Sloth Tours
A Group Tour in front of the Sloth Sanctuary Education Center.
The Sloth Sanctuary, formerly known as Aviarios del Caribe, is privately owned by the Avey-Arroyo-Rochté family. The property is an area of approximately 300 acres, which includes the delta of the Estrella River. This delta is very special because it provides food and sanctuary to many migrating birds, such as hawks, falcons, vultures, orioles, and herons to name a few. It provides a home for a wonderful variety of small and large mammals, reptiles, butterflies and resident birds typical of the lowland tropical forest.
The Sloth Sanctuary is dedicated to the on-going protection of this property for generations to come. In our little bit of paradise, you can be sure to see sloths, kinkajous, poison-dart frogs, toucans and a myriad of other flora and fauna that is found in the tropical rainforest. We have identified 310 species of birds on the property and are still counting!
About our Sloth Tours:
We currently offer 2 kinds of tours:
To find out more about these tours click on the links above.
The number one question we receive from potential visitors is….
Can I hold/hug/pet a sloth when I visit the Sloth Sanctuary?
It is one of our primary goals to educate the public about sloths. Sloths are by nature very gentle animals. Though they are still wild animals and deserve respect and understanding. Our sloths are not “pets”, we do not sell our sloths or adopt them out to individuals. Unfortunately, the sloths that have come to the sanctuary are injured, orphaned and sometimes even abused. We have opened our Sanctuary to give the general public an opportunity to learn about them, their diminishing habitat, and the role that humans play in all of this.
We have designed 2 different tours because it is the best way for us to operate our business and make sure we have time to care for the sloths. If you are interested in seeing the behind the scenes, sloth nursery, slothpital this is available through The Insider’s Tour. The tour price is $150 per person and there is a maximum of 4 people allowed at a time unless it is a family group. The Buttercup Tour is $25 per person. We understand that many visitors want the experience of holding a sloth, but what most people do not understand is that sloths are wild animals, and although they look cute and cuddly they are not used to being held. Many will bite the person trying to hold them, particularly if they are a stranger. We have to look out for the sloths. If someone does get bitten, the animal is the one who suffers. It is not out of the realm of possibility that a sloth would have to be euthanized for biting a human. In the Insider’s Tour, some of the baby sloths are able to be gently handled and we are very careful and protective of both them and the visitors.
We have thousands of tourists coming through the Sanctuary and it is impossible for us to customize the tours. We also have a B & B where you can stay on the Sloth Sanctuary property.
Please note that we are closed to the public on Mondays. Schedule accordingly, you don’t want to miss us!
