Costa Rica

Location: 258 km (160 mi.) northwest of San José; 36 km (22 mi.) north of Liberia

See North Pacific Tourism Region

Size: 80,306 acres (32,512 Ha.)

Date of Creation: July 1991

Part of: Guanacaste Conservation Area
 

About:

Guanacaste National Park consists of several very different types of forest and ecosystems. As you move up in elevation from the tropical dry forest, you will find the cloud and rainforests. The forests surround the peaks of Orosi and Cacao Volcanoes.

The park shelters one of the most important rivers in Costa Rica, the Tempisque River, and several other headwaters along the continental divide. 

You will enjoy the solitude of this place. It is great for hiking and contemplating nature. There are pre-Columbian petroglyphs lying around El Pedregal near the Maritza field station at the bottom of the Orosi Volcano.

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Weather:

Activities:

Camping is available at the main ranger station and there is a rustic simple lodge at Cacao field station. Dormitory-style sleeping is available at all the ranger stations. Hiking and bird & wildlife watching are other available activites.

Facilities:

The Park houses the administration building for the ACG (Guanacaste Conservation Area) where there are restrooms, laboratories and a conference hall. 

There are three other Sectors, each having its own biological field station: the Cacao Sector, the Maritza sector and the Pitilla Sector. 

The Cacao Sector offers dormitory-style lodging, restrooms and showers. There is a kitchen and dining hall for groups and researchers.

At the Maritza and Pitilla Stations there are research labs and classrooms and dormitory-style lodging.  

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Trails:

Trails leave from all the stations exploring different types of ecosystems and offering panoramic views and rich biodiversity.

Flora & Fauna:

The Park is home to over 300 bird species including toucans, montezuma oropendula, owls, as well as 5,000 species of day and night butterflies and moths, 3,000 species of epiphytes, and animals like the paca, white-tailed deer, jaguar, puma, osprey, eyelash viper, castellana-cantil, butterfly B, purple gallinule and tapir. The most common fauna in this park is wild strangler, ear tree (Guanacaste tree, Costa Rica's national tree), ceiba tree, and the silk tree.

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Fees and Schedule:

Schedule: all the ranger stations are open for visitor attention everyday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Getting There:

All the ranger stations are reached by taking the InterAmerican Highway (Rt. 1) north out of San José past Liberia. 

If you are walking, take a taxi to Potrerillos at the hamlet of Quebrada Grande and continue for about 8 km (5 mi.).

Contact info: 

ACG: Guanacaste Conservation Area 

(506) 666-0630

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