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Explore Manuel Antonio National Park with certified guides who know where to find sloths, monkeys, and colorful birds. Most tours include a spotting scope so you can see and photograph wildlife up close.
Free Cancellation 2-hour guided walk in Manuel Antonio with an ICT-certified local guide, spotting scope, and beach time after.
Free Cancellation 12-hour day trip from San Jose with stops at Crocodile Bridge, Tarcoles, Jaco look-out, and a guided park hike.
Free Cancellation 4-hour guided wildlife walk in Manuel Antonio park with hotel pickup, entrance ticket, and snacks.
Free Cancellation Small-group guided walk (max 10) with a certified naturalist, telescopes included, ending at the park's beach.
Free Cancellation Small-group Manuel Antonio park walk with hotel pickup, entrance fee, Swarovski optics and photos included.
Free Cancellation 3-hour guided wildlife walk in Manuel Antonio with a bilingual guide, entrance fees and hotel pickup included.
Free Cancellation 3.5-hour afternoon guided walk with spotting scopes, park ticket, snacks, and Quepos-to-Manuel Antonio pickup.
Free Cancellation 2.5-hour small-group wildlife walk with a certified guide and spotting scope, ending at Manuel Antonio beach.
Read what travelers share about their experience visiting Manuel Antonio National Park — from practical tips to personal highlights.
A wildlife tour here is a slow walk, not a hike — you'll cover a couple of kilometers on flat, paved trails while a certified guide with a spotting scope finds animals you'd walk straight past alone. Most tours run 2 to 4 hours and end at Playa Manuel Antonio, so bring swimwear. The payoff is wildlife within arm's reach of the trail: sloths, three monkey species, iguanas, and roughly 352 bird species in under 2,000 hectares of forest squeezed between road and ocean.
Sendero El Perezoso is the park's main artery — flat, paved, about 1.1 km — and it runs through cecropia trees where both two-toed and three-toed sloths feed. Guides find them by scanning for a lump that doesn't match the branch. You'll usually stand under one for ten minutes while everyone takes photos through the scope.
White-faced capuchins work the trails in gangs and will unzip an unattended backpack in seconds. Mantled howlers announce themselves from the canopy before you see them. The endangered mono tití (Central American squirrel monkey) lives only here and in Corcovado, so this is one of two places in the country to tick it off.
Every certified guide carries a high-definition telescope, and the good ones use Swarovski optics. You line your phone camera up behind the eyepiece and walk away with close-ups of toucans, bats, and sleeping sloths. It's the single biggest difference between a guided walk and going solo.
The walk ends at an 800 m crescent of white sand with calm, sheltered water — SINAC rates it among Costa Rica's best beaches. Snorkeling works along the rocky sides where coral and reef fish hold. Showers and changing rooms sit nearby, and lifeguards are on duty, though rip currents still happen.
A 1.4 km loop (45–60 minutes, some incline) circles a former island now attached to the mainland by a sand tombolo. Five viewpoints look out over Pacific islands, some of them seabird rookeries. At low tide your guide may point out La Trampa, pre-Columbian Quepoa stonework once used to trap turtles and fish.
An elevated boardwalk loops 20–30 minutes through an 18-hectare mangrove of red, piñuela and caballero varieties — a different ecosystem entirely from the main forest. Water birds and occasional deer show up early in the morning. Most tours skip it; ask your guide to tack it on if the group is moving well.
Tours here vary more on paperwork than on wildlife — the difference between a $13 tour and a $73 one is usually transport, ticket handling, and group size, not what you'll see. Sort out the park ticket question before you click book.
Many tours do NOT include the SINAC park ticket, and there's no booth at the gate — every entry ticket must be bought online at serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr in advance. The fee is $18.08 for foreign adults and $5.65 for children 2–12, on top of the tour price. Check the inclusions list carefully before booking; operators send ticket-buying instructions by email after you confirm.
A 2023 court ruling caps the park at 1,120 visitors per day, and dry-season slots sell out 1–2 weeks ahead — one tour operator warns of sell-outs 8 days out. Christmas and New Year can go a month ahead. September through November is the loose window; same-day tickets are often still available.
The park shuts every Tuesday for trail maintenance. This is the most common planning mistake in the area, and tour operators put it in bold on their booking pages for a reason. Hours otherwise run 7:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., Wednesday through Monday.
