Wild Guide to Drake Bay, Costa Rica

By The Backseat View

Complete Guide to Drake Bay

Costa Rica has it all: beaches, the rainforest, sport fishing, snorkeling, waterfalls, and wildlife. Drake Bay is one of the few locations in Costa Rica that resists commercialism and stays untouched by the outside world. It was hard for me to believe my eyes that a place exists with dozens of dolphins jumping in the ocean, crocodiles in the river, monkeys swinging overhead, and macaws in the trees.

Corcovado National Park is the most biodiverse rainforest in the world, putting Drake Bay on most Costa Rica itineraries. Add Cano Island as the second-best snorkeling destination in Costa Rica, and people visit for 3-4 days.

The views of the bay and rainforest are not only breathtaking but healing. It’s a calm, quiet place that allows your soul to rest. This vacation is for the adventurous nature lover. Pirates chose this cove to hide treasure all those years ago, and the area’s wildness still draws the fearless traveler. If you are ready for a wild vacation, let’s spend a week in the hidden gem that’s Drake Bay.

Excursions

Most hotels book your excursions, departing early, by 7 a.m., and arriving back around 2 p.m. We met the boats on the beach along with all the neighborhood dogs. We rested, walked the rainforest trail to watch the monkeys, or enjoyed the beach until dinner at 6 p.m. It’s too dark by 7 p.m. for anything other than playing cards in your room. Let’s start with the most popular excursions.

1. Corcovado National Park

Let’s walk the rainforest trails and meet the animals, and then I’ll give you the basic planning tips. The monkeys are the superstars of the park, and we saw all four species: Howler, spider, squirrel, and white-faced capuchin.

The Howlers were so loud that they were a little scary. I was surprised at how close the monkeys came to the trails. I could watch them swing around all day.

However, the guide continues the tour to search for the tapir, and we found a sleeping one. Tapirs are about four feet tall and six feet long, resembling a cross between a small elephant and a pig. We were able to get within a few feet of him.

Next on my bucket list, the sloth was high in the tree and hard to see.

Next up, the white-nosed coati entertained us by playing around the trail like a raccoon. Then, a peccary family, miniature wild pigs, traveled by.

We saw bats that live in termite nests and cute leaf bats. I do not like spiders, scorpions, feather-lance vipers, and crabs, but we saw plenty. The trees were alive with hawks and turkey-like birds.

The vegetation is as wild as the leaf-cutter ants clearing trees. We were lucky to be there when the leaf-cutter ants gave birth to new queens. The ants farm with the leaves to create a fungus food source in their underground nests. They have soldier ants riding on the leaves to protect the worker ants. Watching 10 million ants work together is a little scary.

With all the unique fungus, the Martini Cup fungus covering the fallen logs was my favorite. The Mimosa plant closes its leaves and collapses when you lay a finger on it. I had more laughs with this dramatically sensitive plant than I will admit. It’s like an entire fern “dying” because you touched a leaf. Finally, I love all trees, except whatever this is.

Entering this dense, humid rainforest filled with monkeys, tapirs, and coati was more amazing than I imagined and worth every dollar.

• This was our favorite activity of the vacation.
• The National Park covers 1/3 of the Osa peninsula.
• Sirena Station is the most common day trip with the most animal sightings.
  
• Reservations for a guided park tour are made weeks to months in advance with passport numbers.
  
• Boat arrival means being prepared for a water landing in shorts and waterproof shoes. It was a rough, wavy-hour ride to the beach, so be prepared with motion-sickness medication. Most people were barefoot. I’m not about to cut my foot on a rock and then hike.
  

• Tennis shoes are fine for walking on flat, easy trails. Less than 1% of the park has trails. You walk circles on the same trails, looking for animals. It was the rainy season with muddy trails, but only the kids had muddy shoes.

• Bring a small towel to dry your feet before putting on your tennis shoes.
  
• Before we left, I sprayed with OFF(bug spray), waded into the water upon arrival, walked up to the checking-in desk, and was swarmed by mosquitos. You can’t spray OFF in the park! Spray yourself again on the beach upon arrival. Mosquitos love me, and I was fine in shorts with two coats of OFF.
  
• We were there in July, and the crowd was evenly mixed in pants and shorts.
• You need a picture of your passport on your phone to check in to the park.
• You can’t bring a plastic, disposable water bottle. They say the water is safe, but we used our LifeStraw bottles. You were always under a 15-minute walk from the bathroom and water refilling area.
  
• No food or snacks are allowed, and they check your bags.
  
