Wildlife calendar

Month-by-month guide to Costa Rica's most sought-after wildlife encounters — from sea turtle nesting to humpback whale season and quetzal sightings.

Peak season Active Possible Unlikely

Species	Location	Notes
Green sea turtles	Tortuguero NP	Nesting Jul–Oct; peak Aug–Sep. Night tours with MINAE-certified guide required.
Leatherback turtles	Playa Grande (Las Baulas NP)	Largest turtle species; nesting Oct–Feb, peak Nov–Jan. Reservation mandatory.
Olive Ridley arribada	Ostional NWR	Mass nesting (thousands at once) during waning moon Aug–Dec. Unprecedented spectacle.
Humpback whales (south)	Marino Ballena NP / Pacific South	Southern hemisphere population. Aug–Oct peak whale watching season.
Humpback whales (north)	Marino Ballena NP / Pacific	Northern hemisphere population. Dec–Mar peak; active windows overlap in rare years.
Resplendent quetzal	San Gerardo de Dota / Monteverde	Nesting Apr–Jun in San Gerardo de Dota. Avocado fruit draws them year-round in cloud forest.
Scarlet macaws	Carara NP / Osa Peninsula	Nesting Jan–Jun. Spectacular dusk roost flights at Tárcoles River bridge near Carara.
Nesting waterbirds	Palo Verde NP	Jabiru storks, roseate spoonbills and hundreds of species concentrate Dec–Mar dry season.

Planning around wildlife seasons

Costa Rica's wildlife calendar is driven by two overlapping seasonal systems: the Pacific dry/wet cycle and the Caribbean inverse pattern. Most wildlife events concentrate in specific windows, so aligning your trip dates with the calendar above can dramatically improve your chances of memorable sightings.

Sea turtles at Tortuguero — The Caribbean coast's Tortuguero National Park is the most important nesting site in the Western Hemisphere for green sea turtles. Plan around July to October, with August and September offering peak nesting activity. Night tours are mandatory and must be booked in advance through MINAE-certified guides. Read the full Tortuguero National Park guide for logistics.

Humpback whales at Marino Ballena — The "whale tail" beach of Marino Ballena National Park sees two distinct humpback seasons: southern hemisphere whales August–October, northern hemisphere whales December–March. Uvita is the base town for whale watching tours.

Quetzals in San Gerardo de Dota — The resplendent quetzal, Costa Rica's most iconic bird, is most reliably spotted during nesting season (April–June) in the Talamanca highlands near San Gerardo de Dota. The cold cloud forest at 2,200 m altitude requires warm layers year-round.

For a full seasonal planning overview by region, use our best time by region tool.