Ballena is the Spanish word for whale, and it gets its name not only from whale watching but also from the whale’s tail-shaped point.
Marino Ballena National Park
Marino Ballena National Park is less known than its surrounding ones, for example, Manuel Antonio, but it’s a beautiful park to visit and usually less crowded.
We visited this park while exploring the area of Uvita and its surroundings, and decided to take the Whales Watching Tour in Marino Ballena National Park.
Because of COVID, the park has adjusted the entrance of the park and the opening hours. The entrance of the park (at the moment we visited) is $6 however in the tour we took, this fee was included.
Whales Watching boat tour
One of the main activities in Marino Ballena park is of course whale watching, however, you need to be lucky to spot them, because even though they are very big, most of their body remains underwater.
The whale that you can spot in this area is the humpback whale.
The adult humpback whale has a length between 11-16 meters and weights between 24-35 tons.
The humpback whale has very long white flippers and small dorsal fins.
The humpbacks favor shallow waters and coastal areas, but they may travel through the open sea during migration. Mothers stay for a few months (July-October)
But that’s not all you can see offshore.
During our tour, we enjoyed a lot looking at the whales, but also marine life such as the Olive-Ridley Sea Turtle, shorebirds on some of the small islands, and even rock formations, called “Ventanas” Windows.
This is how it goes…
We drove from our hotel to Uvita to the Bahia Aventuras office, where we could park our car for free in their parking area. The team welcomed us, checked our temperatures and we signed the waiver.
The staff and we were wearing face masks this whole time as that is the protocol at the moment in Costa Rica due to COVID.
We walked from the office to the Marino Ballena National Park entrance with our guide, who told us more about Uvita and the surroundings in the meantime, so it was a nice 10-minute walk.
At the entrance, we could wash our hands and there was clear information about how to keep our distance from the other visitors.
We walked on the beach and then boarded the boat in the ocean: on the boat, we were all wearing a life jacket since it is mandatory in Costa Rica.
Then the real adventure began, trying to find the whales. We were very lucky and saw a sea turtle plus the humpback whale and her baby.
Very impressive to see them from this close. On the way back we visited a few other highlights on the coast.
Due to the rainy days, we did not go snorkeling, but we did enjoy a quick swim in the ocean.
The water was so nice and temperate! The staff also provided some fresh pineapple and watermelon, which is very delicious on a warm day.
Walking through the park
After the boat tour, we took a guided walk through the park. This is a walk very suited for people traveling with kids, seniors, or if you just don’t want to walk too much in warm temperatures but still want to see lots of animals.
We were lucky and our guide was able to help us spot sloths, bats, macaws, monkeys, and spiders, to mention a few.
One reason why I really wanted to visit this park was the macaws, such amazing birds. They don’t sing a pretty song, but they look beautiful in their colors.
Also to find different options where it is not too crowded, as it happens in Manuel Antonio National Park.
After the walk through the park, we walked back to the office and took our car back to the hotel to enjoy some lunch and the pool in our hotel.
Contact us for more information about whale-watching, dolphins, snorkeling, and diving in Costa Rica.
You can also combine a visit to the Uvita area with Corcovado National Park.
