The Best Things to do in Ocotal, Costa Rica

Visit the pristine beach at Playa Ocotal for an easygoing scuba diving experience. This dive takes place just off the coast, so it won’t take long to boat to your dive site. These dives call for 1 to 3 tanks, and each immersion usually takes about 45 minutes.

Playa Ocotal’s pristine waters are usually fairly calm, so the wildlife here gets to live a fairly peaceful existence. Because of this, Playa Ocotal has the ideal atmosphere for snorkeling.

The Guanacaste region has some of Costa Rica’s most famous beaches. This tour highlights some of the activities you might want to try while you’re near the shore. You’ll get to snorkel, see coastal wildlife, surf, and swim.

On this half-day tour, you’ll leave Playa Flamingo behind to find a secluded beach and a stunning place to discover underwater wildlife. Your guide will help you identify new species of fish.

This 2-hour tour takes you to some of the prettiest and most accessible beaches in Guanacaste. You’ll also get to try stand up paddleboarding , which will make you feel like you’re walking on the water.

The Santa Rosa National Park is the site of Costa Rica’s most important monument, the Hacienda Santa Rosa. Known locally as La Casona , this monument marks the fall of filibuster William Walker and his professional mercenaries to a local peasant army in 1856. Today, La Casona is a museum dedicated to the memory of this battle. This tour will allow you to stop by and explore this historical sight.

This calm river is located in Guanacaste, near Liberia. This is an excellent river for families looking to float down a gorgeous and gentle jungle river, surrounded by nature and wildlife.

To learn about how far Costa Rica has come, you need to understand the nation's history. The Palo Verde Boat Expedition and Cultural Tour will teach you about the country's cowboy and agrarian history, as well as how this tradition influenced the emphasis Costa Rica now places on sustainability.

Enjoy the fruits of the sustainability movement when you explore protected wetlands. See a variety of animals in their native habitat. Don't worry, you'll have the opportunity to enjoy refreshments before your tour and after.

On this 1.5-hour tour you’ll explore the wetlands of Palo Verde in a covered boat. Your guides can tell you more about this complex habitat and point out the many species of rare birds that call this reserve home.

It may be your vacation, but nature waits for no one. Sometimes, to see the early bird you've got to be the early bird. Start your morning with an outdoor adventure — this tour offers you the opportunity to spot some of Costa Rica's 850 species of birds!

This expedition at the Buena Vista Lodge allows tour members to enjoy canopy tours and horseback rides, and hot springs all in one day. Oh right and then there is that 400-meter waterslide through the forest.

This tour takes you to see the wildlife that surrounds the Rincón de la Vieja Volcano on a jungle trail called “Sensoria”—named for its sensorily overwhelming environment. Your three- to four-hour hike concludes with a dip in a thermally heated pool.

The Borinquen Adventure is an exciting combination of horseback riding, zip lining and soaking in hot springs.

This tour will introduce you to Palo Verde's wildlife as well as its indigenous culture. Have your camera handy as you search the riverbanks for monkeys, crocodiles, and a myriad of birds on this nature cruise through the Palo Verde National Park.

Take this tour to explore the picturesque hiking trails of Rincón de la Vieja National Park. The tour lasts between 2.5 and 3 hours.

This safari float is the perfect way to explore the rainforest with the whole family, offering a gentle alternative to a rafting tour. There’s plentiful wildlife in this part of the rainforest, and the water is slow-moving enough that you’ll have plenty of time to look for animals as you drift through the greenery. Your guides have excellent experience spotting animals in the area, and ensure that you’re comfortable as you drift down the river on an innertube.

Take this zip lining tour to dive into the canopy around Guanacaste. There are a total of 11 zip line cables that stretch from 328 to 1,476 feet . It takes about an hour and a half to complete the tour.

This adventure combo at Rincon de La Vieja is an action packed full day expedition that features a guided visit to Hacienda Guachipeli­n Lodge, next to Rincon De La Vieja National Park. There are 4 main activities during this day of adventure canopy tour and rapelling through the Rio Blanco Canyon and horseback riding expedition to nearby waterfalls, relax at a rustic spa featuring volcano heated thermal waters, steam and mud bath.

Paddle down the exciting rapids of the Tenorio River and enjoy the area's lush scenery while on this adventurous rafting tour.

As local legend has it, God washed his paintbrush in the Río Celeste after he painted the sky. Upon seeing the blue-tinted waters of this river, this legend will make a great deal of sense.