Established in 1972, the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve has largely been considered as one of Costa Rica’s most treasured places.
This 4,000 hectare (9884 acre) private reserve protects a very delicate and sadly diminishing ecosystem: the tropical cloud forests.
In this post, we will help you plan your visit to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve in Monteverde.
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Location
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is about 6 kilometers (3.5 miles) from downtown Santa Elena, a 15 minute drive.
Getting to Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is open every day from 730 AM to 4 PM. This excludes the guided night walk tours, which takes place after sunset at 530 PM.
You can find the reserve on Google Maps as “Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve.”
Driving
A high clearance car is highly recommended in the dry season to get to Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. A 4×4 is highly recommended in the rainy season.
Dry season months are from December through April. Rainy season months are May through November. Read more about Costa Rica weather here.
Check out our Costa Rica car rental discount to save some $$.
The Visitor Center: Parking and Shuttle
IMPORTANT: All visitors to the cloud forest must check in at the Harriot Powell Visitor Center FIRST. You can purchase park tickets here for self guided walks or collect the the tickets if you already bought tickets online.
The only exception are those who booked the night tour, they go directly to the reserve entrance.
The dedicated parking lot for Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is at the Harriot Powell Visitor Center, about 1 mile (1.7 km) to the reserve entrance.
The name of the reserve parking lot on Google Maps is “Parqueo Reserva Monteverde cloud Forest.” This is where every visitor must check in, in order to enter the reserve.
From this parking lot, they will shuttle you to the reserve entrance. The shuttle comes every 15 minutes from 730 AM to 245 PM. Parking costs $5 USD.
Return from the reserve to the parking lot is every 15 minutes from 745 AM to 430 PM.
Important: Some people still park on the side of the road near the reserve entrance. We do not recommend this as it blocks the road and it is not secure. Please be a responsible tourist and use the dedicated secure parking lot and shuttle.
Without A Car
There are a few ways to get to Monteverde Cloud Forest reserve if you do not have a rental car.
Tour: For a more enriching experience, book a Monteverde Cloud Forest guided tour with park tickets, transportation and bilingual guide included.
Taxi/Uber: There are lots of taxis in Santa Elena town center and around – look for the red taxis. We also saw a few Ubers during the day. Make sure to coordinate with them the time to pick you up.
Shared shuttle: Descubre Monteverde offers round trip shared shuttles from Santa Elena (hotels and meeting points) to the reserve. Can book via Whatsapp +506 6403 1805 and pay in cash or book on the website home page.
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Hours
The reserve is open everyday from 730 AM to 4 PM with the exception of the Monteverde Cloud Forest night tour clients, as the tour starts at 545 PM.
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Park Tickets
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve trail ticket for foreigners is $29 USD per person and $16 USD per child ages 6-11. Children 0-5 are free.
Park tickets can be purchased online on the Monteverde Cloud Forest website.
They offer park tickets for 3 circuits and you can only purchase tickets for the trail you want to hike. You must also choose the time you want to go and you will be not allowed in if you are late.
If you want to visit more than one trail, you must purchase a ticket for each trail. So if you want to hike all 3, the total price will be $87 USD per adult which is very expensive.
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Trails
There are three different trails: Essence Trail, Continental Divide and Heart of the Forest Trail.
Continental Divide Trail
The Continental Divide Trail is the longest in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, at 4 kilometers (2.5 miles), taking around 2.5 hours.
We took this trail to go to the viewpoint of the Continental divide, first via Sendero Nubloso to the La Ventana view point.
The trails are very well maintained and outlined and signage is excellent so it’s easy to find your way around.
This trail takes you to the viewpoint of the Continental divide where you can see the Pacific and Caribbean. Sendero Nubloso turns into sendero la Ventana.
The views at Sendero la Ventana are incredible. You can peek over to the side of the trail and look over the entire cloud forest reserve!
This is a view of the Caribbean side overlooking the forests.
This is a view towards the Pacific side.
Along the way, we ran into a couple of coatis on the trail.
About halfway through the trail, there are a lot of steps and it gets a bit steep.
You’ll come upon a short hanging bridge, a nice spot to rest and look around.
The bridge is not super long or high up so if you’re scared of heights, it is not too bad. The view is really nice and it can only hold up to 10 people. Don’t run or jump on the bridge.
Essence Trail
The Essence Trail is the easiest trail in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. It’s only 1.4 kilometers (.9 miles), taking about 1 hour.
This trail is great for those short on time, those who are not big in walking and those with younger kids or older adults with limited mobility.
The trail has really cool and very big ficus trees.
The end of this trail at Sendero Cuecha, has a small but pretty waterfall.
We didn’t see a ton of wildlife since we went by ourselves. We heard a lot of birds, saw a few hummingbirds and ran into a couple coatis.
Heart of the Forest Trail
The second trail is 2.8 kilometers long (1.7 miles) and takes about 1.5 hours. This trail has a little bit of the Continental Divide trail but it does not go to the view point.
It includes the hanging bridge and it is an easy to moderate walk.
Monteverde Cloud Forest Guided Vs Non Guided Walk
You can do either a guided or non guided walk through the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve.
We have done both and I recommend a guided Monteverde Cloud Forest tour for anyone who wants to learn more about the cloud forest.
Also, if you love trees, orchids, flowers, moss and that kind of nature, definitely book a guided walk for more informative and enriching experience.
We have done a Monteverde Cloud Forest guided day tour twice and both times were very interesting and informative. We saw a Resplendant Quetzal on our second guided walk which was really exciting!