• This is easy, flat walking with lots of breaks, and people aged 5 to 75.
• We brought a pair of binoculars.
• Rain jacket during the rainy season.
• We had one waterproof backpack between two people to hold our extra shoes, rain jackets, and water bottles. I had OFF, a small towel, and sunscreen, but that’s it—travel light.
• Cost was $120/person
• Lunch is included with beans and rice.
• Did I need to stay overnight in an open-air room with bunk beds covered in mosquito nets? No, a day trip was fine with me.
• We boarded our return boats in the river, but the waves were crashing, so getting over the waves was a Jungle Cruise adventure.

2. Snorkeling

Cano Island

Cano Island is Costa Rica’s second-best diving and snorkeling destination. We took a 45-minute boat ride from Drake Bay, with dolphins and movie-worthy scenery.

We snorkeled during the rainy season, so the visibility wasn’t the best. The fish were swimming by from the moment I secured my snorkeling mask and flipped into the water. The guide shows you around the ocean rocks and points out the unique fish. The rocks and reefs work together to provide a fish habitat.

The day’s highlight was the Hawksbill sea turtle eating breakfast and swimming around. The guide motioned us to follow to see the reef shark, but I would rather swim with the turtle. The schools of fish are huge and colorful.

After 45 minutes of snorkeling, we took a snack break on the beach and were intrigued by all the hermit crabs…literally everywhere. These crabs were HUGE.

Our next 45 minutes of snorkeling was similar to the first. I found another turtle while the group saw eagle rays and trumpet fish. I love snorkeling, and Cano Island lived up to the hype even in the overcast rain.

San Josecito Beach

I love amazing beaches, and Playa San Josecito is flawless. Most snorkeling boats stop here for an hour-long lunch break. Visiting this heavenly beach was worth the $100 snorkeling trip.

It was raining and gray. I have a Florida tan, so I didn’t reapply sunscreen after our first snorkeling and ended up burned in 45 minutes. If you are pale, bring swim shirts to wear snorkeling because sunscreen didn’t stop several UK girls from severe burns.

3. Night Bug Tour

Tracie, The Bug Lady’s Night Tour is excellent and the best in the area. Make a $50 reservation weeks in advance, and bring a headlamp and closed-toe shoes. The tour kicks off at our hotel, Jinetes, at 7:30 pm and lasts 2.5-3 hours. We learned so much, and the tour was in English. We brought a backpack with water and rain jackets.

I’m not much into spiders, but I was even mystified by the trap door spider and the spider that spins gold silk, Golden Orb Weaver. The Giant Marine toad is the biggest frog ever.

We saw a cat-eyed snake eating a frog. Then, the bioluminescent fungus on the tree root was neat. Even Watson’s climbing rat in the tree was cuter than I expected. We learned about 22 encounters with different types of frogs, scorpions, and spiders. Her reviews speak for themselves. Everyone enjoys uncovering the hidden treasures in Drake Bay.

4. Sport Fishing

We fished two days inshore and one day offshore. Our guide, Captain Willy, spoke English well, and we caught several big fish. The inshore trips are half-day, and the off-shore trips (two hours out and back) are full days. Our hotel booked the guides, and prices ranged from $650 for half days to over $1K for full days.

My son’s Passion is fishing, and we came to check a few big fish off his bucket list. Possible fish to catch are Roosterfish, enormous Grouper and Snapper, Yellow Fin, Wahoo, Big-Eye Tuna, Black, Blue, and Striped Marlin, and Mahi-Mahi. During the rainy season, the ocean has big waves, so people prone to motion sickness should avoid it.

5. Drake Trail

The trail is popular and starts in front of our hotel, Jinetes. Due to the rain, I walked fine in Tevas, but tennis shoes are best.

We saw dozens of monkeys on every walk on the trail. If something drops from the sky onto the trail, look up, it’s usually a monkey.

The macaws love to hang out in a tree by the ocean as you cross the first concrete bridge on the trail. The night tours also walk this trail.

We hiked to Cocolito Beach, 30-40 minutes away. Swimming was safe, but it was pouring rain, so we just enjoyed the peaceful views. The rainforest beaches are a soul-settling, peaceful experience.

It takes almost 3.5 hours to hike to Playa San Josecito, which we visited on our snorkeling trip. If you plan to hike that far, arrange a boat pick up or ride back with the 1 p.m. snorkeling boats that stop at lunch. You cross a river to reach San Josecito, so bring some money for a ride or prepare to get wet. Lastly, a view of the hiking trail during the rain.

This is the best hike I’ve ever been on. Hanging bridges, empty beaches, serene rainforests, monkeys, macaws, and frogs.

