toucan rescue ranch

Leslie had a vision and a mission that she shares with all who come to the Toucan Rescue Ranch in San Isidro, Costa Rica! She and her husband work tirelessly to rescue and care for hurt and almost endangered animals. We walked from cage to cage, learning about the stories of each animal. Lesley can often be seen hand feeding the baby sloths, or holding another animal on the ranch wrapped up in a warm blanket. She may be in the clinic, checking on the hurt falcon, or an owl she intends to bring to a local school to share with a class. In only one day, my family knew the names of most of the animals and their stories. I was able to take some really great photos of toucans and macaws, a variety of owls, sloths, and a river otter I personally fell in love with! One can feel the love the caretakers have for the animals, and the animals have for their caretakers. My family slept in a comfortable casita and loved the peaceful night we spent there, in addition to the cacophony of the animals that woke us up early in the morning. The breakfast was delicious, but one did not need breakfast to be enamored of this beautiful place! Thank you, Leslie, for saving these animals and making them part of your family, and ours for a day!

We stayed here in the bed & breakfast overnight and it was perfect in every way! We arrived in the early afternoon, around 2, after driving from our beach location south of Jaco. Leslie gave us very exact directions on finding the ranch, hidden in the highlands above San Jose, just at the edge of the rain forest.We were in a beautiful guesthouse, away from the main facility, with a lovely front porch, & a spacious living area inside. We were convinced we made the right decision in coming here....and we hadn't even unloaded our bags from the car!Leslie recommended the Sibu chocolate tours & restaurant, which was a short drive away. (It was AMAZING!) and upon our return, she told us about another cafe down the road where she could call in our order & they would deliver our dinner there to the ranch.Included with the cost of the overnight stay in the guesthouse is a breakfast with the baby animals, and a 2 hr tour with Leslie of the entire facility. Breakfast the next morning was fresh fruit, fresh pineapple juice, & banana pancakes. Shortly after finishing our breakfast, on the sunny front porch of Leslie's house, she brought out 2 baby sloths in their little fleece-lined tub. Then she tore up cecropia leaves for their breakfast & they began to munch away. I. Was. In. Heaven. I cannot say enough in this short review of how we are in awe of Leslie & her dedication to rescuing & caring for every one of the animals there. The tour is not only about walking around & seeing all the sloths, toucans, and other animals, but also about hearing the survival stories of each & every animal.My ONLY complaint is that we didn't spend 2 nights here instead of one! You will not be disappointed by this hidden gem.

I highly recommend this tour for all age groups ! Leslie has done an amazing job caring for these animals and her passion and dedication is evident as she guides you through many amazing stories of rescue and rehabilitation. In addition to getting a close up view of all these birds and animals you will learn some very interesting and fun facts about each one. It can be a bit colder up in the mountains, so be prepared with a sweater and a raincoat. But of course Leslie has rain poncho's of you do not !

Since many things in the San Jose area close for the New Years Eve holidays, I was doing some last minute planning for how to entertain my parents on New Years Eve. I am so glad I came across the TripAdvisor reviews of Toucan Rescue Ranch!! I have been to Costa Rica numerous times before and never had heard of it but if you are in the central part of the country this is definitely worth the trip! The tour was fabulous, you get to see lots of animals (it was way more than just toucans - sloths, monkeys, hedgehogs, owls, etc.) and hear all about their individual stories and about the rescue efforts. My parents both loved the tour and it was very easy for them (they can't do hiking or long walks but this tour is in a fairly small space so there isn't that much walking required). Also, your money here is going to support an amazing cause and it is even tax deductible since the refuge is a 501c3!It took us about 45 minutes driving from Cartago and then about 30 minutes to get back to Escazu/ 20 minutes to San Jose. If you have a car the drive isn't bad at all, Leslie sends you directions (or Waze/Google Maps can get you there) and there is a cute restaurant 5 minutes down the road which was great for lunch. Alternatively, the Rescue Ranch also has guesthouses so you could plan to spend a night there which I am sure would be a very memorable part of your trip! If we had had the time I would have totally wanted to spend the night!!

If you're looking to see animals native to Costa Rica and hear some great rescue stories then this is the place to go. Animals are well tended to and you can a great up close tour to see a variety of animals from sloths to toucans, owls, otters, etc. Expect to be there about 2 hours as every animal has a great story! Plus your donations go directly to helping the animals and running the ranch. IF you have time to spare, you can also stay at the BnB there or volunteer your time to help. Since we were coming from the north, we drove through the national rain forest and that just added to the experience. You will not regret stopping by here. Plus you'll get some great photos!!!

Was an absolute pleasure to take a tour around the ranch and hear the back stories of all the animals. The owners are lovely and the work they do is inspirational. The baby sloths were positively beautiful!!! Just a short drive for San Jose. Wish I knew about it earlier, we would have booked a room there!

If you love animals, you'll love this place. THIS IS NOT A ZOO! It is a rescue/rehabilitation site run by very dedicated people and a couple of ex-pat Americans. Sloths, spider monkeys, a variety of toucans, owls. All are either being rehabilitated to be returned to their natural habitat or are being cared for because of an inability to be released.

