Nature-Packed 6 Day Costa Rica Itinerary + Travel Guide

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Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica

I am so excited to share my Costa Rica travel guide with you. Andrew and I loved Costa Rica, and we would absolutely travel there again. We spent our time in La Fortuna (also called Arenal), but there are so many amazing places to go it was hard to pick where we wanted to go!

Costa Rica Overview

Costa Rica is a beautiful country located in Central America. It has incredible biodiversity for its size and is great if you are looking for an eco-friendly destination. They take the environment very seriously! Costa Rica has over 800 miles of coastline because it is situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean. There are also 121 volcanoes, but only seven of them are active. Find more fun facts about Costa Rica here!

Costa Ricans (they call themselves Ticos/Ticas) are incredibly friendly and if you speak any Spanish they are happy to speak it with you. Otherwise, most people speak some English, especially in the touristy areas. There are two international airports, one in the capital, San Jose, and the other in Liberia, in the northern part. We wanted to go to the rainforest, so we rented a car and drove from San Jose to La Fortuna in about three hours. You definitely want to rent a car while you're here to get around! Most of the roads are good, but it is better to get a car with 4WD for Costa Rica.

Where to Go in Costa Rica

There are so many cool places in Costa Rica, it can be hard to decide where to go! Hopefully this Costa Rica Travel Guide inspires you to go to La Fortuna, but here are some other destinations:

For the Pacific coast:

Manuel Antonio - This is the place to go for the National Park to see wildlife, hiking, and great beaches.
Jaco - In close proximity to Manuel Antonio, Jaco is known for amazing beaches and nightlife.
Tamarindo - If you want to get a chance to see leatherback sea turtles, come here in the early fall! It is also known for its beaches and surfing.
Nosara - Nosara is the wellness capital of Costa Rica, known for its retreats, yoga, and surfing.

Manuel Antonio and Jaco are in the northern part, about a 3-3.5 hour drive from Norman Y. Mineta International Airport in San Jose. Tamarindo and Nosara are in the southern part, about 4-4.5 hours from San Jose.

For the Caribbean coast:

Tortuguero - If you are really into nature and wildlife, this is a place for you. There are a lot of turtle nesting sites along with bird watching, fishing, and other wildlife viewings in Tortuergo National Park.
Limon - If you love culture, history, and beautiful beaches Limon is perfect for a getaway.
Puerto Viejo - If you're looking for adventure in paradise, Puerto Viejo has so much to offer from jungle activities to relaxing on the beach.

Tortuguero is the northernmost city about a 2.5 hour drive from San Jose. Limon is between Tortuguero and Puerto Viejo on the coast but is about 3.5 hours drive from San Jose. Puerto Viejo is right next to Panama about a 4.5 hour drive from San Jose. Puerto Viejo was recommended to us by one of our tour guides while we were in La Fortuna!

Middle of Costa Rica:

La Fortuna - The best spot for rainforest and adventure activities. We had a blast there!
Monteverde - The cloud forest here is full of wildlife. You could incorporate it into a trip to La Fortuna.
San Jose - The capital of Costa Rica, full of museums, architecture, history, and culture. It has a great mix of traditional Costa Rica and a cosmopolitan urban city.

La Fortuna is about 3 hours from San Jose by car. Monteverde is about 2.5 hours from San Jose and about 3 from La Fortuna (you have to drive around the mountains/volcanoes!).

View from Mistico Hanging Bridges

When to Go to Costa Rica

We went to Costa Rica in January. December through April is the dry season in Costa Rica, which means it is also peak tourist season. Keep in mind that Costa Rica has very diverse landscapes, from the beaches on either side of the country to the rainforest and mountains that run through the middle. The beaches are going to be warmer, especially the further south you go, and the rainforest is going to be cooler and rainier. If you're interested in a month by month breakdown, Costa Rica Experts has a great guide.

Wondering what to pack for Costa Rica? Check out my Costa Rica packing guide!

What to Expect to Spend

The first thing you should know about money in Costa Rica is the currency. The currency is called colón (pl. colones), although USD is acceptable in some places. I would definitely bring some cash to change, but if you have a no-exchange fee credit card (which I highly recommend getting), you can use that for most of your transactions.

