Jacó Private Tours: 7 Private Boats and Guides Compared, Plus 2 to Confirm (2026)

$200 each for 5 or 6, falling to $155 each for 10 · 5.0 from 85 reviews · 8.5 hrs

Your own speedboat for the day, with pickup in Jacó at 07:15, homemade breakfast, a hot lunch on Tortuga Island and drinks. Guests tow behind the boat on Subwings, watch spider monkeys on the rocks, and describe reaching the snorkel spots before the big catamarans arrive. Families with teenagers and grandparents describe a day paced around them.

We'd choose it over the shared catamaran for any group of eight or more, because the price per person is about the same. The tradeoffs are a wetter, bumpier ride than a big boat and a five-person minimum. One guest describes feeding the monkeys and fish, which Costa Rica's wildlife law prohibits without authorization, so ask the crew not to. Our Tortuga Island tour from Jacó guide compares it with the shared trips.

$85 each for 2 or 3, down to $65 each for 7 to 12 · 4.9 from 40 reviews · 4 hrs

A naturalist guide collects you from your hotel in Jacó, Herradura, Tárcoles or Playa Hermosa and walks Carara National Park at your pace, with the park ticket and water included. Guests describe more than 25 bird species, three kinds of monkey and a guide who went looking for macaws after the park.

It is the private tour we'd book for two, because there's no group minimum beyond two adults. Take the 07:30 start: the only poor review came from a 12:30 group that saw little.

$101.54 each · 5.0 from 74 reviews, every one five stars · from 06:30

A private morning with a local birder who picks you up and drives to several sites around Jacó for the species on your list, with a scope for photos through your phone. Guests describe dozens of species, one counted 33 in three hours, and mornings that ran past the three hours listed.

We'd book it if birds or bird photography are the point; it costs more than a Carara walk but isn't tied to one park.

$107 each, priced for 3 · 4.9 from 18 reviews · 3 to 4 hrs

A private walk through Jacó with four sit-down stops: caldosa, patacones, a Tico tortilla with coffee and chifrijo at a beachside restaurant. Families and a group of 14 describe big portions and a guide focused on them.

A couple still pays for three, so for two people we'd book the shared Taste of Costa Rica walk instead, compared in our Jacó food tour guide.

$199, $54 ages 5 to 15 · 4.9 from 109 reviews · 6 to 7 hrs

A full day on ATVs through rainforest trails, villages and rivers to a waterfall you can swim in, with lunch and pickup in Jacó on request. Recent guests describe monkeys, toucans and butterflies, and one family with daughters aged 6 and 8 loved it.

Several reviews from 2022 to 2024 say the company never groups you with others; one 2018 guest was put in a larger group. It has only three reviews in the past year, and one recent guest found it simply too long and suggested a shorter ride. Our Jacó ATV tour guide compares the shorter options.

$95 each, 4 minimum · 4.7 from 38 reviews · 4 hrs

A small catamaran just for your group from Herradura Beach, with snorkeling, fishing gear and fruit, and a stop at Playa Fantasia that several guests had to themselves.

We'd only book it knowing what it is: an older boat that recent guests say runs on the motor because the sail is damaged, with simple snacks. The fishing is trolling with catch and release, the snorkel gear is basic and the water is sometimes too murky to snorkel, so bring your own mask if it matters, and water shoes for the rocky beach landing. Two families saw humpback whales on the way, one with children aged 2 and 4. One guest in March 2026 reported a no-show.

$2,986.67 per boat for up to 10 · 4.8 from 20 reviews · 7 hrs

A 50-foot catamaran for your group alone, with hotel pickup, breakfast, lunch, an open bar and snorkeling at Playa Fantasia, a cove reached only by sea. Guests hosting a retreat and a multi-generation family describe the beach all to themselves, with a banana boat and volleyball, and a crew that helped older parents on and off the boat.

At about $299 per person for ten, it is the top end here; bring your own towels.

$49, $50 ages 5 to 11 · 5.0 from 510 reviews · 2 hrs

A two-hour surf lesson on Jacó Beach with the board included; guests describe getting up on their first tries, a family of five children aged 8 to 18 learning together, and a photographer whose photos and drone footage many say are worth paying extra for. One guest recommends the 06:00 lesson for calm morning water.

Guests describe both private and semi-private lessons, so confirm which you are booking: on a shared lesson one instructor alternates between students, and one guest's lesson ran about an hour and a quarter. Agree the meeting point in advance, too: two guests in 2026 had trouble finding out where to meet.

$70, $65 ages 6 to 17 · 4.9 from 47 reviews · 3.5 hrs · daily at 17:30

An evening walk of about 1.5 km up a shallow forest river near Jacó, in boots and with professional flashlights, looking for frogs, snakes, owls and scorpions, with a swim in the pools and dinner afterwards according to guests.

The listing marks it private, but no review we read confirms a private group, so ask when you book. Our Jacó wildlife tours guide compares it with the other ways to see animals near town.