Orchid Garden
Quick Facts
- Location : Santa Elena
- Hours : 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mon-Sun.
- Telephone : 2645-5308
- Entrance Fee : $10 adults, $7 students
Grab a magnifying glass and join in the search for the more than 450 different orchids that creep along tree trunks, burst from flower pots and hang off other epiphytes in the Monteverde Orchid Garden. It doesn’t take a lot of space to fit that many flowers; many of the orchid species are so small that they can hardly be seen with the naked eye.
read more closeHalf the fun of wandering through Monteverde's largest orchid collection is exploring each tree for its different orchids in bloom – some of which only bloom for a single day before wilting. Guides, included in the price of the ticket, will help guests find some of the most difficult-to-spot orchids including what's considered the world's smallest orchid, Platystele jungermannioides.
Owner Alvaro Salazar has been collecting orchids for the last 26 years. He's gathered more than 95 species from fallen logs among Monteverde's cloud forest (with a special permit). Many of the larger species of orchids, endemic to Central and North America, grow in the garden's greenhouse where they can thrive in a more temperate climate.