December is the most booked month of the year in Manuel Antonio, and the question we get most on WhatsApp is the simplest one: what will we actually see? The honest answer is that the park’s wildlife is resident year-round — December is not a special month for sightings, it is a month with better walking conditions. What changes your odds is the hour you go and whether someone is looking for you.

If your dates are already set, the fastest thing you can do is lock the guide before the ticket window opens: the four December options and prices are on the book your December Manuel Antonio tour page. Everything below is what you can expect to find once you are on the trail.

What animals can you see in Manuel Antonio in December?

Sloths, three species of monkey, coatis, iguanas and over 350 bird species — all of them resident, none of them seasonal.

The reliable list on a December morning walk is: two-toed and three-toed sloths, white-faced capuchin monkeys, mantled howler monkeys, the endangered Central American squirrel monkey (found almost nowhere else on Earth), coatis (pizotes), green and black spiny-tailed iguanas, agoutis, land crabs on the shoreline, and birds ranging from toucans to trogons. Nobody can promise you a specific animal on a specific morning — anyone who does is selling you something. What a guide changes is how many of them you notice.

Are sloths easier to see in December?

No easier and no harder — sloths do not migrate or hibernate, so December is the same as June for them.

What December does change is visibility: with less rain on the canopy and more sunshine hours, a sloth sleeping in a cecropia is simply easier to pick out and easier to photograph. Sloths sleep 15 to 20 hours a day and barely move, which is exactly why they are so hard to spot without a scope — they look like a termite nest from the trail. That is the single biggest difference between a guided and an unguided walk.

Can you see monkeys in Manuel Antonio in December?

Yes — all three species are active in December, and the capuchins are the ones you are most likely to meet at close range.

White-faced capuchins are bold, curious and habituated to people, which makes them the easiest. Howler monkeys you will usually hear before you see: their call carries for kilometres and is loudest at dawn. The Central American squirrel monkey, the one people travel here for, moves in fast troops through the mid-canopy and is the hardest of the three. Never feed any of them — it is illegal in the park, it makes them aggressive, and human food kills them.

Does rain in December ruin wildlife sightings?

Rarely, because December rain in Quepos falls mostly in the afternoon and evening, not the morning.

December averages about 501 mm of rain across roughly 14 rainy days, with about 249 hours of sunshine for the month (weather-and-climate.com, Quepos station). That sounds like a lot until you see the pattern: most December mornings are dry and bright, and the month dries out noticeably as it goes on. It is exactly why our tours start early. A light shower on the trail can even help — animals move more once the heat breaks.

What is the best time of day for wildlife in December?

The first two hours after the park opens at 7:00 a.m. Everything after about 11:00 a.m. is quieter.

Mammals and birds are most active at dawn, temperatures are lowest, the light is best for photos, and the trails are emptiest — which matters a lot in December when the park is at capacity. By midday the heat pushes animals into the shade and the main trail is at its busiest. If you only get one morning in the park during your trip, make it an early one.

Is December good for birdwatching in Manuel Antonio?

Yes — the drier mornings and better light make December one of the more comfortable months to bird here, and northern migrants are present.

Resident targets include the fiery-billed aracari and chestnut-mandibled toucan, scarlet macaws along the coast, trogons, motmots and the black-hooded antshrike. Between roughly October and March you also get North American migrants wintering in the area. We cover the species list in detail in our Manuel Antonio birdwatching guide.

Which days is the park closed in December 2026 and January 2027?

Every Tuesday. In your travel window that is nine dates: December 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29, 2026, and January 5, 12, 19 and 26, 2027.

This catches people out every single high season. If your only free day in Manuel Antonio lands on one of those Tuesdays, you cannot enter the national park at all — plan a mangrove boat tour, a beach day or a day trip instead, and move the park to another morning.

Do you need a guide to see wildlife in December?

You do not need one to enter, but without one you will walk past most of what is there.

Sloths, snakes, bats and camouflaged birds are the things visitors miss on their own — not because they are rare, but because they do not move. An ICT-certified naturalist guide carries a Swarovski spotting scope, knows which trees the resident sloths are using this week, and can put a squirrel monkey in your eyepiece. Our guides also send you free 4K photos and video afterwards, so you are not trying to shoot a sloth 20 metres up with a phone.

How much does a December wildlife tour cost?

Between $30 and $100 per person, with no high season surcharge — the December price is the same as every other month.

  • Classic Group — $30 per person. ICT-certified naturalist guide, group of up to 10, Swarovski scope, free 4K photos and video. Park entrance and transport not included.
  • Premium — $65 per person. Group of up to 10 with park entrance, round-trip hotel transport and a fresh fruit snack included.
  • Classic Private — $69 per person. The same tour with the guide to yourselves and a flexible start time. Entrance and transport not included.
  • V.I.P. Private — $100 per person. Private guide, private round-trip transport, entrance, snack, a traditional Costa Rican lunch and professional photography.

Park entrance itself is $18.30 for adults and $5.65 for children, set by SINAC and payable separately on the two Classic options. Prices and inclusions are our published rates as of September 2026.

How far ahead should I book a December wildlife tour?

For December 2026 and January 2027 dates, now. For the last week of December, treat it as gone by the end of November.

Park entry tickets can only be bought within a maximum of two months before your date through the official SINAC system, and in high season dates commonly sell out three to four weeks ahead. The guide is the part you can secure earlier — and should. Send us your dates and we will tell you honestly what is still open: see the four December tour options and reserve your date → or message us on WhatsApp at +506 8514-1361.