14 Fun Things To Do In La Fortuna Costa Rica (2024)
Are you looking for fun things to do in La Fortuna? You’ve come to the right place.
La Fortuna is a beautiful rainforest town, around 2.5 hours from the San Jose airport. I spent 3 nights in La Fortuna and it was by far the highlight of my trip. With so many amazing natural attractions, I left wishing I spent an extra day in town.
To help you maximize your time in this charming little town, I’ve compiled a list of the best things to do in the area. From natural hot springs to sloth watching tours, there’s something on this list for everyone.
Here are 14 fun and adventurous things to do in La Fortuna.
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Top 14 Things To Do In La Fortuna
1. Visit the La Fortuna waterfall
A must-see in town is the famous La Fortuna waterfall, a spectacular 246 ft waterfall that flows into a bright blue pool. You can view the waterfall from afar, or climb down over 500 steps to swim in the water.
Although it’s touristy, it’s one of the most beautiful waterfalls I’ve visited in Costa Rica, so I highly recommend seeing it for yourself!
There’s an entrance fee of $18-20/adult, and it’s best to visit early in the morning for the best weather and least amount of crowds.
2. Go On A Sloth Watching Tour
La Fortuna is an amazing place to spot sloths in their natural habitat. Since sloths are incredibly good at camouflaging, it’s best to go on a guided tour for the best chances of seeing them.
The three main tour operators in La Fortuna are the Bogarin Trail ($45/adult), Sloth Watching Trail ($50/adult), and Sloth’s Territory ($40/adult).
The Bogarin Trail offers self–guided tours of their forest habitat ($20/adult), which I did, but had no luck seeing any animals.
The next day I did a guided tour of the Sloth Watching Trail ($50/adult), and got to see 3 sloths through a telescope!
We also saw owls, lizards, birds, and lots of fascinating wildlife. If you want the best chances of seeing sloths, I definitely recommend going with a guide.
3. Take A Dip In Natural Hot Springs
La Fortuna is home to a variety of natural hot springs, nestled at the base of Arenal Volcano. They’re the perfect place to relax no matter when you visit.
The most popular hot springs are the Tabacon spa gardens (paid) and El Choyin (free).
The Tabacon hot springs are a paid spa garden, with heated pools, waterfalls, and incredible views of the Arenal Volcano. A day pass to the spa gardens cost $89/adult, while guests to the resort have free access.
El Choyin is a free natural hot spring, located adjacent to the Tabacon resort. It’s located under a bridge, and has warm water, and cascading waterfalls.
It’s not the same luxurious experience you’d get at the paid hot springs, but it’s a great budget-friendly alternative. To get to El Choyin, you’ll park along the street leading up to the bridge.
There’s often parking attendants directing traffic here that may ask for 1,000-2,000 colones, so make sure to bring cash if visiting. Then, you can access the hot springs by walking down a rocky path, on the opposite side of the road as the Tabacon resort.
Keep in mind there’s no street lighting, so you’ll want to visit it earlier in the day. I visited in the evening, and it was too dark to get down to the hot spring safely.
4. Walk Over The Mistico Hanging Bridges
The Mistico Hanging Bridges is a park with a series of suspension 6 bridges nestled in the lush rainforest of La Fortuna. From the bridges, you’ll have an amazing view of the Arenal Volcano, and the park is surrounded by wildlife.
On the drive up to the hanging bridges, I saw a group of white-nosed coatis (Costa Rican racoons) on the side of the road.
Throughout the park, you may get to see spider monkeys, birds, lizards, and other fascinating wildlife. Entrance to the park costs $28/adult, and it closes around 4 daily.
5. Swim At El Salto (Rope Swing)
El Salto is an incredible free natural swimming hole in La Fortuna, located right under a bridge. It has a large natural pool, cascading waterfalls, and clear blue waters if it hasn’t been raining.
To get here, you’ll park alongside the road leading up to the bridge. There’s parking attendants that direct traffic, and will ask for around 1,000-2,000 colones, so make sure to bring cash if you plan on visiting.
I highly recommend swimming here in the morning, as the afternoon rains can cause the water to turn light brown.
6. Go On A Coffee & Chocolate Tour
One of the best things to do in La Fortuna on a rainy day is to go on a coffee and chocolate tour. There’s a variety of coffee and cacao farms available, with North Fields Cafe ($40/adult) and Don Olivo Chocolate Tour ($30/adult) being the most popular.
