As one of the most popular parks in Costa Rica, Manuel Antonio National Park is a must for visitors. This guided tour from San Jose makes visiting on a time crunch a cinch—your guide takes the guesswork out of deciding which trails are worth the effort, plus helps you spot wildlife along the way. This tour is specifically timed to avoid the crowds, too, helping you have the best possible experience exploring.

Manuel Antonio National Park tour from San Jose
Visit the park’s top attractions in just a day
Stop at attractions along the way, timing your hike for the afternoon
All transportation with hotel pickup and drop-off included

What's Included

Hotel pickup and drop-off (most San Jose area hotels)
Transport by air conditioned vehicle
National Park entrance fee
Breakfast & Lunch
Visits to Crocodile Bridge, scarlet macaw observation place, fruit stand & Jaco Beach look-out point
Professional bilingual guide

Gratuities
Services not specified

Meeting And Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Start time

06:00 am

Pickup details

Centrally located San Jose hotels. Hotel pickups commence at 6:00 a.m. approximately; the exact pickup time for your tour will be advised on a reconfirmation message.

What To Expect

Orotina

45 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Puente Río Tárcoles

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
May be operated by a multi-lingual guide
Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
A minimum of 2 people per booking is required

Walking is involved
Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
Drop off with luggage is available in the centrally located Manuel Antonio area Hotels.
Most travellers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travellers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveller Photos

Traveller Tips

Definitely be prepared for a ‘minimum’ of 6 hours more likely 8 hours of a 12 hour tour in a van driving.

Reviews

5.0

462 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travellers.

Showing 1-10 of 462 reviews

Manual Antonio Beach for Spring Break

Christie_G, Mar 2023

Drive from San Jose to Manuel Antonio national park was very long. The trip is advertised at 12 hours but it is impossible to make that time with a group of 12 people. We were one and a half hours late returning back to San Jose. The two meals were very enjoyable. Fernando was a wonderful guide who gave us lots of information about Costa Rica The nature hike to the beach was not very informative. The two beaches were very nice and the water was warm to swim in. It was a great experience.

Way too many people there...

Caryl_B, Mar 2023

Way too many people there so wildlife is not as plentiful! Tour was good and enjoyed the park but could have also gone around the corner to the more beautiful beach that we didn’t know about until we were leaving.

A must see Tour!

Ivy_B, Mar 2023

Harlem was an EXCELLENT tour guide! Very informative throughout the duration of the trip, very friendly & helpful when our group asked questions! It was a pleasure to spend the day with him! Excellent Tour! Highly recommend!

Awesome trip

Charmaine_D, Mar 2023

Bathing at the beach was awesome and the tour guide and driver were great Didn’t see enough animals. I have no more to say

Beautiful day trip, amazing nature

Erin_W, Feb 2023

This was a wonderful tour. I really enjoyed all the stops along the way, which made the trip getting there seem shorter. It’s a beautiful park and beach and probably the most amazing place I’ve ever been. I would definitely recommend.

Great experience

Maria_V, Feb 2023

Would like to spend more time on Manuel Antonio beach the view at dinner on the 6th floor restaurant was awesome

Manuel Antonio tour

Sue_P, Dec 2022

Alex our tour guide was great! He was so friendly. He wanted to make our Costa Rican experience worthwhile. He pointed out the animals inside Manuel Antonio, had great food and spent about two hours at the beach. We had breakfast and lunch included in the cost. Definitely worth it.

Wonderful Manuel Antonio!

Nuvia_M, Dec 2022

My visit to Manuel Antonio National Park! Enjoyed the beach and loved seeing sloths, monkeys, and all kinds of birds! Our knowledgeable, respectful, and pleasant guide/driver, Alex Blanco, made our experience just beautiful!

Unforgettable day at Manuel Antonio

Jeremy_W, Aug 2022

My wife and I had an amazing time on this trip. A long day, packed with activities and new experiences, but completely worth it in every way. Oscar was a wonderful guide. We saw tons of amazing wildlife, including scarlet macaws, squirrel monkeys, sloths, toucans, iguanas, and much more. Crocodile bridge was cool, too. Breakfast and lunch were wonderful, and the national park was stunning. Would recommend to anyone without hesitation.

