One of the greatest things about visiting Playas del Coco is that you’re close to many attractions.
It’s an excellent home base to explore Guanacaste and there are many day trips from Playas del Coco to choose from, such as rainforest, waterfalls, volcanoes and surfing beaches.
If you’re looking for some things to do from Coco, here are our favorite day trips from Playas del Coco.
If you are interested in any of these tours, please contact us and we will be happy to assist you.
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Day Trips from Playas del Coco Map
Click here to go our interactive map of all attractions listed below.
Catarata Llanos de Cortes
Llanos de Cortes is one of our favorite waterfalls in the country and we always bring our friends and family here.
It’s a big beautiful waterfall with multiple cascades and a large pool to swim in.
It’s about a hour drive from Coco and you can read our Catarata Llanos de Cortes guide.
Travel tip: We like to go to this waterfall in the morning, spend a few hours, have lunch in Liberia and then go to Diamante Eco Adventure Park for ziplining in the afternoon.
Another option is to hike the short boiling mud pots trail at Rincon de la Vieja National Park in the morning and then go to this waterfall in the afternoon.
Adventure Combo Tour
If you’re looking for adventure and excitement, you have to do a combo adventure tour. It’s one of the best day trips from Playas del Coco.
There are several parks about an hour and drive from Playas del Coco Coco that you can choose from.
Each one has slightly different activities and they are all incredibly fun!
Guachipelin combo tour consists of a canopy tour, white water tubing, horseback riding, waterfalls, and a separate hot spring and mud baths. Read more about it our post – Guachipelin Combo Tour.
Buena Vista combo tour has a canopy tour, waterslide, horseback riding, waterfall, hanging bridges and their own hot spring and mud baths. You can read more about it in this Buena Vista adventure combo tour post.
Borinquen is located on a hotel and they have their own canopy, hiking trails, spa, mud baths, hot springs, and waterfall. Find out more about Borinquen on Day 2 in this article.
There is also Rio Perdido that offer similar activities. We did the river tubing and hot springs at Rio Perdido and it was really fun. The hot springs and pools were amazing.
Rainforest Sloth Tour
Want to see the tropical rainforest and sloths in the wild? Then this day trip is perfect for you! You’ll walk through a private reserve with primary rainforest and then go to a second reserve to find sloths.
You can read our article on this Guanacaste rainforest sloth tour and watch our video of it below!
Only a 2 hour drive one way from Coco.
Rincon de la Vieja National Park
If you like to hike, Rincon de la Vieja National Park is an excellent place for hiking.
The Las Pailas sector (1 hour and 20 minute drive) has several trails of various levels, perfect for a nice day of hiking to see beautiful scenery.
For a shorter hike, do the boiling mud pots hike (~1 mile) which goes around the mud pots.
You can see the steaming mud pots bubbling and boiling and smell the sulfur from the active volcano.
For a longer hike, we highly recommend the Catarata La Cangreja trail. It is about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) each way, going through the tropical dry forest and ending at a gorgeous waterfall!
That waterfall hike is one of our favorites in Costa Rica.
If you want something more adventurous and off the beaten path, check out the Catarata La Leona waterfall in Curubande.
It’s very close to Rincon de la Vieja National Park but is a more local, not as well known park.
Explore Beaches
There are a few different places you can beach hop from Coco. This is why we recommend to rent a car in Guanacaste (Playas del Coco) because there are SO many gorgeous, non touristy beaches that you can find only by car.
Remember, it is also best to rent a 4×4 in rainy season if you plan to explore!
Closest to Coco: Playa Ocotal, Playa Hermosa, Playa Panama. These beaches are just a 5-15 minute drive away.
“Hidden beaches” (must have 4×4 car): Playa Cabuyal, Playa Iguanita, Playa Bonita
1 hour drive away: Playa Conchal, Playa Brasilito, Playa Grande, Playa Flamingo, Playa Avellanas.
Read about the best beaches in Guanacaste here.
Tamarindo Surfing/Sightseeing
If you’re interested in taking a surf class, head to Tamarindo, the best beach for beginners and first timers.
It’s a 1.5 hour drive south and you will get to experience another popular beach town in Costa Rica.
If you’re not interested in a surf lesson, you can sight see, walk around town, go souvenir shopping and enjoy happy hour.
Witch’s Rock (Roca Bruja) Surfing
If you’re an intermediate to advanced surfer, you will definitely want to take a trip to Witch’s Rock.
This iconic surf spot in Costa Rica is an absolute MUST for any surf fanatic!
This spot is inside Santa Rosa National Park and is about a 45 minute boat ride one way from Playas del Coco. There are several companies who run surf trips to Witch’s Rock (please contact us if you’d like a quote).
Rio Celeste (Tenorio Volcano National Park
One of the most magical places in Costa Rica is right at the Guanacaste/Alajuela border, Rio Celeste.
It is a sky blue river inside the Tenorio Volcano National Park and visitors can hike through the park to see the waterfall and blue river.
It’s about a 2 hour drive from Playas del Coco and it’s one of the must visit places in Costa Rica. You can hike the park on your own, you do not have to have a guide.
If you do not have your own transportation, please contact us to assist you with booking a tour with roundtrip transportation, bilingual guide and park ticket included.
Ostional Wildlife Refuge
If you want to see turtles in Costa Rica, head to Ostional Wildlife Refuge about a two hour drive from Playas del Coco.
This is one of the most important locations in the world for Olive Ridley sea turtles since hundreds of thousands of mothers come to this area to lay their eggs.
The best time to see turtles is during green season on an arribada, the period of time where majority of mothers come to shore.
