9 Day Costa Rica Itinerary

Written By Jessica Vanpoperinghe

I went on my first ever girls’ trip to Costa Rica back in April, and it was incredible! The people, the culture, the food, the landscape, everything! I cannot recommend it enough. We spent 7 full days there, not counting our 2 travel days, and I wish we would have stayed at least 2 more days. It’s definitely possible to see a great amount of things in 7 days, but having a full 9 days would have allowed us to explore and relax a bit more.

Instead of going off the beaten path, we decided to travel to the 3 most popular destinations in Costa Rica: La Fortuna, Monteverde, and Manuel Antonio. We figured they were popular for a reason, and boy were we right! Keep reading to find out exactly what we did and what I recommend.

Here’s a breakdown of our daily activities and my ratings:

DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

DAY 4

DAY 5

DAY 6

DAY 7

DAY 8

DAY 9

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Day 1-3: La Fortuna / Arenal

Day 1: Travel Day

We woke up at 2am to make our 5am flight, and let me tell you, it was so worth it! We got to Costa Rica at 12pm and then jumped in our private shuttle to go to our Hotel in La Fortuna. We booked the private shuttle service for our entire trip (4 transportations in total) because it was only about $100 more than renting a car. We used Costa Rica Drivers and they were incredible! Shout out to Rolando, who took us to a delicious lunch spot on the way, stopped whenever he saw wildlife to give us a chance to take pictures, and went above and beyond to make us comfortable! (One tip: the rates that Costa Rica Drivers have up on their website are no longer accurate, but they were still very affordable! Email them to get an exact quote!) We got to our hotel, Baldi Hot Springs Resort, at 4pm which gave us plenty of time to check out the hot springs on site and have dinner at the hotel restaurant.

Baldi Hot Springs Resort was incredible. There are 25 thermal pools. Yes, you read that right. 25. Some had waterfalls, some had swim-up bars, and some were in the lobby. The rooms were very large and clean and the employees were kind and welcoming. A delicious breakfast buffet is also included in your room rate. The restaurant in the lobby (Virgita) was absolutely delicious, but I would recommend skipping the buffet restaurant (Pyramid). At $22, I expected there to be more choices on the buffet. There was no seafood, and it was very meat-heavy. Overall, I give this hotel a 10/10!

Day 2: La Fortuna Waterfall & Tabacon Hotsprings

We woke up just before 6am, headed down to breakfast, and were ready for our first activity: La Fortuna Waterfall. One downside of the private shuttle service was that since we had no car, we had to take a taxi everywhere. The front desk staff was kind enough to call one for us, but it did take a while for them to arrive each day (about 10-15 minutes).

We made it to the biological reserve at around 7:15am and paid the $18 entrance fee per person ($5 per child). We wanted to be the first ones to the waterfall, so we bypassed the orchid gardens and made our way down the 500 step staircase as quickly as we could. When we reached the bottom, we were freaking delighted to find that we were the only ones there! We got loads of photos of the gorgeous 240ft. waterfall, stuck our feet into the chilly water, and admired the rainbows that appeared on the surface. If you’re going to make this stop (and you should!) get there as early as possible! It was truly magical to have it all to ourselves.

Once we were done gawking at the waterfall, we headed down to the left of the falls to a little swimming area. The water was little warmer here and there were lots of fish swimming around! We stayed for about 20 minutes until the crowds started rolling in. As we made our way back toward the waterfall to head up the stairs at around 8am, it was PACKED with tourists. There were at least 50 people around the falls and in the water. The lifeguard was blowing his whistle constantly because people were swimming too close to the current. It was a madhouse. I was so glad we had gotten there as early as we did. The climb up the 500 was pretty brutal, but luckily since it was still early, it wasn’t too hot.

We took another cab into town and spent a few hours exploring the shops. We ate lunch at Pollo Fortuneño’s cute patio and the ceviche was delicious! Afterwards, we grabbed coffee and some amazing chocolate truffles from Chocolate Fusion.