You can book a bare 90-minute guided walk from $13.50, a small-group wildlife walk capped at 10 people for around $27–28, or a 4-hour package with hotel pickup, snacks, and the park ticket included for $69–73. Coming from San José? A 12-hour day tour ($169) covers the drive, breakfast, lunch, and stops at the Tarcoles crocodile bridge and a scarlet macaw viewpoint.
Bookings are tied to identity — if the operator buys your park ticket, they'll need passport numbers for everyone, infants included. Bring the physical passport matching the ticket; a phone photo is not accepted at the gate, though some operators say a photo of a passport or driver's license may be requested instead.
The core trail network is wheelchair-adapted, and several tours list full wheelchair and stroller accessibility. The flat, paved Sloth Trail and beach boardwalks work for wheels; sand and the Punta Catedral loop don't. Service dogs are admitted only with a permit from the entrance guard station.
Every tour on this page offers a full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before departure. Park tickets bought separately through SINAC follow SINAC's own rules, not the operator's. Weather rarely cancels tours — they run in rain, so pack a poncho in green season.
From November to April, certified guides run special afternoon tours at 3:30 p.m. (Sat–Mon) and night tours at 5:30 p.m. (Wed–Fri). Night walks turn up frogs, snakes, and nocturnal mammals the daytime crowds never see. For more wildlife outside the park, Isla Damas mangrove kayak tours run about 20 minutes away, with night versions too.
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| Budget Guided Walk | Small-Group Wildlife Walk | Hotel-Pickup Package | San José Day Tour | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duration | About 3 hours (90-minute walk plus beach time) | 2–3 hours on the trails | 3.5–4 hours, door to door | 12 hours total, including 6+ hours of driving |
| Price from | $13.50 per person | $27–28 per person | $69–73 per person | $169 per person |
| Park ticket | Included — one of the few that covers the $18.08 fee | Usually separate — buy your own at serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr; some options bundle it | Included, plus snacks and A/C transport from any hotel between Quepos and Manuel Antonio | Included, plus breakfast, lunch, and hotel pickup in San José |
| Best for | Travelers already staying near the entrance who want the basics: a guide, a scope, and a low price | Wildlife-focused visitors who want a certified guide, a telescope, and a group capped at 10 | Families and anyone who'd rather not deal with buses, tickets, or logistics at 6:30 a.m. | Travelers based in San José (min age 5) who can't overnight on the coast — the crocodile bridge and macaw stops break up the drive |
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The park is open Wednesday to Monday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and closed every Tuesday for trail maintenance. Entry is staggered by 15-minute arrival slots assigned when you buy your ticket online.
Concession services run slightly longer than the park itself: the cafeteria and artisan shop are open 7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m., locker rental runs 7:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., and certified guides work the entrance from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
From November to April, look for special afternoon tours at 3:30 p.m. (Saturday–Monday) and night tours at 5:30 p.m. (Wednesday–Friday).
The park sits 7 km southeast of Quepos and 157 km (98 mi) from San José. From Quepos, the local bus along Route 618 runs every 15–30 minutes (about 7 a.m.–7 p.m., ₡315, cash only).
From San José you have four options:
There is no official park parking. Private lots near the entrance charge ₡3,000–5,000 (~$6–10) per day, and the single Quepos–Manuel Antonio road jams badly in high season — leave early.
December to April is the dry season: low-to-mid 30s °C, minimal rain, and the busiest trails of the year. Book tickets 1–2 weeks ahead in this window, and a month or more ahead for Christmas–New Year and Easter week, when slots sell out.
Shoulder months November and May trade a few afternoon showers for greener forest and thinner crowds. September and October are the wettest months — muddy trails, but the seasonal waterfall only flows then, and same-day tickets are usually available.
The trail network is explicitly adapted for wheelchair users, with universal-access facilities, rest areas, and overlooks. Sendero El Perezoso — flat and paved — is the key route, and it works for wheelchairs and strollers both.
Several tours on this page list full wheelchair accessibility, including transport. Limitations to plan around: sand areas and the 1.4 km Punta Catedral loop, which has incline, are not accessible.
Inside the park you'll find a cafeteria and artisan shop (7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.), locker rental (7:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.), and potable-water refill fountains on the Sloth Trail and near Playas Manuel Antonio and Espadilla Sur. Drinks at the cafeteria run at premium prices, so carry a reusable bottle.
Restrooms and changing rooms sit by the beaches, and a lifeguard program operates during swimming hours — though rip currents still occur, so stay near the flags and keep children close. Playa Espadilla Sur has stronger surf than the main bay.
