Manuel Antonio Park Nature Guided Tour with a Nature Specialist

Recommended by 95% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

Quepos, Costa Rica

Popular pick

Booked 20+ times last week!

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

Why travelers loved this

4.8

· Sarah_M ·

Apr 2026

This tour was amazing and the tour guides (ours was Guillermo and he was great!) are incredibly knowledgeable. We saw both kinds of sloth, a fruit bat, so many cool birds, a coati and Howler and Capuchin monkeys in the wild! Highly recommend :)

· Vasilios_N ·

Apr 2026

I had an incredible experience birding with a local guide! He was knowledgeable, patient, and literally gave me and my friend a glimpse through his eyes with his binoculars! He had a bird encyclopedia on hand that allowed him to show us the many different stunning bird species we encountered along the way. Highly recommend this to any nature enthusiasts and ornithologists!

Overview

Make the most of limited time in Costa Rica with a guided half-day nature walk through Manuel Antonio National Park. Don’t waste time wondering what to see next; instead, head straight to the park’s highlights in the company of a naturalist guide and benefit from their animal spotting expertise and spotting scope to see creatures you might otherwise have missed.

Take a half-day tour of the Manuel Antonio National Park
Benefit from the animal-spotting expertise of a naturalist guide
Small group capped at 10 guarantees a personalized experience
Round-trip transportation from all Manuel Antonio and Quepos accommodations

What's Included

Snacks
Spotting Scope
Air-conditioned vehicle

Park Ticket
Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

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

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

* Pickup is included only within the Manuel Antonio and Quepos areas. * Please give us the name of the place, hotel, or house where you'll be staying so we can provide the proper pickup time.

Meeting point

9VR3+CVC, Puntarenas Province, Quepos, Costa Rica
Please ask for Jade Tours right at the Park entrance gate

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Itinerary

Your day begins at the park entrance, or with optional pickup at selected locations. After you purchase Manuel Antonio National Park entrance tickets (own expense), you’ll continue into the nature reserve with a naturalist guide.

Exploring this wildlife hotspot with a naturalist makes the most of every minute, as their trained eyes are quick to spot animals such as monkeys, sloths, toucans, and more. And, this tour’s small-group format means more personalized attention from the guide. You can also use the group’s spotting scope to observe wildlife and take photos. A flexible itinerary, meanwhile, is tailored to guest preferences, whether you’re all about jungle or interested in a beach walk.

In between stops enjoy provided snacks, as well as the climate-controlled comfort of a tour vehicle. While this tour concludes at the park entrance, you’ll also have the option to stay on inside the park.

Manuel Antonio National Park

2 hours • Admission Ticket Not Included

Additional Info

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

Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 140 travelers

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Cancellation Policy

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

Traveler Photos

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Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Faithe_J

1-7 -26 It was amazing. Our guide was so knowledgeable and interesting as he pointed out so much on our tour. I had a wish list of "want to see" and we saw each one including a sloth (plus a lot more). Everyone in our group was so engaged based on his interaction and humorous presentation. His patience with us was wonderful - making sure each person was able to view and made sure we all had pictures - not to mention, answering all of our questions. We had an amazing experience and would highly recommend our guide to others wanting to visit Manuel Antonio Park. Thanks for the memories.

Reviews

4.8

based on 4,419 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

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Great organisation and...

Mona_W, Jul 2026

Great organisation and communication from Jade Tours side! Our tour guide Kevin was really motivated, knowledgeable and helped us spot many animals, like monkeys, sloths, different birds, snakes and insects. We were in a group of 5 people which was amazing! In total, the tour was a bit shorter than expected. We finished after 2 1/2 hours, expecting a tour of 4 hours. I think it could have been because of the smaller group, since we could move relatively fast after everyone saw the animals our guide spotted. We stayed in the park after the tour, hung out by the beach and did one more trail on our own, so it was still definitely worth it!

Great tour and guide

Karen_R, Jun 2026

It was my family’s first time in Costa Rica. Visiting the national park was top of our list of things to do/see. Our tour guide Javier was so nice, knowledgeable, and had a sharp eye for spotting even the smallest animals. He was quick to set up his scope and share scientific information on each animal and their importance to the country. Thanks to him we were able to see both species of sloths, howler monkeys, capuchin monkeys, different butterflies, bats, different birds, tadpoles hanging from a leaf, hummingbirds, iguana, land crabs, aracari, stick bugs. We also spent some time on the Manuel Antonio beach and he even educated us about the poisonous Manchineal tree that is often found on Costa Rican beaches. The only negative about the excursion, that is no fault of Javier the tour guide, is there’s a lot of walking. Might not be ideal for young children unless you have a stroller. We had an 8 and 10 year old with us and it was hard for them because of the heat and humidity. We would still highly recommend this tour and Javier. Pura vida!

