Visiting Costa Rica''s Parks
All national parks have entrance puestos , or stations, where you pay your fee and pick up a map. Typically, the main ranger stations , from where the internal administration of the park is carried out, and where the rangers live, are some way from the entrance puesto . It can be a good idea to drop by the main station, where you can talk to rangers (if your Spanish is good enough) about local terrain and conditions, enquire about drinking water, and use the bathroom. In some parks, such as Corcovado, you can sleep in or camp near the main stations. All parks now charge an entrance fee of $6 per day. If you want to camp overnight in any park, you'll have to pay for both days - $12 in total. Outside the most visited parks - Volcan Poas, Volcan Irazu, Santa Rosa and Manuel Antonio - opening hours are somewhat theoretical. Many places are open daily, from around 8am to 3.45pm, though there are exceptions - Manuel Antonio is closed on Monday and may be closed on Tuesdays in the future, while other parks may open a little earlier in the morning. Unless you're planning on camping or staying overnight, there's almost no point in arriving at a national park in the afternoon. In all cases, especially at the volcanoes, you should aim to arrive as early in the morning as possible to make the most of the day and, in particular, the weather (especially in the wet season). The only central office where you can make reservations and get detailed, up-to-date information or buy permits , where required, is the Fundacion de Parques Nacionales (Av 15, C 23/25, San Jose, tel 257-2239, www.minae.go.cr/accvc ), who will contact those parks for which you need reservations, chiefly Santa Rosa, Corcovado and Chirripo (see the individual accounts in the guide for more details). Other parks can be visited on spec.
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