ICT-certified guides from the Association of Certified Tour Guides of Quepos (tel. 8671-1813) can be hired at the entrance without advance booking, 7:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m., for roughly $40–70 per person.
Bags are scanned at the entrance, and the list of what gets turned away is long: all food and packaged snacks, single-use plastic bottles, pets, alcohol, drones, umbrellas, balls, hammocks, and Bluetooth speakers. Water in reusable bottles is allowed; drinks alone pass. Soap and shampoo are banned in the showers.
Collecting shells, plants, rocks, or sand is prohibited, as is feeding wildlife — it carries fines and trains capuchins and raccoons to raid bags. Smoking is illegal anywhere in the park.
Sometimes. The $13.50 guided walk and the $69–73 hotel-pickup packages include the SINAC ticket, but the popular $27–28 small-group wildlife walks usually require you to buy your own at serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr ($18.08 adults, $5.65 children 2–12). Check the inclusions list before booking — operators email ticket instructions after you confirm, so watch your inbox.
Self-guided visits are allowed, but most people see a fraction of the wildlife alone because sloths, snakes, and canopy birds are nearly invisible to untrained eyes. Guides carry spotting scopes and know which cecropia trees the sloths are feeding in that week. If you don't want a prebooked tour, ICT-certified guides can be hired at the entrance (7:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.) for roughly $40–70 per person.
Book 1–2 weeks ahead in dry season (December–April), since a court-ordered cap limits the park to 1,120 visitors per day and slots can sell out 8 days out. Christmas, New Year, and Easter week need a month or more. In September–November, same-day tickets are often still available, which also suits last-minute tour bookings.
In a few hours you can realistically see three of Costa Rica's four monkey species — white-faced capuchins, mantled howlers, and the endangered Central American squirrel monkey — plus both sloth species, green iguanas, bats, coatis, agoutis, and raccoons. Birders add fiery-billed aracaris, toucans, kingfishers, and tanagers among the park's roughly 352 recorded species. The 7:00–9:00 a.m. window is the most productive.
Manuel Antonio closes every Tuesday for trail maintenance, year-round including holidays. It's the single most common trip-planning mistake in the area, and tour operators flag it in their booking confirmations. If a Tuesday lands mid-trip, use it for Playa Biesanz, the Isla Damas mangroves, or the Rainmaker Conservation Park instead.
Yes — the core trails are flat and paved, and several tours explicitly list wheelchair and stroller accessibility, including transport. Infants ride free on laps, and the San José day tour takes children from age 5. Keep food sealed away from kids' bags: capuchins will snatch snacks and can unzip a backpack in seconds.
Most tours end at Playa Manuel Antonio, an 800 m white-sand crescent with calm, sheltered water — the best swimming and snorkeling beach in the park, with reef fish along the rocky sides. Changing rooms and showers are nearby. Playa Espadilla Sur has stronger surf; swim near the lifeguard flags either way, as rip currents occur.
A reusable water bottle (single-use plastics are confiscated at bag check), swimwear under quick-dry clothes, biodegradable sunscreen, insect repellent, and closed walking shoes rather than sandals. Bring the physical passport matching your ticket. A phone works for photos through the guide's spotting scope, so you don't need a big camera.
Tours run in all weather — operators state this outright — so bring a poncho in green season (May–November), when afternoons often bring downpours. Sloths and monkeys don't mind the rain, and crowds thin. If you want to cancel anyway, every tour on this page offers a full refund up to 24 hours before departure; park tickets bought separately follow SINAC's rules.
A 12-hour day tour from San José ($169) covers hotel pickup, breakfast, lunch, the park ticket, and three roadside stops — 15 minutes at the Tarcoles crocodile bridge, 15 minutes at a scarlet macaw viewpoint, and a fruit stand. It's a long day with 6+ hours of driving, but you can get dropped at your Quepos or Manuel Antonio hotel afterward if you arrange it at booking.
