Every list of Costa Rica's best places contains the same six entries in a different order. The order is not the useful part — which one suits you is, and that depends on what you want more than on what is objectively best.
If it is your first visit
Arenal, 36.1 nautical miles from San José. Volcano, hot springs, bridges, waterfalls. The most variety in the smallest area, and the easiest to enjoy without planning.
Manuel Antonio, 33.4 nautical miles. The easiest wildlife in the country. Busy, and worth it anyway the first time.
These two in a week is the standard trip and it is standard because it works.
If you have been before
The Osa, via Drake Bay at 83.5 nautical miles. The wildest place in the country and the one people return for.
Tortuguero, 53.4 nautical miles, with no road at all. Canals rather than trails and a completely different Costa Rica.
The Caribbean coast, culturally distinct and mostly ignored by first-time itineraries.
If you want one thing specifically
Surf: Guanacaste at 86.9 nautical miles or Santa Teresa. Cloud forest: Monteverde, understanding it is cool and wet. Quiet: Nosara, the far south, or the Caribbean off-season. Wildlife density: the Osa, with nothing close second. A resort: Guanacaste or Papagayo, done properly.
The two that are overrated for a first trip
Said plainly, because a list without this is not worth reading.
Monteverde, for visitors who wanted the tropics. It is genuinely special and it is cold, wet and grey, and travellers who booked it expecting rainforest are regularly disappointed.
And Tortuguero outside turtle season, when the canals are lovely and the reason most people went is not there.
Neither is bad. Both are frequently booked by people who would have preferred somewhere else, which is a different criticism.
The one people skip and should not
Rincón de la Vieja, from Guanacaste. Mud pots, waterfalls, hiking and almost nobody, attached to a coast most visitors are already going to.
The one that is not a destination
San José gets written off in most lists, and mostly fairly: few visitors come here for the capital.
But it is where the country's museums, its food scene and its actual daily life are, and an afternoon in the Barrio Escalante or at the pre-Columbian gold collection is a better use of a weather-bound day than a fourth volcano photograph.
Treat it as somewhere to spend half a day rather than somewhere to avoid, and the arrival and departure days stop being dead time.
How to actually choose
Pick by what you want to do in the mornings. Wildlife means the Osa or the central Pacific. Water means a coast. Walking means the highlands. Nothing means a resort.
Then check what reaching it costs you, because that is what decides whether it fits your itinerary rather than your preferences. Tortuguero and the Osa cost the most and repay it if you have the days. We show a "from" price per route; the final fare depends on the date, the group and the baggage, and is confirmed in writing before booking. The specific aircraft is assigned on confirmation, based on passenger count, baggage and the destination field.
The season overlay
We fly year-round. In the rainy season the pilot in command decides; if weather stops a flight, it is rescheduled at no cost. The ranking shifts by month. Guanacaste is at its best December to April and its dullest in October; the Caribbean is the reverse; the Osa is wet whenever you go and best for wildlife when it is wettest.
Frequently asked
Where should I go on a first trip?
Arenal and Manuel Antonio. It is the standard pairing because it works.
What do returning visitors go back for?
The Osa, Tortuguero and the Caribbean coast — all three mostly missing from first itineraries.
Which places are overrated for a first visit?
Monteverde for anyone expecting the tropics, and Tortuguero outside turtle season.
Which is most often skipped unfairly?
Rincón de la Vieja: mud pots, waterfalls and hiking, attached to a coast most visitors already plan to see.
How do I choose between them?
By what you want to do in the mornings, then by what reaching each one costs you in days.
Does the answer change by month?
Yes. Guanacaste peaks December to April, the Caribbean does the opposite, and the Osa is best for wildlife when it is wettest.
Plan it with us
See also: National parks · Best beaches · Osa and Corcovado · Monteverde · All destinations · Coffee regions