Guest Reviews

"The best birding is with a great guide. Esteban is one of the most talented and knowledgeable guides I have met. He knows behavior, calls, and of course.. birds on sight. He even whistles to them perfectly and has them draw in closer from the forest. Esteban has his own secret spots that he won't share with other guides. It was a great trip. I am an experienced birder in the US and enjoyed every minute of his tour."

"We had an incredible morning with Esteban! I would highly recommend a birding tour with him. Extremely knowledgeable, friendly, great to chat with, and was absolutely terrific at locating birds for us to see! He knows all the secret spots to see specific species. Great for birding experts or newbies (like us). Thank you Esteban for an incredible start to our time in Monteverde!"

"The most amazing birding trip we have ever had! Esteban knows every single bird and animal in the cloud forest! His enthusiasm and genuine excitement for birds (which he has probably seen a hundred times) is contagious! He is funny, kind and extremely knowledgeable making for an unforgettable birding trip. We absolutely loved it and we saw so much amazing wildlife. Esteban goes above and beyond giving additional local knowledge on other locations for our trip. We cannot recommend him enough! Can't wait to come back and go birding with Esteban again!"

"Our birdwatching tour with Esteban was amazing and I got to see the resplendent quetzal -- one of my lifers. Esteban was easy to reach and communicative throughout the whole process. When I first emailed him about a tour and told him I wanted to see quetzals, he was very accommodating and said we would be able to play by ear and decide the day before which reserve would give us the best odds. He came highly recommended by other birders and we were so glad that we went with him for our tour. Super knowledgeable and clearly loves birds and does this because he enjoys it."

"My wife and I first went birding with Esteban in 2017, and we have hired him for many incredible birding trips over the last eight years. We've hired many guides during our birding adventures, and Esteban is absolutely the best in Costa Rica. Esteban grew up in Monteverde and has been an avid birder since he was a young boy. He loves birds and all natural history and he's intimately familiar with bird behavior, habitats, and seasons. Plus, he knows all of the chips and calls that some of the most elusive forest birds make and is excellent at getting us on the birds. If you're visiting Monteverde (or anywhere in Costa Rica), contact Esteban. You'll have an incredible experience with him and see so many birds!"

"Esteban was an absolute delight. He has so much enthusiasm and is truly so passionate about birds, wildlife, and his hometown of Monteverde. He is the best of the best in his field. He went above and beyond to make the most of our experience. We booked 3 hours with him but went almost 4 to ensure we saw a toucan coming back to feed its babies that were nesting in Curi Cancha. The tips and advice he gave us during our time together was utilized the rest of the trip and really amplified our experience birding in Costa Rica. He even gave us some tips to see the resplendent Quetzal in the cloud forest --- we followed his advice and ended up seeing THREE! This birding tour with Esteban was our favorite part of our trip to Costa Rica, and we'll certainly be looking him up again if we ever come back. 10/10 recommend Esteban if you're in Monteverde!!!"

"We had an incredible time birding with Esteban around Curi Cancha. Across the morning we saw over 70 species with more than half being brand new birds to us. Esteban was hugely knowledgeable, and fantastic at spotting birds. We loved his enthusiasm and passion, as well as his tenacity when certain birds were difficult to see! Some of our highlights included excellent clear sightings of the streak-breasted treehunter, long-tailed manakin, silver throated tanager, rufous browed pepper shrike, and the scarlet thighed dacnis. We also got a fleeting glimpse of an azure hooded jay, a very interesting bird! As we had been in Sarapiqui and seen many birds there, Esteban was good at tailoring the walk to see more birds we might not have seen there. He was also an expert on hummingbirds and we enjoyed being able to identify a number of new ones to us and even get them in the scope to see the beautiful colours. He spoke perfect English, was a clear communicator on Whatsapp and picked us up from our hotel in Santa Elena. A perfect person to bird with if you are in the Monteverde area!"

"My wife and I went birding with Esteban and had a fantastic time. His birding skills are top notch and he made sure he understood what we wanted out of the tour instead of just marching us through the forest. I'm very interested in photography and he did all he could to help me get the shot, while respecting the birds and wildlife first. We saw a wide variety of species and he had many interesting facts about the biology of the wildlife we saw. I'd book a tour with Esteban again in a second."

"Esteban is one of the top bird guides we have birded with anywhere. Not only is he incredibly knowledgeable, he is a fun person to spend time with. We have gone out with Esteban on all 3 of our trips to Monteverde, and we hope that we can return again and bird with him. My husband is the birder, and I'm one of those SOBs (spouse of birder) who enjoys the birds, but I can't remember what a bird is five minutes after I see it, and have a bit more of a hard time locating birds than more avid birders. Esteban is super patient with me and great at helping with spotting the birds. I can't say enough good things about him, and always recommend him to friends who are planning a visit."

"Birding in the Monteverde area with Esteban was a wonderful experience! We visited Curi-Cancha, Bajo del Tigre, Reserva Santa Elena, and Finca Ecologica San Luis over one and a half days. His knowledge of the birds and their vocalizations is very impressive. He was quick to respond by email for planning and booking, and took my target species into account as we strategized for the time I had in the area. He went above and beyond to help me see the local specialty species, including many that would have been quite difficult to spot on my own. (By my count, we saw 123 bird species in total!!) Not only is he great at finding birds, but also at describing well where they are so that you can get your binoculars on them too! And he can show you birds in the scope for great views. And, equally important, he is very friendly and good company for walks in the beautiful forest reserves! Such special habitats, and very rewarding to visit with a knowledgeable guide. I hope to return and bird with him again!"

"We had an amazing morning birding tour in Curi Cancha reserve with Esteban, he has a big knowledge about birds and shared it with us with passion. You can feel that he loves his job and he has a great sense of humor. Our group was very small and we enjoyed every minute, my husband is not a birder but even he liked it. We saw Resplendent Quetzal which was my number one to see, Northern Emerald Toucanet and many other birds. If we decide to go back to Monteverde I will book another tour with Esteban."