Manuel Antonio Costa Rica

The Manuel Antonio National Park has an enormous biodiversity of flora and fauna, along with its white sand beaches hidden among steep hills full of dense vegetation make this sanctuary the main attraction of the area. In addition, the region offers a wide range of tourist attractions where you can choose from land excursions to butterfly and reptile, botanical gardens, bird watching, snakes, horseback riding and hiking or biking through the various natural areas close to the park. On the zip lining of the trees, you can choose Chiclets Zipline Tour that is the best zip line in the Central Pacific. The cables will take you from one tree to another passing over rivers and canyons covered by the green of the foliage, you will see the white face monkeys, toucans, scorpions, macaws and infinity of flora including the famous Chiclet tree that is a raw material of Chiclets Adams.

The Manuel Antonio National Park was created in 1972. With this awesome news began hotel development, hotels were mostly installed on the mountainous road full of vegetation. Several hotels looked for this location to take advantage of the beautiful panoramic views towards the sea and its imposing sunsets. Most of this Manuel Antonio hotels are committed to protecting the environment, some of them are pioneers in the country in the practice of environmental sustainability policies, generating an excellent reputation for Costa Rica, and include small private reserves near to his properties; offer all the amenities of a large hotel like restaurants, swimming pools, spa services, zip line tours, guides and instructors for many activities (surf lessons, waterfalls tours, nature exploration).

According to the story, Manuel Antonio national park owes his name to a Spanish conqueror who died on these beaches at the hands of the natives. To the Spaniard they buried it under a tree where they put a small plate of bronze of about 3 cms. of high by 10 of width with the legend Manuel Antonio, soon this site was used as cemetery occasionally until it was abandoned more than 60 years ago, today there is no trace of him but the name was engraved

Manuel Antonio is located 7Kms from the port of Quepos and can be reached by land or plane.

By land, you can take the direct bus that leaves from San José or travels by car on the Interamerican road connected by the 27 route, from there takes the Costanera road to the south following the signs. At a reasonable speed, it can take an average of three and a half hours from San Jose or 2 and a half hours from Costa Rica main airport.

For travelers who prefer to fly, flights depart from Tobias Bolaños Airport in Pavas and land in Quepos, from where you can take a bus or taxi to Manuel Antonio, the journey by plane takes approximately 30 minutes.

Entrance to Manuel Antonio National Park: 7 am to 4 pm. It remains closed to visitors on Monday.
 
The schedule for the purchase of tickets is from 7:00 am to 3:00 pm. The offices are located 75 meters before the main entrance of the Park. They also have offices in the city of Quepos and San José.

Recommendations

The manzanillo tree located on the beach is toxic, do not sit in its shade, do not touch or eat its fruits.

Enjoy nature properly, do not touch wild plants or animals, do not collect shells or snails.

To walk on the trails inside the forest, it is recommended to wear suitable footwear, it is not recommended to wear sandals and try not to make noise, do not leave the allowed areas nor climb on rails or signs.

Take care of your belongings at all times and try not to carry food that attracts wildlife. Remember that it is forbidden to feed wild animals, certain products can seriously affect their health and generate changes in their behavior.

Do not interact with the animals, maintain an adequate distance from the wildlife and leave no food available to them.

Help us keep the areas clean, do not leave trash or footprint of our visit.

In September and October this park has less visitation compared to other months, being this part of the rainy season, therefore it is recommended to visit in early hours and wear appropriate clothing.

It is important to remember that this park does not have parking for vehicles and in high season the only road that connects Quepos with the town of Manuel Antonio is very busy.

Water is another adventure option offered by Manuel Antonio Costa Rica, either to make an exciting rafting trip on the Naranjo River (Class III / IV) or to climb the Savegre River (II / III) and appreciate the wonderful landscape during the walk. In the sea, you can practice surfing, and here you will find several schools that will teach you this exciting popular sport, also offer boat trips for fishing and diving and kayak. Walks along the coast offer the visitor the possibility to see the beauty of the park from the sea.