Top Tortuguero National Park Tours & Vacations 2024/2025...

Tortuguero National Park Tours & Travel Packages 2024/2025

33 Tortuguero National Park trips. Compare tour itineraries from 28 tour companies. 107 reviews. 4.7/5 avg rating.

Small Group Tortuguero National Park Tours

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Top Tortuguero National Park Attractions & Experiences

Top Tortuguero National Park Experiences

  • Kayaking through the quiet, jungle canals in Tortuguero National Park.
  • Seeing dozens of massive, green sea turtles come ashore and lay their eggs.
  • Watching endangered Great Green Macaws soar overhead while birdwatching.
  • Learning about Tortuguero’s unique turtle populations in the Turtle Conservancy Museum.
  • Spotting sleeping sloths, clamoring monkeys, red-eyed tree frogs, and even tapirs on a wildlife walking tour of the Tortuguero’s National Park.
  • Relaxing in Tortuguero Village and learning about the vibrant townspeople and their history.
  • Ziplining through the jungle canopy at a breathtaking speed.

Tortuguero National Park Tours & Travel Guide

Tortuguero National Park Attractions & Landmarks Guide

Turtle Season in Tortuguero National Park

One of the best reasons to visit Tortuguero National Park is to get an up close encounter with a sea turtle in the wild. Sea turtles can be seen individually all year round, though you can find nesting turtles during certain seasons.

Green Sea turtles and Hawksbill turtles nest between July and October (the peak of the season being in August), and Leatherback sea turtles nest between February to April. Tortuguero has the second largest Green Sea turtle nesting site in the entire world.

The best way to make sure you see either adult sea turtles nesting, or the incredible sight of hundreds of baby turtles hatching and racing to sea, is to book a guided tour. A knowledgeable tour guide will be able to tell you exactly what time and which night to go to the beach to watch the miraculous event occur.

Your tour to Tortuguero may even include a chance to interact and learn about sea turtle conservation efforts from local groups, like Las Playitas. This may just be one way that your tour can be considered an eco, or environmentally sustainable tour.

Top 5 Activities in Tortuguero

Even if you visit outside of the turtle nesting season, there are still tons of activities to take part in.

  1. Canal Tours through the rainforests of Tortuguero. This is likely to be pencilled into your tour time, but if it’s not and you given your own time to roam, you can also kayak or canoe these passages on your own.

  2. Wildlife walks and rainforest tours. Walking along the park’s raised pathways is another great way to spot animals and learn about them from your experienced tour guide.

  3. Birdwatching tours. Even if you aren’t an ornithologist, you will gain an appreciation for the diversity and beauty of the different kinds of birds in the park.

  4. Visit the Sea Turtle Conservancy Museum. This small museum by the entrance of the National Park only costs $2 to enter, and provides a detailed summary of all of the sea turtle species which frequent the park.

  5. Zipline through the jungle canopy. Combine your ecotourism with an adventure experience, and learn for yourself why Costa Rica’s ziplines are renowned worldwide.

Eco Tours in Tortuguero

Many tours to Tortuguero can be classified as “eco tours” because they help support a National Park and wildlife sanctuary. Eco tours are, in general, tours which visit natural areas and make significant efforts to leave a low impact, and act environmentally responsible.

One part of your eco tour may include staying in an eco lodge. These are particularly popular in Costa Rica, which benefits greatly from ecotourism, and as a result sees the benefit in preserving their natural resources. An eco lodge is a greener form of housing, usually located in a remote, wilderness setting. The best eco lodges also forge relationships, and give back to, the local community.

Tortuguero Cultural & Historical Tours

Outside of the National Park, Tortuguero Village is the small village that supports tourist activity to the park. It is a completely unmodernized (and “untainted,” in local opinion), and an environmentally-focused community. Although your tour to Tortuguero will undoubtedly visit the National Park and have a natural focus, going on a cultural tour of Tortuguero will likely take you to this small village.

Tortuguero Village has strong Afro-Caribbean roots, and prides itself on not having cars. The first electric generator was brought to the island in 1982. A cultural tour of the area will educate you on the town’s history, from a small settlement, to its heyday as logging town, to becoming the archetype for an environmentally conscious community.

Tortuguero National Park Reviews & Ratings

4.7/5  Excellent
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S

Susan

Feb 2024

Written on

Costa Rica - Coast to Coast

The itinerary was a perfect blend of full-on activities with some down time for relaxation. The wildlife was incredible - especially the birdlife. Our guide was a pa...

J

Jill

Nov 2023

Written on

Costa Rica - Coast to Coast

The trip was great and the wildlife was amazing. A beautiful country and we met many kind and helpful people during our journey. We travelled in rainy season but onl...

T

Trusted Customer

Nov 2023

Written on

Costa Rica - Coast to Coast

Well planned trip, with a few long drives, but interesting scenery and stopping points made them pass quickly. The drive down to the hotel at Uvita for visiting Man...

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