Whether you’re coming to Costa Rica to lay on the beach, hike up a mountain or embrace your adventurous spirit, which pair of shoes you bring can make or break a trip.
This post will tell you which are the best shoes for Costa Rica and which shoes you should bring for your trip.
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Best Shoes for Costa Rica
We personally recommend closed toed hiking sandals and trail running shoes for Costa Rica. We’ve traveled extensively throughout the country and I’ll tell you why below.
Hiking Sandals
Yeison and I love our closed toed hiking sandals. They are excellent for going from land to water, dry fast and let your feet breathe. Specifically, we really like our KEEN sandals.
Yeison and I both have a pair of Newport H2 and have used them for years. They’re not cheap but are worth the money. If you buy KEENs, buy a half size smaller as they do stretch out. The Whisper and Astoria are two other models besides the Newport H2 that are very good.
However, there are other excellent hiking sandals like Hi-Tec (used to have these before KEEN), Teva, Clarks (love their shoes, so comfortable), Chacos and Merrell.
One downside to hiking sandals is that little rocks can sneak in there easily but I love that my feet can breathe and I don’t have to carry around wet socks.
Tip: Make sure to read about Costa Rica weather as some places tend to rain more than others.
Closed VS Open Toed Hiking Sandals
One of the questions we get a lot is “Which is better: open or closed toed hiking sandals?” They’re both great but let me tell you why we recommend closed toed hiking sandals.
The difference is in protection. Obviously with open toed shoes, your toes aren’t covered and are vulnerable to getting stubbed and poked. It’s easy to accidentally kick a rock when you’re walking, get a thorny branch stuck between your toes or worse, be bitten by ants. Not all hiking trails are well maintained in Costa Rica and ants are everywhere, so closed toed shoes are better in our opinion.
With closed toed shoes, you have a sturdy toe bumper and more coverage. For many activities in Costa Rica, they require closed toed shoes so in general, they are better than open toed.
Flip flops are the best shoes for the beach in Costa Rica.
Sneakers
We mostly wear sneakers in the city. Sneakers aren’t the best shoes for Costa Rica when it comes to outdoor activities. This is because many adventure activities involve water, dirt or mud but sneakers don’t have the best traction nor are they waterproof.
If you’re doing mostly sightseeing and nothing hardcore, sneakers are fine.
Trail Running Shoes
For a completely covered shoe, bring trail running shoes or an all-terrain shoe that is light, breathable, protects against mud and dirt and has a good grip. Yeison recently bought a pair of Salomon trail running shoes that are amazing. They’re GORE-TEX waterproof, have excellent grip and traction and are lightweight yet high performance.
I personally have a pair of Nike trail running shoes. They’re not as good as Yeison’s Salomons though because they aren’t waterproof.
You can definitely bring waterproof trail running shoes instead of closed toed hiking sandals and sneakers.
Hiking Boots
Hiking boots aren’t really necessary for most of the tourist attractions in Costa Rica but there are a couple of places where they are recommended instead of trail running shoes or hiking sandals.
Specifically, you will need hiking boots if you plan to go to Chirripo. This is the tallest hike in Costa Rica and the mountain goes up 12, 000 feet in elevation so you need a sturdy pair of hiking shoes.
Additionally, if you’re bringing hiking boots, we recommend a waterproof pair. That area tends to rain more and you may cross streams.
Another place hiking boots are recommended are Corcovado National Park, specifically if you plan to hike to Sirena station, Leona or San Pedrillo. 100% necessary to have waterproof ones in rainy season.
Yeison has a pair of tall KEEN Targhee waterproof hiking shoes (in the picture) which he wore crossing several rivers to a waterfall and his socks stayed 100% dry. I have a pair of waterproof Salomon hiking shoes which I love. I bring these ones whenever I need a waterproof closed shoe.
Tip: Bring a pair of long wick dry socks to protect your skin and keep your feet from feeling too stuffy.
Rain boots
You don’t need rain boots in Costa Rica but there are a couple of places that you may need them.
We wore rain boots at the San Pedrillo station in Corcovado National Park because it poured rain the night before and the trails were incredibly muddy. We crossed several small rivers and streams and the rain boots protected against all of the elements.
