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Things to do in Costa Rica

Our most recommended things to do in Costa Rica

La Fortuna: Waterfall, Arenal Volcano and Hot Springs Tour

1. La Fortuna: Waterfall, Arenal Volcano and Hot Springs Tour

Escape into the nature of the La Fortuna on a guided hike. Walk by the river and follow a trail to a panoramic viewpoint. Have a delicious lunch at a Maluku Indian village and trek through forest, lava fields, and farmlands before relaxing at a natural hot spring resort with a drink. Be collected at your accommodation and be driven to the beginning of the forest walk. Trek on the easy track along the crystal clear La Fortuna river. En route, hop on a tractor cart uphill to a panoramic viewpoint. Spot the next location from a distance then begin the return walk down a jungle staircase. Halfway down is a high suspension bridge to cross. The trail leads further down the huge canyon, which was shaped by a volcanic mega-eruption. Encounter the spectacular La Fortuna waterfall. Be amazed by the lush vegetation on its 70-meter high walls, the huge volcanic rocks at its foot, and the water splashing down in its massive pool. Bask in its beauty or even take a refreshing dip. Return to the viewpoint then walk down to the little village of the Maluku Indians. Seated in their Palenke (main house), enjoy a rest while listening to an interesting story about their culture, art, and history.  After being active for a few hours, the time has come to relax and enjoy a typical hot lunch. Next to the restaurant is a butterfly garden and frog pond that you can explore until your food is served.  Reenergized, take a 15-minute ride to the park at the foot of the Arenal volcano. Being the trek through the primary forest where you can see huge trees with giant roots. Besides a variety of birds, the forest is host to monkeys, sloths, and coati. Leave the forest and each the highest viewpoint that exists around the volcano and absorb the most spectacular panoramic views of Lake Arenal, the jungle, the valley, the lava fields, and most of all the Arenal that towers over you.  Conclude your tour at the natural hot spring resort. Relax in its soothing warm water for about an hour and enjoy a volcanic mud facial and a complimentary cocktail. Afterward, you will be taken back to your accommodation.

Manuel Antonio or Quepos: Manuel Antonio National Park Tour

2. Manuel Antonio or Quepos: Manuel Antonio National Park Tour

Discover Manuel Antonio National Park, a small biological island established in 1972 by the Costa Rican government to preserve its precious wildlife. Though Manuel Antonio National Park is the smallest park in the country, it’s also the most visited due to its charming combination of rain forests, beaches, coral reefs, and wildlife. After being picked up from your hotel by your excerpt driver-guide, get ready to explore a diverse range of fauna spanning 109 species of mammals and 184 birds. As you explore, look out for raccoons, coatis, agoutis, sloths, white-faced monkeys, howler monkeys, and the famous Titi monkey, an endangered subspecies unique to the park. Be led by your guide on a breathtaking walking tour through the jungle and experience the secrets and wonders of this amazing ecosystem. See kingfishers, the yellow crowned night heron and many more bird species. Benefit from assistance taking high-quality nature photos using your own digital camera combined with professional telescopes provided on the tour.

Jaco Beach: 2-Hour Chocolate Experience and Plantation Tour

3. Jaco Beach: 2-Hour Chocolate Experience and Plantation Tour

Begin your tour with a short 30-minute walk and be introduced to the Central Pacific transitional forest. During the walk observe the amazing flora and fauna. Afterward, begin your chocolate experience and discover the international cocoa collection of the Central Pacific. Learn about the different varieties of cocoa, as well as its ancestral history, and cocoa's impact on the world economy. Try the actual cocoa fruit and take part in the cocoa production process. Delish in different types of chocolate and mix it with tropical fruits. Also learn about two of the most traditional agricultural products of Costa Rica, sugar cane and coffee. Have direct contact with the plants and hear about the natural history of these crops. At the end of the experience, there will be organic chocolate bars with different cocoa percentages as well as other cocoa products for purchase.

