How to Spend One Week in La Fortuna, Costa Rica
One week in La Fortuna was just enough time to fall deeply in love with the town’s diverse food scene, friendly locals, and impressive wonders of nature. This blog post will help you plan out a weeklong itinerary for La Fortuna and give you suggestions for tours in the area.
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Why You Should Spend One Week in La Fortuna
La Fortuna, Costa Rica, was a muse for me in all senses of the word. As soon as I caught a glimpse of the cloud-covered peak of Arenal Volcano, I was overcome with a feeling of wonder that has since never seemed to escape me. My future trips will have their competition laid out for them, as La Fortuna has now earned its rightful place as one of the top contenders for the answer to the most popular question I get asked: “Where is your favorite place you’ve been?”
La Fortuna models the perfect fusion of relaxing activities and action-packed adventures, with each day giving you the opportunity to either laze around like the native sloths or catch a birds-eye view of the rainforest through exhilarating activities.
If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would still choose to spend our entire week in La Fortuna, as this small town embodied everything I craved in our visit to Costa Rica. Leaving this town felt like leaving a piece of home behind, a sentiment that I do not often feel despite my many travels. Perhaps La Fortuna’s English translation of “the fortune” really does bear credibility, as we truly struck gold with the locals who became friends, the stunning backdrop of the Arenal Volcano, and the insightful tours led by passionate locals that we chose to include in our itinerary. Read on to discover the best tours to take during your one-week stay in La Fortuna.
Best Tours in La Fortuna, Costa Rica
From sloths lazing about to a fruitful rainforest, La Fortuna offers tours in every shape and size, giving visitors a chance to experience the culture on a deeper level. I’ve listed my favorite tours below!
Sloth Tour at Bogarin Trail
As you drive into town, you might be distracted by the sizeable sloth sign beckoning tourists to embark on a self-led walking tour to discover the town’s adored creatures. However, I much preferred driving a few meters down the road to Bogarin Trail, a local company that rightfully assigned itself the title of “The Best Place for Sloth & Bird Watching in La Fortuna.” At a cheaper rate than the aforementioned entrance, you’ll get access to the same trail, enjoy a guided tour, and be ushered in the direction of the often-camouflaged sloths, colorful toucans, poisonous frogs, stoic lizards, shy owls, and more species residing in the rainforest.
My mom and I lucked out with a private tour at a group price, as nobody else had signed up for our chosen time slot. Our tour guide, Asiel, had a vast knowledge of the rainforest species, providing us with informative answers to all of our questions. As he led us through the various viewing points from the trail, he found hard-to-spot animals and set up his telescope so we could gain a closer look. During the tour, he placed his phone on his telescope, capturing an impressive amount of photos and videos of these animals to share with us after our tour. As the tour concluded, Asiel chopped up a fresh pineapple for us to taste, again confirming that we had made the right decision to book our tour with Bogarin Trail.
Asiel’s photo of a toucan at Bogarin Trail in La Fortuna, Costa Rica.
You might come across many travelers recommending the night tour through the trail, but keep in mind that the sloths might not be as visible at this time, and your tour will likely feature a variety of spiders that I would rather be oblivious to. Despite what you might read about sloths being nocturnal, our tour guide mentioned that they become active during and directly after rainstorms. Lucky for us, it torrentially downpoured for a good few minutes prior to our tour commencing, allowing us to view the sloths in one of their most active periods of the day.
With only one week in La Fortuna, you’ll want to guarantee that you don’t leave without seeing a sloth. In my opinion, the best way to guarantee this is by booking a tour!
Asiel’s photo of a sloth at Bogarin Trail in La Fortuna, Costa Rica.
Coffee and Chocolate Tour at North Fields Cafe
It doesn’t take much convincing for me to say yes to anything that involves chocolate. And although I’m one of the rare individuals who has never grown an unbreakable coffee addiction, sampling this Costa Rican delicacy was a must for our trip, as the locals pride themselves on this production and can drink up to 10 cups of coffee a day, in the trusted words of our local tour guide.
North Fields Cafe combined these two interests and offered an immersive coffee and chocolate tour in La Fortuna that rises above that of large corporations and instead leans into sustainable production and natural flavors. As the tour begins, you’ll be able to spot the large fruit known as the cacao bean, sampling its strangely-intriguing cacao pulp. Following this tasting, you’ll overlook the stages of roasting before being led to your seats for an expanded sampling of chocolate. From its liquid state to 100% dark chocolate, your tastebuds will experience a variety of flavors as the chocolate evolves from a sweetened substance to a vaguely fruity finish.
From here, you’ll take a brief intermission from chocolate and coffee to learn about sugarcane. Our tour guide chose two male volunteers to assist him in extracting water from pure sugarcane, providing us all with a pocket-sized cup of sweet, grass-like water.
Next up was the coffee portion of the tour, where we learned about the meaning behind the shades of roasted coffee beans, confirming once again that large corporations have successfully fooled the majority of individuals into growing a liking for burned, overly-roasted coffee beans. The coffee was freshly brewed in front of our eyes, with beans crackling like popcorn to signal they were done being roasted.
