Costa Rica travel advice
Wildlife watching tips
Natasha Preston, from our small group adventure specialists Exodus, shares her Costa Rica travel advice: "Wildlife fans and bird lovers should take a decent camera and plenty of memory cards. Keen photographers are going to want to take a telephoto lens, especially if they’re looking to get any bird photographs. It’s not like an African safari where you are 10m away from a herd of elephants; things can be a bit more distant in the forest."
Costa Rica wildlife vacation
An amazing variety of Costa Rican wildlife
From
US $4760 to US $5460
15 days
ex flights
Costa Rica highlights vacation & beach
Short highlight itinerary covering city, forests and beach.
From
£1995
13 days
ex flights
Costa Rica vacation, coast to coast
Costa Rica from the Caribbean to the Pacific
From
£2140 to £4885
16 days
ex flights
Costa Rica nature adventure tour
Immerse yourself in the scenary of Costa Rica.
From
US $2450
10 days
ex flights
Costa Rica tour
Explore the Caribbean coast to the Pacific
From
US $2365 to US $2800
15 days
ex flights
Costa Rica Wildlife tour, tailor made
Visit one of most biologically intense places on earth
From
US $2850
11 days
ex flights
Packing advice
David Orrock, from our Latin American vacation specialists Pura Aventura, shares his Costa Rica travel advice: "Most of the local flights have a 12-18kg luggage limit. It’s totally arbitrary whether they actually enforce it or not on a given day – and sometimes they’ll weigh the passengers. But if you are talking local flights, you may need to look at leaving luggage somewhere."Beach & National Park tips
Tenille Moore, from our Latin America adventure experts Geodyssey, shares her top Costa Rica travel advice: "I think the Caribbean coast is underrated. It’s low key, laid back, there’s none of the development that you have on the north Pacific coast – it’s all fairly rustic, bungalow-type accommodation with rainforest-backed beaches. There’s the Afro-Caribbean atmosphere, some pockets of good snorkelling and you can do boat tours to see dolphins and hire bikes to cycle along the coastal road. Further up the coast, near Nicaragua, there’s Tortuguero National Park, which although busy in high season is a must on most people’s wish lists because you can’t beat it for abundant wildlife."Top flora tips
David Orrock, from our tailor made vacation specialists Pura Aventura, shares his Costa Rica travel advice: “A place I thought was really nice was the Elsie Kinzler Botanical Gardens north of San José. If you’re on a driving trip, it’s a great stop off on the way to Arenal or Monteverde. They have plants and flowers from all over the country, and it’s a great place to spend an hour or so wandering round.”Accommodation tips
Natasha Preston, from our small group adventure experts Exodus, shares her Costa Rica travel advice: “All the lodges are lovely and comfortable, even the more rustic ecolodges are absolutely fine. There’s a safe in your room and a comfortable bed and showers – it’s all en suite, so there’s no real roughing it in terms of accommodation. It’s all very well equipped. I was amazed that we were staying in places that had no mobile phone signal but had wifi – I could Skype home and show my family where I was staying! Even in the middle of the jungle, you have Internet. It’s quite surreal, really!”
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Costa Rica wildlife vacation
An amazing variety of Costa Rican wildlife
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15 days
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Costa Rica tips from our travelers
At Responsible Travel, we think the best people to advise our travelers are often... other travelers. They always return from our tours with packing tips, weather reports, ideas about what to do - and opinions about what not to.
We have selected some of the most useful Costa Rica travel tips that our guests have provided over the years to help you make the very most of your vacation - and the space inside your suitcase.
We have selected some of the most useful Costa Rica travel tips that our guests have provided over the years to help you make the very most of your vacation - and the space inside your suitcase.