Worthwhile excursion.

Darren_W, Aug 2022

Long day but worth it. Nice stops along the way, breakfast and lunch tasty treats. The rainforest was great with lots of nature to see. We were lucky to see sloths, monkeys, lizards, insects and a snake! Guide was good although being the only person who did not speak Spanish was limiting as the guide spoke in Spanish throughout whilst this was supposedly an English tour.

A day at the beach and so much more !

Terri_D, Aug 2022

A great day! Oscar was professional and in tune with the local community where ever we went. The beach was wonderful. Dinner had the best view ever. Well worth it!

Very Long Drive, But Worth It

Jasmine_A, July 2022

Of all the day trips we went on this was the one I was looking forward to the most, but sadly, this is also the one I liked the least. While we followed the itinerary to the tee, in real time it is a bit grueling. My daughter (5) and I were picked up at around 5:30am by our awesome guide, Fernando, (he was funny, and friendly, and knew so much about Costa Rican history, economics, and geography!)after about an hour or so we stopped at a fruit stand for a short lesson on Costa Rican fruit and we were allowed to sample some fruit this lasted about 15 mins, then we went to the restuaruant where we had what I believe to be the best breakfast we had during our entire stay in Costa Rica. Next, we went to the crocodile bridge, which did offer viewing of some amazing looking crocodiles, but that bridge was incredibly scary (we are up at least 100-150 ft, and the railing was a bit short with large gaps that my 5 year old and myself could've easily slipped through) I took one photo then rushed my daughter off of the bridge lol. Next, we stopped at a beach to see some scarlet macaws, which were absolutley beautiful. At this point it had been about 4 hours since we were picked up and I really just wanted to get to Manuel Antonio, but we had another 15 minute stop at a beach lookout. I felt that since we were going to a beach already that stopping at the lookout was a bit annoying, then after we left the lookout point we pulled over for about 10 minutes to wait for another group. Before this point we had crossed paths with another group that were following the same itinerary as us but until then I hadn't realized that we were supposed to be with them all day. They were behind so we had to wait for them to catch up. Once they caught up to us we all had to get out of the vans to take a group photo for the guides to show to "the boss". After hours in the car I was not in the mood... Once we arrived at Manuel Antonio, at around 11:30 we had to wait for the other group for a few minues again..... seriously, couldn't we all have just rode there together in one bus instead of 2 vans if we had to stay together? We hiked to the beach for about 35-45 minutes and once the group arrives at the beach, 2 hours from there is your scheduled lunch time (that 2 hours includes beach time, showering and changing, then hiking back to the entrance of the park, so really only about an hour of beach time). My daughter and I were a bit hungry once we arrived so once they released us we got a slice of pizza and some ice cream from the small cafe near the beach. (we actually saw more animals on our walk back to the cafe then on the whole hike lol) We saw monkeys, deer, iguanas, geckos and crabs. The beach was beautiful, the food at the cafe was great, and lunch was great as well. The lunch venue was very luxurious and had a great view! We left Manuel Antonio at around 4pm and arrived back at our hotel at about 8:30 pm. So while the trip was itself was great the time spent in the car was a bit taxing and way too many stops on the way.

Great wildlife day out with great guide/driver

Robert_R, July 2022

Great day out with fantastic guide and driver who were really enjoyable to be with. They were always willing to help and showed their love of Costa Rica - Real ambassadors. I took this tour as it included the park and other stops showing various wildlife and it did not disappoint. My daughter and myself enjoyed every minute even though it was a long day. The guide also what's app his pictures after the tour which was an added bonus. Remember to bring swimming costumes as there is time to see the park and swim/paddle

A Must Do Tour from San Jose!