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A 2-hour walk through the park with an ICT-certified local guide, in English or Spanish. The meeting point is a 2-minute walk from the park entrance, and you'll get meeting instructions and recommendations by message before your tour date. The guide starts with a quick intro and the park rules, then you're off for 120 minutes on the trails. Every booking includes an HD spotting scope for wildlife viewing, plus HD photos and videos of whatever animals you spot — both come home with you. Air-conditioned vehicle transport is included. After the guided portion ends, you can swim at the beach or keep walking the trails on your own. Watch the ticket situation: SINAC park entry is only included in the regular and premium options. If you book the beach option, you buy your own tickets online at serviciosenlinea.sinac.go.cr (account signup required) — instructions are sent by message, so check your email. No food is included, but there's a cafeteria inside the park once the tour wraps. Cancel at least 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, Spanish
This 12-hour tour runs out of San Jose, with morning pickup from most hotels in the area in an air-conditioned vehicle. The drive south is broken up with three roadside stops: 15 minutes at the crocodile bridge over the Tarcoles River, 15 minutes at Tarcoles Beach to look for scarlet macaws, and 15 minutes at the Jaco Beach look-out point. There's also a fruit stand stop along the way. The main event is Manuel Antonio National Park, where you get about 3 hours total, including a one-hour guided hike. The guide is bilingual (English and Spanish) and points out wildlife — howler monkeys, sloths, iguanas, and birds are the usual sightings. Breakfast and lunch are included, with lunch served in the early afternoon at a restaurant with ocean and jungle views. The park entrance fee is covered too. Gratuities aren't included. Drop-off at centrally located Manuel Antonio–Quepos hotels is available, but you have to request it when booking; otherwise you return to San Jose. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, Spanish
Four hours total, with about three of them inside the park on foot with a certified guide tracking sloths, monkeys, reptiles, and insects, plus the surrounding flora. The walk ends at one of the country's better beaches, so bring or wear swimwear. Guides run the tour in English or Spanish. Pickup covers any accommodation between Quepos and Manuel Antonio, in an air-conditioned vehicle. The park entrance ticket and snacks are included; alcoholic drinks are not. Cancel at least 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, Spanish
This is a guided wildlife walk capped at 10 people, led by a certified naturalist with 10+ years of experience. You meet your guide at the park entrance at your selected time, then spend about 3 hours on the trails looking for two-toed and three-toed sloths, white-faced capuchin monkeys, howler monkeys, birds, and iguanas. A telescope and binoculars are provided, so you get close-up views rather than squinting at distant branches. The walk ends at the park's white-sand beach after about 2 hours of guiding, with 30 minutes of beach time built in. From there you have a choice: stay at the beach until 3 PM on your own or head back with the guide. Guides work in English, Spanish, or French. Park entrance tickets are sold separately and aren't included — you must buy them yourself through the SINAC website before the tour, and the park has a daily capacity limit, so peak-season tickets sell out early. There's no private transportation and no food included. Bookings are possible up to 1 hour before departure; cancel at least 24 hours ahead for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, French, Spanish
A roughly three-hour guided walk inside Manuel Antonio National Park, run as a small group so the guide can stay with each participant rather than working a crowd. Your guide carries Swarovski optics for spotting wildlife, and all photos taken during the activity are yours to keep at the end. Pickup is at your hotel reception in the Manuel Antonio area, with private minibus transport to the park. The entrance fee is covered. Guides work in English, Spanish, or German. Alcoholic drinks aren't included. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
German, English, Spanish
This tour pairs a 90-minute guided walk through the park's forest with beach time afterward, and the whole outing runs about 3 hours from pickup to drop-off. A guide walks you along the forest trails pointing out wildlife — expect to stop often, since spotting animals is the point of the walk, not covering distance. Guides lead in English or Spanish. Entrance fees and air-conditioned transport are included in the price, so you pay once and don't queue at the gate. Be at your hotel reception or the meeting point 5 minutes before your pickup time; the vehicle won't wait long. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, Spanish
A 3.5-hour afternoon walk with a guide who carries a spotting scope, so you can watch sloths, monkeys, and birds up close and shoot photos through the lens. Tours run in English or Spanish. Pickup is included at any accommodation between Quepos and Manuel Antonio, in an air-conditioned vehicle. The park entrance ticket and snacks are covered in the price; alcohol isn't. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, Spanish
This 2.5-hour tour runs as a guided walk along an easy trail, with the first two hours spent looking for wildlife — monkeys, sloths, iguanas and bats are the usual finds. Your certified guide carries a professional high-definition spotting scope, and you're welcome to take photos through it. The walk ends at Manuel Antonio beach, and you can stay behind to swim or relax rather than heading back with the group. Bring what you need for that if you plan on it. Guides lead the tour in English, Spanish or French. The park admission ticket isn't included in the base price, but the operator will buy it for you — they'll contact you beforehand for your full name, country and passport number, since tickets are issued under those details. Check which option you selected when booking; some include the ticket, some don't. Cancel at least 24 hours before departure for a full refund.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
English, French, Spanish