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Turtle Watching Experience at Playa Minas: Observe Nesting Turtles in Their Natural Habitat
Experience the awe-inspiring sight of nesting turtles in their natural habitat at Playa Minas. Witness black turtles and rare leatherback turtles under the stars and moonlight.
Experience the awe-inspiring sight of nesting turtles in their natural habitat at Playa Minas. Witness black turtles and rare leatherback turtles under the stars and moonlight.
Duration:
4 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
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Playa Zapotillal - Departure: 6:00 pm
Playa Minas is one of the most significant nesting sites in Costa Rica. From September to April, numerous turtles arrive, typically at night. For this tour, guests will be picked up from the hotel and taken to Playa Las Minas, where turtles are nesting. Visitors will have the opportunity to see black turtles,…
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Playa Zapotillal - Departure: 6:00 pm
Playa Minas is one of the most significant nesting sites in Costa Rica. From September to April, numerous turtles arrive, typically at night. For this tour, guests will be picked up from the hotel and taken to Playa Las Minas, where turtles are nesting. Visitors will have the opportunity to see black turtles, and with some luck, the rare leatherback turtles as well. The stunning view of the stars, moon, and ocean creates the perfect backdrop for this amazing nature experience. The guide will provide infrared light, allowing guests to clearly see the turtles and capture their own photos. Some waiting time is expected, and guests should be prepared to sit on the sand. To ensure turtle sightings, a short hike to a nearby beach may be necessary.
What to bring: Walking shoes, dark clothing, insect repellent, and a *NO FLASH camera.
Additionally, if customers do not see turtles on their first visit, they are welcome to return for another opportunity.
What's Included
- Air-conditioned vehicles
- Air-conditioned vehicles
What's Not Included
- Bottled water
- Bottled water
Additional Information
Playa Minas is one of Costa Rica’s most significant nesting sites. From October to May, numerous turtles, primarily at night, make their way to this location. During this tour, participants will be picked up from their hotel and transported to Playa Las Minas, where the turtles nest. Visitors will have the opportunity to observe black turtles, and with…
Playa Minas is one of Costa Rica’s most significant nesting sites. From October to May, numerous turtles, primarily at night, make their way to this location. During this tour, participants will be picked up from their hotel and transported to Playa Las Minas, where the turtles nest. Visitors will have the opportunity to observe black turtles, and with some luck, the rare leatherback turtles as well. The stunning backdrop of stars, the moon, and the ocean creates an ideal setting for this remarkable nature experience. Additionally, guides will provide infrared light to ensure clear visibility of the turtles.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.3
(110 Ratings)
5 stars
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1 star
Odyssey47486577390
May 20, 2026
Amazing Experience - Amazing experience, helped baby turtles get to the ocean and a mama turtle came out of the ocean to find a spot to lay her eggs.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
251makennah
May 15, 2026
Best Costa Rica experience - Leo and his team are extremely kind, versatile, knowledgeable and accommodating, my family and I booked 4 tours with them, we always felt safe and I have a severe wheat allergy that was accommodated at tours that offered food. We can not thank Leo and his team enough for our amazing experiences
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Leeanna_h
May 10, 2026
Baby Sea Turtles - We saw dozens of baby turtles make their way into the pacific ocean, and a Momma creating her nest to lay her eggs. Our tour guide Lester was super knowledgable and caring to us and respectful to the delicate process of the lifecycle of the turtles. A wonderful memorable experience for my daughters ages 9 and 18.
Review provided by Viator
Mary_m
May 2, 2026
Charming Costa Rican hatchlings made for a great night :) - We had a great time on this tour. Our guide, Lester, was very knowledgeable. He pointed out turtle nests and turtle tracks and worked very hard to find turtles for us to see, taking us to 3 beaches. We did not see any adult turtles or eggs, but did see some babies making their way to the sea, and were able to watch one emerge from its sand nest and run down to the ocean. Lester was very apologetic that we did not see adult turtles, but we were so thrilled to see the hatchlings, and the time watching the sunset on the beach was so enchanting, it was no big deal. It really wasn't the best season for turtle viewing. We are grateful to both Lester and Leo of Side by Side ATV Tours and Wildlife for setting up this tour for us. Pura Vida <3
Review provided by Viator
Kyle_b
Apr 8, 2026
Worth the money - Lester and the driver were amazing, we got to the beach early to watch the sunset and take photos. We got the see everything and it was very informative about the turtles and the hatching process. Defiantly recommend this guided tour cause with the red light flashlights and making sure we didn’t disturb the turtle while she was laying her eggs.