Car Rental

Renting a car makes getting around Costa Rica very easy. We are definitely glad we rented one because it gave us the flexibility to stay wherever we wanted and check out the sights on our schedule. Check out this post from Two Wandering Soles on renting a car in Costa Rica. She goes into great detail and answers many common questions about renting a car. I'm not going to try to re-invent the wheel here :)

My Costa Rica Travel Guide involves lots of driving, so renting a car is a must!

If you do rent a car, you will need to put gas in it at some point. Gas is more expensive than in the United States, about 4.50 (USD) per gallon. Find the latest prices here.

Room, Food, and Fun

There are other expenses to consider like hotels, meals, souvenirs, and excursions. We like to travel comfortably without breaking the bank, so we try to find good deals on 4/5 star boutique hotels. This type of hotel could cost anywhere from $123-$200 per night depending on where you go and when.

I like to use Numbeo to check out prices for meals and common grocery items so I know roughly how much we will spend on food. I recommend checking prices on sites like TripAdvisor, Viator, or Expedia to get a good idea of excursion prices. Sometimes they even help you find other cool things to do outside of what you were looking for!

6 Day Costa Rica Itinerary

We went in January for six days to La Fortuna, and it was plenty of time to explore the area and have some time to relax. You could really hit the highlights in 2-3 days if you filled up all of your days. I like to take things slow, so this Costa Rica Travel Guide spreads out lots of activities. Because of my Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, we also planned plenty of rest time. We also enjoy getting a taste for local life and feel like rushing from place to place to see as much as possible doesn't allow for that. We would absolutely go back and go to the beaches!

Where we stayed

I'm a sucker for a hot tub or pool in my hotel room, so when we found Volcano Lodge and Springs Hotel, I was sold. We upgraded to a room that had its own patio oasis, complete with a natural thermal pool. There were two other natural hot springs pools on the property, as well as an open-air gym/yoga studio for the ultimate relaxation experience.

The buffet breakfast was amazing every day and I'm pretty sure I ate my weight in pineapple. There were some small trees just outside of the breakfast area where the staff would put extra fruit so tons of colorful birds would show up! It was so cool to see so many birds of all shapes, sizes, and colors flying around the trees while we were eating breakfast. The staff were so thoughtful to pack us a to-go breakfast on the days we went on early morning excursions too!

Our Costa Rica travel experience was amazing thanks to the amazing staff at the Volcano Lodge. Check out my full review here.

Thermal pool in our room at Arenal Volcano Lodge

Day 1 - Arrive in San Jose and travel to La Fortuna

After we landed in San Jose, we had to pick up our rental car. We used Adobe Rental Cars, and they were super clean and professional and we had no trouble with our car the whole trip! For that reason I have included them specifically in my Costa Rica travel guide. If you’re looking for the best deal, shop around online by comparing rates from a dozen different companies here.

We took off from San Jose and headed to La Fortuna. There are a few routes to get there, but Route 1/Route 702 is the fastest at around 3 hours. Make sure to stop along the way to take pictures of the amazing rainforest as you drive through! Something to note is that if there is an accident, you cannot move off the road. Unfortunately, we got stuck behind an accident between a bus and a car, so it took us almost an extra hour to get there. Since the sun was already setting (thanks winter!), we went to the hotel restaurant for dinner and hung out in the thermal springs.

Day 2 - Bogarin Trail + Explore La Fortuna

If you want to see sloths in La Fortuna, stop by Bogarin Trail. We went in the morning without a guide and saw some amazing birds, but no sloths. That afternoon we went back with a guide and saw about 10 sloths and three baby sloths! I highly recommend going with a guide because they know what to look for and have telescopes that make viewing them much easier.

We also saw some poison dart frogs and green tree frogs! I was very impressed by their commitment to the wildlife when they explained that they grow plants that attract the frogs instead of keeping them caged for viewing.

La Fortuna has many local artisans, so we spent the rest of the day looking at hand-crafted Borcua Masks and other exotic wood carvings. Definitely pick up some wood carvings for souvenirs to document your Costa Rica travels!