There is not much to do in San Jose, however the National Museum with a secret garden of butterflies is very well done and a trip to the National Theatre is very worthwhile.![]()
- Louise Muller
“Research what you want to do as there is so much to do and see in Costa Rica that one trip will not be enough!” – Julia Hames
“Avoid Manuel Antonio, or be at least prepared for tourist-overloaded beach resorts in that area. We had a great vacation, and our trip was fantastically organised, but the country was more developed and touristic than we had expected, so we were slightly disappointed.” – Kim Jans
“I loved snorkelling around Cano Island off the Pacific coast. Especially when a sea turtle joined us. We had 3 nights in most places; this was a good idea. We did not feel too rushed, and had time to relax.” – Claire Elias
“Costa Rica is wet, even in the dry season. Pack accordingly; we did but witnessed others who hadn't. When you can, eat where the locals eat.” – Lynne Clayton
“Avoid Manuel Antonio, or be at least prepared for tourist-overloaded beach resorts in that area. We had a great vacation, and our trip was fantastically organised, but the country was more developed and touristic than we had expected, so we were slightly disappointed.” – Kim Jans
“I loved snorkelling around Cano Island off the Pacific coast. Especially when a sea turtle joined us. We had 3 nights in most places; this was a good idea. We did not feel too rushed, and had time to relax.” – Claire Elias
“Costa Rica is wet, even in the dry season. Pack accordingly; we did but witnessed others who hadn't. When you can, eat where the locals eat.” – Lynne Clayton
Coming face to face with nesting turtles in the very early hours, on a pristine deserted Pacific beach, was one of the most amazing experiences of our lives.![]()
- Mark Fletcher
“Definitely do the optional kayaking at Tortugero – you get a much more intimate wildlife experience than from the boat ride, though that was good too. Don't worry about any of the activities – my family are not all fit and sporty but we all did all of them and thoroughly enjoyed them.” – Hilary Mackintosh
“Be prepared for it being hot. When we travelled it wasn't the 'summer' season yet it was incredibly hot and humid in the rainforests.” – Lindsay (Mr.) Challoner
“Make sure you do at least one forest night walk – it's a different world. Take a good pair of binoculars . As one guide said: 'We promised you wildlife, we didn't promise it would be very close!'” – Simon Andrewes
“It would be impossible to experience it all in one trip. You need to decide exactly what you want to get out of the vacation and then be ruthless about the itinerary.” – David Oakley
“Travel as light as you can; but be sure to pack wet weather gear and light, fast-drying clothes. Get up early to enjoy sunrises and perfect temperatures.” – Ian Gavin
“Be prepared for it being hot. When we travelled it wasn't the 'summer' season yet it was incredibly hot and humid in the rainforests.” – Lindsay (Mr.) Challoner
“Make sure you do at least one forest night walk – it's a different world. Take a good pair of binoculars . As one guide said: 'We promised you wildlife, we didn't promise it would be very close!'” – Simon Andrewes
“It would be impossible to experience it all in one trip. You need to decide exactly what you want to get out of the vacation and then be ruthless about the itinerary.” – David Oakley
“Travel as light as you can; but be sure to pack wet weather gear and light, fast-drying clothes. Get up early to enjoy sunrises and perfect temperatures.” – Ian Gavin
More Costa Rica articles
You can travel to Costa Rica at pretty much any time, but the best time to visit Costa Rica tends to be in the winter and early spring - when the sun is out and the rain is rarer.
Choosing between the many national parks and wildlife reserves, the Caribbean and Pacific coasts, and finding the best places for rafting, ziplining and hiking are all made easier with our interactive map.
With volcanoes, rainforests, wildlife reserves and unspoilt coastline, you won't run out of things to do in Costa Rica - whether you're here for two weeks, or two months.
With Pacific and Caribbean coastlines, Costa Rica is not short of beaches.
Costa Rica is teeming with wildlife with everything from coatis to turtles offering travelers a glimpse at life amongst the dense rainforest canopies and verdant volcanic valleys crammed between the country's Caribbean and Pacific coastlines.
Costa Rica is the multi activity vacation capital of Central America, with rainforest zip lines, wildlife rafting, Caribbean snorkelling and volcano hikes leaving you no choice but to dive happily (and sometimes literally) in.
Most travelers on tailor made trips to Costa Rica end up driving. That’s because it’s near irresistible: you’ll find a compact country with smooth roads, minimal language barriers, ever-changing scenery and roadside coconut stalls
Costa Rica is an environmental hero, cracking out policies that have reversed its deforestation rate and championed renewable energy.
A largely liberal mindset and increasingly progressive laws mean that LGBTQ+ vacations in Costa Rica are one of the fastest growing sectors of the country’s travel industry. Read on to find out more about LGBTQ+ attitudes in Costa Rica.
Responsible tourism in Costa Rica is a genuine success story, with tourism supporting the creation of vast protected areas, helping local communities and assisting with the protection of wildlife such as sea turtles.
