Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge
Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge
4.5
About
Experience Arenal´s only wild frog sanctuary at night, when colorful tree frogs and other rainforest wildlife are most active and most easily observed. At least 28 frog species have made their home the ponds of Arenal Oasis. The Rojas Bonilla family carefully maintains native plants of Arenal, to create needed frog habitat in this private wildlife reserve of fresh spring water fed ponds; within a rainforest refuge connecting the rainforests of the Arenal Volcano and El Rio Burio. The night tour continues past the frog ponds along flat trails immersed in the noisy night rainforest. The guide will point out animals hiding from you. Support, enjoy and learn about the only wild frog sanctuary in the Arenal Volacano Area. Tours led by trained naturalist along flat rainforest trails start at 5:45pm at Arenal Oasis. Flashlights are provided and reservations are necessary. Included in the Tour: - Flashlights - Transportation Round Trip - Certified Naturalist Guide - Entrance Fee - Drinks What to Bring: - Camera - Closed Shoes - Long Pants - Raincoat - Confortable light Clothing - Big Smile
Suggested duration
2-3 hours
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
360 reviews
Excellent
286
Very good
57
Average
11
Poor
4
Terrible
2
avid_traveler_2007
Mountain View, CA135 contributions
Feb 2023
Did two tours here, one night hike to spot frogs, insects, and reptiles, and one early morning bird watching with delicious breakfast. Both tours were excellent and we learned so much from our friendly and informative guides.
Written 24 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ADS20092009
New Mills, UK84 contributions
Feb 2023 • Family
Brilliant frog tour with an incredibly knowledgeable guide. We saw maybe 12 different types of frogs and our young children (7&8) absolutely loved it! Just make sure you are covered and have bug spray on as there are all the mozzies.
Written 20 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Susan C
10 contributions
Dec 2022
Lot of frogs to view. Our guide was very informative, friendly and amazing at spotting the critters.(Luis) Path was a very easy stroll with not that much elevation. A disappointment was how many other people were on the same trail- it was quite a mass of humanity for Wednesday night. Sometimes surprising to see any animals at all due to the high traffic volume and having to move along or out of the way for other groups to pass.
Written 16 January 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Departure658823
San Jose, CA22 contributions
Oct 2022 • Friends
Our hotel helped us book this the same day and we were very happy they made the recommendation! Our guide Juan was informative and helped us take great pics of the vipers, frogs, toads, spiders and cicadas. They provided flashlights and a bottle of water too. I was still in shorts from the day so wished I had come in pants. Insect repellent and closed toed shoes also recommended.
Written 7 October 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
chaletaria
London, United Kingdom540 contributions
May 2022
Although the frogs (bats, snakes, etc) are all wild, they are protected in this well set out sanctuary. The area feels very natural with a selection of pools, and I got the impression most visitors saw some of the most iconic frogs of Costa Rica; we certainly saw Red-eyed Tree frogs, Glass Frogs, Rain frogs and even watched a Fer-de-Lance capture a bullfrog. The guide was very knowledgeable and helpful (ask if she/he will take photos using their scope + your phone for amazing pictures). Obviously this is a night tour, so dress accordingly. Transport to/ from the hotel was provided.
Written 9 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Emileah M
World6 contributions
May 2022
It was awesome, our tour guide Juan was great. Saw lots of cool frogs, spiders, insects, plants and learnt a lot from our guide. He was really knowledgable and answered all our questions. He also went above and beyond and gave me great recommendations for other experiences in La Fortuna and Monteverde. Thanks Juan and definitely recommend doing this tour!
Written 31 May 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rosie A
3 contributions
Mar 2022
Our guide was very informative and we saw various types of frogs and insects, but it is way too highly priced for what it is! A tour like this should be half the price of what it was. I have participated in a few tours around Costa Rica and this was by far the most expensive considering how long the tour was and what it consisted of. Also they had a few different groups out on tours at the same time. Sometimes other groups would catch up with us because we were finding animals and wanting to take our time looking at them. When the other tour groups caught up with ours, our tour guide would hurry us along, even though some people wanted to take a bit longer to study the animals. So it felt a bit rushed in parts.
Written 5 April 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Corey H
Billings, MT12 contributions
Sep 2021 • Couples
Did the night walk. Beautiful area. Saw so many different types of frogs especially the one my wife had been wanting to see, the blue jean frog. Two different types of vipers including the fer-de-lance.
Written 11 September 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Inspiration314655
Salt Lake City, UT3 contributions
Jul 2021 • Family
We took the night walk tour. Our guide Edson was an engaging, very well educated guide with professional photographer capabilities which he used along with his scope light to take amazing photos for us with our phone. He also quickly, kindly and generously pulled multiple army ants off of us before we were bitten. Both of my teenagers were fascinated and engaged for hours. We saw SO many frogs as well as snakes, toucans, ants, and spiders. He kept us safe the entire time and we learned a great deal and had a lot of fun in the process. It was incredible to be seeing and experiencing some things we have only seen before on shows like Planet Earth. I love experiencing how the Ticos appreciate and protect the biodiversity of this country. My teens and I would highly recommend this tour!
