Costa Rica — Osa Peninsula month by month.
| Month | What it is like | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| January | The heart of the dry season on the Pacific, with clear skies in Guanacaste and on the Osa Peninsula. Northern humpback whales are along the coast, and Pacific leatherbacks and green turtles are nesting. The Palmares fiestas are held in the Central Valley in January. | Beaches, the Osa Peninsula, whales and Pacific turtles |
| February | Dry and sunny on the Pacific, and one of the Caribbean’s drier spells too. The resplendent quetzal begins nesting in the highland cloud forests, and the Envision Festival takes place near Uvita. | Both coasts, quetzals, whale watching |
| March | The driest and hottest month on the Pacific, and the best month to see the quetzal. Leatherback turtles begin arriving on the Caribbean coast, and the last of the northern humpbacks are offshore. Semana Santa sometimes falls late in the month. | Quetzals, beaches, the Caribbean coast |
| April | A month of transition at the end of the dry season, still mostly fine on the Pacific. Semana Santa, which moves with Easter, is the busiest week of the year for domestic travel. | The last of the dry season |
| May | The green season begins, with afternoon rain on the Pacific and the forests turning lush. Olive ridley and loggerhead turtles nest on both coasts, and the Pacuare River opens for rafting in mid-May. | Quiet parks, rafting, green forests |
| June | The first of the year’s rain peaks in Guanacaste. The Central Valley has its “veranillo de San Juan”, a short dry spell at the end of the month, and leatherbacks are still nesting on the Caribbean coast. | Cloud forests, Caribbean leatherbacks |
| July | A drier spell on the Pacific, the “veranillo”. The southern humpback whales arrive, green turtles begin nesting at Tortuguero, and the large arribadas begin at Ostional. Many hotels keep high-season rates for the first half of the month. | Whales, turtles, a green-season family trip |
| August | Rain eases on the Pacific for much of the month, and whales and nesting turtles are present on both coasts. Mother’s Day, 15 August, is a public holiday. | Whales and turtles in the same journey |
| September | One of the two wettest months on the Pacific, and one of the driest on the Caribbean coast. Humpbacks are around the Osa Peninsula, the arribadas at Ostional are near their strongest, and the country celebrates Independence Day on 15 September. | The Caribbean coast, whales, the arribadas |
| October | The wettest month on the Pacific, and a fine month on the Caribbean coast, where the Limón Carnival is held around 12 October. Pacific leatherbacks and green turtles return to nest. | The Caribbean coast, Tortuguero, carnival |
| November | The Pacific rains taper off and the country turns towards the dry season. The arribadas continue at Ostional, and San José’s oxcart parade honours the boyeros late in the month. | The quiet weeks before the high season |
| December | The dry season returns to the Pacific in the middle of the month, while the Caribbean has its rainiest month. Northern humpbacks arrive late in the month, San José holds the Festival de la Luz, and the festive weeks are among the year’s busiest. | Guanacaste and Papagayo, the festive season |
Costa Rica’s two seasons.
Costa Rica has two seasons rather than four. The dry season, which Costa Ricans call summer, runs from mid-December to late April. The green season, called winter, runs from May to mid-December. Temperatures change little through the year; what changes is the rain.
On the Pacific side, which holds most of the country’s beach resorts, December to March is reliably dry, March is the driest and hottest month, and April is a month of transition. The rains arrive in May, ease a little in July and August, and are heaviest in September and October.
The Caribbean coast follows its own pattern. It has no well-defined dry season; its driest spells come in February and March and again in September and October, just as the Pacific is at its wettest, and December is its rainiest month.
Is the green season a good time to visit?
For many travellers, yes. The forests are at their most lush, the national parks and beaches are quieter, and the tourism board describes the season as one of reduced rates and light crowds. Rain usually falls in the afternoon, so mornings are left for walking, wildlife and the water.
The green season is also when the southern humpback whales arrive and when turtles nest in greatest numbers on both coasts. The trade-off is that some hotels and excursions, especially in the south, close for part of the season, and heavy rain in September and October can make remote roads difficult.
An advisor plans a green-season journey around the coast that is drier at the time, and around the lodges that stay open.
Guanacaste, the southern Pacific, the Caribbean and the mountains.
Guanacaste and the Papagayo peninsula, in the north-west, are the driest part of the country: December to March brings only a small share of the year’s rain. Its rains begin in June and return more heavily from September to November.
The central and southern Pacific, from Manuel Antonio to the Osa Peninsula, is dry from January to March and wetter than Guanacaste for the rest of the year; the south is the wettest of all. The Osa Peninsula’s lodges and its light-aircraft strips are at their most reliable in the dry season.
The Caribbean coast, from Tortuguero to the south, is the coast to choose in September and October. The central highlands and the cloud forests are cooler throughout the year, and the Central Valley has its own short dry spell at the end of June, the “veranillo de San Juan”.
When is whale season in Costa Rica?
Humpback whales visit Costa Rica’s Pacific coast twice a year, from two different populations. Whales from the northern hemisphere arrive from late November or December and stay until about March. Whales from the Antarctic arrive in July and are present through September and into October.
The national park authority names July to October as the best months at Marino Ballena National Park near Uvita, whose name means whale. The Osa Peninsula and the Golfo Dulce are among the best places to watch them, by private boat with a naturalist.
When can you see turtles nesting?
Green turtles nest at Tortuguero, on the Caribbean coast, from July, with the season continuing into the autumn. Leatherbacks arrive on the Caribbean coast from March and nest into June.