On either tour, you’ll get to sample coffee, chocolate, and tropical fruit, while learning all about its cultivation process.
From tasting sugarcane to making your own chocolate bar, this is a great memorable experience to have in town.
7. Hike Arenal Volcano National Park
Arenal Volcano is one of the best places to go hiking in La Fortuna, besides the Mistico Hanging Bridges. This is a large conservation area at the base of Mount Arenal, Costa Rica’s most well-known and active volcano.
There’s several hiking trails throughout the park where you’ll have a great view of the volcano, lakes, old lava fields, and lots of wildlife. Entrance to the park costs $15-17/adult.
8. Visit Nearby Waterfalls
If you’re willing to drive a little over an hour outside of La Fortuna, there’s several stunning waterfalls. In the Bajos Del Toro area (1.5 hrs from La Fortuna), you can see Catarata del Toro and the seven Blue Falls.
Catarata del Toro is a gorgeous 270 ft waterfall, and the Blue Falls are a series of seven swimmable waterfalls with bright blue water. These waterfalls are located at the same entrance, and it costs $25 to visit all eight waterfalls.
I hiked to Catarata del Toro ($14/pp) on a rainy day, and it was a beautiful secluded hike, and intense workout, climbing down the 350 steps to the bottom viewpoint.
If you visit on a rainy day, make sure to wear water shoes with a good grip, and request to borrow an umbrella from the friendly staff members.
Another popular waterfall on the outskirts of Alajuela (1.5-2 hours from La Fortuna) is the La Paz Waterfall. You can view the La Paz waterfall for free from the side of the bridge, or do a self-guided tour of their waterfall gardens.
They have five waterfalls, a butterfly observatory, and zoo with everything from sloths to pumas and spider monkeys. Tickets for their self-guided tours start at $52/adult, or $32/residents.
9. Stroll around La Fortuna Park
La Fortuna Park is a wonderful park in the heart of town, with a church, well-kept gardens, and water fountains.
It’s very walkable, and there’s cafes, ice cream shops, souvenir stores, and several great restaurants and bars lining the streets.
This area has a great local vibe, and it’s one of the best places to watch the sunset over the Arenal Volcano.
10. Rappell Down A Waterfall
If you’re looking for an adventure, go waterfall rappelling. Rappelling is different to ziplining in that you’ll be descending down the face of a waterfall, rather than soaring over a zipline course.
You’ll get to rock climb up a canyon wall, descend down a waterfall, and cool off in the streams of the waterfall. If you don’t want to get wet, you can also go ziplining over the famous La Fortuna waterfall.
11. Visit The Arenal Butterfly Conservatory
The Arenal Butterfly Conservatory is a nature conservatory with botanical gardens, turtle ponds, frog exhibit, and a butterfly sanctuary with colorful butterflies at all stages of life.
This is a wonderful place to visit on a rainy day, and the admission fee is $20/person.
Also in the heart of town is La Fortuna’s Butterfly Sanctuary, a small charming butterfly garden. It’s run by a friendly local host that makes fresh fruit smoothies for guests, and admission is $18/person.
12. Explore The Venado Caves
If you’re interested in geology, tour the Venado Caves (~1 hour from La Fortuna). These are underground lava caves formed by old eruptions from Mount Arenal Volcano.
The caves stretch over 1.5 miles, and you’ll get to tour the inside wearing headlamps to see old lava flow patterns, unique rock formations, and an underground waterfall! Guided 4-hour tours of the cave cost around $80/person.
13. Visit Proyecto Asis
Proyecto Asis is an excellent wildlife sanctuary (~30 min from La Fortuna) that’s home to sloths, monkeys, scarlet macaws, toucans, and a variety of rescued animals.
They offer wildlife tours for $35/adult, sloth tours for $30/adult, and wildlife+volunteer tours for $60/adult.
On the volunteer tour, you’ll get to prepare food for the animals and learn all about their conservation efforts. This is a great way to see animals in their natural habitat while helping fund their conservation.
14. Go Whitewater Rafting In The Balsa River
Another fun and thrilling experience La Fortuna has to offer is whitewater river rafting. You can go whitewater rafting down class II and III rapids on the Balsa River, while spotting tons of wildlife surrounding the area.
The tour covers transportation from La Fortuna, fresh fruit, a traditional Costa Rican lunch and drinks.
La Fortuna Attractions
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