- The canalsThe canals are the reason to come. Boats leave early, while the animals are still low, and no road replaces the ride.
- Turtle beachTurtle beach is a guided night walk from July to October. Outside those months it is a walk, not a nesting tour.
- Tortuguero villageTortuguero village is sandy lanes, the dock, and the sodas. You can walk it in an hour. The day is the canals.
- Cerro TortugueroCerro Tortuguero is a short climb, when the trail is open. Go in the morning, and ask that day if you can go up.
- Night walkThe night walk is on the nesting beach, with a guide. It is not another canal trip, and lights stay off the sand.
- Birds on the riverBirds on the river are kingfishers, herons, and the odd jabiru. The first boat sees more than the late one.
- Caribbean seaThe Caribbean sea here is not a swim. The current is stronger than it looks, and the calm water is the canal.
- Caño PalmaCaño Palma is the quieter canal north of the village. Ask the night before. The early boat fills first.
- La Pavona boatsLa Pavona boats are how most people arrive, after Cariari. Limón is the other dock, used more on packaged trips.
- Sunset on the dockSunset on the dock is the boats coming in as the light goes. It is the village evening, not a beach club.
The landscape is canal, flooded forest, and a long nesting beach. You are likely to see monkeys, sloths, caimans, kingfishers and herons. The plants around them are raffia palm, mangrove, and the wet forest that stands in the water.
Around Tortuguero, the first boat sees the animals low on the banks. Green turtles nest from about July to October. Do not expect them on the beach in March.
Tortuguero National Park protects the nesting beach and the canals behind it. Night visits in season are with a guide, and lights stay off the sand.
In Tortuguero, stay in the boat on the canal. On the beach after dark, the guide sets where you stand.
The climate is tropical wet. It is hot and humid, about 24–30°C. November to January is the heaviest rain, with another wet stretch in July. The canals still run. Tortuguero sits at sea level.
A drier month is still a wet month here. Pack for a shower even when someone calls the week dry. The countrywide calendar is in the best time to visit Costa Rica.
There is no road to the village. Most independent boats leave from La Pavona, after the bus or the drive through Cariari. Limón is the other dock. A small plane flies from San José. You start at Juan Santamaría.
Build the boat or the flight into the day. You cannot drive the last stretch. Buses, shuttles, and rental cars are compared in getting around Costa Rica