We got back to our hotel around 2pm and had plenty of time to enjoy the hot springs on site for a few hours before our next activity. At 5pm we grabbed our bags and headed to Tabacon Hot Springs. You need to book your day-pass tickets in advance! When we arrived, we received a free welcome drink, a cool towel, and were shown to the locker rooms. Luxury at it’s finest! Tabacon also has a hotel on property, but it was a bit out of our budget. And honestly, I’m glad we went with Baldi because there were less people and I preferred our “pool style” hot springs. Tabacon’s springs were undoubtedly gorgeous, but most pools had natural rocky bottoms, so I really suggest bringing water shoes or sandals! I was the only one in my group who brought them that day and I was extremely grateful after watching my friends trip over sharp rocks with every step. I wore the Teva Hurricane Drift sandals and they were perfect!

Our favorite pool was just off to the right as you enter the springs area. It has a smooth bottom and overlooks the lush jungle. But the real reason this was my favorite, is because the Piña Coladas at the pool bar were. the. best. piña. coladas. I. have. ever. had. the. pleasure. of. drinking. THE. BEST. And they are served in a pineapple! What more could you want?! We ate dinner at the Agua Ardiente pool bar & restaurant and everything was absolutely delicious.

Day 3: Arenal Volcano Hike & Coffee and Chocolate Tour

We didn’t want to hike in the midday heat, so once again, we got up before 6am, had our complimentary breakfast, and headed out to the Arenal Volcano. There are 2 main areas where you can hike around the Volcano, the Arenal Volcano National Park and the Arenal 1968 trails. We opted for the 1968 trails, because of the extra close views of the volcano & the ability to walk through old lava flows from the 1968 eruption that have now hardened into black volcanic rock. Admission is $25 per person, and there are 3 trails to choose from, with varying difficult & length. We chose the Bosque Trail which is the longest one at 4.7 miles (3km) and is rated as moderate/difficult. It wasn’t too hard, but there was a bit of elevation gain and lots of rocks and roots to navigate. But there was also plenty of shade which we were thankful for!

No matter which of the trails you take, you’ll arrive at the same overlook at the top of a hill with a little restaurant. I strongly recommend eating lunch here. The food was delicious, and if you wait long enough, you might get lucky like we did... Most of the time, the volcano’s top half is clouded over, but the clouds completely cleared up for us as we finished our lunch! The views were absolutely stunning!

After the hike, we went back to our hotel and were picked up by Northfields Café for their Coffee & Chocolate Tour. On this tour, they take you through the entire process of how chocolate is made. You get to walk around the farm, and have a chocolate tasting where you’ll sample 100% pure chocolate, some sweeter ones, and a delicious chocolate tea. Then you move on to an area where you can help extract juice from sugar cane. They use this juice to make Guaro, which is is a sweet liquor. We had the opportunity to taste that as well! At the end of the tour, you learn about how coffee is grown and harvested, while you sip a delicious cup of coffee. The tour was very insightful, and our guide was extremely knowledgeable, but it was also very long. This tour is best suited for people who are very interested in the processes to make these products! There is a little gift shop at the end where you can buy some of the items you tasted on the tour.

After a day full of adventures, we went back to our hotel and relaxed in our hot springs again. Have I mentioned how much I loved Baldi Hot Springs??

Day 4-5: Monteverde

Day 4: Travel to Monteverde & Night Tour

We were picked up this morning by a shared shuttle (booked via Costa Rica Drivers, but operated by a different company). After about a 20 minute ride, we arrived at a small dock where they helped us carry our bags into a small ferry. The ferry ride took about 35 minutes and boasted gorgeous views of the Arenal Volcano & the surrounding jungles. When we arrived at the next dock, we were picked up by yet another shared shuttle. This whole process was really seamless. There were about 20 drivers on the other side waiting for their designated passengers and everything happened like clockwork. They helped load our bags into the car, and off we went!

It took us about 1.5 hours to reach Monteverde, and let me warn you… these roads were ROUGH. Lots of twists and turns. I had to take my motion sickness meds pretty immediately.

We checked into our next hotel, Camino Verde B&B, and since our room wasn't ready yet, they offered to hold our bags as we walked to town (5 mins). We had lunch at The Open Kitchen which was really delicious and had a lot of vegan options! We stopped at Café Monteverde for some coffee and a vegan cinnamon roll, then headed back to our hotel. I loved the convenience of being within walking distance to town! Our hotel offered complimentary breakfast cooked fresh for you each morning, and had the cutest outdoor deck to relax in. The rooms were very small, but super clean and cozy. And although there was no air conditioning, there was fan in the room that helped a lot. The windows had screens so we were able to crack those open at night too for extra airflow.

