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Photo by Matthias Bethke, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Best time to visit Manuel Antonio
Costa Rica · Latin America
All twelve months scored on daily temperature, rainfall, humidity and holiday crowding.
The year in Manuel Antonio
Tap a month for its page
- JanJManuel Antonio in January: good, busy
- FebFManuel Antonio in February: sweet spot, busy
- MarMManuel Antonio in March: sweet spot, busy
- AprAManuel Antonio in April: sweet spot
- MayMManuel Antonio in May: avoid
- JunJManuel Antonio in June: avoid
- JulJManuel Antonio in July: avoid
- AugAManuel Antonio in August: avoid
- SepSManuel Antonio in September: avoid
- OctOManuel Antonio in October: avoid
- NovNManuel Antonio in November: avoid
- DecDManuel Antonio in December: ok, busy
- Sweet spot
- Good
- OK
- Avoid
- Busy
Dry season: Dec–Mar, 6 or fewer rainy days a month.
Plan this trip
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Flights from
Flights
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Book with the airline
Where to stay
Book direct
Luxury
Things to do
Car hire
Rent direct
Travel insurance
Check whether your bank card or home insurance already covers this trip.
If the trip needs a visa, the travel agent or visa centre usually sells the cover it asks for.
Mobile data (eSIM)
Your own plan's EU roaming may already cover this.
Renting a pocket Wi-Fi is the other common way to stay connected.
These are sites people in book with. Each opens in a new tab, on the site's own pages.
Month by month
| Month | Max °C | Rain days | Humidity | Sun h/day | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 28° | 2d | 78% | 10.7h | goodbusy | busier than usual |
| Feb | 29° | 1d | 72% | 11.3h | sweet spot busy | busier than usual |
| Mar | 30° | 1d | 71% | 11.3h | sweet spot busy | busier than usual |
| Apr | 29° | 8d | 80% | 10.2h | sweet spot | 29C max, 8 rainy days |
| May | 28° | 18d | 86% | 8.2h | avoid | monsoon: 18 rainy days, 493mm |
| Jun | 28° | 19d | 88% | 7.5h | avoid | monsoon: 19 rainy days, 502mm |
| Jul | 27° | 17d | 88% | 7.2h | avoid | monsoon: 17 rainy days, 516mm |
| Aug | 27° | 18d | 87% | 7.2h | avoid | monsoon: 18 rainy days, 609mm |
| Sep | 27° | 22d | 88% | 7.5h | avoid | monsoon: 22 rainy days, 580mm |
| Oct | 27° | 24d | 90% | 6.7h | avoid | monsoon: 24 rainy days, 891mm |
| Nov | 26° | 18d | 89% | 7.4h | avoid | monsoon: 18 rainy days, 609mm |
| Dec | 27° | 6d | 84% | 9.8h | okbusy | busier than usual |
Rain days are the days with at least 1 mm of rain, as a weather station counts them.
Weather read at Manuel Antonio village: ten years of ERA5 and ERA5-Land reanalysis, through Open-Meteo's open data.
A busy month is a crowded one, not a bad one — usually it is crowded because the weather is good. It is flagged rather than scored down, and crowds alone never make a month “avoid”: that is reserved for weather worth skipping.
How busy it gets
Then and now
Manuel Antonio's March days now average 30.2°C, 3.2°C warmer than in 1981–1990. 11 of 12 months are clearly warmer.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981–90 | 26.2° | 26.6° | 27.0° | 27.0° | 26.1° | 25.9° | 26.0° | 25.9° | 25.7° | 25.3° | 25.8° | 26.0° |
| 2017–26 | 28.0° | 29.3° | 30.2° | 29.2° | 28.2° | 27.5° | 27.2° | 27.2° | 27.4° | 26.7° | 26.3° | 26.9° |
| Change | +1.8° | +2.7° | +3.2° | +2.2° | +2.1° | +1.6° | +1.2° | +1.3° | +1.7° | +1.4° | +0.5° | +0.9° |
The average daily high, month by month, for the nearest ERA5 grid cell. Bold is a clear change; grey is within the ordinary spread between years. Every destination, ranked.
Getting there
Fly into San José (Alajuela) (SJO), then drive. The flights under Where to book are to San José (Alajuela).
The drive from each airport is the road's, from openrouteservice.org by HeiGIT: typical, not a schedule.
How far Manuel Antonio is depends on where you set off from — the months above do not.
