La Fortuna hot springs: what every tier costs

Why the water here is hot

The river runs warm before anyone charges for it. Water leaves the flank of Arenal Volcano hot, drops through the Tabacón riverbed under the trees, and keeps going. The operator that owns one stretch of it counts 25,000 gallons a minute, always above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, in its own description of the place. ⁹ Part of that river sits behind a gate. Part of it sits beside a road, free.

Arenal built all of it. The cone stands 1,633 metres over the plain. On 29 July 1968 it erupted without warning and buried three small villages, killing 87 people. One of those villages was named Tabacón. The eruption then ran until 2010, among the ten longest on Earth since 1750, and the volcano has been dormant since October of that year. ¹

The name outlived the village. Today it belongs to a river, a resort and the most expensive gardens in La Fortuna. Hold on to that while you compare prices. The heat is shared and free at the source. What a ticket buys is everything built beside it: pools, a locker, a restaurant, a guard on the car park.

How much do La Fortuna hot springs cost?

Every named operator in one place, hot springs entry only, read on 25 September 2026 from their own pages where they publish one.

Adult entry runs from nothing to $141.25, and most of that spread is service. Three operators print their own prices: Baldi, Kalambu and Hotel Los Lagos. Four confirm a day pass and show no figure anywhere on their own sites: Tabacón, The Springs Resort, Titoku and Hot Springs Pura Vida. The table marks which is which, because that changes how far to trust a number. ^{3, 4, 10, 5, 6, 7, 9}

The price climbs in steps. Under $17 buys hot water, a changing room and, at Kalambu, a set of slides. Between $33 and $51 buys planted pools, a bar and somewhere to lock a bag. Above $60 buys a resort: gardens, restaurants and, at Tabacón, waterfalls open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. ^{4, 10, 3, 5}

Are the free hot springs in La Fortuna worth it?

El Choyin is free, and the water is identical. A public stretch of the Tabacón river runs beside the road, heated by the same volcanic source that fills the pools behind the gates along the valley. Google Maps carries the name. People from La Fortuna soak there in the evening, and so do travellers who would sooner put $51 into dinner. ²

The cost turns up elsewhere. Parking on that verge is illegal, and transit police can write a ticket or take your licence plates. The people in vests collecting a fee are not officials and the money buys no security for the car. Theft there is "not uncommon," in the words of the guide that maps the spot. The rocks are slick. ²

Hot Springs Pura Vida is the paid version of that exact spot. Same river, other side of the bridge: a secured car park, free lockers, free towels, kept paths, a warm pool and a small cafeteria, with one pass letting you come and go through the day. ²

Its own site sells a day pass and a day pass with a meal, and says each rate is shown before and after 13 percent tax, but the numbers themselves sit behind the booking step. Children under 6 enter free, 6 to 11 pay a child rate, 12 and up pay adult. The property sits 12 km west of the La Fortuna church. Cancel inside 15 days and you forfeit the lot. ⁹

What do Tabacón and The Springs give you for the money?

Tabacón sells two day passes and prints the price for neither. The entrance pass runs 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. across the hot spring pools, waterfalls, gardens and rest areas, with no meals. The culinary pass adds a lunch or dinner at Ave Restaurant. Rates are per person in US dollars with tax included. Guests under 6 go free, under-16s need an adult with them, and groups stop at 15. ⁵

Book ahead: Tabacón says day-pass availability is limited. The price itself lives in a booking widget, and the same holds at The Springs Resort and at Titoku. For those three, every dollar figure on this page comes from a Costa Rica travel guide dated 1 January 2026. Treat them as the going rate and confirm before you pay. ^{5, 6, 7, 2}

The Springs Resort is the priciest tier and the longest one. Its pass covers two consecutive days at $124.30 to $141.25 a person by season, which works out at $62.15 to $70.63 a day. Its own page confirms the two-day structure and an 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. window. Outside visitors lose the pass during Christmas week, President's Day week, and the week before and after Easter; the resort's own page does not give exact 2026 dates. ^{2, 6}

Titoku takes bookings by phone only. Hotel Arenal Kioro runs it, 6 km southwest of the hotel and 5 km northwest of La Fortuna: eight pools holding 6 to 20 people each, a bar for 30, dressing rooms, lockers, a cap of 80 visitors, open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Kioro's own guests pay nothing. Everyone else pays about $33, or about $52 with a meal. ^{7, 2}

Which hot springs cost the least?

Two pools charge under CRC 5,000 and locals fill them. Relax Termalitas asks CRC 4,000 a person, about $8.81. Los Laureles asks CRC 5,000 an adult, about $11.01, and runs a campground, barbecue ranchos and seven pools. One travel guide carries both figures and no operator site surfaced for either, so bring cash and expect the rate to have moved. ²

Kalambu is a water park that happens to be thermal. General admission is CRC 7,500, about $16.51, for ages 11 and up, and CRC 5,500, about $12.11, for ages 4 to 10, tax included. Under 4s go free, and visitors 65 and over pay the child rate. Pools, slides and lawns, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with the slides running 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Parking is free and fits a bus. ⁴

The middle tier: Los Lagos, Baldi and Ecotermales

Hotel Los Lagos holds one rate all year. A day pass is CRC 16,500, about $36.33 at the Banco Central sell rate of CRC 454.15 (16,500 / 454.15). One meal takes it to CRC 27,500, about $60.55. Two meals reach CRC 43,500, about $95.78. Children 6 to 10 and visitors 65 and over pay CRC 10,000 for entry; infants 2 to 5 enter free. Rates hold through 31 December 2026. ^{10, 12}

