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Manuel Antonio National Park is open 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Wednesday through Monday and closed every Tuesday, a detail that catches out more travelers than any other. Foreign adults pay $18.08 (children 2–12, $5.65), and there's no ticket booth at the gate — every entry must be bought in advance on SINAC's official portal, capped at 1,120 visitors a day.
Manuel Antonio National Park is open 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Wednesday through Monday, and closed every Tuesday for trail maintenance — the schedule holds year-round, holidays included. Entry is regulated by 15-minute ticket slots under a court-ordered cap of 1,120 visitors per day, so an early slot (7:00 a.m. if you can get it) means cooler trails and livelier wildlife. Arriving on a Tuesday is the single most common trip-planning mistake here.
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| Day | Hours | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday–Monday | 07:00–15:00 | Entry timed by 15-minute slots; book tickets in advance on SINAC's portal, serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr — there is no booth at the gate. Certified guides available 7:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. |
| Tuesday | Closed | Weekly closure for trail maintenance. The concession cafeteria (normally 7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.) is also closed. |
There are no holiday closures — the park runs its Wednesday–Monday, 7:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. schedule straight through Christmas, New Year, and Easter week, which is exactly why those weeks sell out months ahead. August 24, National Parks Day, brings free admission for everyone, and Costa Rican residents enter free on the third Wednesday of each month. On dark-season Tuesdays there's no workaround; plan those days for Playa Biesanz or the Isla Damas mangroves instead.
Foreign adults (12+) pay $18.08 USD to enter Manuel Antonio National Park, IVA included; children 2–12 pay $5.65 and under-2s enter free. Costa Rican residents pay less in colones. Every ticket must be bought in advance online — there is no booth at the gate.
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| Category | Price | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Foreign adult (12+) | $18.08 USD | IVA included; buy in advance at serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr using passport details |
| Foreign child (2–12) | $5.65 USD | IVA included |
| Foreign child (under 2) | Free | |
| Costa Rican resident adult (12+) | ₡1,808 | Residency documents required with online booking |
| Costa Rican resident child (6–12) | ₡565 | |
| Costa Rican resident child (under 6) | Free | |
| Ciudadano de Oro (Costa Rican seniors) | Free | |
| Certified guide (optional add-on) | $40–70 per person | ICT-certified guides from the Association of Certified Tour Guides of Quepos, hired at the entrance 7:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. (tel. 8671-1813) |
Everyone enters free on August 24 (National Parks Day), and Costa Rican residents get free admission on the third Wednesday of each month.
Planning your visit to Manuel Antonio National Park? Find tours with free cancellation and skip-the-line options.
View All ToursThe best time to visit is early morning in the dry season, December through April — book the 7:00 a.m. slot, when wildlife is most active, trails are empty, and temperatures are still cool. Those months are also the park's busiest, so reserve 1–2 weeks ahead (months ahead for Christmas and Easter week). For greener forest and thinner crowds, aim for the shoulder months of November or May.
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| Period | Crowd Level | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Early morning (07:00–09:00) | Low | The park's golden window — sloths, monkeys and birds are most active in the first two hours, and this is the best birding time too, so grab the earliest ticket slot you can. |
| Mid-morning (09:00–10:00) | Moderate | A good compromise for late risers: crowds build but the Punta Catedral loop and mangrove boardwalk stay manageable, and it's the last stretch before the beach fills. |
| Late morning (10:00–12:00) | High | By 10 a.m. Playa Manuel Antonio fills up, so this slot suits swimmers and sunbathers more than wildlife watchers — use it for the beach, not the trails. |
| Midday (12:00–14:00) | High | Peak crowds and midday heat on exposed trail stretches make this the weakest slot for hiking; eat at the cafeteria (open until 3:30 p.m.) and swim in the calm bay. |
| Early afternoon (14:00–15:00) | Moderate | The final entry window before the 3:00 p.m. closing suits only travelers who've pre-booked a short visit — expect hot, quiet trails and little wildlife movement. |
Plan on 3–5 hours to walk the main trail circuit and still have beach time, though the park is compact enough to cover comfortably in a half-day. A guided wildlife walk runs 2–3 hours on its own, and if you enter at 7:00 a.m. when wildlife is most active, a full day of hiking followed by swimming at Playa Manuel Antonio is common.