6. Whale Watching

The Divine Dolphin has been operating since 1998 to provide opportunities to see pelagic dolphins and Humpback Whales. While we were deep-sea fishing, we saw mega pods of dolphins, with 25-40 dolphins cutting through the water. Being on the water is as magical as being in the rainforest. Whales arrive late July to mid-November and December to mid-April.

7. Other Activities

We didn’t experience any of these other activities.

• Horseback riding
• Waterfall hikes
• ATV rides
• Bird-watching tours
• Mangrove tours

When to go & how long to stay

I searched for months for the best area to combine wildlife, sport fishing, and snorkeling into one location without constantly moving. I realized I could see monkeys and macaws daily and go sport fishing for 3-4 days, so I decided to spend a week in Drake Bay.

• The average tourist stays three nights.
• It’s best to travel during the dry season, from December to April. March is the driest month. This is baseball season for my family, so it’s impossible.
• We went in July, during the mini-dry season when it only rains an hour or five a day. The rain was heavier than expected, like a flood, so we used raincoats and umbrellas daily.
  

Arrival

It’s never easy to reach what remains hidden.

Driving or Boat

I can’t drive dirt roads without cell coverage or road signs, flooded creeks, and potholes big enough to swim in. After the stories we heard from people trying to drive in, don’t. The boats into Drake Bay come from Sierpe, an hour away. Take the boat if you rent a car and plan to be near Sierpe. I chose an hour’s flight from San Jose.

Flights

We flew into San Jose, the capital and largest city of Costa Rica. I debated flying to Drake Bay on the day we landed, but who knows how long customs would take? Customs is usually 1.5-2 hours. We traveled in July, the rainy season. With afternoon storms being common and flights being delayed, we decided to take the 11 a.m. flight to Drake Bay the next day.

1. Atlanta to San Jose, Costa Rica, is a 4-hour flight booked 3-4 months from departure, costing $700 roundtrip on Delta.
   
2. Don’t accidentally select San Jose, California
3. International flights require international airport parking.
   
4. Passports are required. Take photos of your passport numbers.
   
5. Sansa Airlines is your domestic flight from San Jose to Drake Bay.
   
6. Sansa planes are tiny, ten people, so weight is a concern. You will be weighed on a scale with your backpack, purse, or whatever item you place in your lap. Luggage is a carry-on under 30 lbs. Luggage over 30lbs will be charged extra and, depending on flight weight, may not fly. There’s no picking up your suitcase from another flight. Make sure to read the fine print. It was a $300 round-trip flight.
   
7. The domestic airport is next door to the international airport, so we flew out of Drake Bay at 9 a.m. and had no issues catching our 1 p.m. flight from San Jose back to Atlanta.

8. Drivers are arranged IN ADVANCE to pick you up from both airports.

Overnight in San Jose

After arriving in San Jose, most people explored the Jade Museum, the National Theater, and the city’s markets. I kept searching because my guys don’t enjoy cities.

Finca Rosa Blanca Hotel

I found that the Finca Rosa Blanca Hotel was awarded the “National Geographic Unique Lodges in the World” and dozens of other awards for its role as a coffee plantation and lodge.

It has luxury accommodations, an infinity pool, and a farm-to-table restaurant, making it easy for me to decide where to spend the night. Y’all, I was BLOWN AWAY by the attention to detail on this plantation and dream of returning.

Trees surround the villas, and you feel like you have entered a magical rainforest. Then, walk to dinner and breakfast for culinary delights. The hotel arranged the 30-minute drive pick-up and drop-off at the airport, and every minute here was perfect. The two-bedroom Villa with a day bed in the kitchen area was cheaper than the two Hampton Inn rooms I had booked for $450/night.

Arrival in Drake Bay

The following day, we had our flight to Drake Bay over breathtaking Costa Rica. Landing at the tiny airport, we were greeted by macaws flying overhead. The hotels send drivers to pick up the guests, so three older model cars will be in front of the airport. When traveling during the rainy season, you need a trash bag to tie your luggage in while it rides in the back of the truck.

Most people travel with only a backpack. You arrive in town after a slow 45-minute ride on bumpy dirt roads. The hotel will have someone to greet you and take your luggage. Depending on the hotel’s location, you have a van, ATV, walk, or climb on a boat to reach the hotel. We put our luggage on an ATV and walked across the swinging bridge and down the beach to our hotel.

Hotel Jinetes de Osa

We enjoyed our time at Hotel Jinetes de Osa. The hotel is located on the only hiking trail in Drake Bay and the entrance to the rainforest. The beach and view of the bay are stunning. The hotel restaurant, Claudio’s, is behind those trees, and then you climb 160 stairs to your room above.

The red-roof rooms are closer to the beach and next door to the restaurant. Our villa is a beige building at the top.