Eight thermal pools, three cold ones and an 80-metre waterslide, open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. A locker comes with the pass when one is free. Towels rent for CRC 1,000 against a CRC 5,000 refundable deposit. The property limits how many visitors it takes in a day and asks you to book. ¹⁰

Baldi prints the clearest price table in La Fortuna, and then a second one. Hot springs only is $51 for a foreign adult and $38 for a child, tax included, valid until 10 December 2026. Lunch or dinner takes it to $75, both meals to $99. Costa Rican adults pay $34, $58 and $82 at the front desk with ID, which is $17 off entry alone (51 - 34 = 17). ³

A separate Holy Week table, Thursday to Sunday, runs $61 to $109 for foreign guests and $41 to $89 for nationals. Hours are 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. across 25 pools. Children under 5 enter free, five per visit; from 11 they pay the adult rate. A towel needs a $10 cash deposit, refundable, and a locker costs $6.78. Walk up and pay at the desk. ³

Ecotermales caps the day at about 100 visitors. Six large pools between 32 and 41 degrees Celsius, 90 to 106 Fahrenheit, plus two cold ones. Its own site publishes no price, so the figures here come from a Florida-registered reseller: $43 an adult and $25 a child aged 5 to 11 for entry, plus 13 percent tax, which makes $48.59 and $28.25 (43 x 1.13 and 25 x 1.13). Under 5s go free. ¹¹

That reseller lists an entry-plus-meal pass at $67 an adult with its own $5 per adult discount already applied, so the standard rate sits above $67. ¹¹

What does a day cost for two adults and two children?

The gap between tiers multiplies by four. Two adults and two children at Baldi come to $178 before towels (51 x 2 + 38 x 2). The same family at Kalambu pays CRC 26,000, about $57.25 (7,500 x 2 + 5,500 x 2, at CRC 454.15 per dollar). At El Choyin they pay a parking attendant and nothing else. ^{3, 4, 12, 2}

Kalambu is the cheapest way to keep two children busy for a day. Baldi triples that and hands the adults a bar, 25 pools and a night that runs to 10 p.m. Los Lagos lands between them with a waterslide and a cap on numbers. Pick by who is in the car. ^{4, 3, 10}

How do you plan a hot springs day here?

Decide the tier first and the day second. Several of these places want a booking, one takes phone calls only, and two cap how many people come through the gate. ^{7, 10, 11}

1. 01

   Pick your tier

   Free river, budget pool, mid-range garden or resort. The table above sets the price, and the sections above set what comes with it.

2. 02

   Book what needs booking

   Titoku takes reservations only by phone, on +506 2479-1700, and holds 80 people. Tabacón says day-pass availability is limited. Hotel Los Lagos limits daily visitor numbers and asks you to book. Ecotermales runs to about 100 people a day. Baldi takes walk-ups at the front desk. ^{7, 5, 10, 11, 3}

3. 03

   Carry the small things

   Water shoes: Tabacón recommends them, and the rocks at the free river are slick. Cash for deposits: $10 refundable for a Baldi towel, CRC 1,000 plus a CRC 5,000 deposit for one at Los Lagos. A Baldi locker is $6.78. Costa Rican ID gets the national rate at the desk. ^{5, 2, 3, 10}

4. 04

   Go in the evening

   Tabacón, Baldi and Hotel Los Lagos stay open until 10 p.m., Kalambu until 9 p.m. Titoku closes at 6 p.m. Ecotermales sells a night pass it calls the Moon Thermal Experience at the same $43 plus tax. ^{5, 3, 10, 4, 7, 11}

5. 05

   Pair it with the volcano

   Arenal Volcano National Park's main visitor centre runs 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and charges foreign adults $15 plus tax. A park morning and a Baldi evening is about $68 of tickets for one adult (15 x 1.13 = 16.95, plus 51). ^{8, 3}

• Towels and lockers. Baldi wants a $10 cash deposit for a towel and $6.78 for a locker. Los Lagos rents a towel for CRC 1,000 against a CRC 5,000 deposit. Hot Springs Pura Vida gives both away with the pass. ^{3, 10, 9}
• Tax, sometimes. Baldi's and Kalambu's prices include it. Ecotermales adds 13 percent on top, Hot Springs Pura Vida quotes rates both ways, and Arenal Volcano National Park adds tax to its $15. ^{3, 4, 11, 9, 8}
• Getting there. Hot Springs Pura Vida is 12 km west of the La Fortuna church and Titoku 5 km northwest of town, so budget a taxi or a car each way. ^{9, 7}

The volcano costs less than the water

Arenal Volcano National Park charges foreign adults $15 plus tax and children $5 plus tax, with the main visitor centre open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. That sits below every paid soak on this page apart from Relax Termalitas, Los Laureles and Kalambu. Seeing the volcano costs less than sitting in what it heats. ^{8, 2}

The Maleku people have their own territory northwest of here, and it is not on this route. Their demarcated territory sits in the San Rafael de Guatuso district, across three communities they call palenques: El Sol, Margarita and Tonjibe. The 2013 national census counted 478 Maleku residents inside the territory and 701 Maleku people across Costa Rica. ¹³

Costa Rica demarcated the territory by decree in 1976 and protected it under the 1977 Indigenous Law, then allowed its boundary to be cut back illegally. The Maleku took the case to Costa Rica's Supreme Court and won: in 1999 the court restored the full 2,993.5 hectares. Every hot spring on this page lies well east of that territory. ¹³

La Fortuna is one stop on a longer road. The two-week Costa Rica itinerary puts the springs in order with Monteverde and the Pacific coast, what two weeks actually costs prices the whole trip, and the Costa Rica guides hold the rest. Landing first? The SJO or Liberia call decides your drive north.