Initially, we were going to wear our hiking shoes but thankfully our hotel, Casa Corcovado Jungle Lodge provided rain boots. We were up to our ankles in mud in some places!
For rain boots, you don’t necessarily need to bring them. They are sold at most hardware stores for cheap and then you can give them away when you leave Costa Rica so you don’t have to take them back home with you.
Rain boots are also useful in Tortuguero National Park and Rio Celeste if it visiting in very rainy months like April, September, October and November. (You can find them for rent outside these two national parks).
Water Shoes
Water shoes are an excellent option if you don’t want to purchase a pair of closed toed hiking sandals just for Costa Rica. The hiking sandals aren’t cheap so if you don’t think you’ll use the sandals again, water shoes are the next best option.
Water shoes are cheaper, work perfectly for activities like rafting, tubing and horseback riding and are easy to carry in luggage. You can also purchase them here in Costa Rica. A lot of supermarkets carry water shoes.
You could bring water shoes + sneakers/trail running shoes.
Extra tips
- Before putting on your shoes, and shake it out to get rid of any unwelcome visitors. Scorpions, snakes and other critters like to call shoes home sometimes
- If you’re coming in rainy season, see what other essential gear you should bring in our packing for rainy season in Costa Rica post. Or our general Costa Rica packing list post.
- If you’re going to Corcovado National Park, ask your hotel if they provide rain boots. Most of the luxury hotels do.
- We recommend to bring two pairs of outdoor shoes so in case one gets wet, you will always have another dry pair.
Bottom Line
If you’re planning to do a lot of activities like white water rafting, tubing, ziplining, long hikes, canyoning, horseback riding, etc. then we recommend you to bring a pair of waterproof trail running shoes.
For lighter activities like snorkeling, boating, tubing, easy hikes, hanging bridges, kayaking and sightseeing, closed toed hiking sandals work great. You can bring sneakers + the closed toed hiking sandals.
If you’re mostly sightseeing, sneakers work. And if you plan to do sightseeing with one or two outdoor adventures, sneakers + water shoes work (no intense hikes).
For more intense hikes, waterproof trail running shoes or hiking shoes.
Jill says
Hi Sammi!
I bought my tickets to SJO yesterday and am leaving today, so haven’t really had much time to prepare! Is there anywhere good in San Juan to buy closed-toed hiking sandals?
Thank you, your blog is a godsend!
Best,
Jill
Sammi says
There are many malls in San Jose, you can check at the stores there.
Eileen says
Hi! We’re planning our honeymoon to Costa Rica for July 14th-29th and I’m very conflicted on shoes! Haha, maybe I’m overthinking things.
We’re going to La Fortuna, Uvita, and Santa Theresa. We plan on doing a hike at Arenal volcano, ziplining, hanging bridges, snorkeling at Cano Island, horseback riding, ATVs, waterfalls. So I was thinking of getting closed toed hiking sandals like Keens. But we’re also doing a day trip from Uvita to Corcovado (San Pedrillo station). Do you think we need hiking boots for that? Or would the Keen sandals work well enough?
I don’t know if it’s worth it to buy both types of shoes, but I also don’t want to be wearing hiking boots for all the other activities. Any advice??
Thanks!
Sammi says
For Corcovado, I would wear fully closed shoes, the trail is well marked but there are ants and other bugs that it would just be safer with closed toed shoes. The Arenal Volcano hike would be better with fully closed shoes since you do walk through lava rocks and things like that. For the other activities, you could bring water shoes instead.
Eileen says
Thanks!! Your blog has been so helpful!
Carolyn says
hi!
we will be visiting La Fortuna in January and the activities we have booked include: hanging bridges, waterfalls, volcano hike, ziplining and canyoning.
Any thoughts on these closed toe hiking sandals vs keen?
Sammi says
Those shoes will be great for your activities. Just note at the hanging bridges they do require fully closed shoes but if you wear those, you just have to sign a waiver.
