A practical guide to opening days, park tickets and planning your visit. Written by Jason Solano Zamora, Wakoo Tours.

Opening days and park hours

The park opens at 7:00 a.m., Wednesday through Monday, and closes on Tuesdays. Check your entry time in the official SINAC booking portal before travelling. Explore our Manuel Antonio National Park guided tour.

The park regulation distinguishes admission gates closing at 3:00 p.m. from the park closing at 4:00 p.m. Follow the entry time on your ticket and the instructions of park staff; temporary notices may change access. Read the official schedule regulation.

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December 2026 and January 2027: closed Tuesdays

Manuel Antonio National Park is closed only on Tuesdays. Nine: December 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29, 2026, and January 5, 12, 19 and 26, 2027. Across those two months there are 62 calendar days and 53 fall on regularly scheduled opening days.

Month	Park closed (every Tuesday)	Open days
December 2026	Dec 1, 8, 15, 22, 29	26 scheduled
January 2027	Jan 5, 12, 19, 26	27 scheduled

Source: SINAC’s official park schedule (Wednesday to Monday, 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., closed every Tuesday).

If one of those Tuesdays is your only free day, the national park is not an option, but our night tour and the Damas Island mangrove tour both run on Tuesdays. The full December planning guide — weather, crowds and the ticket window — is in Manuel Antonio National Park in December 2026.

Christmas Day, December 25, and New Year’s Day, January 1, both fall on Fridays. They follow the regular schedule unless SINAC announces an exception; an open date does not guarantee available tickets.

Park tickets and guided tours

Park admission and guiding are different services. Classic Group and Classic Private require a separate park ticket. Premium and VIP Private include admission, subject to availability. Compare the four tour options.

Official ticket prices 2026
Visitor	SINAC fee	With our service
Non-resident adult 13+	$18.08SINAC portal price, tax included	$26
Non-resident child 2–12	$5.65$5 + 13% VAT, SINAC portal price	$26
Under 2	Free	Free
Costa Rican resident	₡1,600 + 13% VAT = ₡1,808 adult₡500 + 13% VAT = ₡565 child 6–12	Buy directly; cédula required

The SINAC portal displays the final charge for your visit. Wakoo’s $26 ticket service includes the entrance fee and purchase assistance. Once purchased, the $26 payment is non-refundable; before purchase, cancellation must be requested at least 30 days before the visit to qualify for a refund.

How to buy your tickets

Choose a date when the park is open.
Check the booking window, available dates and entry times in the official SINAC portal. An empty calendar does not by itself mean sold out.
Create your account, then select Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio and your visit date.
Enter each visitor’s name and identification details exactly as requested.
Review the amount and conditions, pay, and save the ticket confirmation.
Bring the ticket and matching identification to the entrance.

Prefer help with the purchase? Send Wakoo your date and number of visitors to confirm the service and availability before paying.

Entrance and visitor information

The main entrance is in Manuel Antonio, Quepos, Puntarenas, Costa Rica, GPS 9.3914508, -84.1457868 (open in Google Maps). It sits at the end of the road from Quepos, past Playa Espadilla and the row of park-side sodas and parking lots.

SINAC manages admission, park rules and official closures. Wakoo is an independent guiding company; contact us for tour inclusions, meeting arrangements and help planning your visit. Follow the meeting instructions for your selected tour rather than assuming hotel pickup is included.

View the park map and trails before you arrive.

Before you visit

Does the park close when it rains?

Not for ordinary rain. The park keeps its normal hours through tropical showers; in December, rain tends to come in the afternoon rather than all day, which is one more reason to enter in the morning. Individual trails can be closed for safety during a real storm, and that decision is made at the park on the day.

What rain does change is the walk: trails get muddy and some animals go quiet during a heavy downpour and reappear as soon as it eases. We cover a wet day in detail in what to do in Manuel Antonio when it rains.

What time should I arrive?

At opening, 7:00 a.m. The first hours are when wildlife is most active and the trails are least crowded; by late morning the heat and the number of visitors both rise. Decide which trails to walk first with the park map. During peak periods — Christmas week, New Year’s and Easter/Semana Santa — arrive earlier, by 7:00 to 7:30 a.m., since the ticket line builds fast.

That is why every Wakoo group enters in the morning with an ICT-licensed naturalist and a spotting scope. Sloths and most birds sit 20 meters up and are close to invisible without one — we cannot promise any single animal, but a trained eye changes the odds a lot. See what a close encounter looks like: Manuel Antonio park trails guide, distance and difficulty for each one.

Do I need a guide?

A guide is optional. A naturalist guide and spotting scope help you find wildlife, but sightings cannot be guaranteed. Choose your tour according to your group, pace and inclusions.

Explore the guide

More detail when you need it, organised by the part of your visit you are planning.

Plan your park visit

Wildlife, trails and other experiences

Sources and citation

Source and citation

Official park information. Consult SINAC for official fees, entry conditions and any special closure announcements.

Writers, guidebooks and travel blogs are welcome to quote these figures with attribution. Suggested citation:Wakoo Tours, “Manuel Antonio National Park Tickets 2026: Official Prices and How to Buy,” verified October 15, 2026, https://www.costaricawakootours.com/is-manuel-antonio-national-park-open-today/#cite-this-page

Fees are set by SINAC decree, not by us: we re-check this page against the official portal and change the verification date above when it moves. Found a figure that no longer matches the portal? Tell us on WhatsApp +506 8514-1361 and we will correct it the same day.

Plan your guided visit

See the four Manuel Antonio guided tour options, or ask us about your travel dates.

Manuel Antonio National Park Today