Undoubtedly, Costa Rica has become an ideal destination for foreign visitors who want adventure sports tourism at any time of the year. This is confirmed by data from a recent study by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), in which this fact was stated by 56% of tourists surveyed in the 2015-2017 period who enjoyed adventure activities within Costa Rica.
It is not surprising that the country is in the top 3 of the adventure destinations in the world.
It is that this country offers a varied list of adventure sports activities that include rafting, kite surfing, canopy, rappelling, trekking, hiking, climbing, canyoning, bungee jumping, and tubing, among others.
But Costa Rica also offers traditional outdoor activities for tourists such as sport fishing, surfing, golf, mountain biking or equestrian activities, to name a few examples.
It is important to mention that this country has trained qualified personnel and has obtained extensive experience in this area of extreme tourism, so much so that it has hosted the World Fishing Championship, Surf World, Adventure World, U17 Women’s World Championship and Central American Shooting Tournament, to mention any of them.
Costa Rica is a small country but it is home to great biodiversity, giving you the opportunity to live an incomparable tropical adventure. Here you can enjoy beautiful beaches, mountains, plains, and rainforests, dry, humid and cloudy forest. Here are some of the most popular adventure sports activities that tourists can do when visiting Costa Rica:
1. Canopy or Zip Line: This activity consists of sliding on a cable between the trees, making you feel a wonderful experience of being able to fly surrounded by nature. It should be noted that each tree has a platform on which it is located. A qualified and trained guide with all safety systems places the person on the cable so that it can slide. This activity can be done in Monteverde, La Fortuna, and Rincon de la Vieja.
2. White water rapids: This is known as one of the favorite activities carried out by tourists in Costa Rica due to the great flow of adrenaline that is experienced when performing it. The best of all is that this country has rivers of different flow speeds and therefore you can practice this activity in a different river adjusted to the skills and experience of each person. It is important to know that this activity is always guided by an expert on the raft who will give all the instructions that should be followed. You will also have another guide in a safety kayak to be able to rescue people who fall from the rafts.
3. Surfing: For the lovers of this sport, in Costa Rica they have at their disposal beautiful beaches ideal for this activity. They are Samara Beach in Guanacaste or Jaco Beach in Puntarenas for beginners where they can take classes with excellent professionals in the area. And for the most advanced, we recommend Naranjo beach (Roca Bruja) in Guanacaste and Hermosa Beach in Puntarenas.
4. Forest Treks: This is undoubtedly one of the most popular activities thanks to the beautiful National Parks and protected reserves of Costa Rica in which tourists find trails suitable for the enjoyment of both flora and fauna. Most important is that each trail adapts to all types of travelers. We recommend you to carry out this activity in the following places: Manuel Antonio National Park, Arenal Volcano National Park, Corcovado National Park, Monteverde Cloud Forest Private Reserve, and La Marta Private Reserve.
Recommendations when doing adventure sports:
- Wear sturdy closed shoes when performing activities with ropes and zip lines.
- Always use insect repellent and sunscreen.
- Avoid leaving the group while walking through natural sites.
- Avoid long earrings, chains and other pendants that may become entangled with your clothes or equipment to use.
- Do not try to manipulate wildlife and be respectful of the flora of the natural site.
- Do not carry out dangerous maneuvers to avoid accidents during the excursion such as improper jumps, go face down in the canopy, take off your helmet in the middle of the excursion, etc.
Finally, it is very important that you review before going on an excursion the different insurance options that the adventure activity company you have chosen has contracted for its clients, these must-have as a minimum requirement a current civil liability policy.