That evening, we were picked up by El Refugio for their Night Tour. We opted for the Private Tour since it was only $10 more a person and I’m glad we did, because some of the groups we passed were quite large! As we arrived, the sun started to set, and my anxiety went into overdrive. The tour was actually really fun, but what I didn’t expect (silly me) was that we were constantly swarmed by giant bugs that were attracted to our flashlights! Eeeeek! My friend had a moth the size of a robin land on her. Thank god she’s the calm one in our friend group. We were able to spot a tarantula which was extremely cool, a baby pit viper, a glass frog, 2 sleeping toucans, and a kinkajou running through the trees! All in all, a successful tour!

Our tour included transportation and they were nice enough to drop us off back in the town center where we went to Taco Taco for dinner. Good tacos, good margaritas, good time!

Day 5: Ziplining & Hummingbird Cafe

This is the day I had been dreading. It was finally here… ziplining day. I’m not good with heights. But I’ve been zip lining before and decided that I could muster up the courage to do it again. Sky Adventures picked us up from our hotel and we arrived at the park in less than 15 minutes. We were shown to the lockers where we left our bigger items and then we headed down to get fit for our harnesses and helmets. Here’s a tip for you: Bring a light jacket. Not only because it gets a little bit breezy in the cloud forest, but if you have a jacket with zippered pockets, you can hold your valuables that you wouldn’t want to leave in the lockers like your wallet and phone. We went through a quick safety demonstration and immediately zipped down the first line. At the bottom, we boarded a sky tram that took us high above the canopy. The views were awesome! We stopped for some quick photos before heading to the 2nd zipline. The staff was really kind and patient with me as I continuously asked them “You’re sure I’m strapped in right?! YOU SURE?!” After the first 3 lines, I gained a bit of confidence and was able to really take in the incredible views.

After 7 ziplines in total, we arrived at the optional grand finale. I don’t know how to best describe this, but it was basically a free fall that turns into a controlled rappel. This is NOT another zipline. It’s more like a tiny bungee jump that catches you halfway down and lowers you slowly. I cannot believe that I was able to do it, but I did! I was the very last one to go because I needed as much time as possible to convince myself to do it. The scariest part was definitely the jump. You need to jump backwards off a 100ft platform. Every instinct in me was screaming nooooo, but I was finally able to take the jump! It was exhilarating. Afterwards, I could barely get up off the mat because my knees were shaking so badly, but proving to myself that I could do it, was definitely worth it.

At the end of the tour, they give you the option to buy your photos. It was $60 for all the photos of the 4 people in my group. So we took the deal!

We had chosen the Sky Trek / Tram / Walk Package, so we grabbed our stuff from the lockers and headed out for the short hike through the hanging bridges. The forest was really beautiful and we really enjoyed walking off all the adrenaline in our system from the ziplines. On the last hanging bridge we saw a family of howler monkeys up in a tree. One of them came extremely close and even jumped on the bridge in front of us so we had to wait a bit until he moved on. He was not aggressive at all and seemed totally unbothered by our presence. It was a really cool experience!

We were dropped back off at our hotel and we we walked to a different part of town to eat lunch at Restaurante Sabor Tico which had really good traditional Costa Rican food!

Then we decided to grab a cab to Café Colibri. Guys… this was the greatest decision we ever made. “Colibri” is the Spanish world for “hummingbird” and man, oh man did Café Colibri deliver! There were hundreds of hummingbirds flying around the outdoor patio, feeding on the various feeders scattered around the property. We spotted 7 different kinds of hummingbirds, and apparently it’s possible to see up to 13. We spent around 1.5 hours enjoying them and taking photos. We grabbed some coffee and pastries as well and I can’t recommend the vegan chocolate cake and the vegan passionfruit cake enough! They were both delicious. This stop was one of my favorite parts of the entire trip, and really shouldn’t be missed!

