Best Things to Do in San José, Costa Rica (2026): 15 Top Tours and Day Trips

San Jose Urban Tours · $35 · 4.8 from 1,944 reviews · 3.5 hrs · Mon to Sat

A walk from the Monumento de los Presentes through the Borbón and Central markets, with fruit tastings side by side and spiced ice cream from a stall open for more than 100 years, past the Cathedral and the National Theatre, then upstairs at a coffee shop for tamales, picadillo, an empanada you make yourself and chorreado coffee.

We'd book it on your first day: it teaches you the fruit, the dishes and the layout of downtown. Eat something light first, because most of the food comes at the end. Our San José food tour guide compares it with five other tastings.

Oropopo Experience · $35, $15 ages 4 to 12 · 4.9 from 1,244 reviews · 2.5 hrs · daily, 08:30, 11:00 or 14:00

A slow walk through the grounds of the University of Costa Rica in San Pedro with a young biologist and a telescope, looking for sloths, owls, birds and butterflies in the middle of the city. Recent guests saw three to seven sloths, including mothers with babies, and say it is easy for anyone with limited mobility.

We'd book it if you have not seen sloths yet or have a gap before a flight. Wear closed shoes, which are required. A few older reviews felt it was just a walk around a campus, so go for the nature, not for a big wildlife show.

Syl Travel Day Tours · $45, $17 ages 2 to 12 · 4.9 from 323 reviews · 3 hrs · daily

A small-group walk from the yellow National Museum on Plaza de la Democracia through the government buildings, parks and plazas, with the story of how coffee paid for the National Theatre, plus a coffee stop and a few food surprises. Guests praise guides who adapt the pace to children and grandparents.

Two May 2026 guests felt it was expensive for a walking tour with souvenir and coffee shop stops. We'd choose it over the food walk if history matters more than tasting. Our San José city tour guide compares it with bus and food tours.

San Jose Urban Tours · $57 · 4.8 from 565 reviews · 4 hrs · Mon to Sat, 16:00

A late-afternoon walk through the Central Market and along Avenida Central, then a chef's table where you mix four Costa Rican cocktails (mojito, morenito, michelada and chiliguaro), make empanadas and sit down to a dinner of traditional bocas. Recent guests call it the highlight of their time in San José, and solo travellers say the group made it easy.

It is adults only and starts from the same monument as the food walk. One October 2026 booking was cancelled at the last minute, so keep the operator's number. Older reviews found the cocktails small; recent ones say you will not leave hungry or thirsty.

CrawlTours Costa Rica · $40, ages 18 to 60 · 4.8 from 169 reviews · 3 hrs · Thu to Sat, 21:00

A host-led night through several downtown bars, with drinks and covers included, games to break the ice and plenty of shots of guaro. Solo travellers and groups of friends both describe making friends for the night.

The night depends on the host and the group: most recent hosts get glowing reviews, but a couple of guests had hosts who drifted off. The included drinks come mostly at the first bars, so budget for more, and take a taxi or Uber home. The party-bus nightlife tours we looked at had no recent reviews, so we left them out.

Tapir Chocolates · $57.50, all ages from 2 · 4.9 from 161 reviews · 2 hrs · daily, 15:00

The owner takes you from a fresh cacao pod to finished chocolate, with a taste at each stage, then you make two bars with your own fillings and decorate the wrappers. Families with children from 4 to 18 count it among their trip highlights, and it works on a rainy afternoon.

It runs in a converted room of the owner's house with no sign, and children pay the full price. Barrio Escalante, the city's restaurant district, is the place to stay on for dinner afterwards.

La Carpintera Canopy Tour · $51.29, $43.08 ages 6 to 9 · 4.9 from 555 reviews · 3 hrs · daily

The closest zipline to the city, about 14 km away in Tres Ríos: 13 cables, the longest about 500 m, and two rappels, with views over the valley. Guests rave about guides who keep a person at the back for anyone struggling.

The catch is the steep staircase of up to about 45 minutes to the first platform, and you get there yourself by taxi or Uber. Our zipline near San José guide compares it with the rainforest course at Braulio Carrillo.

Rescate Wildlife Rescue Center Zooave · $35, $15 ages 2 to 12 · 4.8 from 227 reviews · 2 to 4 hrs · daily

A rescue and rehabilitation centre near the airport in Alajuela, with jaguars, ocelots, pumas, monkeys, toucans, parrots and owls in large, planted enclosures and iguanas and peacocks roaming free. Guests praise the bilingual signs and the restaurant, and several fitted it in before an early flight.

