Finca Drácula is a famed orchid farm – in fact it is reputed to be one of the largest collections of rare orchids in the world. This isn't hard to believe, as it contains more than 2,200 different orchid species from Central and South America. Not all will be in bloom at any given time, but even in the off-season there will be plenty on display. In addition to the greenhouse, the 22 acres host a variety of orchids, bromeliads, and many other plants in a natural setting. On the site is a house built by Swiss German immigrants in 1920. In the 1960s the Maduro family acquired the property and transformed the farm into a garden.
The objective of the finca now is to accumulate a collection of orchids that are in danger of disappearing due to climate change, deforestation, or pests. The site's altitude, 2,000 meters above sea level, places it in a unique position in a cloud forest that can host several species of orchids found nowhere else in the world. Finca Drácula is committed to scientific research, having discovered about 150 species of orchids previously unknown.
The only way to view the collection and the grounds is with a tour (conducted every hour on the hour, from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm, excepting noon), but this is one tour that's worth giving up the solitude of nature for. The guides are extremely knowledgeable and are eager to share all sorts of botanical information with interested guests.
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