4 Best Sights in The Orosi Valley, Central Valley

The town of Orosi, in the heart of the valley, has but one major sight: this beautifully restored 1743 church, the country's oldest house of worship still in use, and one of the few structures in Costa Rica remaining from the colonial era. Set in a garden, against a green mountainside, it has a classic Spanish colonial whitewashed facade and bell tower, with a roof made of cane overlaid with terra-cotta barrel tiles. Inside are an antique wooden altar and ancient paintings of the Stations of the Cross and the Virgin of Guadalupe, all brought to Costa Rica from Guatemala. The religious-art museum next door has a small but exquisite collection of furniture and artifacts from the original Franciscan monastery here. A huge modern parish church sits beside the historic one, but happily, it's just far enough away not to spoil photos of the picturesque original structure.

The ruins of Costa Rica's first church lie past the Cachí dam near the small hamlet of Ujarrás (oo-hah-RRASS). An unlikely Spanish victory over a superior force of invading British pirates was attributed to a stop here to ask for the protection of the Virgin Mary, and a church was constructed in thanksgiving to honor the Virgin of Ujarrás. The entire village was abandoned in 1833 after a series of earthquakes and floods wreaked havoc in this lowest point of the Orosi Valley, and the inhabitants resettled at the site that would become the present-day town of Paraíso. Today the impressive, often-photographed limestone ruins sit in a beautifully maintained park with lawns, flower gardens, and a pretty picnic area. A final, scenic 6-km (4-mile) winding drive to Paraíso from Ujarrás completes the road that loops the valley. Visitors fill the site on weekends, but on weekdays you'll likely have the place to yourself.

The lush gardens of Lankester Botanical Garden, operated by the University of Costa Rica, house one of the world's foremost orchid collections, with more than 1,100 native and introduced species. Bromeliads, heliconias, and aroids also abound in the 7-acre garden, along with 80 species of trees, including rare palms. A Japanese garden has a graceful bridge and a teahouse.

Stretching all the way to the Talamanca Mountains, this reserve encompasses 47 square km (18 square miles) of largely pristine, remote cloud forest, a refuge for more than 400 bird species, including the emerald toucanet, violaceous trogon, and many of the country's hummingbirds. The rangers' office and visitor center are on the right just after the park entrance. You can leave your vehicle at a parking area 1½ km (1 mile) up the road. From here loop trails head off into the woods on both sides. Get an early start—you can enter on foot before 8 am, as long as you pay as you leave. The park clouds over markedly by afternoon and, with between 250 and 300 inches of rain annually, it's renowned as the country's wettest national park. (Fittingly, Tapantí means "torrent from heaven.") Be prepared with a poncho or sturdy umbrella.