La Fortuna is one of Costa Rica's easiest family bases: sloths and hanging bridges for little ones, waterslide hot springs and ziplines for older kids, and short drives to everything. Here are the best things to do in La Fortuna with kids, by age, with the top-rated family tour for each.
What You Should Know
- La Fortuna is unusually easy with children: sloths, hanging bridges, wildlife walks, and hot springs are all short, flat, and suit any age, and almost everything is within 30 minutes of town so drives stay short.
- The activities sort neatly by age. Little ones do sloth walks, bridges, and waterslide hot springs; older kids add ziplines, family rafting, and horseback riding; the volcano hike and waterfall suit school-age and up.
- Family tours start from about $28 for a thermal pass and $35 for a sloth walk. Most guided family activities land between $35 and $85, and nearly all include hotel pickup within La Fortuna.
- Rain is not a problem. Hot springs, wildlife walks, and chocolate tours are all fine or better in the wet, which matters with kids since you cannot always pick your day.
Best Things to Do in La Fortuna with Kids
La Fortuna with kids works because the headline experiences are also the easy ones. Sloths hang a few metres off a flat trail, the hanging bridges are a gentle canopy walk, and the hot springs range from waterslide resorts to warm shallow pools. Nothing requires a long drive, since almost everything sits within 30 minutes of town, which is the single biggest reason families find Arenal less exhausting than a beach-and-ruins itinerary elsewhere in Costa Rica.
The trick is matching the activity to the age. A four-year-old will love a sloth walk and a waterslide but not a 500-step waterfall descent; a ten-year-old can add a zipline and a family rafting run. This guide sorts the best things to do by what actually works at each age, with the top-rated family option for each.
The Short Answer
For most families, the winning combination is a sloth walk, the Mistico hanging bridges, and a hot springs day with waterslides. Add a zipline or family rafting if your kids are school-age, and a chocolate tour as the reliable rainy-afternoon backup.
Quick Pick: Best Activity by Age
Our shortlist, sorted by who it actually suits:
| Age | Best activity | From |
|---|---|---|
| Toddlers (2–4) | Sloth walk, shallow hot springs | $28 |
| Young kids (5–7) | Hanging bridges, Baldí waterslides, night walk | $49 |
| School-age (8–11) | Family rafting, zipline, horseback riding | $55 |
| Teens (12+) | Volcano hike, canyoning, ATV, waterfall | $20 |
| The whole family | Hanging bridges, chocolate tour, wildlife boat safari | $30 |
| A free option | El Choyín thermal river, town park | Free |
Baldí Hot Springs Day Pass: 25 Thermal Pools
The one hot spring built for families. Baldí has 25 thermal pools across big grounds plus tall waterslides that keep kids busy for hours, with shallow warm pools for little ones and bars for the adults. It gets busy at peak times, so we'd go later in the afternoon, but for a family day in the water nothing else in La Fortuna comes close.
Book NowTop-Rated Family Tours in La Fortuna
The most family-friendly tour in each category, by review volume and rating. Each is covered in depth in our dedicated guide, linked below.
| Activity | Top family tour | Price | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sloth watching | Sloth Watching Tour, Wildlife Experience | From $63 | ⭐ 5.0 (1,780) |
| Hanging bridges | Mistico Park Hanging Bridges Guided Tour | From $54 | ⭐ 4.7 (1,625) |
| Chocolate tour | Don Olivo Chocolate Tour | From $30 | ⭐ 4.9 (896) |
| Family rafting (II/III) | Balsa River Rafting Class II/III | From $73 | ⭐ 5.0 (2,002) |
| Zipline (kid-friendly) | Zipline Tour with Arenal Volcano Views | From $55 | ⭐ 5.0 (283) |
| Night walk | Night Tour La Fortuna | From $49 | ⭐ 4.8 (281) |
| Horseback riding | Río Celeste Horseback Riding Tour | From $58 | ⭐ 4.9 (221) |
| Wildlife boat safari | Caño Negro Wildlife Boat Safari | From $96 | ⭐ 4.8 (229) |
| Hot springs (waterslides) | Baldí Hot Springs Day Pass | From $60 | ⭐ 4.1 (145) |
ℹ️ Prices, ratings, and review counts were reviewed by our team in July 2026 and reflect per-person from-rates. Child rates are often lower; confirm age minimums with the operator before booking.