Non Guided Walk
On a non-guided walk, we enjoyed walking at our own pace. Luckily we had great weather, so during our self guided walk, we soaked in all the views and took a lot of photos.
However, we didn’t see any wildlife even though we heard so many birds. I’m sure we missed a lot of animals and birds that a guide would have pointed out. But since the weather was so good, we loved walking on our own.
If you’re more interested in walking at your own pace and learning about the flora and fauna is not a priority, a self guided walk is fine. I recommend this especially if you’re visiting during the driest months like March and April.
If you’re visiting in the rainier months like June and August through December, then I highly recommend a guided Monteverde Cloud Forest tour even if it’s not your first priority.
Instead of getting disappointed that all it’s rainy and cloudy and that you can’t see anything, you’ll have a guide who can enrich your experience and point out things you’d definitely miss in the rain.
One of our guided walks was in December and it rained almost the whole time. But our guide was absolutely fantastic at pointing out the little things and giving us fascinating information.
We still enjoyed it a lot and didn’t feel like we wasted money. He also had such sharp eyes that he saw a Resplendant Quetzal in the rain!
Weather
The weather is very comfortable in dry season (December – April) with day time temperatures in the high 70s° F (25° C). There may be the occasional spring shower.
The driest month is generally February and March. In December, January and February, it can be very very windy.
During the rainy season (May through December), temperatures drop a bit. At night, it may go down to around 14° C (57° F).
Mornings and afternoons are generally still clear in the rainy season, even though there may be a bit of a drizzle. It generally rains hard late afternoons, evenings and nights.
The rainiest month is October and it can rain from morning to night, on and off. Be prepared!
What to Wear to Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve
Comfortable walking clothes like lightweight hiking pants or leggings. I personally recommend long pants, instead of shorts.
Bring a rain jacket shell, no matter what time of year you visit. We always bring our North Face Venture Jackets, just in case.
Good walking shoes or hiking shoes. If you visit during the rainy season, trails may be a bit muddy. Jason wore his waterproof Salomon trail running shoes. I wore my Salomon hiking shoes.
No sandals, flip flops, adventure sandals or flimsy sneakers. I saw a girl with Converse Chuck Taylors low tops once and her shoes got soo muddy and soggy since it was raining.
A hat or visor and sunscreen. In the dry season, it does get very sunny.
Hiking backpack or comfortable walking pack. In the rainy season, make sure your backpack is waterproof or you need to bring a rain cover.
Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Services
- There is a cafeteria and bathrooms at the entrance.
- No bathrooms inside the actual reserve on the trails. Only at the entrance.
- Stay on the trail and do not feed the wildlife.
- Mosquito repellent is not necessary but there are a lot of little gnats. Cover up or use a light repellent.
- If you are late and miss your time slot, they will not let you in.
- If you want to do more than one trail, you have to buy a ticket for each trail.
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Naxho says
Hello!!
We would like to know if booking one of the parta let you go into the others or we need to pay the 29$ for each of them? Can u explain us how that works in detail please?
Sammi says
Hi, yes of course, so it’s written in the post so now they do not offer a day pass anymore, you can only purchase tickets for the trail you want to hike.
Lizz Gravenberg says
Hello, Can you please tell me how to purchase the night hike tickets and do you think it is worth it to take a night hike in rainy weather ?
Sammi says
Hi Lizz, you can book the night tour on the Monteverde cloud forest reserve website if you have your own transportation or you can book a Monteverde cloud forest tour that includes transportation, entrance fee and guide, if you don’t have a rental car.
Tours will run rain or shine unless there is inclement weather like flooding, lightning storms, etc. to prevent the tour from running safely, but if its normal rain, the tour continues. It is completely possible to still see animals in the rain, frogs actually tend to come out more in the rain.
Anne Kessler says
What time to the Guided Tours begin?
Sammi says
Hi Anne, we work with a tour operator in Monteverde and they run two tours to the MOnteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Morning pick up is around 7 AM and afternoon pick up is around 1 PM. They also do a night walk, which starts around 530 PM.
Casey Fields says
How can I buy tickets online in advance for the train ride in Monteverde?
Kindly,
Casey Fields
Sammi says
Hi Casey I am not sure which train ride you are referring to
JH says
I love your blog! The Hubs & I used it when we visited Domenical/Uvita last year, and it was so helpful! This year, we’re spending 1.5 days in Monteverde, then 3-4 days in Nosara. Trying to figure out if we really need 2+ hours doing all those ziplines and dealing with the crowds at Selvatura?? (we did Manuel Antonio guided tour last year so I’m assuming it’s similar vibe?/similar animals?)
How/where else can we hike, do a zipline, walk one or two hanging bridges, and have a more relaxed natural experience? I do want to visit the sloth sanctuary at Selvatura, so we can just tack that on somewhere or visit on our way out of Monteverde the following day?
Sammi says
Selvatura Park isn’t a national park where Manuel Antonio National Park is, and the two places are very different since Selvatura has ziplining, hanging bridges, sloths and a reptile exhibit where as the Manuel Antonio National Park was the national park with hiking trails and beaches. The only places in Monteverde with a zipline and hanging bridges is Selvatura or Treetopia, I believe 100% Aventura also has their own hanging bridges but the first two are higher in elevation and has better views of the cloud forest.
Sarah Williamson says
If I purchased a night tour ticket ($26.00) that starts at 6 pm does that also include the entrance to the preserve, or do I also have to purchase an entrance ticket?
Sammi says
They said it includes the entrance for the night tour only and the guide. If you want to go during the day, you have to then buy the day pass, the night tour price does not include entrance during the day, only for the night tour.