28 Best things to see & do in Costa Rica

Dive with huge schools of hammerhead sharks – plus manta rays and visiting whale sharks – at the world-famous Cocos Island, arguably the best dive site in the Eastern Pacific. June through October, they gather in uncountable numbers.

Costa Rica’s famous river is home to a series of Class III to V rapids that cascade down a series of slopes, through a canyon wrapped in virgin rainforest. World-class white-water rafting.

Stringently protected, crawling with life, astonishingly diverse, Costa Rica’s protected forests and reefs have inspired successful conservational tourism worldwide.

Shrouding Costa Rica’s most impressive volcano, this forested national park is cut with hiking trails, filled with waterfalls and offers adventures from zip-lining to canopy walkways.

This rugged mountain, misty cloud forest is a biodiversity hotspot, with canopy walkways and zip-lines through rainforest trees encrusted with orchids and covered in thick carpets of dripping moss.

This marine national park off Uvita is one of the best places in the Americas to see humpback whales, with near year-round visits. You’ll also spot dolphins, Olive Ridley and Hawksbills turtles, boobies and pelicans.

Costa Rica’s volcanoes, oozing hot springs and even hot rivers, make it one of the best places in the world for a natural spa, and full geothermal pampering.

The last remaining stand of coastal Pacific rainforest in Central America is the crown jewel in Costa Rica’s park system.

Fascinating insider tours to see how some of the world’s finest coffee and chocolate is grown, harvested and prepared.

The best place in Central America to see nesting and hatching turtles, with a range of luxurious places to stay.

Palm-shaded white sand beaches, unspoilt Caribbean reefs, forests filled with wildlife – all in walking distance of your hotel.

A beautiful 75m-high waterfall that drops into a refreshing, clear-water pool surrounded by moss-covered boulders. A wonderful place to swim.

A spectacular steaming volcanic rim you can almost drive up to – easy to visit on your way to or from the airport.

Spectacular and little-visited national park next to the wild Osa Peninsula, spread out around a deep-water tropical fjord.

The largest protected tropical dry forest in Central America, with landscapes from volcanoes to mangrove swamps, home to rare animals including endangered tapir, jaguar and leatherback turtles.

A boutique hacienda near the airport that produces excellent home-grown Arabica coffee – served throughout the day, at breakfast and after meals – alongside farm-to-table organic food. They organise their own tours around the coffee farm. Stay overnight for the full immersive experience.

One of the world’s only rehabilitation and rescue centre for sloths, where you’ll see adult and baby two and three-toed sloths. Fascinating tours – which keep the project alive – include behind-the-scenes visits to the nursery, where rescued babies are weaned.

Come to see ancient stone spheres left in the Pacific jungle by the Diquis people, and pre-Columbian gold artefacts.

Easy to visit, Costa Rica’s biggest waterfall drops into a deep pool in a forest-swathed bowl in the mountains near San Jose.

One of Costa Rica’s most popular (and crowded) national parks, with easy-to-access, trail-cut rainforest (with abundant monkeys, lowland birds and smaller cats) backing a gently arching series of beaches. Editor: Alex has not done a full review as there are alot better options than this one.

Located 30 minutes outside of San Jose, this cloud forest park has a riot of dense vegetation, as well as a small network of trails for day hikes, zip-lines and an aerial tram. Book online here.

This small centre just outside the Park has atrium habitats housing hundreds of colourful rainforest butterflies, as well as other small rainforest fauna and an orchid exhibit. You’ll leave with a full appreciation of the extraordinarily diverse range of butterflies you may not see in the wild. Open daily.

Covering a remote peninsula in Costa Rica’s far north-west, Santa Rosa protects important sea turtle nesting beaches and was the site of a historic battle in 1856. It’s also a prime surfing location, with two renowned breaks: Witch’s Rock and Ollie’s Point, both generally accessed by boat.

These on-foot night safaris, led by a wildlife local expert guide, aren’t just about tarantulas. Nights are the best times to see nocturnal mammals like kinkajou – a kind of Central American bushbaby, and a host of rare birds from nightjars to huge owls. Arachnophobes should have no fear – the spiders are shy – disappearing quickly unless you tread very lightly.

Littered with strange pre-Columbian stone spheres and fringed with fish-teeming reefs, this little island reserve is easily visited from the Osa Peninsula.

Located 10 minutes from La Fortuna, this small but authentic hot spring facility has several pools, surrounded by thick rainforest, fed by mineral-rich underground hot springs. Water temperatures range from a warm 32°C to a hot 41°C. You can sip on cocktails as you soak.

This resort has one of the least-visited hot springs in the country – a 160-foot river flowing a thermo mineral gorge, surrounded by bird-filled tropical dry forests. Eight hot springs mingle with river water, creating pools or varying temperature water. There’s one special pool where you can apply mud to the skin.

550km off the Costa Rican coast, Cocos Island is a world-class dive site famous for huge congregations of rays which converge in the swirling currents welling up from deep water. Access is on 11-day live-aboard dive trips, from December to May, departing from Puntarenas.