Amazing Journey through...

Pedro_F, Jun 2026

Amazing Journey through the Manuel Antonio Park, and thanks to our guide Emerson we spotted lots of animals

Great your and guide!

Meredith_D, Jun 2026

Fantastic tour with Kenneth. He knew a lot about the animals and the park. We saw 2 kinds of sloths, 2 kinds of monkeys - including being the first to spot some so we were alone with them which was special because this park is very crowded with people. A few frogs, iguanas, agoutis, bats, crickets, and more. We went early and it was worth it.

Poor communication on logistical details; wonderful wildlife sightings

Gabrielle_L, Jun 2026

The organization of this tour left something to be desired. The meeting time was unclear: the tickets said 7am entry, but the tour guide Javier messaged me to meet at 7:30am. Because of latecomers, we didn't enter the park until 8:15am, which made a difference in terms of how crowded it was. The tour booking also said approx. 2 hours, but the tour ended up lasting until 11:30am (so 4.5 hours from the 7am start). Our tour had 12 people, which was a lot - it took awhile for everyone to get the chance to see each animal through the scope, so I was very glad that my partner and I brought our own binoculars. That said, Javier was skilled at finding, identifying, and taking incredible photos and videos of amazing animals - we saw sloths, capuchins, howler monkeys, squirrel monkeys, a frog, and many iguanas and basilisk lizards.

Anderson was a great tour...

Brenda_C, May 2026

Anderson was a great tour guide! Very knowledgeable about the flora and fauna, friendly, and helped us see many plants and animals we would have missed without him.

Great visit to Manuel Antonio National Park

Mitch_A, May 2026

Nice slow walk through the rainforest and then along the beach. Saw sloths, monkeys, lizards, snakes and more. Guide was excellent at finding thi gs we never would have seen.

Costa Rica 2026

Andrea_H, May 2026

If I had to do again I would have done the private tour. Our guide Johnny was so knowledgeable and interactive. I really appreciated all his education. Going on a group delays and slows things down so toward the end i got to the point where u wanted to just go off on my own. Johnny was the highlight of our experience.

Guillermo was Great!

Sarah_M, Apr 2026

Naturalist tour of Manuel Antonio

Vickie_S, Apr 2026

Easy walk and the naturalist sees animals we would definitely have missed walking by ourselves. And he got pictures of everything and air dropped them to us.

Not great

Sandra_B, Apr 2026

I believe Manuel Antonio park is much too crowded and we could hardly move for most of the tour without running into other groups and their spotting scopes. This isn’t the fault of the tour guide but I wish I’d known. I had no idea what madness it would be. I’d never recommend it to someone else. The tour guide was a great guy but his accent was so hard to understand we all only got about 50% of what he said and the kids didn’t get anything out of it! I also paid for what I thought was a 4 hr tour, with snacks, and it was really 2-2 1/2 hrs without snacks! And we were so hot and tired of the crowds that we were thrilled he was done with us. But is that fair? We paid a high price and our tickets didn’t cover admission to the park, so I feel like we got ripped off. I wish I had chosen differently. I would not really recommend this tour, or I’d request a guide that we could understand. I’m glad I went, and yes, he did take pictures with his phone through the scope that he sent to us, so we have that, but overall it was a bit of a disappointment to all of us. And Manuel Antonio needs to fix the problem of way too many people all starting at the same time at the same place. It’s crazy! Oh, the other thing is that we hardly touched a large part of the park, so why does every tour guy stick in the same spot and not spread out? Is ALL the wildlife in just that one 1/4 mile stretch? The rest of the park holds nothing? It was weird and not what we expected.

I had an incredible...

Vasilios_N, Apr 2026

Kenneth was able to spot...

Rebecca_W, Apr 2026

Kenneth was able to spot animals along the trail and was very knowledgeable about everything we saw in the park

Thank you Javier! Amazing tour!

Deborah_S, Apr 2026

Javier was an amazing guide! Incredible ability to find animals that we otherwise would not have seen. He was really knowledgeable and smart. We saw 3 sloths (1 baby), a snake, many Capuchin Monkeys throughout the park and several bats. Thank you Javier for an exceptional tour!

Great time

Eva_K, Apr 2026

We had a great time! Our guide found lots of animals for us and told us interesting details about them. It was very hot a humid but we walked at a leisurely pace. Overall, a fantastic experience, would recommend!

Amazing

Claudia_S, Apr 2026

We had an amazing morning tour with Edgar, a nature specialist who was knowledgeable and patient to answer many questions. He spotted many animals: sloths, lizards, purple crab, monkeys, bats, deers. Highly recommended.

Very unprofessional did...

Stephen_V, Apr 2026

Very unprofessional did not do a good job. Were very rude during communications. Would not recommend.

