Jungle Crocodile Safari

Jungle Crocodile Safari (tel./fax 506/2637-0338, www.junglecrocodilesafari.com [1]) offers a two-hour croc-spotting trip upriver aboard a pontoon boat ($25). It has an office in Tárcoles [2]. What a fantastic experience! You’ll see all manner of birds, such as roseate spoonbills, whistling ducks, jabiru storks, even scarlet macaws as you sidle upriver, spotting for crocodiles.

The three largest— named Mike Tyson, Fidel Castro, and Osama Bin Laden—are five meters long and guard their turf and harems at recognized holes. Your guide will probably step ashore into the gooey mud and draw one of these giants up onto the bank to snatch chicken from his hand! Morning is best.

Competing are Crocodile Man Tours (tel./fax 506/2637-0771, www.crocodilemantour.com [3]) and J.D.’s Watersports (tel. 506/2290-1560, www.jdwatersports.com [4]).