Santa Elena or Monteverde: Cloud Forest Night Walking Tour

4. Santa Elena or Monteverde: Cloud Forest Night Walking Tour

Take a guided walking tour through the rich biodiversity of the Monteverde Cloud Forest as nocturnal mammals, birds, insects, reptiles, and amphibians wake up for the night. Be picked up and dropped off at your doorstep in Santa Elena or Monteverde.  Hop aboard an air-conditioned coach and sit back and relax on the drive into the Cloud Forest area. Find out for yourself how busy the forest can be at night as most animals are active in the evening and around 80 percent are nocturnal.  Follow your guide through paths lined with lush vegetation. Spot critters that are not seen during the day on a 2-hour walk. Look for animals like raccoons, sloths, armadillos, olingos, and kinkajous that are active at night.  Follow your guide on a magical journey through a beautiful forest as well as a sustainable coffee, banana, and sugar cane area. Return to your accommodation in Santa Elena or Monteverde by coach at the end of your tour. 

La Fortuna Waterfall, Volcano and Hanging Bridges Combo

5. La Fortuna Waterfall, Volcano and Hanging Bridges Combo

Benefit from pick-up at your hotel in the La Fortuna area, and travel to Arenal Volcano to hike the paths surrounding the mighty mountain. Get back to nature in Arenal Volcano National Park, where most of the 850 species of bird identified in Costa Rica can be found. Look out for other wildlife, such as white-faced capuchin monkeys, jaguars and deer. Then, cool down with a swim in a natural pool at La Fortuna waterfall. Once we are refreshed, will move to the restaurant to taste our delicious typical meal "Casado" Marvel at the stunning landscapes of a secondary rainforest at the base of the park, and a primary rainforest with amazing biodiversity amongst the hanging bridges. Walk through the rainforest on a network of 15 suspension bridges of various levels of difficulty in Mistico Park.

San José: Guided Volcano, Waterfall & Coffee Farm Day Trip

6. San José: Guided Volcano, Waterfall & Coffee Farm Day Trip

Visit the Poás Volcano, the picturesque La Paz outdoor waterfall, and a coffee farm on a day trip from San José, Costa Rica. A wonderful choice for coffee aficionados and nature lovers alike, this tour includes a hotel pickup and lunch at a local restaurant. Enjoy a convenient pickup directly from your accommodation in San Jose and make your way to your first stop for the day, the Poás Volcano. Travel in an air-conditioned van and admire coffee plantations as well as flower and strawberry farms along the way. Poás is one of Costa Rica's most active volcanoes and last erupted in April 2017. The volcano and the surrounding park were closed for close to 17 months and a safety perimeter of nearly 2.5 kilometers was established around the erupting crater. At the volcano, you'll have time to enjoy the impressive main crater with its sulfur fumaroles. Then, follow a trail to the Botos Lagoon, a crater lake located inside the Poás Volcano National Park. As you hike, learn about the different ecosystems in the park. After your trek, refuel with a delicious lunch of local fare at one of the restaurants in the area. Then, head out to your next destination, the La Paz Waterfall. Discover La Paz waterfall as you stroll along paved trails through cloud forests and rainforests. Make the most of excellent photo opportunities as you visit these falls and see them from different vantage points Then, head to your final stop for the day, the Hacienda coffee farm, the first and only Coffee farm. See the visitor center and learn what Coffee is doing to empower farmers, promote sustainable practices, and develop the next generation of coffee. At the end of your Costa Rica adventure, enjoy a convenient transfer back to your hotel in San José.