Review provided by Viator
Lerobins
Apr 2, 2026
Excellent Experience - We had a great experience with this tour, from beginning to end. I booked this tour for a family group of eight. Booking was easy, and we were immediately put in touch with Leonardo, with whom we were able to arrange pickup from where we were staying, and confirmed our pickup time. Prior to pickup, our guide Lester contacted us to confirm pickup time and location. Lester was extremely knowledgeable and clearly cares about the well-being of the turtles. During the short ride to the beach he told us what to expect and answered all our questions. The first two beaches we visited we did not see any turtles, but were lucky to see both mother and baby turtles at the third beach (the three beaches were very close to one another). It was a great experience for everyone of all ages and was one of the highlights of our stay in Costa Rica. Highly recommend.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Stefanie_d
Apr 2, 2026
100/10 stars - Lester was absolutely amazing!! I highly recommend! I would do this again in a heartbeat. He was so knowledgeable about the turtles and it was so nice chatting with him. This was a major highlight of our trip.
Review provided by Viator
Hipposallee
Mar 23, 2025
So many turtles - We booked originally for a different trip but they called and recommended solstice at Ostional it would take longer but they were right it was worth it olive ridley turtles everywhere just like most wildlife they like to be away from people so the drive was long and road had been washed out in places but beach time was amazing.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Carli
Mar 30, 2025
Good not great - First of all, I’m giving it four stars strictly because we saw turtles and that made everything else worth it. I just feel like they should be more upfront about the tour. It’s mother nature so obviously they can’t control how long we have to wait or if we even see anything. However the tour lasted five hours because I was picked up at 5 PM even though the ticket said 6 PM. There is a hike which isn’t mentioned anywhere. I was fine but others in the group struggled. Then we had to wait on the beach for like almost an hour while the guides looked for turtles. Which I’m fine waiting, but there is no communication. I feel like there should’ve been two guides. One that stays with the group and another that’s searching. They told us we would wait in a spot while they searched, but they made it seem like it’d be like 10 minutes, walking down the beach to look, but it was almost an hour. Like, I said we saw turtles so that’s all I cared about. But I think more communication it’s definitely needed for this tour. Cause most people are fine with hiking and waiting, but be upfront about it. a lot of people on the tour also didn’t go to dinner before the tour because they were told they were getting back early enough to go to dinner. Also, the drive back the driver gave no communication either. Most of the time when you’re being dropped off, they say this hotel, next this hotel, etc. But he didn’t say anything. This could be a great tour with more communication. And also a better description on the site. A lot of tours lay out exactly how long each process takes. Pick up… drive… hike… wait on the beach… drive back.
Review provided by Viator
Lin_y
Dec 31, 2025
Great Wildlife, Poor Coordination - We did end up seeing the turtles, which was the main reason we booked this tour, so for that part, we are grateful.
However, the overall experience was quite stressful due to poor communication and organization.
We were first told to arrive at one meeting point, Gollo, at 5:50 PM, then asked last-minute if we could arrive earlier. We agreed and arrived at 5:35 PM, but no one was there.
After waiting, we were given a second location, super matapalo, and asked to arrive at 6:00 PM. Again, no one showed up. In the end, we waited until around 6:40PM before the the other guide arrived himself to pick us up.
The driving afterward was also very fast and honestly felt unsafe, which added to the stress of the evening.
While the turtles themselves were amazing to see, the logistics and communication need significant improvement. With better organization and safer driving, this tour could be much better.
Review provided by Viator
