Puerto Limon

We will be in port 3/22/14 and specifically want to go the jaguar place. Anybody got any help or experience with this and a guide?

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Check out this thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1978583

I have a tour booked with Jorge in a couple of weeks for 6 of us. He's been a pleasure to work with and I'm all for supporting small business. Can't wait!!

We went with Oscar Brown Tours in December of 2012. We combined the trip to the Jaguar Rescue Center with a boat ride down the Tortuguero Canal. We also stopped at a banana plantation and had lunch at a small open air restaurant on the beach.

The Jaguar Rescue Center was amazing. One of the best days of my entire life. I'm still trying to figure out how to quit my job and bring my dogs to Costa Rica so I can live in a little beachside hut and volunteer at the rescue center. Have fun!

That's exactly the tour we're doing, just with another guide. SO SO SO excited!!!

Check out this thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1978583

 

I have a tour booked with Jorge in a couple of weeks for 6 of us. He's been a pleasure to work with and I'm all for supporting small business. Can't wait!!

I tried that link, but got a message that it was invalid. :(

I tried that link, but got a message that it was invalid. :(

Hmmm..... not sure what happened but guess it was deleted for some reason. Anyway, what info are you wanting help with? Tour guide? Jaguar Animal Rescue? Something else? Happy to help if I can, now that we're back.

We were on Coral Princess 3/15-26 for partial PC transit and port in Limon. I had booked with Jorge a couple months prior and communicated with him several times prior to our arrival. There was some misunderstanding about meet up time (neither at fault) and I think he was waiting for us for much longer than necessary. Our ship was late arriving but we found him waiting at the other side of the port fence. He had a driver with a Toyota van. It was a valid tour vehicle and drivers license or permit was displayed in the front. The plan was first to Jaguar Rescue Center and suffice to say that place is WAY out there away from the port. Roads are good but only 2 lane so if it gets slow you're gonna be slow! We arrived @ the JRC and he pointed out some native plants inc one whose leaves close up when u touch it! It was rather amusing and I asked him again its name and said you're SURE it's not poison ivy???? It of course was not but we got a good laugh! The center is a very cool place and we had a good guide named Gissella. Perfect English but she was native Spaniard as were sev of the guides there. Not sure how many people they put in groups but we were there early and there were 6 in our tour and maybe 6 others. Beware this is an open place and its not unusual to be looking @ some birds and turn around and see an iguana walking around the grounds! Or a small deer walk up behind you and lick your leg (they like salty sweat!). There were no jaguars. Two cats in separate habitats , one an ocelot I think) and one had been unsuccessfully released and would prob live out its life there. I think he had cataracts and could not hunt for food. They were trying to raise money to remove his cataracts. They had some sloths and you couldn't hold them but the guide had one she held wrapped on a blanket and you could touch it if you wanted. Or suffice to say I wanted to and DID! :). Their fur was very thick and course to protect their thin skin she said. Howler monkeys.....they had an enclosure with several plus a white faced Capuchin. You could go IN the enclosure but I chose not to. All the animals appeared well cared for etc but they ARE wild animals and I wasn't interested in a monkey encounter! Appar one of our group wasnt listening to the part about not trying to pick them up or restrain them since if they get stressed out they "pee and poop"! Well yeh that's what happened to him!! About ten bacterial wipes later......

Next on to banana plantation. Did a walk through and watched that operation and Jorge was the guide there. After seeing how those people get bananas from trees to boxes I won't complain about the cost of bananas any more!

Next I think we went to Playa Bonita a beach side lunch place. The choices were chicken or beef prepared in CR tradition (spicey!) and included rice with red beans and plantain I believe. It was good but I don't eat beans so picked them out and not a fan of cooked fruit. Imperial is the CR beer and was good. Reminded me of Dos Equix or Modelo in Mexico. The others had a bottled Coke.

Back to town and took that Canal tour. Now I could've omitted that entirely! Yes we saw a few howler monkeys in trees and a couple iguanas and herons but it was hotter than hell on that small boat! It had a thin canvass cover over the top but nothing to shade the sides so if you were on the west side, it was hot and sunny!

Final stop local grocery store in town for coffee. I didn't get any cause I wasn't sure of the change I would receive but my friend bought a pkg of dark roasted brand Jorge recommended. It rang up as $4.80 I think or 4300 pesos or whatever monetary unit thru use. It was not a pound however it was 12oz. The same brand/pkg @ the dockside market was marked $7 I believe.

Back to ship without any traffic incidents etc. The JRC was prob close to an hour in travel time so we went there first and worked our way back to Limon. Jorge was an EXCELLANT guide, very knowledgeable and proud of his country. I sat up front with the driver and he was behind me. It was more like spending the day with a friend than a paid guide. He brought his 16yr old daughter also and she was very nice and engaging.

I would highly recommend him for anyone wanting to book a tour in Puerto Limon. His price will vary with number of people and where you want to go/see. The ship didn't offer the JRC and prob related to the distance. I prefer private tours anyway over ship offerings. They are marked up 20-30% and I'd rather know my money was going to specific people trying to make a living and not paid wages by a large corporation.

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Thanks for that great report. We are just starting to look at what is available.