The ticket covers entry only, so you need your own way there; a guided tour costs extra by reservation. Arrive at opening, when the animals are most active, and bring bug spray. Older reviews found the dense planting made some animals hard to spot.

ASSISTTOURS · $185 · 4.9 from 823 reviews · 10 hrs · daily

The most reviewed day trip from San José: a coffee plantation, the Poás crater and an afternoon at La Paz Waterfall Gardens with its rescued animals, five waterfalls and a buffet lunch. 766 of its 823 reviews are five stars.

Clouds often cover the crater by late morning, and visitors get up to 20 minutes at the viewpoint. Our Poás Volcano tour guide and Poás rules guide cover the alternatives and the current limits, and our San José coffee tour guide covers days with more time on the farm.

Summer Travel Costa Rica · $149.99 · 4.7 from 78 reviews · 7.5 hrs · daily, 07:00

Irazú, Costa Rica's highest volcano, then the Basilica in Cartago, Lankester Botanical Garden, the Orosi Valley and lunch by Lake Cachí, which guests single out as one of the best meals of their trip. Most recent guests had the same guide and praise his knowledge of every stop.

Bring a warm layer: guests found the summit chilly and the clouds quick to roll in. One October 2026 guest was never collected and one July 2026 guest had a guide who spoke mostly Spanish, so confirm the pickup and ask for an English-speaking guide.

Destination Services Costa Rica · $125 · 4.7 from 252 reviews · 10 hrs · daily, 06:00

About 18 miles of rapids through a rainforest canyon east of Turrialba, with breakfast on the way and lunch on the riverbank. Guests praise guides who keep first-timers safe, and it is the most-booked Pacuare day from the city.

Four guests in the first half of 2026 were never picked up, so book two days ahead and confirm the night before. When rain makes the Pacuare too high, operators switch to a calmer river. Our Pacuare rafting guide compares eight trips.

Go Tours Costa Rica · $165 · 4.9 from 1,713 reviews · 14 hrs · daily, 06:30

A coffee stop, a waterfall, wildlife on the roadside, lunch near Arenal and an afternoon in thermal pools at the volcano's base, with dinner on the way back. Recent guests praise guides who stop for sloths and keep the van laughing. The price rises to $169 on 1 December 2026.

It is a very long day, most of it in the van, and clouds can hide the volcano. Several guests found the souvenir and indigenous-village stops thin. If you have time, staying in La Fortuna is better: our San José to La Fortuna guide covers the transfer, and our best things to do in La Fortuna guide covers what to do there.

Go Tours Costa Rica · $169, $154 ages 5 to 11 · 4.9 from 840 reviews · 12 hrs · Mon, Thu and Sat

A guided walk in Manuel Antonio National Park, where guests saw sloths, monkeys, snakes and crabs thanks to guides' spotting, with time on the park's beach, stops at the Tárcoles crocodile bridge and a Jacó lookout, and breakfast and lunch. You can be dropped in Manuel Antonio instead of returning.

It only runs three days a week. Guests say it is a long drive, and a few felt the time inside the park was short. Our Manuel Antonio National Park tour guide compares guided walks, and our things to do in Manuel Antonio guide covers the rest of the area for those staying there.

Destiny Travel Costa Rica · $230, $175 ages 4 to 11 · 4.7 from 86 reviews · 12.5 hrs · daily, 05:30

A long day across Braulio Carrillo to Tortuguero National Park on the Caribbean coast, with breakfast, a boat ride through the canals looking for monkeys, sloths, crocodiles and birds, a walk in the park and lunch. Small groups of three to nine are common, and guests call the canal boat the highlight.

It is the most expensive day trip here and you do not see the turtle-nesting beaches, which need a night. Some guests found the 600-plus steps on the park walk hard work. If you can stay longer, the two-night Tortuguero package from San José costs $498.95, rising to $549 from 14 December 2026, though it is rated 4.4.

Inside Tours Costa Rica · $115, $95 ages 4 to 11 · 4.5 from 714 reviews · 12 to 18 hrs · daily

A boat ride across the Gulf of Nicoya, often with dolphins, to a white-sand island for about five hours of beach time, snorkelling and lunch. Guests who loved it praise the guides and the boat ride.

It has the most complaints of any trip here: a start as early as 04:45, about three hours on the bus each way with no food allowed on board, and charges on the island for chairs and umbrellas. Pickup times come by WhatsApp the evening before, so give a working number. If you are on the coast later, our Tortuga Island from Jacó guide is a shorter way to go.