Arenal Night Hike - Snakes, Frogs & Wildlife

Recommended by 97% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

La Fortuna, Costa Rica

2 hours (approx.)
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Get to explore the rainforest of La Fortuna de San Carlos in the Arenal Volcano National Park for one hour in the daylight, and one hour in darkness on this small group night tour. Keep your eyes peeled for sloths, snakes, and all kinds of birds. Your guide will be right there to point the creatures out for you while you see the transition from day to night.

Look out for snakes, frogs, sloths and birds
Observe different animal behaviors at nighttime
Listen to your guide who will show you where the animals are hiding
Take a good two hours to see as much as you can

What's Included

All Fees and Taxes
Private transportation
Flashlight equipment
Porfesional Bilingual Guide SPA/ENG

Meals
Photos

Meeting and Pickup

You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

Hotels out of the 4 kms radius, mya have an extra charge for transportation.

Meeting point

Sloth Watching Trail La Fortuna, Sloth Park
600 east of the Central Park, La Fortuna, Alajuela Province Alajuela, Provincia de Alajuela, La Fortuna, 21007, Costa Rica
100 metros Oeste de Maxi Pali, La Fortuna de San Carlos, Alajuela

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Start time
.6:00 pm

Itinerary

La Fortuna de San Carlos

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation

Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 12 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Anastasia_T

I was worried it would be too commercial but the whole experience was amazing. The guide was extremely knowledgeable he was able to find several different frog species including the red eyed tree frog and glass frog. we saw sloths, sleeping birds. A highlight of our trip I highly recommend the night tour. Both our kids were very engaged ages 10 and 13

Reviews

4.9

based on 211 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Beautiful Tour Overshadowed by the Guide's Attitude

Hasan_H, Jul 2026

I was excited to experience the night tour at Arenal. I was picked up from my hotel, and the location was beautiful, although a little intimidating for a first-time visitor. Because the group was large, we were divided into smaller groups with three guides. Our group had two Spanish-speaking guests, while the rest of us spoke English. During the tour, we saw frogs, spiders, and ants, although we unfortunately didn't have the chance to see any snakes. Josef kindly volunteered to take photos and videos with our phones, which I appreciated. Unfortunately, my overall experience was overshadowed by Josef's attitude. As a first-time participant, I felt that important instructions were not explained beforehand. Early in the tour, I shone my flashlight toward the guide, who was standing at a higher elevation, simply because I was trying to see where he was. Josef immediately shouted at me in Spanish. At that point, I had not been told that shining a flashlight toward people can be uncomfortable or that direct light should be avoided. Later, when I used my flashlight to look at a frog, Josef again raised his voice and told me not to shine the light directly at wildlife, but instead to place a leaf over the flashlight as a filter. This was useful information, but it had never been explained before the tour began. On another occasion, when I was trying to help another guest locate the frog from a distance, Josef shouted at me again. Later, when I accidentally stepped slightly on the side of his shoe while walking in the dark, he again reacted by shouting, saying, "See! See!" Another guest from Florida was also spoken to harshly during the tour. I also felt that much of the guide's attention was directed toward the Spanish-speaking guests, with relatively little interaction or explanation provided in English for the rest of the group, which left us feeling ignored. People travel from all over the world to experience Costa Rica's incredible wildlife. While I understand the importance of protecting the animals and following proper etiquette, these expectations should be explained clearly and respectfully at the start of the tour, especially for first-time visitors. A friendlier, more patient, and more professional approach would have made this an enjoyable experience instead of a highly uncomfortable and

Excellent Walk

Meghan_C, Mar 2026

This experience was very professional, and was extraordinary compared to any walks we have visited. Me and my family felt safe, but curious about the land’s natural creatures and habitats. My final review was a 4 star.

Not Worth It... Compared to the Blogs Read

Kristina_P, Aug 2023

I was so looking forward to this experience. It was to be a way to push us all well outside of our comfort zones and experience the rain forest. But it ended up being quite a disappointment. Our guide was not very good and we spent most of the time trying to find critters on our own. We saw more rain forest critters accidently on our travels than in this experience. Save your money and do a hike or waterfall or...

best night hike filled with animals

Anastasia_T, Apr 2023

Very chill slow walk in...

Annette_A, Feb 2023

Very chill slow walk in the dark with flashlights. Our guide was very knowledgeable about the animals and insects. He had a scope so we could see sloths, frogs, etc. very closeup! Interesting and much calmer than day adventures.