We had dinner reservations at the Tree House Restaurant which is aptly names as there is a giant tree running through the center of multiple decks. The food was amazing (we got the salmon carpaccio, tuna steak, and seabass) and I highly recommend having dinner here! On our walk back to our hotel, we were escorted by two neighborhood dogs that took a liking to us! One of them slept outside of our room the entire night!

Day 6-9: Manuel Antonio

DAY 6: Travel to Manuel Antonio

Our doggie friend was still outside of our door when we woke up. I sat with him for a while and gave him lots of love before we headed out to grab a quick pastry at Monteverde Café again. He escorted us the entire way there and the entire way back! Eventually he found another group of tourists to take care of and we said our goodbyes. What a sweet boy!

We were picked up by our private shuttle from Costa Rica Drivers and we were off to Manuel Antonio!

Along the way we stopped at the famous Crocodile Bridge in Jaco. We spent a few minutes watching the crocs down in the river, and then continued our 4 hour journey.

We checked into Shana by the Beach Hotel and were absolutely floored by our amazing room! We had chosen the Oceanview Junior Suite and we were not disappointed! The room was huge, equipped with a kitchenette, and had a big balcony overlooking the pools and the ocean. The on-site restaurant was amazing, a breakfast buffet was included, and the pools were really fun! The ONLY reason I’m giving this hotel a 9.5/10 is because the location wasn’t ideal. We were sitting at the base of a giant hill and all the restaurants and shops were at the very top. It was way too hot on most day to make the 15-20 minute climb, so we had to grab a cab each time. If you have a rental car, then this would be a non-issue! If you’re not renting a car, I’d probably look into La Mariposa Hotel. It was our 2nd option when choosing where to stay, and it is much further up the hill and closer to the main street!

We spent the rest of the day at the pool & on our balcony, and ate an amazing dinner at the hotel restaurant.

DAY 7: Snorkeling & Espadilla Beach

We were picked up from our hotel by Sunset Sails in the morning and headed towards the Quepos Marina for our Snorkeling Cruise. The boat could hold up to 40 people but we were incredibly lucky that on that day - there were only 11 of us on the tour! Drinks were included and we sipped on some yummy piña coladas as we sailed around and took in the sights for about an hour. Then we stopped at a small cove where the water was calm and clear, and were handed snorkeling gear. I’ve always been really scared of the ocean and the last time I went snorkeling didn’t go so well, so I was really nervous. But once I put my head in the turquoise waters, my fears melted away. There were hundreds and hundreds of small bright blue & yellow fish swimming around the corals. We saw tons of parrot fish, starfish, and even a small eel! It was absosylty beautiful! Our guide stayed close to us the whole time and helped us identify the wildlife. After about an hour, we headed back to the boat and were severed a very delicious, simple lunch of mahi mahi, rice, and veggies. This tour was one of the highlights of the whole trip! It was so fun, the weather was gorgeous, and the crew took such good care of us! Highly recommend!

Once we got back to our hotel, we walked 15 minutes further down the hill to Playa Playitas and walked the entire length of the beach all the way to the end of Espadilla Beach. The sand was incredibly soft and the surrounding green jungle was so beautiful. The water was also really warm! There were lots of vendors coming up to us asking if we wanted to rent beach chairs for a pretty hefty price. We ended up paying $10 for 4 beach chairs under a large umbrella, but we had to haggle with a few people before talking them down to this price! I’m sure when it’s bruiser, they’d be less flexible.

We spent a few hours enjoying the beach, then headed back to our hotel for a shower before heading to Emilio’s Cafe for dinner. As with most restaurants on this trip, the food was incredible! The entire restaurant is outside and has a great view of the ocean. I recommend coming here around sunset!

DAY 8: Manuel Antonio National Park

Our last full day!!! We were picked up by Jade Tours for our Manuel Antonio Wildlife Tour. Admission to the National Park is included with the tour, but we still had to make the pretty long line at the entrance. Once inside, the amount of people crowding the walkways was little jarring, but we were excited anyways. The park actually caps the number of people that can visit per day now. Before covid, there was no cap and it was apparently a complete mad-house, so I’m glad they’re doing what they can to limit the amount of people! Our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and was able to spot a total of FIVE sloths! We would have never been able to spot most of them without his help! We also saw spider monkeys, an adorable little bat sleeping under a huge palm leaf, a stick bird, and lots of iguanas. Our guide even took photos & videos through his telescope and later sent it to us via WhatsApp!

