National Parks in Costa Rica

Costa Rica is renowned worldwide for its National Park system. About 11% of its surface consists of National Parks. Here the most vulnerable ecosystems are protected. All National Parks are open to the public. Some of them however are quite inaccessible. In the more accessible parks tourists just can visit a small part as to diminish as much as possible eventual disturbance caused by them.

Entrance fees are between $6 and $8. The opening hours are - in most of the cases - between 07.00 and 16.00 hrs. Please note that some national parks close their doors at Mondays. Prepare yourself before you enter a Park: inside are no shops; it is prohibited to sell anything between their boundaries. So bring enough water and food.
Facilities are quite basic if there are at all: a little ranger station, parking facilities and sometimes toilets. Buy maps in advance, sometimes the hiking trails are well indicated, but there are notorious examples of lack of signs.

On this page you will find a description of Costa Rica’s National Parks and other protected areas. It gives information about the flora and fauna, how to get there and what to do!