We went to the Carara National Park just 1 hour from San José, Carara in Huetar means “River of lizards’, it’s very rich in flora and fauna because it’s a transitional forest of the Central Pacific, where forest species come together, dry and wet. This National Park is famous for bird watching.
How to get there?
Take route 27 and after the Orotina tollbooth you have to go in the direction of Jacó for about 20 more minutes until you pass the Tárcoles river. From there its 500 meters and you will find the entrance to the PN Carara on the left.
Waze: https://waze.com/ul/hd1ezdsx2q
Distance:
Accessible trail: 1.2km
Total: 8km
Difficulty: Easy
Accessibility: Yes it is accessible
What to bring?:
Repellent, bottle of water, snacks and excellent attitude.
Vehicle: Automobile
Parking: Yes
Pets: No
Camping: No
Contact: 2637-1054
Cost: ¢ 1000
We left San José at 7:00 am to arrive at about 8 am at Carara National Park. After parking under the shade, the park ranger received us and took our temperature, then we went to the ticket office to pay with a card (without contact) and thus entered. Due to these COVID times, the place has a maximum capacity so it’s best to arrive when the doors open.
We started with the accessible path that is completely cemented like a highway in the middle of the forest, with a minimal slope, ideal for older adults, children and people in wheelchairs.
The tour is super cool, it’s all in the shade and you can see a lot of animals such as coatis, frogs, guatusas, birds and insects of all kinds. We also saw a mushroom tannate of all shapes and colors. Another thing we liked is that there are several paths of different distances and all end at the same entrance.
We did the longest trail and it was really cool because we didn’t expect to walk 2 hours in the jungle so close to San José, plus we sweat a lot due to the humid weather, typical of Carara.
Finally we walked until we reached the parking lot and went to look for lunch at a restaurant on the way to San José.
*DATE of HIKE: June 2020
