Costa Rica is filled with a plethora of activities to indulge your adventurous side. Trying to decide what to do and where can be overwhelming. There are many places to zip-line, but El Santuario Canopy Adventure makes itself an easy pick! Having the longest zip-line in Central America makes it even more appealing!
My friends and I knew that if we were going to go to Costa Rica then zip-lining was a must! El Santuario Canopy Adventure looked like the perfect place. They are located near Manuel Antonio National Park. If you happen to be staying in the area, they have a van that will pick you up. My friends and I were actually staying 30-40 minutes away so we drove to the meeting location, Quepos Airport.
Quepos Airport is super small and only has 8 parking spaces. We sat in the car in one of the spaces and ate breakfast sandwiches we purchased a few minutes away at a soda. It was great watching a small plane take off and land. 10 minutes after the scheduled pick up time a van arrived and we followed them to the location. We turned onto one of Costa Rica's infamous unpaved roads and drove for about 20 minutes. The road had views of beautiful palm trees.
Once we got to the entrance, we parked and hopped out to join our group. The grounds were gorgeous. After signing our life away with waivers we were offered coffee and fruit. I happily took some watermelon before putting on a harness and helmet. I didn't want to take my camera and lose it although I ended up seeing people had tied it to their helmets. Instead my friend put my go pro on his helmet. The helmet had safety clips to make sure the straps stayed down which I thought was awesome!
We piled into a van and headed up to the starting point where we were briefed on how to do things and safety rules. A couple of photos were taken before we were on our way to the first zipline. There are 10 in all. We were told the longest one was number 7. We had ample time to work up to that one.
By the time we finished the first three we were all sweating. The weather was no joke! 95 degrees and 100% humidity. I have never sweat so much before! Everyone was drenched. Places I wasn't aware I could sweat, like my shins, had beads of sweat. Luckily there was a pit stop to get some water. We refilled our cups before moving on.
The 3rd and 4th zipline allowed you to go upside down or spin. Some people took the opportunity, I didn't. It took a lot of ab work to hold my legs up and crossed. The harness on certain lines felt tight and hurt a bit. Plus I loved watching the views as I zipped across and got the amazing and much wanted and needed breeze to ease the heat.
Right before we got to the 7th zipline we stopped to sit down and rest. We were able to snack on some delicious pineapples that were provided by the staff. Afterwards we headed up to the longest zipline in Central America. It is over 3/4 of a mile. I was excited. The other cool part about this particular line was that 2 people could go at once. I was on the left side and my friend was on right. The last zipline was the fastest.
The entire experience was an exciting and tiring one. Walking up countless stairs and going over suspension bridges in that weather would wear anyone out. Especially when I had been up since 2:20am. (That story is for another time.) It wasn't over though. In order to get down from the platform we had to repel down. I am not afraid of heights, but I am afraid of falling.
It took a moment, but I repelled down and they dropped me quick being funny. I held it together and got it done. After that we walked back and gave back our harnesses and helmets. Everyone ran to the bathroom, sinks, and to get water. The lovely staff had juice, water, and lunch waiting for us. We sat down and had rice, beans, chicken, plantains, and a salad. It was absolutely delicious and just what was needed after starting the day so early!
The staff at El Santuario were amazing. They were light-hearted, fun, and extremely entertaining. They made the day so much fun and really set the tone for the entire experience. The ziplines were fun, but the staff took it to another level. They are a great bunch of people!!
When visiting Costa Rica this is the place to come for ziplining. Besides you have to do the longest zipline in Central America! I loved my experience with El Santuario Canopy Adventure. I got the ab work out of a lifetime as well. I think I came back with some amazing core strength haha. I didn't see anything but bugs. I wish I had spotted a monkey, sloth, or toucan. El Santuario was certainly the highlight of my time in Costa Rica.
The post was originally published on Holly's blog HollyDayz Travel
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Thank you to El Santuario Canopy Adventure for having us. While receiving complimentary admission all opinions and views are my own.