde, but for the people and wildlife that call the Sarapiqui home. They carry and support Costa Rica's Certification for Sustainable Tourism, actively working with conservation partners, including the Sarapiqui Conservation Learning Center, to promote conservation and environmental education throughout the local community.
Itinerary
Artistic Painting & Photography Tour - Costa Rica February 1-10, 2012
Cost: $3,499 per person based on double occupancy + airfare
Day 1- Arrival
As soon as you arrive through Immigration you will be met and greeted at the SAN JOSE airport by a driver who will take you to the Hotel Bougainvillea. A welcome dinner and slide show kicks off our tour! Overnight at Hotel Bougainvillea. (D)
Day 2- Let’s Get Started!
Start the morning off with a wonderful breakfast at the hotel buffet. Choose from lots of wonderful mouth watering tropical fruits, eggs, cereals and delicious Costa Rican coffee. After breakfast the group will gather in the garden to start sketching and taking photos. This is a time to get all the kinks and questions out of how the camera works, working with macro photography and the optimal use of drawing and sketching supplies. Lunch at the hotel. Afternoon visit to Zoo Ave- Here we will experience birds and other rainforest animals in captivity. This is an excellent opportunity to try your new skills as we see the animals up close. This is a great way to get great photos and drawings without them disappearing into the rainforest. Overnight at Hotel Bougainvillea (B, L, D)
Day 3 - Up Early and Let’s Take off!
After another great breakfast at the hotel we will get on a bus for an adventure filled day at La Paz Waterfall Gardens. Learn to take photographs of hummingbirds as they whiz by at a blink of the shutter. Enjoy sketching and learning about butterfly anatomy and lifecycles as they emerge from the chrysalis right before your eyes! We will spend the entire day, including lunch at La Paz. You can even take a hike and see all 5 stunning waterfalls on carefully built walkways. At the end of the day we will return to the hotel for dinner. Overnight at Hotel Bougainvillea (B, L, D)
Day 4 -We leave the Central Valley
After another hearty breakfast we will pack our bags and head out to the Sarapiqui region. On our way we will stop at my good friend George Soriano’s Sibu Organic Chocolate Workshop to learn about how chocolate is grown and tempered to make the finest chocolates on earth! We will lunch and have time to sample the chocolates. YUM! After lunch we will make our way to our next location, the Selva Verde Lodge. We have the rest of the day to explore the beautiful lodge and meet for a slide show after dinner. Overnight at Selva Verde Lodge (B, L, D)
Day 5 -The Sarapiqui River
For the early risers in the group, each day there is a morning bird walk courtesy of the lodge. After breakfast we will be transported to the nearby Sarapiqui River for boat ride. There are camains, waterbirds, howler monkeys and more to be seen on this voyage through the rainforest. We return for lunch at the lodge and spend the rest of the day taking photos, drawing, painting and swimming in the pool! After dinner we will go to the Tirimbina Biological Reserve for an evening bat program!
Overnight at Selva Verde Lodge (B, L, D)
The gardens at the Hotel Bougainvillea make the hotel one of the most beautiful places to stay in all of Costa Rica.With its 10 acres of carefully tended and landscaped tropical gardens, the Hotel Bougainvillea's green oasis features a plethora of over 50 species of bromeliads, Costa Rican native trees, and numerous species of orchids, herb and cactus gardens.The orchids are literally dripping off the trees!
Our artists and photographers find the gardens an inspirational paradise where they can draw, photograph and discover the beauty of countless endemic Costa Rican plants and birds.The famed, radiant hummingbird and butterflies, typical of the Central Valley of Costa Rica, are easily recognized from the bird watching points.This garden is so gorgeous you won’t want to leave!
Day 6 - La Selva Biological Station
After an early breakfast we will head out to nearby La Selva Biological Station for a guided walk along their concrete walkways through the rainforest. Along the way you will see birds, lizards, caterpillars, all kinds of insects, ferns, bromeliads and more! There will be plenty of time to draw, paint and photograph! Nancy and Mindy will do impromptu lessons that help you to gather research materials to take better photographs for painting these unusual plants and animals.
Overnight at Selva Verde Lodge (B, L, D)
OTS stands for the Organization for Tropical Studies. It is a non-profit consortium that has grown to include 63 universities and research institutions from the United States, Latin America and Australia. La Selva is one of the biological research centers that is operated by the OTS. La Selva has excellent bilingual naturalists that lead the walks to give you a glimpse of the leading-edge research being done as well as the Natural History of the Tropical Rain Forest.