As part of the tour, we were given 30 minutes to explore Manuel Antonio Beach. We had the opportunity to cut the tour short, decline transportation back, and just stay at the beach for the rest of the day. Or we could meet back up in half an hour, finish the tour, and take the included transportation back to our hotel. As gorgeous as the Manuel Antonio Beach was (literally the prettiest beach I’ve ever seen), we were exhausted, so we opted to keep our transportation and head back to the hotel.

They were nice enough to drop us off at the town center so we wouldn’t have to climb that horrible hill from our hotel. We had lunch at El Patio de Café Milagro (the fish sandwich was so good!), grabbed an iced coffee to go, and walked down to our hotel. We spent the rest of the day relaxing by the pool again and exploring the little beach accessible only through a little path behind our hotel. We wished we would have gone down there earlier! It was so nice and secluded! The water was crystal clear and calm since it sits in a little cove. We spent sunset here and then headed back up the path, ate dinner once again at our hotel restaurant, and went to bed early.

DAY 9: Travel Day

We were picked up by our private shuttle via Costa Rica Drivers yet again, and made it to the San Jose airport in 3 hours. Our first flight went off without a hitch. But then we had a layover in Houston, and we had 1.5 hours to make our next flight. The line at customs was so long, and the security line so slow, that 2 out of the 4 of us ended up missing the flight. The only reason 2 of us made it, was because we had Global Entry and TSA Pre-check. Our other 2 friends were put on the next flight out, but that flight needed up getting delayed by 4 hours and they didn’t board until 1:45AM. It was brutal! Give yourself some extra time at the Houston Airport if you can!

I truly loved every minute of our vacation, and would go back to Costa Rica in a heartbeat! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me here, or simply leave a comment at the bottom of this page!

RESTAURANT RECCOMENDATIONS:

La Fortuna / Arenal Area

Monteverde Area:

Manuel Antonio Area:

WHAT TO PACK FOR COSTA RICA:

Packing list coming soon ;) Subscribe to my newsletter at the bottom of this page to get a notification when it goes live!

How much did we spend in total on our trip?:

✈️ Flights: $591 round trip from Denver

🛏️ Accommodations: $2,372

🚕 Transportation: Private Shuttle (4 trips): $625, Taxis: $186

🍍 Food & Drink: $434 per person

(We had free breakfast at all our hotels, and we ate out for every lunch and dinner)

🗻 Entrance Fees

Tabacon Hot Springs: $80 per person

La Fortuna Waterfall: $18pp

Arenal Volcano: $25pp

🐠 Tours (+tips)

Chocolate & Coffee Tour: $43 per person 

Monteverde Private Night Tour: $42 pp

Zipline & Hanging Bridges: $120pp

Sailing & Snorkeling Tour: $95pp

Manuel Antonio Wildlife Tour: $55 pp

💸 Our total was $2348 per person (4 people)

Best time to visit Costa Rica:

The best months to visit are during the dry season which is November through April. We went from April 17-25, right at the edge of the rainy season, and we got so lucky with the weather! It only rained once in our 9 days there, and it was only for an hour.

Things you should know:

  • Most tours offer transportation to and from your hotel! Very convenient!

  • Taxi drivers WILL try to take advantage of you, especially if you are paying in USD. Make sure you ask them to turn on the meter as soon as you get in the cab.

  • In most places, they ask you not to throw toilet paper in the toilets, and instead toss them in a trash can because of the sensitive plumbing.

  • Everything in the touristy areas has an entrance fee. hiking trails, waterfalls, you name it. Be prepared to pay $15-$30 for almost anything you want to see.

  • Pura Vida is truly a lifestyle. I didn’t know that people actually said it out loud! Costa Ricans (Ticos) use this term to say hello, goodbye, and everything's great.

Wow! Thanks for reading all of that! I hope that I’ve helped you plan your Costa Rica trip! PURA VIDA!!!

xoxo Jessy

Jessica Vanpoperinghe