Ash_Y, June 2022

Our tour experience was magnificent! I loved each stop - the fruit stand, breakfast, scarlet macaw viewing, crocodile bridge, and the incredible park! Manual Antonio was a wonderful adventure and our guide (Oscar) was fun, informative, and dedicated to helping us see the animals we hoped to spot. With the park being a decent distance from San Jose, the stops along the way broke it up in a way that allowed us to experience more of Costa Rica. I highly suggest this tour and think it's worth every single penny. I tried new fruits I never had before, drank delicious coconut water (bought at a roadside stand) and saw nearly every single animal people seek out in Costa Rica (except for very serious birders, of course). Thank you to the wonderful guide for putting this together!

Great if you love wildlife but ...

angela_m, June 2022

This was a fun excursion if your into wildlife. However, I thought we would have more time than one hour at the beach. I was really disappointed about that but the lunch was amazing.

100% worth the trip

Heber_M, May 2022

Pickup was prompt and on time. Our breakfast stop was really good we had gallo pinto with carne en salsa. We also stopped by a local fruit stand where we bought the best pineapple I’ve had. The national park was huge and really interesting, we got to see some capucha monkeys and lots of sloths and iguanas. The beach was exactly like the pictures blue water and green wildlife all around. Our lunch stop was delicious we had Pollo achiotado with a tropical fruit drink. 10/10 would recommend this tour to anyone considering it

Fun trip but missed out half the stops advertised

Kurt_M, May 2022

We had a polite and friendly driver and Manuel Antonio park was beautiful. However we do feel the trip was not what was advertised and certainly not worth the money that we paid. We didn't have the professional guide that was advertised and we didn't stop at Tarcoles Beach or the Jaco Beach look out point, even after asking the driver multiple times if we could follow the itinerary that we paid for. We booked this trip as we really wanted to have a chance to see some Scarlett Macaws, luckily for us there was a pair of Macaws in a tree on our first stop at the crocodile bridge. We really wanted to proceed with the other two stops. After crocodile bridge we drove straight to Manuel Antonio national park. The park was beautiful however when we got there our driver walked with us and encouraged us to tag onto other tours which other visitors to the park had paid for, this was quite embarrassing to be honest. When we did see a lizard he asked us to share our binoculars with him and the rest of the group, we were happy to do so but felt ripped off considering every other tour guide in the park had their own high quality telescope for their groups. When we asked the driver if a guide was joining us or if he had any equipment with him, he said the guide for our day was sick and head office asked him to do the best he could; the guide would usually bring a telescope to help spot wildlife and provide information to the group. We totally appreciate that this was not the drivers fault, he definitely tried his best but it was very obvious he was out of his depth and lost at points. He was on his phone for 90% of the trip even whilst driving. It was obvious he didn't know where he was going at times. We would have appreciated better customer service or more honesty from the beginning - maybe a choice on whether we still wanted to attend the trip or a discount. We have done many tours during our vacation in Costa Rica, all except this one have been absolutely amazing and excellent value for money with very knowledgeable tour guides. This tour was the most expensive and the worst value for money we basically payed $250 for a shuttle to Manuel Antonio park with breakfast and lunch. We could have organised a private shuttle ourselves for less money!

We had the best tour guide (Francisco) and group of travelers on this tour!!!

MarieJane_Y, Mar 2022

We had the best tour guide (Francisco) and group of travelers on this tour. Francisco made sure we have an enjoyable experience from start to finish.

Best tour in Costa Rica

Brenda_L, Mar 2022

This was my favorite tour in Costa Rica! Manuel Antonio National Park is beautiful. Lunch provided was one of the best I had while in CR. Francisco was great. He answered all of our questions and also made the tour fun.

Good trip but the 5:15 AM...

Machel_B, Mar 2022

Good trip but the 5:15 AM pick up was definitely extreme. You buy ticket, it says 6 AM but then they demand 24 hours before trip for you to be ready at 5:15 am. I didn't like that... The driver was a cool guy though for the most part. I asked him to meet me in parking lot for lunch and he left me there to find the lunch spot on my own. When I caught up he said about agreeing to meet me but not showing up, "It was easy though." Outside of that good trip though so I give it average. However I gave it 4 stars because the guy begged us to give him a good review.