La Fortuna: Zip Line Experience and Thermal Pools

7. La Fortuna: Zip Line Experience and Thermal Pools

One of the main attractions in Fortuna is to take a Zip Line Tour ( Canopy Tour ). You will enjoy 8 cables with 11 different platforms and 50mts high rappel where you can see the impressive Canyon of the Arenal River and the extraordinary flora and fauna of the rain forest. You will have the opportunity to see the three kinds of monkeys that live in this zone, toucans, hummingbird and sloths. Put on your high-quality gear and soar through the the rainforest canopy with exceptional views of local birdlife. Fly high over the canopy of the rain forest and feel what adrenaline means for nature lovers.

San Jose: Walking Nature Tour with Sloths, Birds, and Trees

8. San Jose: Walking Nature Tour with Sloths, Birds, and Trees

Departing from the nearby meeting point, visit the University of Costa Rica campus, home to some of the largest patches of forest in San Jose. Guided by young biologists, discover the nature hiding in the middle of Costa Rica's largest city. Experience wildlife you wouldn't have imagined existed minutes away from downtown.   On the first stop, you’ll look for resident and migratory birds, lots of incredible insects and amazing flowers. Then, see the largest indigenous stone sphere in San Jose, thought to derive from the extinct Diquis culture. Lastly, visit the main campus to seek out the friendly sloths climbing freely. The goal of this tour is to change the way tourism is done in Costa Rica, while supporting young scientists, researchers, and local entrepreneurs.

La Fortuna: Caño Negro - Río Frio and Traditional Lunch

9. La Fortuna: Caño Negro - Río Frio and Traditional Lunch

Enjoy pick-up from your hotel in a comfortable bus and travel to Los Chiles. Board the boat and begin your river adventure. Experience a 2.5 hour floating safari through a tropical rainforest, as you arrive at the Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge.  View hundreds of resident birds and watch them eating. Observe the wood stork in its natural habitat and keep an eye out for the neotropic cormorant, which makes its nest in the area. Travel along the river and see spider monkeys, turtles, three-toed sloths and caimans. Indulge with a typical Costa Rican lunch at a restaurant, complimented with regional fruit, natural juices and coffee. 

La Fortuna: Sloth Tour in the Wild

10. La Fortuna: Sloth Tour in the Wild

The Arenal area is well known for its diverse wildlife, and as well as the 2 different Sloth species: two-toed sloths and three-toed sloths. Another most wanted species sought for their colors, unique features and history are the multicolored toucan and the blue jeans dart frog. On your search for these three beautiful animals, your knowledgeable guide will drive you around La Fortuna's beautiful spotting areas, where you will search for wildlife together. Birds, iguanas and monkeys are among the animals that you might also encounter whilst on this enjoyable safari. Breakfast and snacks are arranged according to the customers' best interest, and all the animals that you will encounter on this tour will be in their natural habitats. At the conclusion of your tour, you will be returned back to your nearby accommodation.

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What people are saying about Costa Rica

Overall rating

4.7 / 5

based on 2,396 reviews

We had an excellent day on the water. Clear skies, sunny and water was warm and clear. From the point where you take off paddling to where you snorkel too took about 25 mins. At the snorkelling spot we saw a bunch of fish - big small colourful. Stayed at the snorkel spot for about 45 mins - 1 hour. Paddled back and then we’re on a bus to take us to lunch at a close restaurant. Excellent lunch. We were then dropped off at our meeting spot. Whole excursion was about 3.5 hours. Our guide was excellent. Highly recommended.

If you only take one tour in San Jose, this is the one to take! In fact it should be the first thing you do after dropping your bags off at the hotel. Angel is very knowledgeable about the history of Costa Rica and the food is amazing. I’m vegetarian and there was still plenty for me to eat at every stop. Seriously, this is a MUST do.

What a wonderful adventure! We saw at least 30 crocodiles, 10 white face monkeys and 7 howling monkeys. And on top of that we saw so many exotic birds. The trip to the ranch for a fruit and juice break was lovely. I highly recommend this tour!

Tour guides are good and informative. Lunch is very good. This is the best tour for the money. You get your money's worth

Very nice and proficient guide, many different animals in a few hours