On the Pacific, Ostional is famous for its arribadas, when olive ridley turtles come ashore in their thousands over a few nights. Olive ridleys nest there all year, but the largest arribadas come between July and November, strongest in September and October. Pacific leatherbacks and green turtles nest from October, and January and February are among the best months to see them.
The best time for birds, rivers and diving.
The resplendent quetzal begins nesting in the highland cloud forests in February, and March is the best month to see it. The Pacuare River can be rafted from mid-May to mid-March.
Cocos Island, a UNESCO World Heritage Site two days’ sail offshore, is reached only by liveaboard. Dive operators report the greatest numbers of hammerheads from June to November, and calmer seas with the clearest water from December to May. Surf runs on both coasts for most of the year.
Whales and turtles in one journey.
From July to October, Costa Rica’s two great wildlife seasons overlap. The southern humpbacks are along the Pacific coast, green turtles are nesting at Tortuguero on the Caribbean side, and the largest arribadas come ashore at Ostional.
A journey in these months can see all three, flying between the coasts rather than driving, with the Caribbean at its drier best in September and October.
Festivals worth planning around.
Costa Rica’s festivals are a reason to choose a month, or to avoid one:
- January: the Palmares fiestas, in the Central Valley.
- February: the Envision Festival, near Uvita.
- March to April: Semana Santa, the week before Easter.
- 15 September: Independence Day.
- October: the Limón Carnival on the Caribbean coast, around 12 October.
- Late November: the oxcart parade in San José.
- December: the Festival de la Luz in San José, and the Zapote fiestas from 25 December to 1 January.
When is the cheapest time to visit Costa Rica?
The green season, from May to November, brings what the tourism board calls reduced rates and light crowds. Within it, many hotels keep high-season rates until the middle of July, and rates fall after the 15th.
May, June and November, at either end of the rains, are often the best balance of value and weather, and an advisor knows which of the finest lodges hold their rates and which do not.
The weeks to avoid on the Pacific.
September and October are the wettest months on the Pacific coast, and some hotels and excursions in the south close for part of this time. Remote roads can become difficult after heavy rain.
These are the months to choose the Caribbean coast instead, which is at its driest just as the Pacific is at its wettest.
The weeks to plan around.
The dry season, from December to April, is Costa Rica’s high season. The tourism board advises that hotels, restaurants and park excursions can be busy then, and that travellers should plan ahead. A few periods within the year are busier still:
- Semana Santa, the week before Easter: Maundy Thursday and Good Friday are public holidays, and Costa Ricans travel to the beaches.
- The first two weeks of July: many hotels keep high-season rates until mid-July.
- Independence Day, 15 September.
- The festive weeks, when San José holds its Festival de la Luz and the Zapote fiestas run from 25 December to 1 January.
How far ahead to book.
For the dry season, and above all for the festive weeks and Semana Santa, the finest villas and the most sought-after rooms at the leading resorts and lodges are reserved well ahead. The remote lodges of the Osa Peninsula have only a handful of rooms each, and the light-aircraft seats that reach them are limited too.
An advisor reserves early for these weeks, and knows which lodges, naturalist guides and private flights can still be secured at shorter notice.
Getting around, season by season.
Private jets land at Liberia for Guanacaste and Papagayo and at San José for the rest of the country. The Osa Peninsula is reached by light aircraft to Drake Bay or Puerto Jiménez, about 45 minutes from San José, and these flights are most reliable in the dry season.
In the green season, flying between regions rather than driving saves the most time, and an advisor plans the order of the journey so each stop is visited when its weather is best.
The best months, by what you want to do.
Choose the month by the journey you have in mind:
- Beaches and the Pacific coast: December to April.
- Humpback whales: December to March, and July to October.
- Turtle nesting at Tortuguero: July into the autumn; leatherbacks on the Caribbean, March to June.
- The arribadas at Ostional: July to November, strongest in September and October.
- Quetzals in the cloud forest: February to April, best in March.
- The Caribbean coast: February and March, and September and October.
- Rafting the Pacuare: mid-May to mid-March.
- Quiet parks and green forests: May to November.
Your questions.
What is the best month to visit Costa Rica?
For the Pacific beaches and the Osa Peninsula, February and March, at the height of the dry season. For whales and turtles together, July and August. For the Caribbean coast, September and October.
Is Costa Rica worth visiting in the rainy season?
Yes, for travellers who prefer quiet parks and lush forests. Rain usually falls in the afternoon, whales and turtles are present, and rates are lower. Some lodges in the south close for part of the season, so an advisor plans around those that stay open.
When is the rainy season in Costa Rica?
The green, or rainy, season runs from May to mid-December. On the Pacific coast the rain is heaviest in September and October and eases a little in July and August; the Caribbean coast follows a different pattern, with its driest spells in February and March and in September and October.
Is December a good time to visit Costa Rica?
Yes, from the middle of the month, when the dry season returns to the Pacific. The festive weeks are among the busiest of the year, so the finest rooms and villas need reserving well ahead. The Caribbean coast is at its rainiest in December.
When is whale-watching season in Costa Rica?
Twice a year: northern humpbacks from about December to March, and southern humpbacks from July to October. Marino Ballena National Park and the Osa Peninsula are among the best places to see them.
When do turtles nest in Costa Rica?
Green turtles nest at Tortuguero from July, and leatherbacks on the Caribbean coast from March to June. Olive ridleys come ashore at Ostional all year, in the greatest numbers from July to November.
When is Costa Rica least crowded?
In the green season, from May to November, outside the first half of July and the public holidays. The tourism board describes it as a season of reduced rates and light crowds.
Tell us when you would like to see Costa Rica.
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