Costa Rica’s protected areas recorded 1,176,464 resident and non-resident visits in 2020, rising to 2,611,643 in 2024. The figures below show how that national mountain-tourism comparator was distributed across volcanoes, highland parks, cloud-forest destinations, and other protected mountain areas. They are administrative visit counts, not unique people or mountain-only trips.
Contents
- How to read the mountain tourism figures
- National protected-area baseline
- Arenal and Braulio Carrillo
- Chirripó and Tapantí highlands
- Irazú and Poás volcano visits
- Tenorio and Rincón de la Vieja
- Los Quetzales and Volcán Turrialba
How to read the mountain tourism figures
The source is the Costa Rican Tourism Institute’s “Visitas de residentes y no residentes a las áreas silvestres protegidas, 1990–2024”. The indicator reports SINAC administrative visits, including resident, non-resident, fee-paying, non-fee-paying, and exempt visits. Each destination number is therefore a total visit count for the stated calendar year.
These statistics should not be read as a count of individual travelers. One person may account for more than one visit, and the destination totals are not limited to trips made specifically for mountain tourism. The 2020 observations also belong to the pandemic-era operating context and are retained as 2020 measurements rather than treated as current demand.
For context, the national series moved as follows:
| Year | Visits to Costa Rica’s protected areas |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 1,176,464 |
| 2021 | 1,705,228 |
| 2022 | 2,346,029 |
| 2023 | 2,728,582 |
| 2024 | 2,611,643 |
Source for every figure in this article: ICT, “Visitas de residentes y no residentes a las áreas silvestres protegidas, 1990–2024”.
National protected-area baseline
The national comparator increased from 1,176,464 visits in 2020 to 1,705,228 in 2021. It reached 2,346,029 in 2022 and 2,728,582 in 2023, before recording 2,611,643 visits in 2024. The 2024 total was lower than the 2023 total, while remaining above the counts recorded in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
For readers evaluating mountain destinations, this baseline helps separate a destination’s own pattern from the overall protected-area context. It does not identify what portion of national visits was mountain tourism. Instead, it provides the official resident-and-non-resident protected-area series against which individual mountain parks can be viewed.
The destination figures show a wide range of scale. In 2024, Volcán Poás recorded 332,046 visits, while Volcán Turrialba recorded 2,050. Between those endpoints were Volcán Irazú at 227,688, Volcán Tenorio at 193,511, Arenal at 140,468, and Rincón de la Vieja at 89,128. The highland parks Chirripó and Tapantí recorded 29,965 and 10,674 visits respectively, while Los Quetzales recorded 10,593.
Comparisons are most useful when they keep the reporting unit constant. Every destination count here refers to visits recorded by the protected-area system during a calendar year. The figures do not provide an average stay, a visitor profile, an origin market, or a split between domestic and international demand. Those questions require other indicators and are outside this series.
Arenal and Braulio Carrillo
Arenal National Park recorded 119,801 visits in 2020, followed by 49,838 in 2021 and 68,919 in 2022. The count then rose to 126,965 in 2023 and 140,468 in 2024. In the supplied five-year series, 2024 was Arenal’s highest recorded annual total, while 2021 was its lowest.
Braulio Carrillo National Park recorded 33,919 visits in 2020. Its annual count was 8,401 in 2021, 4,875 in 2022, 22,890 in 2023, and 24,032 in 2024. Braulio Carrillo’s 2024 count was below its 2020 count, despite being substantially above the 2021 and 2022 observations.
| Destination | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arenal National Park | 119,801 | 49,838 | 68,919 | 126,965 | 140,468 |
| Braulio Carrillo National Park | 33,919 | 8,401 | 4,875 | 22,890 | 24,032 |
Together, the two parks recorded 153,720 visits in 2020, 58,239 in 2021, 73,794 in 2022, 149,855 in 2023, and 164,500 in 2024. These are sums of the two reported destination totals and should not be interpreted as unique visitors.
Chirripó and Tapantí highlands
Chirripó National Park recorded 18,901 visits in 2020 and 6,840 in 2021. The count rose to 24,194 in 2022 and 31,659 in 2023, then reached 29,965 in 2024. Thus, the 2024 observation was slightly below the 2023 count but above the 2020, 2021, and 2022 counts.
Tapantí Macizo Cerro de la Muerte National Park recorded 20,888 visits in 2020, 23,534 in 2021, 12,150 in 2022, 11,661 in 2023, and 10,674 in 2024. Its highest annual count in this series was 2021, while its lowest was 2024.
The two highland destinations show different patterns across the same years. Chirripó’s count was highest in 2023, whereas Tapantí’s was highest in 2021. Their reported totals were 39,789 in 2020, 30,374 in 2021, 36,344 in 2022, 43,320 in 2023, and 40,639 in 2024.
Irazú and Poás volcano visits
Volcán Irazú National Park recorded 352,034 visits in 2020. The count was 188,786 in 2021, 192,903 in 2022, 211,660 in 2023, and 227,688 in 2024. Irazú’s 2024 total was the highest in this five-year series, while 2021 was the lowest.
Volcán Poás National Park recorded 147,230 visits in 2020 and 85,114 in 2021. Visits then reached 110,021 in 2022, 214,399 in 2023, and 332,046 in 2024. Poás therefore had its highest reported count in 2024 and its lowest in 2021.
| Destination | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Volcán Irazú National Park | 352,034 | 188,786 | 192,903 | 211,660 | 227,688 |
| Volcán Poás National Park | 147,230 | 85,114 | 110,021 | 214,399 | 332,046 |
The two volcano parks together recorded 499,264 visits in 2020, 273,900 in 2021, 302,924 in 2022, 426,059 in 2023, and 559,734 in 2024. The combined total was higher in 2024 than in any other year shown here. As with every combined figure, this is a sum of administrative visits rather than a measure of distinct people.
Tenorio and Rincón de la Vieja
Volcán Tenorio National Park recorded 148,062 visits in 2020, 70,371 in 2021, 123,632 in 2022, 173,159 in 2023, and 193,511 in 2024. The 2024 count was the highest in the period, and 2021 was the lowest.
Rincón de la Vieja National Park recorded 103,462 visits in 2020. Its annual totals were 41,376 in 2021, 47,778 in 2022, 77,048 in 2023, and 89,128 in 2024. This destination also recorded its highest value in 2020 among the five stated years, while 2021 was its lowest.
Together, Tenorio and Rincón de la Vieja recorded 251,524 visits in 2020, 111,747 in 2021, 171,410 in 2022, 250,207 in 2023, and 282,639 in 2024. Tenorio’s 2024 total exceeded Rincón de la Vieja’s total for the same year, 193,511 compared with 89,128.
Los Quetzales and Volcán Turrialba
Los Quetzales recorded 6,973 visits in 2020, 11,163 in 2021, 9,204 in 2022, 11,111 in 2023, and 10,593 in 2024. Its highest count in the period was 2021, and its lowest was 2020.
Volcán Turrialba recorded 1,416 visits in 2020, 5,192 in 2021, 495 in 2022, 1,761 in 2023, and 2,050 in 2024. Its highest count was 2021, while its lowest was 2022.
Los Quetzales and Volcán Turrialba are listed by SINAC under the applicable protected-area category in the source table, rather than being treated here as national parks. Their combined reported totals were 8,389 visits in 2020, 16,355 in 2021, 9,699 in 2022, 12,872 in 2023, and 12,643 in 2024.
Across the destinations covered here, the statistics describe several distinct scales of mountain visitation: high-volume volcano parks, mid-range forest and volcanic destinations, and lower-volume highland areas. The figures are best used as calendar-year administrative visit indicators, with the year and destination kept explicit, rather than as forecasts or estimates of future tourism demand.