La Selva is situated at the junction of two major rivers in the Caribbean lowlands of northern Costa Rica. It comprises 1,600 hectares (3,900 acres) of tropical wet forests and disturbed lands. It averages over 13 feet of rainfall that is spread rather evenly throughout the year. The Station is bordered on the south by Braulio Carrillo National Park, which contains more than 46,000 hectares of forest land and is the core conservation unit of the 91,000-hectare Cordillera Volcánica Central Biosphere Reserve.
Day 7-Tropical flowers abound!
After breakfast we will head out with our boxed lunch to spend the day at Costa Flores Botanical Garden. In the morning we will take a tour of the display garden with a guide and learn about bromeliads, heliconias and anthiriums. The rest of the day will be spent further exploring the garden on our own. Mindy will do demonstrations of painting and Nancy will on hand to help you improve your photography skills in “ plant portraiture”. Overnight at Selva Verde Lodge (B, L, D)
Costa Flores Botanical Garden is one of the worlds largest tropical flower farms. There are over 500 varieties of heliconias, palms, gingers, anthiriums and bromeliads grown on 300 acres for export to florists in North America and Europe. The display garden shows a variety of these plants on beautiful walkways that sculpt their way around a large pond with an open “boat deck”. The Deck is an awesome place to get to work and paint!
Day 8-What is more FUN than a barrel of SLOTHS?!?!
After breakfast we will head out to the Caribbean coast for a very special visit to Aviarios Del Caribe Sloth Rescue Center. Our good friends Judy & Luis Arroyo will be on hand to give us a behind the scenes tour of their rescue center. A fabulous lunch will also be provided. There is time to draw, paint and photograph and for those who wish a dip in the ocean! Overnight at Selva Verde Lodge (B, L, D)
AVIARIOS DEL CARIBE- A SLOTH SANCTUARY
In 1997 the sanctuary became affiliated and was recognized by the Costa Rican government as a rescue for injured and abandoned sloths. Human threats endangering sloths across Costa Rica are habitat loss, electrocution by power lines, traffic injuries and death, hunting, and even senseless violence. Over the years we have successfully hand-reared more than one hundred orphaned sloths and have even written a chapter in a book for zoos and rehabilitators on hand-rearing of orphaned wild and domestic mammals. Dozens of sloths that arrived at the Sanctuary as adults have been lovingly cared for, rehabilitated and returned to their forest canopy. In 2004 we completed a building that we designated The Learning Center and a year later another building containing a clinic, nursery, quarantine, kitchen and laundry was added to the growing Sloth Sanctuary complex. Future plans for the Sloth Sanctuary include an international veterinary study station with a state-of-the-art equipped hospital, construction of new enclosures to house the growing family of sloths in need of permanent residence, and partnership with rain forest/wildlife researchers worldwide.
Day 9 - Quiet moments and finishing up
Today is the day that we head back San Jose but before we leave we will spend time in the natural surroundings of the Selva Verde Lodge. En route on our way back we will take a side trip to Sarchi to see the local craftsman’s handiwork and see the famous handpainted ox carts. In the early afternoon we will have a chance to spend time in the garden at Hotel Bougainvillea. After a farewell dinner we will have a slide show and show and tell of our favorite moments from the trip. Overnight at Hotel Bougainvillea (B, L, D)
Day 10- Back to the airport and homeward bound
The trip has come to an end and you will be transferred to the airport approximately 3 hours before you flight is scheduled to take off. The airport tax is $26 and can be paid with colones, US $$ or by credit card.
While this itinerary presents the trip as planned, actual details may vary due to weather, special events, unforeseen circumstances, or new and better options that become available. We alway strive to optimize the tour and your artistic vacation experience.
To secure your place on our tour you can make a deposit of $1000 on PayPal
or send a check/money order to Studio16 - Mindy Lighthipe LLC
1200 NW 94th St
Gainesville, Florida 32606
If you would like a printable copy of the itinerary email me at: Mlighthipe@mac.com
Watch a video and see some of the great things you will see and do!
The Art of Mindy Lighthipe- Studio 16 LLC • 1200 NW 94th St Gainesville, Florida 32606