Jenny Bublitz says
Thanks for the great blog!!! We will be hiking (trails with a guide) in Monte Verde and Arenal in late September. I’m assuming trails will be muddy? If so, do you recommend a certain shoe that holds up well in the mud and wet conditions? Thanks!!
Sammi says
I would recommend the closed toed hiking sandal so it’s easy to wash and can go through mud/dirt/water to land easily. If you wear hiking shoes/boots, it would be best to have waterproof ones so you don’t have to deal with muddy and soggy socks or ruining your shoes if they get very muddy/wet. It does rain quite hard in those areas in late September so definitely check our Rainy season packing list Costa Rica
Sofiya says
Hello! Thank you for the wonderful blog. I’m going to Puerto Viejo (Limon province) in April and going to hike in area parks. I’d like to get hiking sandals,but I’m very afraid of spider and snake bites. Would you recommend getting hiking boots instead, or do you think I would be okay with the sandals?
Thank you!
Sammi says
Hi Sofiya! If you go to Cahuita National Park, the trail is very well maintained and defined, just make sure to not to stray off the path but you don’t need hiking boots. Snake and spider bites are not very common in Costa Rica honestly, unless you’re going out in to a remote jungle on a non defined trail, snake bites are very rare. Closed toed hiking sandals are great and let your feet breathe, but if you’re planning to hike like, in the Talamanca mountain range or somewhere more remote and rural, then hiking shoes/boots are the best choice. If you’ll just be in Cahuita National Park, Gandoca or around Puerto Viejo, hiking boots aren’t mandatory. I saw people walking through Cahuita with flip flops.
Joanna says
Hi there, is it a crazy idea to bring YALOX water shoes? The second half of our trip to Costa Rica will be in La Fortuna for the waterfalls, hot springs and zip lining. Would those kind of shoes be a bad idea?
Thank for all you tips and advice here!!
Sammi says
Hi Joanna! They would work for beach, hot springs and waterfall but if you’re doing any walking or hiking, I wouldn’t wear them. Ziplining is probably ok since you’re not walking that much and it’s all on platforms but if you plan to go to a national park for hiking, or something that involves walking for long periods of time not in water, I wouldn’t wear water shoes.
Matt says
Hi Sammi-
Thanks for the article. Recently moved to Guanacaste and actually on the hunt for *indoor* shoes! Need something with some arch support to wear around the house. Anywhere to get Crocs or something similar in Guanacaste?
Sammi says
I’d try the stores in Liberia but Crocs are pretty expensive here, if you don’t want to pay like double what they normally cost in the US, you can find the cheap knock offs.
Veronique Turmel says
We will visit the regions of Tortuguero, Arenal, Monteverde and Manuel Antonio next March with the children and we want to reduce the luggage. What shoes do you recommend to bring?
Thanks
Sammi says
I recommend the closed toed hiking sandals and bring some socks in case they get cold up in Monteverde since Monteverde is colder and higher in elevation. Tortuguero and Manuel Antonio are super humid and hot.
Ken says
We are going to Arenal (Hanging Bridges, La Fortuna waterfall), Monterverde (coffee trails, cloud forest walk, sky tram) & Manuel Antonio(National Park & Beach) in first week of July. Trying not to overpack…..so wondering whether flip flops and a hiking show would suffice. Don’t own a hiking shoe…with4 in the family…trying to be budget friendly. Thought and recommendations?
Sammi says
Hi Ken, you can wear normal tennis shoes (you don’t really need hiking shoes, none of those places require actual hiking shoes since the trails are all nicely maintained and super flat/easy to walk.) It’ll be stuffy and not as practical as hiking sandals but they will work. You can even wear flip flops to Manuel Antonio NP, you don’t need hiking shoes.
Wendy says
I’m going to CR in May and visiting Arenal and Manuel Antonio. We’re not planning to do any activities, just hiking the parks. Can I get by with just bring sneakers? I didn’t want to buy new shoes as I’m not sure how often we’ll use them after this trip. Should I bring rubber boots as an alternative for waterproof shoes? Or should I really just invest in some waterproof hiking shoes like Keens?
