November sits in an undervalued position: the rains have largely retreated, the country is lush and alive from six months of green season, and the December holiday surge hasn't yet arrived. Waterfalls are still substantial. Trails have had weeks to recover. The Caribbean coast is in its best weeks of the year. It's the month that rewards those who pay attention to timing.
Highlights this month
- ✓Pacific waterfalls maintaining strong flow with decreasing rainfall
- ✓Caribbean coast peak season — calm seas, clear water, minimal rain
- ✓Pre-December lull means trails, beaches, and lodges at their least crowded
- ✓Turtle nesting continuing on Caribbean beaches through early November
Best for
Photography
November light is a reward for visiting in the quiet season — the green season's vivid colours without the heavy overcast skies of September and October. The Caribbean coast is photogenically perfect.
Worth knowing
The first significant price and crowding increases begin in the final week of November as the Christmas travel season commences. Book accommodation well in advance if visiting after Thanksgiving.
Event note — Día de los Muertos on November 2 is observed with quiet reflection — less prominent than in Mexico but present in Costa Rican culture as a day of memory.
Places that shine in November
💎 Hidden Gems
Punta Uva
At the quiet end of the Caribbean road — the beach the bus doesn't reach
Puerto Viejo
🏊 Swimming
Isla del Caño Biological Reserve
The finest reef on the Pacific coast of Central America, twelve kilometres offshore
Drake Bay
🌊 Waterfalls
Catarata La Fortuna
A dramatic 70-metre waterfall, tropical rainforest, wildlife, and swimming
La Fortuna
🏊 Swimming
Parque Nacional Cahuita
One of Costa Rica’s most beautiful Caribbean national parks
Cahuita
🌊 Waterfalls
Cataratas de Montezuma
Three-tier waterfall at the end of a jungle trail twenty minutes from the village
Montezuma
🌊 Waterfalls
Cataratas Llanos de Cortez
The most accessible major waterfall in Costa Rica — and the most generous
Bagaces
💎 Hidden Gems
Río Celeste Azul
Impossibly blue river deep in Tenorio Volcano
Bijagua, Alajuela
🌊 Waterfalls
Cataratas Nauyaca
Two-tier 45-metre falls, three hours deep in the jungle south of Dominical
Dominical
🏕️ Camping
Estación Sirena, Corcovado
The most biologically intense place on Earth — no services, no shade, no compromise
Osa Peninsula
🏊 Swimming
Playa Conchal
A beach made entirely of crushed shells — no sand, only conchitas
Brasilito
🦜 Wildlife
Canales de Tortuguero
Boat through rainforest canals watching caimans, sloths, and river otters
Tortuguero
🥾 Hiking
Sendero Las Pailas, Rincón de la Vieja
Active mud pots, fumaroles, and howler monkeys in a single morning hike
Rincón de la Vieja NP