Day 3 - Gravity Falls Adventure + Massage

Gravity Falls rappelling and cliff jumping tour

This rappelling and cliff-jumping tour is not for the faint of heart! If you are looking for something more unique to do than zip-lining and you love high-adrenaline activities, this is the one for you. We left early from our hotel and drove about an hour or so outside of Arenal to get there. Our guides were so much fun and were always looking out for our safety. They had a photo package for about $20 because this is definitely not an excursion where you want to bring your phone! We rappelled three times, cliff-jumped three times, and free-climbed once. After that, we had a traditional Costa Rican lunch.

We were both wiped out after all that fun, so I went to get a massage afterward. I had a volcanic mud wrap + massage, and my skin felt AMAZING. Listening to the sounds of the rainforest, smelling the volcanic mud and massage oil, and relaxing my sore muscles was much needed. I recommend adding at least one adventure tour to your Costa Rica Travel Guide/Itinerary!

Day 4 - Hanging Bridges National Park + Soak in Hot Springs

Rainforest view from Mistico Hanging Bridges

The Mistico Hanging Bridges are a must-see! The sounds of the forest, the tricking of water running down the sides of the mountain, and the calling of birds surround you as you walk through the treetops. The views from the tallest bridges were breathtaking! If you have a fear of heights (like me) don't look down! The bridges do sway quite a bit, but they are very sturdy. I held on to Andrew if I got nervous, and I made it through (so you can do it too ;) ). I recommend going with a guide so you can spot wildlife among the trees. If you go early in the morning with a guide, you might even see some monkeys!

There are many places you can pay to sit in the hot springs at hotels like Tabacon or Baldi. But we opted to go to a free spot called Rio Chollin or "Mini-Tabacon" because it is right outside the Tabacon resort. You can find parking on the side of the highway and then make your way down to the river. It was actually really warm! This is a total hidden gem in La Fortuna. We met some American expats while hanging out in the river and they told us all about living in Costa Rica. Needless to say, we were very jealous!

Day 5 - Arenal Volcano Hike + Downtown La Fortuna

Black rocks formed after 1968 eruption

After relaxing in the hot springs the day before, we were ready for another adventure. We opted to do a hike around the Arenal Volcano. While you can't actually climb the volcano, walking around the base was still really fun! Our guide told us about the last big eruption in 1968 that wiped out the farms in several surrounding towns. You can still see the black lava rocks it left behind on the trail today. There are many options for touring the area around the Volcano besides hiking, like horseback, ATV, or boat rides on the lake.

Before our hike, we went into La Fortuna and explored the downtown area. We stopped by a sweet shop, browsed some of the souvenir shops, and hung out in the park in the central square. Most of the businesses in La Fortuna are locally owned, and the town itself has an awesome small-town vibe! It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Costa Rica, but you totally couldn't tell.

Day 6 - Drive back to San Jose

Because of the accident on our way to La Fortuna, we left extra early to get back to San Jose. We had to drop off our rental car too, and dropping off our car took a little longer than expected. Very glad we left early! We loved Costa Rica and can't wait to go back to visit the incredible beaches!

Other things to do in La Fortuna

There is so much to do in La Fortuna, so here are some other popular things that we didn't do.

Rio Celeste - Read MyTanFeet's comprehensive blog post on visiting. Definitely plan for an all-day trip here!
Ziplining - Book a tour on Viator. This is a very popular thing to do in Costa Rica!
La Fortuna Waterfall - You could take a horseback riding tour or make it a part of your Arenal Volcano hike!
Rainforest Coffee or Chocolate tours - Check out these tours on Viator. We thought about doing this one, but ran out of time :(
Arenal Lake - There are so many ways you could explore here. Horseback riding, boat tour, fishing, and even windsurfing!
Rafting - This is also huge in the area! We went to Gravity Falls with Desafio, and they have many other excursions too.
Monteverde Cloud Forest - If we had another day to spare, we definitely would have gone here. It is definitely a full-day excursion from La Fortuna, or you could incorporate it as a stop on your trip.

Costa Rica Travel Guide Final Thoughts

Costa Rica is a beautiful country full of amazing nature, abundant wildlife, and wonderful people. They take the environment very seriously there, and it is a pleasure to see how much it pays off.

I hope you enjoyed my Costa Rican travel guide. Make sure to bookmark or pin this blog so you have it for reference when you start planning your own Costa Rican adventure!