Our group was fed more information about Costa Rican coffee, its influence in the country, and Costa Rica’s long history of innovation, as San José was the third city in the world to adopt electric lighting.
Newly educated and a bit caffeinated, we ended the tour with a final tasting of coffee, sampling a lighter brew that most Costa Rican coffee drinkers favor. As I am not much of a coffee enthusiast myself, I came to prefer this lighter option to the bitter flavors worshipped in the States.
Zip Lining at Sky Adventures
One week in La Fortuna would not be complete without an exhilarating zip lining tour complete with direct views of Arenal Volcano and Lake Arenal. Sky Adventures provided us with a daredevil afternoon decked out in harnesses, soaring up to 40 miles per hour above the lush rainforest.
Our experience began with us being transported to the first practice zipline via the sky tram, fully immersing ourselves in the leafy environment. Our bravery was put to the test for the next hour and a half, zooming from one platform to the next, each turn on the zip line providing us with a glimpse of what it feels like to have the entirety of nature to yourself.
With an innovative braking system and an experienced team of guides, safety is Sky Adventures’ top priority, alongside providing travelers with lifelong memories of being one with the sky.
Check prices and book your zip lining experience with Sky Adventures here.
Additional Things to Do During Your Week in La Fortuna
If you find yourself with extra time during your week in La Fortuna, there are more adventures to be had beyond these cultural and thrill-filled tours. See below for additional things to do in La Fortuna.
La Fortuna Waterfall
One of the region’s most acclaimed sites, besides the showstopping Arenal Volcano, is the mighty La Fortuna Waterfall peeking out from the bunches of tree tops. As you view from afar, the rushing sound of water might not seem to add up to the misleading slim stream of water emerging from the rainforest. However, as you finish your descent down the 500 steps carved into the terrain, you’ll find this force of nature to be quite massive, pulling you into a spellbound trance.
After pulling your eyes away from the waterfall, you’ll have a 500-step ascent to the entrance to look forward to. Not to worry, though - there are benches sculpted into the terraces on your way up, giving you a place to cool down if needed.
Treat Yourself to a Mud Wrap
Gift yourself a tranquil spa experience, opting for an unorthodox treatment in the likes of a mud wrap. Avoid the mistake of accidentally booking yourself in the same room as your mom for this event, as we were less focused on the manufactured tranquility and more intent on stifling our giggles, as we had never been so openly exposed in front of each other before. There were lots of urgent “Close your eyes!” and “Don’t look at me!” bits of commentary involved in our spa treatment when the specialists were out of the room. Nonetheless, it made for a humorous tale and allowed us to enjoy a spa treatment outside of a typical massage or facial.
Take Part in the Local Food Scene
Food in La Fortuna, Costa Rica, caters to a diverse palate, breaking the notion that all the region has to offer is rice and beans. Although we indulged in this local delicacy each morning for breakfast, paired with plantains and various fixings, our evening eating excursions introduced us to an eclectic scene of cuisine, ranging from vegan plates to flaky empanadas to macadamia-infused cookies. Support the local businesses by dining in a number of their family-owned establishments. Visit my travel guide to find the best restaurants in La Fortuna that I was able to sample!
Take in the Views of Arenal Volcano From Your Hotel
With tours and eating aside, you’ll also want to set time aside to take in the views of Arenal Volcano from your hotel. With only one week in La Fortuna, you’ll want to soak up all views of this volcano as possible. In true rainforest fashion, it is difficult to predict when a fleeting rain shower will fill the sky with clouds. Oftentimes, you’ll find the peak of Arenal Volcano to be covered by clouds that somehow move speedily along until they reach the volcano, often spending hours resting in this spot. However, the revelation is certainly worth the wait, as the top of the volcano is a site to behold. Enjoy your free time relaxing at your hotel, taking in these views of La Fortuna’s pride.
Where to See Sloths in La Fortuna
One thing was undebatable leading up to our trip to La Fortuna: We were going to see sloths no matter what it cost. Given their camouflage abilities among the tree branches, I highly recommend taking a sloth tour in La Fortuna to guarantee your chances. As mentioned earlier, Bogarin Trail is my top choice for this excursion, as you’ll be able to view these animals in their natural habitat while also receiving top-notch footage of the various highlights of the trail.
Book your sloth watching tour here!
Does La Fortuna Have Nightlife?
Given that I was traveling with my mom, I didn’t venture out to experience much of the nightlife like I usually would. However, as we grew closer to our hotel’s pool bartender, he gave multiple recommendations for drinking and dancing in La Fortuna. I’ve listed these below for your reference, and I’ll be sure to check them out if I have longer than one week in La Fortuna in the future.
BlackMoon
Selina’s
Sander’s Bar and Restaurante
Volcán Look Disco
As your week to La Fortuna draws to a close, it is quite possible that you’ll be brought to tears like I was, as this region had an unexplainable and unavoidable effect on me. My nostalgia continues to get me by until the day I will return once more.
Want more tips for La Fortuna? Read my blog post on what you need to know before visiting La Fortuna, Costa Rica!
