Costa Rica Weather in August: What to Expect

While looking for some places to visit in the summer, we started to consider Costa Rica. But upon further research, we found out that it’s rainy season in the summer. We went back and forth but ultimately decided to still book the trip. We read lots of opinions online that said the rainy season was still a great time to visit for different reasons. The Costa Rica weather in August can be unpredictable at times but here’s a little of what you can expect and what we experienced on our trip.

Rainy Season in Costa Rica

Rainy season in Costa Rica runs from May to November with September and October typically being the rainiest months. With August being on the cusp of one of the rainiest months, we knew there was a high chance of having a pretty rainy vacation.

However, it also depends on the region. Costa Rica is a pretty big country and different parts of the country experience different types of weather.

Average Temperatures

Average temperatures will vary by area too. But for the beach areas, you can expect highs around 90º F (32º C) and lows in the 70s F (20s C). For some of the cooler, more mountainous areas, highs will be around 79º F (26º C) and lows around 63º F (17º C) or so.

Checking the weather apps can be pretty deterring. One of them said August has 22 days of rain and another said that every area to visit had ‘poor weather conditions’. Though the calendar may just look like a block of rain, it usually doesn’t rain all day. Afternoon showers are common but you can have decent weather during the rest of the day. Or you might have a cloudy day with some occasional sprinkles.

Green Season

BUT it’s also the off-season and also known as the Green Season. More rainfall means the plants are thriving and the jungle will look green and lush. In general, you’ll get more vibrant colors during this time. And if you visit any black sand beaches, the rain will make the sand appear much darker as well.

Off-Season

Another reason it isn’t so bad–prices usually drop. Rainy season is off-season in Costa Rica and it gets far less visitors. Because of that, you can usually find better deals on hotels, flights, etc. Though, Costa Rica is still expensive and we still spent more than we thought we would. (But we also rented an awesome 4×4 with a roof-top tent, which was fun but not cheap.)

Getting Around

If you’re sticking to the main tourist spots, you will probably be fine with a normal car. The roads are paved or gravel and won’t really affect you getting there if it is raining a lot. We wanted to have the flexibility of exploring wherever, so we rented a 4×4 so we didn’t have to worry about the road conditions.

Where we did experience worse road conditions was actually through Guanacaste (the area that is supposed to have less rain.) Many of the beaches along the west coast of Guanacaste are along one-lane roads that can be dirt or gravel with dirt parking areas (that can get muddy).

But even on what we thought were main roads, we saw flooding and muddier areas. On what we thought was THE main road along the coast, we eventually came to a very muddy spot that quite literally led us to a river. Our GPS said to go THROUGH the river to continue on the main road.

We ended up having to turn around and back track quite a bit to go up and around that area to where there was a bridge. If you want to be adventurous and see what you can find exploring, then you might want to consider having a 4×4.

Costa Rica Weather in August

When we arrived in Costa Rica, we were told to head to Guanacaste for better weather. And that we were more likely to see rain along the central and south coast, as well as in the La Fortuna/Monteverde areas. We had already mapped out an itinerary and were planning on visiting the more rainy areas.

But since we were road tripping, we could be flexible with our Costa Rican itinerary, which I highly recommend if you’re traveling during this time. We kept an eye on the weather app and there were several times where we switched up our itinerary because of the rain.

Waterfalls during rainy season

Costa Rica has some beautiful waterfalls and for the most part, rainy season shouldn’t impact seeing them. While the rain can cause the trails to be more muddy, the waterfalls will be at their fullest.

Some of the waterfalls in Costa Rica have a green or blue hue to the water and if the area has seen a lot of rain, the particles in the water can be stirred up and can cause them to look more muddy or brown. But, it will depend on how much rain. We were definitely caught in some rain but the waterfalls we saw still looked pretty. (The one below is at the La Paz Waterfall Gardens.)

The one I was worried about was the Rio Celeste waterfall. It’s known for its powdery, bright blue color and is a little out of the way to get to. I wasn’t too keen on making the drive out there if the water was going to be brown. However, even though it had been raining a bit off and on, here’s how it looked for us:

Hiking Trails

The hiking trails can get muddy during the rainy season but the trails can all differ–some have paved walkways, stairs, bridges, rocks etc. But even the trails we went on that were mostly dirt were never too muddy to where our shoes came away with globs of mud. For us, at the worst, it was just somewhat muddy but nothing that was impassable.

Popular Places

Here are what some of the more popular places to visit were like during the month of August when we went:

Jaco/Playa Hermosa Puntarenas

On our trip to Costa Rica, we first went south of San Jose to Playa Hermosa for a week to work remotely. The weather there was pretty consistent. We had nice, sunny mornings with late afternoon showers that usually cleared up by sunset.

During the week we were there, there was maybe one day where it rained heavier and into the evening. But for the most part, they were shorter showers that cleared out or slowed to a drizzle here and there.

Manuel Antonio

This area is supposed to see more rain as well but on the day we went, we had mostly clear skies. It was cloudier which made hiking more pleasant, but we didn’t see any rain. Though it did look like we had a break in the weather on the particular day we decided to go.

San Jose + Poas Volcano

While we were in San Jose, we experienced clear mornings and afternoon showers. It was almost like clockwork at around 2-3pm, so plan your day around the rain and get out early.

If you’re wanting to visit the Poas Volcano, you are more likely to experience cloud coverage at the crater during rainy season. Your best bet is to go early in the morning while it’s sunny, but that still doesn’t mean the crater will be cloud free.

We went on a sunny morning and everywhere around us looked like blue skies except for over the volcano. So you never know. We had a small break in the clouds and this was the best view we got:

Arenal/La Fortuna

Arenal is another area that is supposed to see more rain, which means higher cloud coverage that can obscure the view of the Arenal Volcano. As you can see, we had a full view of it when we went. There were a few cloudy moments that covered the top but we were able to have a great view for the most part.

Otherwise, La Fortuna is full of hot springs so if it does rain–head to a hot spring where you’ll be wet anyway.

Monteverde

We were in Monteverde for a short time, but the worst weather we had was a few sprinkles. We hiked through the cloud forest and had a lot of cloud coverage come in while we were driving out. But otherwise, everything was green and pretty! Plus, the cloud coverage over the cloud forest can look pretty great.

Guanacaste

This was the area everyone told us to go to to avoid the rain and ironically it was where it rained the most for us. When we got to Liberia and Tamarindo, we were in a complete downpour. We planned on spending time in Tamarindo but the storm radar didn’t look like it was going anywhere for a few days.

So, we packed up to drive out of the storm and headed to Samara beach instead. The weather was much better here and we had lots of sunshine and beach time.

Should you visit Costa Rica during rainy season?

Absolutely! For us, the Costa Rica weather in August was not that bad and visiting during rainy season ended up being fine. Yes, we experienced rain but it was mostly afternoon showers and an occasional down pour. But it didn’t stop us from seeing the things we wanted to see.

What to Wear

If you plan on traveling around to different areas, you’ll want to be prepared for all different types of weather. During our two week trip, we found ourselves in swimsuits, rain gear, hiking gear and long sleeves (the Poas volcano was COLD). In other words, you’ll want to bring layers.

What to Bring

• Good hiking shoes
• Water shoes – these are great for dual hiking and water usage!
• Rain jacket or rain poncho
• Dry Bag – to keep valuables safe if it rains
• Waterproof Phone Case
• Water bottle
• Microfiber Lens Cloth – to clean your camera lens or sunglasses from water droplets!
• Swimsuit
• Quick dry towel

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