I finally got to see my fill of beautiful blue morpho butterflies here!

Our guide, Sofia was great and explained all about the different species of butterflies,... read more and their life cycles, environmental niches and differences between species. I was so impressed that she was only 14 years old!

It does get hot in the conservatory, so I suggest early morning for the tour. By later in the day, there is shade on some of the walkways to see the crocodiles and turtles.

We saw a variety of butterflies and chrysallis pods, and even got to hold a blue morpho caterpillar! Outside the butterfly conservatory, we saw various species of rescued turtles, caymans and crocodiles (babies, young adults and huge older adults!). As they had been fed the day before, there were lots of turkey vultures hanging about too! We also saw tilapia as well as basilisk lizards - perhaps you may catch them running atop the water!

I really enjoyed the stories our guide told us, of how each crocodile was rescued and named, and the importance of education in saving these amazing prehistoric creatures from human ignorance.

I love that this tour was not too long for children, and that the tour area itself was small. This would be a great first or last stop for families as you get to see cool new animals, learn about them from a younger guide, and aren't exhausted by a 12 hour tour or 2 hour hike through a rainforest!

  We had a brilliant morning exploring Sukia with the lovely Juan. Juan’s expertise & knowledge blew us away & he really stood out as one of the best guides we... read more encountered in Manuel Antonio. His relaxed yet super engaged & passionate style made for the perfect guide.

We saw scarlet macaw couples grooming each other(such an intimate & sweet behaviour). The butterfly house was great & seeing each stage of their life cycles was fascinating. The immense care taken with each chrysalis & pupae was evident when Juan handled them to give us a closer look.

We were impressed with the crocodile, caiman and turtle rescue section & despite the sad stories that have led some of the inhabitants there, felt reassured by the ethics of the current owners and clear dedication to the welfare of all the animals on site.

Highly recommend this unique & memorable experience. Another highlight, we didn’t see any other humans at all :)

Big thank you the awesome Juan, Pura Vida :)

  We loved the butterfly sanctuary and crocodile refuge in manual Antonio! Diego was our guide today and he was knowledgeable and friendly! I highly recommend this experience for adults and... read more children.the setting is in the lush jungle and Diego will gladly answer any questions you might have. Next time we are bringing the grandkids back here to experience this beautiful place!!

  We were blown away that this nature preserve exists right in the heart of Manuel Antonio. Under new ownership, they offer birding tours, day tours, and jungle night tours. ... read more We enjoyed a morning tour with our excellent and knowledgable guide, Juan, who showed us many interesting things in the jungle. We spotted poison dart frogs, capuchin monkeys, bats, a boat-billed heron, a mot mot bird, a hawk, and many interesting insects, plants and trees. We met the rescued crocodiles and caymans and turtles, and watched the butterflies fly around our heads in the large butterfly garden. You can tell the new owners and Juan care a lot about the welfare of the animals and are good stewards of this special place. We will return!

  Our guide Sebastian was very friendly knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the animals and insects of Sukia. We went during the day and did not see many animals (a heron, a... read more dart frog, and some lizards) during our hike but we did learn a lot about the ecosystem and thoroughly enjoyed our hike through the property and the waterfall. There's also a beautiful butterfly garden where we got to see them in all life stages, as well as a crocodile, turtle, and black Cayman refuge which was very cool to walk through and learn about. Highly recommend!

  Close Encounters of the Croc (and Butterfly) Kind - Excellent tour! We did the butterflies and crocs tour and had a great time. Our guide was very knowledgeable, skilled with handling the butterflies, and was very enthusiastic. The tour... read more presented 9 varieties of vivid Costa Rican butterflies up close and also boasted a variety of reptiles. The sanctuary does very good work raising the animals, and we’d highly recommend a visit!

  I visited Sukia last month with my daughter and her friend. We have visited the butterfly gardens on previous occasions, the park in now under new ownership and offering much... read more more.
Juan our knowledgeable guide, showed us the butterflies, crocodiles and turtles and then we headed onto beautiful trails that lead to a waterfall view point. Juan was excellent, and great with the kids. I’m excited to see what other projects they are working on, and pleased that they are developing sustainably and protecting this vital natural area in the heart of Manuel Antonio.

  A wonderful experience walking thru Sukia park exploring the trails and waterfalls thru the rainforest. The butterflies were gorgeous. Very interesting learning about their creation. Diego was very knowledgeable. Such... read more a wild adventure. Great way to enjoy your day

  We took a tour of Manuel Antonio National Park in the morning, and had a tour reserved here for the afternoon; we were so tired after the morning we almost... read more canceled and I’m so happy we didn’t!! This tour was much better than the national park- we saw WAY more animals (capuchin monkeys up close, howler monkeys, sloths, woodpeckers, macaws, very interesting frogs and insects, lizards, and of course the crocodiles and butterflies after the walk), plus the walk itself felt more authentic and was very beautiful. Our guide Juan was so nice and incredibly knowledgeable. Another plus was that there was no restriction on bringing in snacks, which was a big problem for us in the national park with young kids. Honestly we would have done this instead of the Manuel Antonio National park tour.