Top five national parks in Costa Rica

 

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Panama's islands are the Next Big Thing in tropical destinations, and the beaches of Honduras attract huge tourist crowds, but the star of Central America is Costa Rica,  home to some of the most beautiful beaches and diverse ecosystems in the world. Over 25% of the land area in Costa Rica is national parks, with 28 national parks that are home to an incredible array of rare plants and animals, as well as more commonly seen friends like sloths (photo above).

Let's explore the five of the most famous national parks in Costa Rica.

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1. Manuel Antonio National Park

Manuel Antonio National Park (photo top of post) is located on the central Pacific coast of Costa Rica, and is one of the most visited national parks in the country. The park is known for its beautiful beaches, clear waters, and abundant wildlife, including monkeys, sloths, and a variety of bird species. Visitors can enjoy hiking trails, snorkeling, and sunbathing on the park's pristine beaches.

Travel to Manuel Antonio: Fly to San Juan, and then transfer to a quick flight on Sansa. Driving from San Jose will take appx 3 hours.

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2. Tortuguero National Park

Tortuguero National Park is located on the northern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and is best for animal watching, most famous for its sea turtle nesting grounds. The park's beaches provide nesting grounds for four species of sea turtles, including the endangered giant green turtle. (Turtle season is during the summer.) Visitors can witness the turtles nesting and, if you're lucky, hatching, which is often at night, and if you are visiting at night a guided tour is a really wise idea for obvious reasons. The park is also home to a variety of other wildlife, including monkeys, crocodiles, and an array of bird species, and the beaches are gorgeous. This is a remote park, so visitors usually stay 1-2 nights.

Travel to Tortuguero: Driving to Tortuguero involves some dirt roads, so first time visitors (or anyone who doesn't speak Spanish) should access the park by plane (Sansa). Group tours to Tortuguero are common, and usually include charter airfare and the necessary boat tickets. Independent travelers who don't want to fly can start in the town of La Pavona and take a boat, which is an hour trip. There are lots of boat vendors in La Pavona.

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3. Arenal Volcano National Park

Arenal Volcano National Park is located in the north-central part of Costa Rica and is home to the active Arenal Volcano. The park is known for its hot springs, hiking trails, and abundant wildlife, and the hiking trails provide stunning views of the volcano. Despite what the sign above says, the trails are a very safe distance from any possible volcanic situations. soak in hot springs, and observe the park's wildlife, including monkeys, sloths, and toucans.

Travel to Arenal: Arenal Volcano National Park has only one public park entrance, one mile west of the Tabacón Hot Springs. Taxis from nearby La Fortuna are not expensive, but you would have to make arrangements to get back. So most visitors in Arenal are on guided tours that include transport.

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4. Corcovado National Park

Corcovado National Park requires some effort (and time) to reach. Located on the Osa Peninsula, on the southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica, the park is known for its stunning beaches, untamed and pristine rainforest, and abundant wildlife, including jaguars, tapirs, and scarlet macaws (above). And the best part is, the animals aren't being kept in cages by poachers who sell photo ops to tourists. Visitors can partake in hiking, snorkeling, and camping. If you are a hiking aficionado, don't go swimming in rivers, because there are sharks and other human-eating animals in there. Did you know that sharks swim in rivers? They do in Costa Rica. Yikes.

Travel to Corcovado: This is not a day trip! Plan accordingly. Corcovado is accessible by ferry from Sierpe, on a trip that takes 2 hours. Cars can be arranged from the Sierpe airport and that trip is a little shorter, an hour and a half. Otherwise, it is a 5-6 hour drive or bus ride from Drake Bay or Puerto Jimenez.

 

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5. Rincon de la Vieja National Park

Rincon de la Vieja National Park (photo above) is located in the northwest part of Costa Rica and is known for its stunning volcanic landscapes and abundant wildlife. The park has several hiking trails that provide access to the park's stunning waterfalls, hot springs, and mud pools. Visitors can also enjoy horseback riding, zip-lining, and wildlife observation tours.

Travel to Rincon de la Vieja: Rincon is an hour north of Liberia, and it is accessible by car. Taxis run from Liberia.

Comments

[Vershko Dogory]

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[Omni]

This is a quality post. Hopefully, I'll visit the parks. By the way, is it safe to bring the babies here?