After the 160-step climb, we had an air-conditioned oceanfront villa with Wi-Fi. Our room had four beds, a huge bathroom, a fridge, a little sitting area, and a porch. The staff was accommodating, planned excursions, and spoke friendly English. There’s a little outdoor kitchen area for the four villas to use. The bottom rooms near the beach are connected like motel rooms. The views of Drake Bay are worth EVERY STEP.

The only negative is the water, you can’t drink it from your room. The hotel has bottle-filling stations that meet world standards for cleanliness. I brought Life Filter water bottles because I am not about to be sick on my vacation. I met three Americans who became ill due to the water after a few days. We used our filter water bottles and were healthy with a Coke, can drink, or lemonade for dinner.

I watched monkeys walk by on power lines and drop by to watch us eat breakfast. The toucans, macaws, and other colorful birds flew around the trees. For $200 a night, I was thrilled with our villa’s cleanliness, laundry options ($20 load) and dining.

If you are traveling in the summer, make sure anything you book has air conditioning. I didn’t see any town accommodations that I would recommend.

Aguila de Osa

Aguila de Osa is a nicer, more romantic, and more comfortable hotel around the corner and farther down the Drake Trail. It’s double the price, but I heard it didn’t have air conditioning. Aguila de Osa has a boat dock, so if you don’t want to walk into the ocean to depart for your day trips, this is your hotel. Due to their location, the room views are probably of the river instead of the Drake Bay.

Dining

Dining requires reservations. They only prepare enough side dishes for the people coming. The Nature Café was friendly and had great reviews, but we never walked the 15 minutes into town for meals. JB never visited the Coffee Shop, but other tourists said it was fabulous. We alternated dinner between Claudio’s and Kalaluna’s. The hotel provided breakfast, and most excursions provided lunch, so we spent around $100 a night on dinner for four people.

Claudio’s

The restaurant at our hotel, Claudio’s, is the best in town. It serves seafood, burgers, chicken, ribs, and octopus. We ate everything on the menu. It was my life’s best food for $30 a plate. I have a ridiculously picky eater, and he loved the freshness of the food. Dining by the ocean in a rainforest is a dream. Nobody dresses up, wears makeup, or deals with hair, which is a vacation plus. Nothing is more relaxing than an exceptional dinner in exercise clothes.

Kalaluna

Our second favorite restaurant was Italian Kalaluna Bistro, a five-minute walk down the road. The food presentation with edible corals, birds, and real flowers made the meals memorable. The people are so kind, and the evening feels special.

Packing

1. Headlamps and flashlights because it’s really dark after 6 pm.
2. Waterproof shoes- Tevas to get on and off the boats.
3. Tennis shoes for hiking the National Park & the trail
4. Waterproof backpack
5. During the rainy season- RAIN COATS, umbrellas & ponchos are LIFE.
6. Dry wick clothing
7. Lots of sunscreens, aloe, and OFF
8. Wear long-sleeve fishing shirts for fishing excursions. There’s no shade on the boats.
9. Wear lightweight, water-resistant pants for nighttime tours and dinner, or use lots of bug spray. We used bug spray because it was hot and humid.
10. Cash—there are no ATMs in Drake Bay. We charged excursions to our hotel and paid one bill. If this isn’t possible, you pay boat captains in cash. Claudio’s and Kalaluna’s took credit cards.
11. Lots of snacks
12. Leave your nice dressy clothes and blow dryers at home
13. Families were looking like an REI hiking commercial. We just wore HUK fishing-type clothes and exercise clothes that we owned.
14. Hats & sunglasses

I spent my vacation deep in nature, on undeveloped beaches and rainforests, rather than in cars, condos, and concrete. That’s not the right choice for everyone, so choose the town in Costa Rica that’s right for you. My husband is an outdoor guy, and he thought I was trying to kill him with this level of wildness. As always, THANK YOU for reading my Guide to Drake Bay.

Itinerary recap

Day 1- Arrive in San Jose, then overnight & dinner at Hotel Finca Rosa Blanche.

Day 2- Fly on Sansa Airlines to Drake Bay and arrive at Hotel de Jinetes. Take the night bug tour.

Day 3- Sportfishing, then dinner at Claudio’s

Day 4- Corcovado National Park, then dinner at Kaluluna’s

Day 5- Sportfishing

Day 6- Snorkel Cano Island & visit San Josecito Beach

Day 7- Sportfishing

Day 8- Hike the Drake Trail and have an extra day if the weather cancels an activity.

Day 9- Leave Drake Bay at 7:30 am to catch a 9 am flight to San Jose, then a 1 pm flight home.

Thanks for reading my Guide to Drake Bay, Costa Rica! I hope you have a WILD, splendid adventure.