The love for the animals at Toucan Rescue Ranch is so apparent that you feel it the moment you walk onto the property. The variety of animals that they have rescued and rehabilitated is evidence of the respect that Minae has for Leslie, Jorge, Carol, and the rest of the team. They are able to care for and rehabilitate animals that are difficult to care for. And the care of the animals comes first, not the tours or the bed and breakfast. It is all about the animals. I am so glad I was able to take the tour. It left me feeling inspired and looking for ways to educate my students and raise money to help support their cause.

We went here on the recomendation of the owners of the bed and breakfast we were staying at and we were not disappointed. It was one of wy wifes dreams to see and possibly touch a sloth and she was able to get up close to one and touch the hair on its back. They had a large vaiety of all sorts of animals from Costa Rica, don't let there name foul you. We would like to go back and spend more time, our trip was shortned because of our departure flight.

Our family of five (kids ages 7-16) enjoyed our tour here. It was about two hours long and we saw owls, monkeys, sloths, toucans, otter and other animals. My daughters favorites were the babies- a baby spider monkey and baby sloth. She rescues animals from the wild and tries to reintigrate them into the wild if possible. I felt good knowing that our entrance fee was going to support rescue efforts and rehabilitation.

Me and my cousin went here for a quick afternoon tour. It was great! The tour guide was very informative and told us all about how they help the animals. The little baby spider monkey Noelle was ADORABLE! It was fun to watch her play around in her cage and try to get our attention. We got to get very up close with many sloths, monkeys, an otter, a porcupine, toucans, parrots, and many other cool animals! We even got to pet a sloth: it was very soft! Watch out for the guard duck: He didn't like my cousin and/or her skirt and kept head butting her when we were by the otter (her friend)! Haha, it was hilarious. The proceeds go to helping out the ranch. I donated extra and hope to donate more someday soon. They really are so great: the animals have lots of space to enjoy, they have a breeding program for toucans to release them into the wild, and put love and care into all they do. Great place to visit, and I appreciate what they do greatly. Love this place!

Visiting the Toucan Rescue Ranch is not only a chance to see a great range of wildlife, but you're also supporting the Ranch's ongoing rescue and rehabilitation efforts. On the tour, Leslie shares the stories of the inhabitants and gives you the chance to appreciate how special these birds and animals are. There is also a small range of locally-produced craft for sale, such as glass birds and wooden jewellery.

We chose the Rescue Ranch at first because of its proximity to the airport. However, it turned out to be one of our favorite places. Leslie arranged for a driver, Randall, to pick us up from the airport. We liked him so much that we hired him to take us on to the Manuel Antonio area and later from Poas back to the airport. We arrived very early, hours before check in, but Leslie allowed us to arrive early and relax. The two bungalows are beautiful (we rented both). We were traveling with three kids, including a 2-year old and the accommodations were perfect. The bungalows are roomy and colorful and include small kitchens and mini bars. There is complimentary coffee and tea. Leslie helped us find dinner for night. The kids loved the tour of the ranch. There were all sorts of birds, porcupines, an otter, a weasel, a monkey, kinkajous, and of course, the sloths. The kids were able to pet and take pictures with some of the sloths. The animals are very well cared for and the staff seems very knowledgable and professional. During the day we could relax in the large gardens and look at all the animals. It is a very comfortable and serene setting with many butterflies, hummingbirds, and wandering ducks. Breakfast is served on the patio. It is great food with fruits, juices, coffee, and breads. One day we were served eggs and beans and rice; the next day banana pancakes. There is wifi on the patio. This up close animal experience was worth every penny. My kids talked about it the rest of the trip. The only down side was that it may have made them less appreciative of later long-distance sloth sightings on our trip since they had been so close to them at the ranch. As it is only about 30 minutes from the airport, this is the perfect first or last stop in Costa Rica.

One word: SLOTHS. Actually, two words: BABY SLOTHS. I emailed the day before arriving to Costa Rica to see if I could set up a tour, and they were very accommodating. My mom and I grabbed a taxi and then called the ranch so that the staff there could give the driver directions. There are fluent Spanish and English speakers on staff, so communication wasn't an issue. I was really impressed at the time and personal attention we received during our tour. The guide was very thorough in giving us the ranch's history and the stories behind the animals. She opened up the sloth cages so we could get a better look and even let us take pictures standing right next to the sloths. I also think they do a good job of respecting the animals - they were careful not to stress them out with unnecessary interaction. They have some gifts that you can buy to help support the ranch at the end of the tour - even a book they published featuring some of the ranch's residents. I bought some of the local chocolate, and it was delicious. There is a fee for the tour (I think it was $20), but it's worth every penny. This is a must-see!

My husband and I had an amazing time at the Toucan Rescue Ranch last month. We arrived in the afternoon for a tour, and wow, those animals were absolutely precious. It was so cool to see the fascinating wildlife of Costa Rica up close, and sad to learn about all the ways in which these animals are abused. The animals are taken care of so well; some of them can be released back into the wild, others (due to their past situations as illegal pets) can never go back into the wild. The people at Toucan Rescue Ranch truly care so much about these animals. It's obvious.We stayed the night at the bed and breakfast on the property, which meant that we got to eat breakfast while watching Leslie feed the babies. This was a wonderful experience, and I highly recommend making the breakfast a part of your visit. That was our last morning in Costa Rica, and there was really nothing like ending a trip with a yummy breakfast and a baby sloth. If you're in the area (it's not too far from the airport in San Jose), this is a highly recommended experience.