Sammi says
You can definitely wear just sneakers to Arenal and Manuel Antonio. It’s just fairly humid in Manuel Antonio so the hiking sandals will be more comfortable and let you feet breathe (also easier to put on after you go in the water). You can also wear flip flops to Manuel Antonio too since the trails are nicely laid out. You don’t need rubber boots at all.
Sammi says
I would definitely recommend a closed toe hiking shoes, especially for a night tour and ziplining. It’ll give you more security.
Helene says
Hey there, we are going on a trip to Manzanillo in a couple of weeks. We have kayaking, turtle watching in Gandoca, zip lining, rain forest night tour and jaguar rescue center. I was trying to decide if I should but a pair of Merrell Siren hiking boots, I have a pair of open toed Teva’s but I figured I would need something closed toed. Do you think I would be more comfortable with closed toed hiking sandals. Thank you for the great blog 🙂
Sammi says
Hi Diana! Hiking sandals will be perfect for the area, you won’t need boots. Hikes in both those areas are not very hard, they’re all on flat, well maintained trails without any heavy elevation climbs or rocks. The only thing would be is to get closed toed bumper hiking sandals. I wrote a more detailed section about both those places in this post: Costa Rica packing list
Diana says
Hi Sammi! So glad I stumbled upon your blog! I’ll be heading into the Monteverde Cloud Forest/La Fortuna/Arenal area in February 2018 for hiking and exploring and I wasn’t sure if hiking boots or hiking sandals were a better choice. What do you suggest? Thanks in advance!
Erica Brooks says
Hi- love your blog! I’ve been reading it in prep for our honeymoon in May 2018! Would you recommend closed toes sandals for hiking rio celeste? Thanks so much! -Erica
Sammi says
Hi Erica, yes those work great and what I always wear. You can read more about Rio Celeste and our tips here: Rio Celeste guide
Aerance says
Hi!
I’ll be in Costa Rica from end of September to early October? Mainly staying in the Puerto Viejo/Limon area. I was wondering if trail runners and flip flops would be good enough or is it best to purchase a pair of hiking sandals. Is a rain jacket a must since I’m on the carribbean side?
Thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Aerance, that should be fine for shoes, unless you want to do activities like white water rafting, canyoning, tubinh, etc. where you have to go from land to water, then I would highly recommend hiking sandals. A rain jacket is very useful on the Caribbean, though October is generally their driest month, it can still rain, especially in September.
Aerance Teo says
Thank you so much for the tips!
Samta says
Hi –
Thanks so much for all of your detailed and informative posts! I’m headed to CR for the 2nd half of May. Im visiting Arenal, Monteverde, Uvita with a daytrip to Corcovado and Manuel Antonio. I’m planning to buy a pair of low hiking shoes (not boots), either Oboz Sawtooth low or KEEN Targhee. Do you recommend ALSO buying water sandals like Newport H2? Some other combo altogether? (Given the time of year and places I’m visiting?)
Thank you!
Sammi says
Hi Samta, those shoes should be fine, you don’t really need to buy water sandals unless you’re doing an activity like white water rafting or canyoning because if you have only your hiking shoes, they will get soaking wet and you won’t have another pair to wear until they dry. But if you’re not, those shoes will be fine. Yeison has the KEEN Targhee hiking shoes and they are awesome and waterproof. It will just be very hot and sweaty for your feet (which is why I prefer my KEEN hiking sandals and they dry super fast) but the hiking shoes have more protection. It’s not really needed for places like Arenal, Monteverde and Manuel Antonio but since you’re going down to Uvita and visiting COrcovado for a day, hiking shoes are highly recommended and the Targhee are excellent against water, Corcovado might be muddy/rainy last half of May and it’s a lot more humid in the South Pacific.
Sammi says
Hi Deanne, I actually wrote a post comparing the two stations you can read here: San Pedrillo and Sirena Station Corcovado National Park
When we visited San Pedrillo in January, we wrote rain boots which were given to us by our hotel and I highly appreciated it. January was just ending rainy season so a lot of the paths were really muddy. But you can see in the pictures that the San Pedrillo path is pretty straightforward and nicely maintained. It isn’t steep, there are some stairs but it’s a pretty easy path.