- from Bogota
- from Miami
- from Fort Lauderdale
- from Mexico City
- from Tampa
- from Orlando
- from New Orleans
- from Lima
Open in Rome2rio for every way from to Manuel Antonio, flying or not.
Before you go
Type A and B plugs at 120 V. Drives on the right. The currency is the Costa rican colón. No UK Foreign Office advice against travel. Global Affairs Canada: Exercise a high degree of caution. US State Department: Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution. Everything for Costa Rica: cost of living, languages, emergency numbers and health.
Being there
On arrival
- Paying — The colón is the currency, but US dollars and major credit cards are widely accepted. ATMs are found across the country, though some close from 11pm to 5am and they take only a 4-digit PIN; change money only at banks and approved exchange offices.
- UPI, for visitors from India — Not accepted for paying here; bring a card that works abroad.
- Tipping — Restaurant and hotel prices already include 13% VAT and a 10% tip; leave more only if the service was exceptional.
Getting around Manuel Antonio
- Apps — Rides: DiDi, Uber. Maps: Google Maps, Apple Maps. Messages: WhatsApp. Use official taxis, red (orange at the airport) with a yellow triangle, booked ahead rather than hailed, and make sure the driver uses the meter. Uber and DiDi also operate, though no law regulates them yet.
Buses run up and down the mountain every 30 minutes during the day stopping at many places along the way. Cost is ₡390. More on Wikivoyage
From the Wikivoyage article on Manuel Antonio, written by travellers and licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Help
- Emergency — 911 (any emergency).
TravelCharika is not an emergency service: we cannot call for help or send anyone. Numbers can change; if one fails, ask someone local or your hotel.
- Hospitals near Manuel Antonioa search on Google Maps
- Pharmacies near Manuel Antonioa search on Google Maps
Your embassy — : how to reach your embassy or consulate abroad. A guess from your city, : a city is not a passport.
Put together by hand from the sources listed, checked 8 October 2026. Apps, cards and rules change, so check before you rely on one.
Sources (15)
- gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/costa-rica/getting-help
- gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/costa-rica/safety-and-security
- travel.gc.ca/destinations/costa-rica
- visitcostarica.com/planning-your-trip/tips
- visitcostarica.com/faqs
- ict.go.cr/flipbook/guias/flip-en/MINIGUIA_FORTUNA/files/basic-html/page41.html
- uber.com/global/en/r/cities/la-fortuna-alajuela-cr
- uber.com/global/en/r/costa-rica/cities
- web.didiglobal.com/cr/conductor/ciudades/san-carlos
- delfino.cr/2026/07/proyecto-para-regular-plataformas-tipo-uber-supera-282-mociones-y-vuelve-al-plenario
- cicom.ucr.ac.cr/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/CICOM_Informe_Apps-2025.pdf
- developers.google.com/maps/coverage
- apple.com/ios/feature-availability
- pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2286608
- rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/AnnualReport/PDFs/09PAYMENT290526C6588B796E664822A2BD0DEB6452CAD4.PDF
Manuel Antonio in pictures
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Bernard Gagnon, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Guardabarranconi, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Guy Vaillancourt, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Guy Vaillancourt, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Mark Cowell, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
What Manuel Antonio is like
Manuel Antonio is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Costa Rica due to its beautiful beaches and rich wildlife. It is in the Central Pacific region the country. More on Wikivoyage
- Worth seeing
- Must-sees include the Manuel Antonio National Park and the beautiful beaches. More on Wikivoyage
- Worth doing
- The list of activities in Manuel Antonio is endless. Some of the most popular activities include trips to the park and zip-lining and snorkeling. More on Wikivoyage
- Getting in
- From San José, Manuel Antonio can be reached by either bus or plane, via the airport (XQP IATA) 5 min outside of Quepos. Tracopa has several direct public buses daily from San José to Quepos and Manuel Antonio for US$10. More on Wikivoyage
- Staying safe
- Do not leave anything unattended on the beach, even for a short time, especially after dark. There have been opportunistic thefts on Manuel Antonio beach. More on Wikivoyage
From the Wikivoyage article on Manuel Antonio, written by travellers and licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the full article has far more. The numbers above are measured; this is experience.
Around Manuel Antonio
Also in Costa Rica
Nearby
- Panama City Panama · 509 km
- The Cayman Islands Cayman Islands · 1,144 km
- Quito Ecuador · 1,240 km
- Tulum Mexico · 1,253 km
Kind of place
Manuel Antonio is in Costa Rica, Latin America. Distances are great-circle, so a short one can still be a long way round.
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