Written 20 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Craig H
13 contributions
Jun 2021 • Couples
If you are looking to see sloths in La Fortuna look no further than Arenal Oasis’s sloth tour! We saw fully 12 sloths of both the two-toed and three-toed species on our trip with our fantastic guide Edson. And for those of you that are thinking “I’m sure we’ll just see some sloths at some point during our trip”, just... no. They are so well camouflaged, there were points where I couldn’t see the sloths when Edson was pointing right at them. Luckily, Edson’s spotting scope was fantastic for taking photos with my iPhone and observing these amazing creatures in their natural habitat. We even saw two mothers with babies! AND Edson took us to see TOUCANS at the start of our tour. We saw two species of BONUS TOUCANS!! Again, if you want to see sloths in La Fortuna BOOK THIS TOUR! There was even a delicious breakfast included for afterwards, where we saw some amazing bird life just outside the restaurant. Highly, highly recommend this tour, it was a highlight of our trip to Costa Rica. Thank you Edson for your help!
Written 12 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mariannelouisemac
Bristol, UK39 contributions
Can I check that there are no animals (frogs/snakes etc) in any type of cages/ glass boxes? I saw a review from many years ago suggesting there were and I just want to check this is no longer the case?
Eletriz
Madrid, Spain124 contributions
Hola buenas tardes. Acabamos de llegar y estaríamos interesados en hacer el tour nocturno. Seríamos cuatro personas adultas. Me podrían decir si tienen plazas y que precios tienen???
Didier Jose A
Sardinal, Costa Rica23 contributions
hola me puede regalar el precio neto recogiendo en el hotel los lagos gracias
Jose Andres R
La Fortuna de San Carlos, Costa Rica15 contributions
Estimado Didier José A.
La tarifa rack para caminata nocturna recogiendo en Hotel Los Lagos es de $50 por persona .!
Tarifas netas para hoteles y agencias se pueden solicitar al email.
Saludos
Jason C
Orange County, CA9 contributions
Just a few questions. How long is the walk/tour? How were the mosquitoes? How much was the tour? How far was it from La Fortuna?
- Thank you! Jason
LouGoon
London, UK70 contributions
Hi,
The Arenal Oasis website tells you the tour cost - sorry it won't let me paste the website link here!
When we went (November) we didn't really get any mozzie bites but we did wear long trousers/coats etc for the night walk!
I think it was maximum 10 minute car ride from the main road in La Fortuna!
wlapaintmaker
Huntley, IL3 contributions
Are the tours wheelchair accessible?
MissT603
Sydney, Australia596 contributions
The trails would probably be very difficult in a wheelchair. They are pebbly gravel and some are very steep. I only did the night walk so not sure if there might be something more accessible.
SimbaMinneapolis
Minneapolis5 contributions
How do I book tickets?
rykben
Saint Paul, MN30 contributions
We booked all of our tours and activities through Pacific Tradewinds. I'm sure your hotel or other trips planning sites will be able to help you book.
Lori716
Austin, TX177 contributions
We would like to take the Night Frog Tour in February. How far in advance do we need to reserve? How do we make reservations? How long does the tour last?
Thank you!
Jose Andres R
La Fortuna de San Carlos, Costa Rica15 contributions
Hi Lory , you book it anytime between now And one hour before tour starts.!
rkramadh
Alpharetta, GA245 contributions
Does this tour allow you to see more than frogs, although those are also beautiful? Some tour companies market this tour as frog focused tour as the family maintains flora/fauna/ponds to preserve these frog species? I found it a bit confusing that same location/tour is marketed differently on diff websites.
maro m
Edmonton, Canada91 contributions
Yes especially if you do the night tour in which you may see bats, Snakes, crabs, spiders, although yes LOTS of frogs. During the day you'll probably see stuff like toucans, Sloths, dart frogs, butterflys, monkeys and other stuff.
melidot23
Cheney, WA71 contributions
Could someone tell me the price of a Night tour please?
Jose Andres R
La Fortuna de San Carlos, Costa Rica15 contributions
Hello,
There are 3 options, $25 if you stay at arenal Oasis Eco Lodge, $40 if you stay somewhere else but you arrive there on your own vehicle , or $50 if you stay somewhere else and need them to pick you up at your hotel .
ARENAL OASIS WILDLIFE REFUGE (La Fortuna de San Carlos) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go
Frequently Asked Questions about Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge
- We recommend booking Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge tours ahead of time to secure your spot. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. See all 2 Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge tours on Tripadvisor
- Hotels near Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge:
- (0.03 km) Tropical Suites
- (0.07 km) Arenal Oasis Eco Lodge & Wildlife Refuge
- (0.29 km) Cerro Chato Eco Lodge
- (0.81 km) Hotel Destinos Arenal
- (0.50 km) Hotel Faro Arenal
- Restaurants near Arenal Oasis Wildlife Refuge:
- (0.03 km) Mi Tierrita Restaurante
- (0.83 km) Red Frog Coffee Roaster
- (0.84 km) Restaurante El Coloso Arenal
- (0.80 km) Restaurante La Caribena
- (0.88 km) Piura - Terraza Peruana