Bring a swimsuit.

Juliet_J, Apr 2026

A nice excursion with some interesting animals. We were lucky enough to spot a sloth with her baby, and a poisonous viper. The weather was unfortunately not great - the guide said the animals retreat somewhat in the rain. I also wish that we had been told to bring swimsuits because you do have the option to visit a lovely beach and we would have loved a swim.

The Guide Jonny was great...

Helen_K, Apr 2026

The Guide Jonny was great and we spotted a couple of animals. However, I booked the tour for 7am to be ahead of the crowds, but we only started 7:30am. Also we finished at 9:30am, after only walking the main walk (2km max). We did not do any of the other walks, also there were no snacks included as said in the itinerary. After 9:30 we could either return with the guide to the gate (direct way) or stay in the park by ourselves. I did the latter and enjoyed all other walks for an additional 2,5h spotting many more monkeys and sloths.

Incredible Tour with Havier

Denny_L, Apr 2026

We had an amazing experience at Manuel Antonio Park with Havier. As a nature specialist, he was professional, friendly, and incredibly patient in answering all our questions. Thanks to his expert eyes, we spotted many animals we never would have seen on our own. He made our first trip to Costa Rica truly special. Highly recommended!

Wonderful

Nicola_F, Apr 2026

Haviere was incredible at spotting animals and the. Getting us away from the crowds when they formed around us. We seemed to be on our own in a very busy place. He’s so informative and pleasant to be with. Amazing photos with his clever telescope adapter. We saw so many things that we couldn’t see with the naked eye.

Perfecto

Jerry_C, Apr 2026

Excellent tour!! Highly recommend. We got to see so many things including monkeys and sloths. Our guide was Dariel.

Our guide Edgar is so...

You_W, Apr 2026

Our guide Edgar is so knowledgeable and we saw so many animals! He was able to spot the smallest insect on a tall tree far away. Without him I would’ve missed so many things. Totally recommend!

So much wildlife

ruby_n, Mar 2026

Daniel was amazing ! (I hope i remembered his name correctly) such a cool guide! I am amazed by how good his eyes were for spotting the animals. I thought it was also really cool that his mom was a guide and that's how he became one too! We saw sloths, ao many lizards and Toucans and it was just such a cool expirence. He waa so friendly and did a great job making sure everyone saw the animals and got pictures with the scope. Definitely recommend We went feb 27th at 8am

Wonderful guide and experience

Matthew_N, Mar 2026

Kenneth was a wonderful guide, and he was truly dedicated to finding every sloth, lizard, bird, and other creature for us to see. Great guide!

Manuel Antonio National Park

THERESE_R, Mar 2026

You need to separately purchase a ticket for the national parks & this one sells out way in advance. I have friends that did visit and reported it is nothing more special than any other national park in Costa Rica.

Response from Host, Apr 2026

Hello Therese, We would like to kindly clarify that your comment refers to the Manuel Antonio National Park rather than the tour service provided by our company. National park entrance tickets are managed by the park authorities and are indeed limited in capacity, which is why they can sell out in advance—this applies to all visitors, regardless of the tour operator. Our service is focused on providing a guided experience within the park, helping guests make the most of their visit through expert guidance, wildlife spotting, and detailed information about the ecosystem. We appreciate your input and hope you have the opportunity to experience a guided visit in the future. Best regards! Jade Tours Team

Our guide patiently found...

Alison_L, Mar 2026

Our guide patiently found and helped us to see many of the beautiful creatures of the park, and shared about their habits

The guide (Javier) was...

Catelyn_B, Mar 2026

The guide (Javier) was very knowledge and patient. He was able to find wildlife immediately and had all of the facts about them. He took nice pictures and videos of the animals with his telescope and then sent them to the group at the end. The park was very crowded (went around 8am).

Disappointed

Dan_M, Mar 2026

I booked the excursion and paid, then we had to book a park pass, unfortunately the park was sold out & we were left ganging and no help from the tour company and no reply from Viatar. One would assume if you can schedule an excursion the park pass should be included. Very disappointing

Response from Host, Mar 2026

Dear Guest, Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re very sorry to hear about your experience and understand how disappointing this situation must have been. We would like to clarify that our tour description clearly states that the park entrance ticket is not included in the excursion price and must be purchased separately through the SINAC system. Additionally, we make every effort to contact our guests in advance to explain the booking process and ensure everything is arranged smoothly. Unfortunately, once park tickets are sold out, access is strictly controlled by the authorities and there is nothing we can do on our end to secure additional permits. Had we known earlier that you needed assistance with purchasing the park tickets, we would have gladly guided you through the process while availability remained. We truly regret that this impacted your experience and appreciate your understanding. Your feedback is valuable and helps us continue improving our communication with future guests. Kind regards Jade Tours Team