Palo Verde National Park

Palo Verde was declared national park in 1980. It has low and lacustrine areas that include limestone hills with a low altitude.

Palo Verde National Park is a protected natural space in Costa Rica. It is located in the province of Guanacaste. In 1991 it was included in the Ramsar List, which denotes its international importance. The park extends in over 19,000 hectares.

Driving Directions to Palo Verde National Park

From San José, take the Interamerican Highway north to Bagaces. Turn left down a gravel road and drive south about 20 miles, following the signs to the Palo Verde National Park.

The Palo Verde National Park protects forested areas as well as an extensive marshland between the Tempisque and Bebedero rivers in Guanacaste. It is a diverse patchwork of habitats located in the heart of the Tempisque basin near the mouth of the Rio Tempisque River. The area is comprised of both deciduous and evergreen tropical dry forest, brackish and fresh water wetlands, mangrove swamps, and the tidal estuarine ecosystem. It provides an important wintering ground to migrant North American waterfowls and hosts many native species of birds during their nesting period.

The most notable is the small island of mangroves in the middle of the Tempisque River known as Isla Pájaros, or Bird Island (not to be confused with another Isla Pájaros located in the Gulf of Nicoya near Punta Morales). Cattle Egrets, Roseate Spoonbills, Wood Storks, Anhingas, Great Egrets, and Black-crowned Night-Herons, all use this island for breeding.

This forest has the greatest waterfalls and, of course, a lot of bird’s variation. The dry season is the best time to visit this park, which is from December to March.