Nautilus UnderSea Itinerary

Expedition Diving and Rainforest (San Jose)

Day 1:
The Nautilus Explorer will be berthed in Marina Bahia Golfito. It’s beautiful. We imagine you will be excited to board, but please give our hardworking crew time to get the ship turned around, cleaned, fuelled, provisioned, and ready for you. We ask that you take advantage of the local facilities and not drop by the boat until 6:30 pm. We don’t mean to be rude, but it would be much appreciated if you could avoid coming by early to say “hi.” Boarding will begin after 6:30 pm, and we will sail by 8 pm to Corcovado National Park.

Day 2:
Caño Island is an excellent visit, and your trip starts out with a heavy day of diving or snorkelling, and kayaking. The island is a protected national park, and it’s beautiful. In 2023 we had great luck with humpback whale encounters, and we saw hammerhead, white, and black-tip reef sharks; mobula and cownose rays; southern stingrays; moray eels; schooling barracuda; sea turtles; and loads and loads of fish, along with coral reefs and a mix of pinnacles, walls, and drop-offs.

Days 3-7:
For the next 3 days, we will be based out of Drake Bay and the Osa Peninsula, mixing it up with a combination of cool shore expeditions plus more diving, snorkelling, and kayaking. Nearby Corcovado National Park is one of the most pristine parks in Costa Rica, including beautiful deserted white sand beaches, old-growth forests, and the chance for rarely seen animals. It’s wet, rugged, and remote.

It’s the only place in Costa Rica where you can see 4 different species of monkeys, including the highly endangered red-backed squirrel monkey. Your naturalist is amazing at spotting nearby critters, which might include wild pigs, tapirs, flocks of scarlet macaw parrots, sloths, and crocodiles in the largest mangroves in Central America. While we won’t see them all, the park is home to 40 species of frogs, more than 100 species of butterflies, and over 375 species of birds, including 16 species of hummingbirds.

Going ashore is like being in a fantasy where you land on the beach by inflatable boat for a hike in the rainforest and waterfalls to emerge onto another beautiful sand beach with your crew waiting with drinks and snacks at the ready.

Day 8: 
Arrival back at the Golfito marina by 5 am for those catching the early morning Sansa flight. Early breakfast and 7 am departure for guests heading back to San Jose in our courtesy shuttle (to arrive at SJO by 1 pm at the latest). Or a more leisurely 8:30 am disembarkation for those who are staying on in Golfito or heading off for another adventure in one of the nearby national parks. 

Sample itineraries are for guidance only. Actual itineraries may differ slightly due to factors such as weather, wildlife, logistics and local regulations.