Exploring Costa Rica through guided tours is a great way to experience the country’s natural beauty and rich culture.
A guided tour lets you explore the best things the country has to offer, including its beaches, volcanoes, and rainforests, with ease and confidence. Local experts who know the land and history are on hand to share must-know information about the area, bringing more life to each destination.
The best Los Suenos tours handle the logistics, which means you don’t have to worry about anything. This allows you to focus on and enjoy the journey regardless of where you’re going.
Tours also offer added safety and convenience, especially in remote areas where language barriers or unfamiliar roads might slow you down.
Whether you're traveling solo, with your partner, or with your family to Costa Rica, a well-organized tour takes the stress out of planning and adds layers of insight you simply wouldn’t get on your own.
Best Tours to Take in Costa Rica
If it’s your first time in Costa Rica, sign up for these tours to visit great destinations and make the most of your vacation here:
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Tortuga Island
Also known as Isla Tortuga, Tortuga Island is an island located off the Nicoya Peninsula’s southeast area. The area has a beautiful sandy beach with clear waters and picturesque palm trees.
The best way to get here is by water. You can choose between a Catamaran tour, a private boat tour, or a fishing island combo tour.
The island is often included in some Costa Rica fishing vacation packages.
Once you reach the island, you can relax on the beach, frolic, and cool down in the water. Depending on the tour, you can also enjoy other activities.
For instance, the Tortuga Island Catamaran Tour includes banana boating, snorkeling, and hiking. For an additional fee, you can also enjoy jet skiing, paddleboarding, kayaking, and playing beach volleyball.
If you want to relax by the beach, rent a beach chair and be on the lookout for whales and dolphins that frequent the coastal waters.
The hiking tour takes you to the island’s summit, which is teeming with a wide array of birds, monkeys, peccaries, and other wildlife. If you’re feeling adventurous, sign up for the canopy tour and ride the zip line to get an adrenaline rush and enjoy incredible panoramic views of Isla Tortuga.
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Manuel Antonio National Park
Manuel Antonio National Park is one of the most famous national parks in Costa Rica. This small park is found in the Central Pacific Conservation Area in the southern part of Quepos, Puntarenas.
This park is known for its beautiful beaches, coral reefs, rainforests, and hiking trails. It is also home to a variety of fascinating flora and fauna.
The beaches, which are considered some of the most picturesque in the country, are bordered by eye-catching green forests. The calm, clear waters and coral reefs make them the ideal spots for snorkeling.
The guided hiking tour allows you to get up close with exotic wildlife such as monkeys, sloths, wild deer, reptiles, and birds. You can also see different species of orchids, ferns, and other flowers and plants.
Certain tours also allow you to use Pentax and Swarovski spotting scopes to look at interesting animals in their natural habitats.
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Tárcoles River
The Tárcoles River is located in Costa Rica’s central Pacific region. It is known for its large crocodile population, one of the largest in Central America.
On a Tárcoles River tour, you’ll get to see plenty of crocodiles, some of which are three to four meters long, aboard a boat. You’ll also find caimans, basilisks, and massive iguanas.
The river is also home to a variety of bird species, such as brown pelicans, royal terns, mangrove swallows, and scarlet macaws.
The Tárcoles River is one of the best places to explore Costa Rica’s exotic and exciting natural ecosystem.
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Carara National Park
The Carara National Park is near the Tárcoles River. You can take a tour of this popular park after your crocodile tour.
This popular park and rainforest is the habitat of over 80% of the country’s mammal population and dozens of bird species. The animals that live here include monkeys, armadillos, jaguars, and white-tailed deer. There are also a variety of snakes and other reptiles here.
Many of the birds found in the Tárcoles River can also be seen here. You’ll also come across other species, such as collared and fiery-billed aracari, American egret, keel-billed toucan, and great tinamou.
The Carara National Park also boasts a diverse array of plants.
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Monteverde Cloud Forest
Exploring the Monteverde Cloud Forest is one of the best things you can do in Costa Rica. This place is popular among tourists and locals due to its cool climate and lush rainforests.
You can explore this forest biological reserve via a network of paths. You’ll get to bathe in nature and see a variety of beautiful trees, flowers, and other plants. Be on the lookout for over 420 species of orchids and 200 species of ferns.
While here, you might see quetzals, three-wattled bellbirds, monkeys, jaguars, pumas, red-eyed tree frogs, and other birds and animals.
The tour takes you to the La Ventana lookout, the mountain’s peak. Here, you can enjoy panoramic views of the area and the continental divide between the Atlantic and the Pacific.
You can reach the mountain peak by hiking, walking on the hanging bridges, or taking a ziplining tour.
Costa Rica’s best tours show you the sights and connect you to the heart of the country. If you're ready to go beyond the postcard views, sign up for these guided adventures.
AUTHOR BIO:
Eloisa Mangilinan is a full-time content writer at SEO Sherpa – Global Best Large SEO Agency Winner, with over 13 years of experience in writing, content optimization, and digital marketing roles, including link prospecting and outreach management. Today, she produces top-notch content across various niches, from travel and lifestyle to food and home improvement, for blogs and client websites.
