Tortuguero National Park (Cuatro Esquinas entrance)
Park · Caribbean Coast
Canals, beach and swamp forest at the top of the Caribbean coast, famous for green and leatherback turtle nesting. You enter on foot through the Cuatro Esquinas ranger post at the south end of Tortuguero village.
- Time there
- 3 h
- Best time
- morning
- Kids
- 6 / 10
- View
- 8 / 10
- Crowds
- 6 / 10
- Swimming
- 2 / 10
- Effort
- 3 / 10
- Location
- 10.53783, -83.50442 — Google Maps
Tip
Buy your ticket at the ranger post (it is a paid park, check the current price). Night turtle walks are guide-only, so ask for the guide's ICT card.
Be careful
Stay on the marked trails, keep lights off and distance from nesting turtles, and wear repellent: mosquitoes are fierce after rain.
Getting there
No road to Tortuguero: arrive by boat from La Pavona or Caño Blanco, or by small plane.
Places nearby
- Restaurante Mi NiñoFood & CoffeeLocal and traveler favorite right next to the boat dock in Tortuguero, known for its ceviche, shrimp in coconut sauce and fruit juices; there can be a wait at peak hours.
- Tortuguero Nature Native GuidesParks & Wildlife · from $30Local guides in Tortuguero running quiet paddle tours on the canals, national-park hikes, night walks and turtle-nesting tours; part of each fee goes to a local school and community.
- Budda CafeFood & CoffeeTerrace restaurant in the middle of Tortuguero village with river views, a wide menu of traditional dishes with some creative touches and cocktails at sunset.
- Laguna Lodge TortugueroStays · from $291.54Jungle lodge between the canals and the Caribbean sea in Tortuguero.
- Tortuga Lodge & GardensStays · from $150Riverside lodge in Tortuguero set in plantation-style gardens, offering guided boat, kayak and turtle-nesting tours.
Sources: OpenStreetMap node/440649603 · Wikidata Q602120 · https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Tortuguero · https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortuguero_National_Park · https://www.openstreetmap.org/node/440649603