I also went to Sirena station end of January and I wore hiking shoes for the day hike and it was perfect. Those trails are very nicely maintained and flat, no hills, no elevation. It was also a lot hotter/humid end of January and any muddy paths dried up. March is one of the hottest months in Costa Rica so you won’t have to worry about rain boots and I recommend wearing hiking shoes. It will be crazy humid and hot but you still want all the protection for your feet. If you’re going for a day trip like I did, a pair of hiking shoes is fine. In the post, I mention that you should wear flip flops to Sirena station if you’re going by boat because it is a wet landing. Bring a small towel so that after you disembark, you can dry and clean your feet and then put on your socks and hiking shoes.
Deanne says
Hi!! Love your blog!! We are visiting the Osa Peninsula in mid March. One day we will be going to either the Sirena Ranger Station or the San Pedrillo Ranger Station (they think we will be on the Sirena trip but if we dont get tics then the San Pedrillo). I have foot challenges and wear orthotics so I am worried that I wont be able to wear a hiking sandal due to lack of arch support. Yet, the hotel suggests we should bring a water shoe and a hiking boot on the Corcovado trip. I have been trying to find what the terrain will be like on either trip and all I seem to find are reports about the accommodations at the stations. We will just be on a day trip (6-8 hrs). The other challenge is I am trying to pack lightly so I don’t want to bring tons of shoes. Any guidance you might offer would be very much appreciated! Thanks!!
Tracy Brody says
Your blog article came up from a Google search and you motivated us to order a pair of Keen’s for all four of the family for our upcoming trip to Costa Rica. Now to read more of your articles to help us make the most of the trip. Thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Tracy! Aw that is awesome, we LOVE our KEEN ssandals, they are seriously the best for Costa Rica!
Alex says
Hello! I loved your article! I’m preparing to leave for CR next week for my birthday, and just wanted to point out to you that in your picture of sandals the shoes you called Tevas are actually chacos! Just making sure you knew.
Sammi says
Hi Alex, hmm thanks! My friend told me her shoes were TEvas, she must have gotten them mixed up!
Aeri says
Hi Sammi! Again, thank you for all the great tips throughout your site! I’m in the process of planning my trip to Costa Rica at the end of July/beginning of August. We don’t have those close-toed sandals, but own a pair of water shoes. Do you think those would be okay to wear when visiting Arenal? Right now we’re thinking of doing activities like hanging bridges, ziplining, rafting. Or should we invest in the sandals? Thank you!
Sammi says
I’m not sure how well your water shoes are for walking, the hanging bridges walk isn’t super long and it’s fairly flat so they might be OK but it may not super comfortable. But I know you won’t be able to hike the national park in them just in case you guys decide to do that. Honestly, water shoes aren’t very common in CR from what I’ve observed of tourists except for at the beach: hiking sandals are the most common since those can be worn for any activity especially in the Arenal area. Water shoes would be fine for rafting and you’re not really walking at all during ziplining. I am just not sure how they are to walk around 3 miles or so in.
Bethany says
Hi, I’m traveling to Osa in June and am not sure what to expect from the rainy season down there. I’m attempting to pack for a month in a carryon and don’t want to bring more shoes than I need. Can I get away with just Keen’s hiking sandals or do you think I’ll need hiking boots too? I’d like to go on hikes, nothing crazy, but just enough to get good photos of animals and landscape. Are rain boots easy to come by down there should I decide I need that too? I’m just not sure what to expect!
Thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Bethany, it’s going to be raining pretty good in June down south. You can bring your KEEN hiking sandals and buy a pair of cheap rain boots once you get to Osa, you can find them at the supermarket. If you’re hiking Corcovado National Park, rainboots are highly recommended especially in rainy season.
RJMS says
I am already in Costa Rica, at Samara. I need some closed toed sandals for hiking, can you recommend a brand and a place to purchase them in CR?
Sammi says
I am not sure if Samara has one, but a shoe store called Fusion has closed toed sandals, KEENs are our favorite and the outdoor shoe stores here usually have them. But it was hard for us to find the right size, Yeison is a 10.5 and we couldn’t find them anywhere.
Dev says
A great post
Sammi says
thanks!