Tortuga Island Tours

It’s referred to as Isla Tortuga or Turtle Island, named after the island’s native wildlife residents. After my personal experience spending two nights in a private hospital in Tenerife, and having to pay for it out of pocket (it wasn’t cheap), I always recommend getting travel insurance. After a day of lounging or exploration or both, visitors will not want to leave the tropical paradise. Though snorkelers and scuba divers will certainly get to see a dizzying array of fish, they can also expect to witness larger animals such as manta rays, spinner dolphins, sharks and octopuses. Those seeking an adrenaline rush might be tempted to try out the action of the zipline ride as part of a canopy tour. That way, visitors get to see the sights before and during a heart-pounding trip back down to the forest floor.

Right along the shores, you can find several souvenir shops that sell locally made handicrafts and small items which you can take on your trip home. Seafood is guaranteed fresh, and meats are cooked to perfection. Afterward, you are permitted to break away and enjoy the stunning scenery reserved for those courageous enough to paddle out. Your guide will give you an important briefing about safety and security measures when participating in this activity. By sharing this information I agree to be contacted by universal-traveller.com and/or their partner travel agency. The Franklin Chang Wreck is 95 feet long and was sunk to become an artificial reef for marine animals.

Enjoy the sunset from another perspective, sailing with us off the coast with the possibility of seeing marine species such as dolphins, manta rays, and whales. Create unforgettable moments, enjoying drinks and good music with your family or friends. Your boat trip there alone will leave you with a fantastic experience as you sail across the Gulf of Nicoya and explore its wonders.

Like showing you how to open a coconut to drink fresh coconut juice, or swimming around with you at the snorkeling spot if you are a novice swimmer. Their focus is to ensure you have a great experience and get to see lots of fish, monkeys and other animals. During the boat ride, we often come across dolphins, jumping manta rays, turtles or if you are lucky in the season you can even enjoy watching humpback and pilot whales. Before entering the water, our friendly and professional guides will be on hand to assist and instruct you. Once you descend “the key west tortuga island stairway to the sea”, you will discover the wonders under the sea with rough volcanic rocks and an abundance of marine life.

Our friends who didn’t want to stay in a hostel were staying at Lucero Surf Retreats and they loved it. Clean and spacious rooms, as well as a pool where you can relax if you don’t fancy swimming with ocean waves. Adventure-seekers and hiking enthusiasts, you might enjoy hiking up one of the many gorgeous mountain trails and relish panoramic views on the way up.

Based on our booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, this experience is likely to sell out through Viator. Chat with a local travel specialist in Costa Rica who can help organize your trip. If you’re on a tight budget, try traveling to the island during Costa Rica’s rainy season, which spans from late April through November. You’re bound to score discounted deals, and the crowds will be much thinner than they are during the peak season. If you plan on scuba diving, make sure you’re equipped with the right gear and a 2 or 3mm wetsuit.

A native song is that the Virgin Mary came down to Costa Rica and never went back to Heaven. There’s no airport on Tortuga Island which means you can only reach it by boat. There are several services running from various seaside towns on the mainland, the most popular options being Puntarenas on the eastern Pacific coast and Montezuma on the southern tip of the Nicoya Peninsula. On the other side, I did read up on lots of reviews of various tours online and although there were many positive reviews, there were also many negative reviews. Once on the island, you will likely eat lunch with your tour group. The island is located off of the Gulf of Nicoya, near the coast of the Curu Reserve.

Anyway, to protect ourselves from the sun we loaded up on SPF 50 and snorkeled with our shirts on. We always wear fast-drying water shirts while in the water here. Also, if you are traveling with a big group of friends or family, this tour could be a blast to all do together. Surprisingly, almost all of these negative reviews were about the island itself and not the actual tour. For about $5 you can rent a chair with an umbrella and relax. The guy monitoring the chairs seemed very attentive and would adjust people’s umbrellas as necessary.

On the other hand, the more adventurous types might choose to hike into the hills of the nature preserve, either to enjoy the wildlife or to reach the summit of the island. Almost everyone loved their tour company, their guides, the food, and the overall experience. However, people felt that the island was a tourist trap and didn’t like that you had to pay for everything extra once on the island. The visibility wasn’t amazing and I could imagine that during the rainy season it could be much worse.

We never go on any trip without travel insurance and there were many cases when we had to use it. For those of you interesting in exploring the surrounding strongly recommend taking a Tortuga island tour on foot as it has extremely beautiful scenery and one of the wildest jungles from Costa Rica. Any reservation received, paid, and confirmed with less than 48 hours it’s non-refundable. It is worth mentioning that this island is part of a large nature reserve protected by the state and has the Ecological Blue Flag award by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute .