Best time to visit Costa Rica for good weather
When is the best weather in Costa Rica? Monthly breakdown of temperature, rainfall, and sunshine hours — ranked by what actually matters for your trip.
Best month
February
The driest month on the Pacific — and the Monteverde Music Festival makes the cloud forest worth the trip.
↑February is statistically Costa Rica's driest month on the Pacific coast: 5mm is virtually nothing, and Guanacaste's beaches are as reliably sunny as anywhere in the Americas
↑Monteverde Music Festival (mid-February) brings classical and world-music performances to one of the country's most atmospheric settings — cloud forest by day, concerts by night
↑Quetzal sightings are at their most reliable in cloud forests; February is nesting season for the resplendent quetzal, making it the best single month to see them
All months ranked — Good weather
Best match
The driest month on the Pacific — and the Monteverde Music Festival makes the cloud forest worth the trip.
#1 for good weather
Best match
Humpback whales arrive off the Pacific coast and sea turtles begin nesting at Tortuguero.
#2 for good weather
Best match
Hot, dry Pacific coast with spring break arrivals — excellent conditions but prices stay high.
#3 for good weather
Best match
Pacific coast at its absolute driest — Guanacaste beaches are perfect, but expect peak crowds and prices.
#4 for good weather
Best match
Green season opens — prices drop 30–50%, Pacific surf improves, and the lush transformation begins.
#5 for good weather
Best match
The transition month — Pacific rains ease significantly and the dry season approach brings improving conditions.
#6 for good weather
Strong option
Pacific coast transitioning — still largely dry, Holy Week brings Costa Ricans to the beach en masse.
#7 for good weather
Strong option
Dry season returns to the Pacific — Christmas week is the single most crowded and expensive period in Costa Rica.
#8 for good weather
Strong option
Green season in full swing — whale watching continues, turtles peak at Tortuguero, and the jungle is impossibly lush.
#9 for good weather
Strong option
The wettest month on the Pacific — but the Caribbean coast enters its mini-dry season, and prices are at their lowest.
#10 for good weather
Strong option
Quietest month of the year — budget prices, almost no other tourists, and the rainforest at its most dramatic.
#11 for good weather
Strong option
Still the wet season on the Pacific, but whale watching peaks and the Caribbean coast is at its driest.
#12 for good weather