Monteverde, Costa Rica

Monteverde is a unique rural community nestled deep in the tropical cloud forest in the beautiful Tilarán Mountains of Costa Rica.  Originally settled by five pioneering Costa Rican farming families, the town became home to a group of Quakers who arrived in 1950s and began dairy farming there.  They recognized the need for conservation of the biologically-rich cloud forest and took the first steps toward protecting the magnificent ecosystem around them by establishing a reserve.

Now, researchers, students, and tourists from around the world visit Monteverde and study its extensive network of protected lands, which includes the famous Monteverde Reserve, the Santa Elena Reserve, and the Children’s Eternal Rainforest, as well as numerous smaller private reserves.  Among the spectacular flora and fauna found in the area are toucans, quetzals, monkeys, coati, sloths, orchids, and strangler figs.