The park closes every Tuesday for trail maintenance — this is the single most common planning mistake, and showing up that day means a wasted trip. It's open Wednesday through Monday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., year-round including holidays, so build your itinerary around a Wednesday-to-Monday window.
There's no ticket booth at the gate — every ticket must be purchased beforehand on SINAC's official portal, serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr, using your passport details. A court ruling caps entry at 1,120 visitors a day, so book 1–2 weeks ahead in dry season and months ahead for Christmas and Easter week. Bring the physical passport matching your booking; a photo on your phone won't get you in.
Wildlife is most active in the first two hours, temperatures are cooler, and you'll have the trails nearly to yourself — by 10 a.m. the main beach fills up. Save that mid-morning window for the deeper trails like the 1.4 km Punta Catedral loop, then swim at Playa Manuel Antonio in the afternoon. November and May are the sweet spots if you want greener forest and thinner crowds.
Rangers scan bags at the entrance and will turn away packaged snacks, disposable plastic bottles, and food of any kind — drinks in reusable bottles are allowed, with refill fountains on the Sloth Trail and near the beaches. Wear closed walking shoes rather than sandals, leave the drone at the hotel (flying one in a national park is illegal without a SINAC permit), and note that soap and shampoo are banned in the showers. Eat inside the cafeteria area only.
People dressed as rangers sell fake tickets near the entrance at inflated prices, but real rangers wear SINAC logos and work only inside the park. The one legitimate source is sinac.go.cr. If a guide is in your budget, hire one of the ICT-certified guides at the entrance (7:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m., roughly $40–70 per person) — sloths are nearly invisible in the canopy without a spotting scope.
Foreign visitors aged 12 and up pay $18.08 USD, children 2–12 pay $5.65, and kids under 2 get in free — both prices include IVA. Costa Rican residents pay ₡1,808 (adult) or ₡565 (child 6–12), with resident children under 6 and 'Ciudadano de Oro' seniors entering free.
No. There's no ticket booth at the gate — every ticket must be purchased in advance on SINAC's official portal, serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr, using your passport details. Anyone near the entrance dressed as a ranger selling tickets is running a known scam; the only legitimate source is sinac.go.cr.
The park is open Wednesday through Monday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and closed every Tuesday for trail maintenance — a closure that catches out more travelers than any other planning mistake. Hours run year-round, including holidays, with entry managed through timed ticket slots.
Book at least 1–2 weeks ahead during the December–April dry season, and months ahead for Christmas–New Year and Easter week, when slots sell out. A Constitutional Court ruling in May 2023 capped entry at 1,120 visitors per day, and the park doesn't add capacity. You can buy a maximum of 6 tickets per transaction.
Yes. Free entry is reported for everyone on August 24, Costa Rica's National Parks Day, and Costa Rican residents get in free on the third Wednesday of each month. Expect those days to be busy — free admission still counts against the 1,120-visitor daily cap.
Bring a reusable water bottle (refill fountains sit on the Sloth Trail and near the beaches) and your physical passport matching your ticket — a phone photo won't work at the gate. Food, packaged snacks, single-use plastic bottles, pets, drones, alcohol, and umbrellas are all prohibited, and bags are checked at entry. There's a concession cafeteria inside open 7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. if you get hungry.
Most visitors spend 3–5 hours on the main trail circuit plus beach time; the park is small enough to see comfortably in half a day. If you want the full experience — early 7:00 a.m. entry, a 2–3 hour guided wildlife walk, then swimming at Playa Manuel Antonio — plan on a full day. Certified guides are available at the entrance from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for roughly $40–70 per person.
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