Corcovado is one of the most surreal places to visit in Costa Rica. It’s among the last old-growth Pacific Lowland Rainforests in the Americas and home to the largest jaguar population in Costa Rica. I’ve found from experience that planning a trip there can be a challenge due to the special rules that are in place for visiting the park and the general apathy of the National Park Service (SINAC).
Firstly, Corcovado has a strict limit on the number of daily visitors that can enter the park. The spaces are allocated between day-trippers and overnight stays at the Sirena Ranger station. I can’t recommend highly enough doing the overnight trip. The day tours are just so rushed and you miss out on some of the best parts of the experience by not staying.
Since entry is limited you have to email in advance requesting your park entrance. During peak season it can sell out well in advance. You can only visit the park with a licensed guide. In order to reserve your park entrance you must have a guide who is on the list of approved guides for the park. I have gone with fellow educator and guide Nito Paniagua of Surcos Tours. They can also handle all these travel arrangements for you if you’d like, but if you prefer to save a bit of money and make your own arrangements then keep reading.
Step 1: Park Reservations
Up to 6 months in advance, email reservaciones.pnc@sinac.go.cr with your full names, passport numbers, and the name and ID (cédula) of your guide. The email must be sent between 8 am and 12 pm or 1 pm and 2:30 pm (Costa Rica time) otherwise the system will reject it. (Previously it was one month in advance but in 2023 they changed it to up to six months in advance). They will send you a preliminary approval and you must pay the park entrance fee within 48 hours to confirm your reservation. The cost per day is 1.600 colones (plus 13% VAT) for Costa Ricans and legal residents and $15 for foreigners (plus 13% VAT) as of this writing. They only accept payment via bank deposit, so if you’re outside of Costa Rica it can be a bit complicated to pay for the reservation. Your best bet might be working out something with your guide to handle the deposit.
Make sure to be 100% sure you’ve sent in the right dates. The personnel at SINAC are very clear that there are no refunds or date changes. And even if you qualify for one and they tell you that you do, they won’t ever give it to you. (I’ve got dozens of emails back and forth with escalating levels of administrators to prove it from a canceled trip during the pandemic.) They theoretically have information on reservations on their site but it’s often either missing, wrong, or incomplete. Hence why I decided to write this up.
Step 2: Sirena Accommodations
Once you’ve confirmed your park entrance you will need to make arrangements for your accommodations in the park. It is strictly prohibited to bring food or drink from outside the park. You can bring a water bottle but it must not be a single-use (plastic) bottle. The food is a bit pricey, but when you consider that they’re cooking for a limited number of people, off the grid, relying on food being brought in by boat and tractor once a week, and the cooks all have to live onsite three weeks in a row those things add to the cost. But the food is good and they’re not stingy with the portions. The costs (per person) are:
- Bed: $30 per night
- Breakfast: $20
- Snack (choose this instead of a lunch it’s way cheaper and very big, “lunch” is $25): $10
- Dinner: $25
You are also responsible for your guide’s accommodations and food, but their lodging is only $5 a night and their food is half price.
In order to make these reservations you need to email reservaciones@adicorcovado.org with a copy of your paid park reservation. There is no restriction on the time of day to email them like the park reservation. You need to specify which services you want to reserve in the email. Unlike the park reservation, you can pay for this with a credit card. You just need to request it and they will send you a form that you will fill out to authorize payment.
Step 3: Transportation
To actually get to the Sirena Ranger station you can either go in by boat (about a 90-minute ride around the peninsula) or by foot. Going by foot is a cool experience but very tiring. I’ve opted for the boat both times I’ve gone. The boat is $60 round trip, per-person as of April 2023 although it can vary with fuel costs. You can make arrangements with the boat by contacting Kendry Tours via WhatsApp at +506 8642 5203. Alternatively, your guide might make the arrangements for you, so check with them on what they prefer.
Miscellaneous tips:
The number of electrical outlets are limited. If you’re fortunate enough to get a bunkbed by an outlet then great. I like to bring a little USB-powered fan as it’s quite warm there. Together with a short extension cord I can charge my phone/camera/fan etc. right at the bed.
The humidity there is often suffocating so I suggest bringing a few small towels or washcloths you can use to dry off the sweat. I sweat in the air conditioning so I’m an extreme case, but even people I know who don’t sweat easily usually end up drenched from the high heat and humidity.
Lockers. You can rent a locker to store your valuables in for $4 a day. If you want to you can, but I’ve always felt safe leaving my electronics in my bag at the bed. Since you’re out in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of fellow travelers the chances of theft are much lower. Especially since if something goes missing the park rangers will start searching everyone. (I know from experience because the first time we went someone set down a phone identical to our guide’s next to his bag and he picked it up not realizing it wasn’t his. A little later a park ranger approached us and was searching everyone and he realized he had a phone in each pocket!)