For rainy days or after
dark

How to use this guide

This selection is for days when rain hides Arenal, and for filling the evenings with outings to see frogs, snakes and sloths. There are three kinds of plan. Under cover or regardless of the sky are the Chocolate tours, the Coffee, cacao and sugar-cane farm tour at North Fields, the Costa Rican cooking class and the Venado Caves. For wildlife, almost everything is within 7 km of town: Bogarín Trail, Ecocentro Danaus, Sloth’s Territory, Natura Eco Park and the Arenal Oasis night frog tour. To round off the day, there are the hot springs: EcoTermales Fortuna or Baldi hot springs.

For a rainy day, start with a longer trip in the morning: the Venado Caves, about 24 km away, or the Butterfly Conservatory (El Castillo), about 23 km away and open from 10:00 to 16:00. Pick one. In the early afternoon, a chocolate or coffee tour, about 2 hours long and close to town. At dusk, a single night walk: the first departures are at 17:30 at Ecocentro Danaus and Sloth’s Territory and at 18:00 at Natura Eco Park, and Bogarín Trail is less than 1 km from the central park. Finish at the hot springs.

On a tight budget, the self-guided visit at Bogarín Trail costs $20, and Arenal Oasis runs its night walk from $50. Short of time, skip the Costa Rican cooking class, which takes about 4 hours, and the trips to Venado and El Castillo. EcoTermales Fortuna is the quiet option, with limited capacity and no children’s area; Baldi has 25 pools, slides and a kids’ area.

Tips

• For the Venado Caves, wear clothes that can get wet and dirty and bring a change and a towel. Helmet, headlamp and boots are provided, and cancellation is free with 24 h notice.
• EcoTermales Fortuna requires booking because capacity per session is limited. Baldi usually does not, but it gets crowded; a locker costs about $6 and towels come with a refundable deposit.
• Ecocentro Danaus does not publish prices: ask when booking. North Fields takes bookings by email or WhatsApp and opens Monday to Saturday.
• With children: Arenal Oasis gives 30% off for ages 5 to 11, and at Baldi the kids’ area and slides close at 18:00.