If you go during an arribada, you can see thousands of turtles crawling onto shore, digging holes and laying eggs.
You can also see baby turtles hatching and crawling out to sea.
The big arribadas are generally from July – December in Ostional.
You must have reservations and go with a guide to enter the refuge. Contact the Ostional Guide Association via their Facebook page to make reservations.
Tip: It is highly recommended to have a 4×4/4wd to visit Ostional from Coco due to road conditions.
Read more about Ostional Wildlife Refuge here.
Palo Verde National Park
Palo Verde National Park is one of the most important parks in the country since it contains an endangered ecosystem in Central America, the tropical dry forest.
This forest is home to thousands of birds and other wildlife.
Take a boat ride down the Rio Tempisque to see crocodiles, birds, iguanas, frogs and monkeys and the 15 different kinds of habitats.
It’s about an hour and a half drive from Playas del Coco. You can read more about Palo Verde National Park here.
Tours: There are no boat tours offered or guides for hire right at the park. You will need to arrange an excursion with a tour company that includes transportation. If you have your own car, you can arrange to meet the tour company at the park.
You can read details in the link above or contact us to help you arrange the boat tour.
Hacienda El Viejo
If you want to add more activities or want a more intimate/exclusive experience, head to Hacienda El Viejo Wetlands.
They offer boat rides down the same Tempisque River in their own private wildlife refuge that borders the Palo Verde National Park, a cultural tour, birding experience, brewery tour and a rum tour.
That way, you can have a full day of nature, culture and wildlife.
Highly recommended if you have a rental car and want to experience more of Guanacaste! We offer a small discount for Hacienda El Viejo which you can get in that link.
Diamante Adventure Park
Want some adventure for your trip? Go ziplining! Diamante Eco Adventure Park (get 10% off in the link) is only a 30 minute drive from Playas del Coco.
It has one of the best canopy tours in Costa Rica, including a 1+ kilometer superman zipline with an ocean view!
When you finish the zipline, you end up in the animal sanctuary where you can see jaguars, sloths, toucans and many more animals.
Walk through the botanical garden back up to the main station for beautiful views of the Guanacaste coast.
Now they have a cultural experience where you can watch a short presentation of Costa Rican coffee, sugar cane and chocolate.
This is definitely one of the best day trips from Playas del Coco for families and travelers of all ages. Plus, it’s less than a 1 hour drive.
This is also one of the best things to do at the Riu Guanacaste Hotel since it is literally right next to it.
Snorkeling/Scuba Diving/Boating
Our personal favorite excursion from Playas del Coco is a private boat trip in the Gulf of Papagayo.
We always arrange a tour with our visiting friends and family because it’s truly the best way to experience the stunning Gulf of Papagayo.
Snorkel, visit hidden white sand beaches and see marine wildlife like dolphins, turtles, rays and humpback whales.
We recommend a private boating tour because you will have the boat just for your group, you make your own schedule and have a much more personal, exclusive experience.
The open sailing tours are nice as well but they only go to one beach and you share the boat with anywhere from 20-70 other people.
If you’re interested in a private boat trip, we recommend going with our friend Marcy. He owns his own boating company and can take you on boating, surfing, fishing, snorkeling and beach hopping to the best spots.
Read more about boating in Playas del Coco and request a quote.
Scuba Diving
If you are a scuba diver, the scuba diving in this part of the country is excellent. You can go out on a boat to Monkey Head, Tortuga Islands and the Bat Islands to dive with hammerhead sharks and huge manta rays.
Even if you don’t have your certification, that’s ok! Shops offer discovery dives for those who aren’t certified.
There are several dive shops in Coco such as Rich Coast Diving, Summer Salt, Rocket Frog and Deep Blue Dive.
La Fortuna/Arenal Volcano
La Fortuna is a very popular and beautiful destination in Costa Rica. If you decide not to spend any nights in La Fortuna, you can take a day trip to see Arenal Volcano.
Most day trips include a short walk to see the volcano, lunch and hot springs. It is a very long day as it is a 4 hour drive one way, so be prepared.
If you can, we recommend you to stay a night or two in the area. One day is really too short and can be very tiring to experience La Fortuna.
Check out this 1 week Playas del Coco and La Fortuna itinerary to help you plan your trip!
White Water Rafting
About a 1.5 hour drive from Playas del Coco is the Tenorio River where you can go white water rafting through Class 2, 3 and 4 rapids.
It’s an exhilarating day out in the rainforest and you’ll get to experience one of the best outdoor adventures in Costa Rica!
Where to stay in Playas del Coco
Hotel Puerto del Sol. This hotel is very close to the beach and town. It is renovated and has a pool, restaurant and fairly spacious rooms.
Toro Blanco is a 2 minute walk to the beach with air conditioning and a pool.
Hopefully this list gave you some ideas of the amazing day trips from Playas del Coco. If you need recommendations for tour companies, please contact us.
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Debbie Carlston says
Thank you! I really appreciate all of the information you share.
Rachel says
Hello thank you so much for this information it is very helpful! Do you know if there is mountain biking near coco, and if so are there bike rentals? We are considering bringing our two year old. What would be the best activities for young children? Thank you for your time!
Sammi says
There are bike rentals but they’re like banana bikes. For mountain biking, you will need to drive a little bit like 1.5 hours, up in the Rincon de la Vieja area there is some great mountain biking and you can visit Hacienda Guachipelin or Rio Perdido, they offer bike rentals and biking tours.
Angela says
Hello! Can you recommend a tour company to take us on a day trip to Arenal from Playas del Coco?
Sammi says
Hello Angela, yes can you please fill out the form on this page here and we’ll get back to you: https://mytanfeet.com/contact-us/