Costa Rica’s 2024 tourism figures and conservation-area measurements show two important dimensions of outdoor travel: the scale and seasonality of international access, and the size and ecological complexity of the landscapes visitors come to experience. The Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT) recorded 2,661,488 international tourist arrivals by air during 2024, while SINAC reports large conservation areas containing protected lands, biological corridors, freshwater, endemic plants, and nationally important biodiversity.
Contents
- 2024 air-arrival snapshot
- Monthly seasonality
- Where air visitors came from
- The scale of Arenal Tempisque
- Protected landscapes and conservation administration
- Tortuguero, Central, and Guanacaste
2024 air-arrival snapshot
ICT’s Informe I Semestre 2024 and Informe II Semestre 2024 report 1,532,443 international tourist arrivals by air in the first half of 2024 and 1,129,045 in the second half. Across the full year, the reported total was 2,661,488 air arrivals. The ICT reports this as 7.7% growth compared with 2023. These are international arrivals by air, not a count of individual eco-tourism trips, park visits, or overnight stays.
The two half-year totals also show how the annual number was distributed. The first semester accounted for the larger reported total, while the second semester included a pronounced low point in September before arrivals increased toward December. Because the figures measure arrivals at the national level, they do not identify how many travelers visited a particular reserve, national park, or outdoor destination.
For readers planning nature-focused travel, the national total is best treated as a broad context measure. It indicates the overall volume of international air access during the year, while the conservation statistics below describe the places and ecological systems that form the physical setting for outdoor experiences.
Monthly seasonality
The ICT monthly series shows substantial variation during 2024. January recorded 270,712 air arrivals, followed by 291,152 in February and 322,400 in March. March was the year’s monthly peak in the first semester. Arrivals then fell to 221,573 in April and 199,154 in May before reaching 227,452 in June. The first six monthly figures sum to the ICT-reported first-semester total of 1,532,443.
The second-semester report records 239,368 arrivals in July and 182,800 in August. September was the lowest month in the annual series, with 105,100 arrivals. The monthly total rose to 122,188 in October, 201,152 in November, and 278,437 in December. The second-semester figures sum to 1,129,045 arrivals.
| 2024 period | International tourist arrivals by air | ICT source label |
|---|---|---|
| January | 270,712 | Informe I Semestre 2024 |
| February | 291,152 | Informe I Semestre 2024 |
| March | 322,400 | Informe I Semestre 2024 |
| April | 221,573 | Informe I Semestre 2024 |
| May | 199,154 | Informe I Semestre 2024 |
| June | 227,452 | Informe I Semestre 2024 |
| July | 239,368 | Informe II Semestre 2024 |
| August | 182,800 | Informe II Semestre 2024 |
| September | 105,100 | Informe II Semestre 2024 |
| October | 122,188 | Informe II Semestre 2024 |
| November | 201,152 | Informe II Semestre 2024 |
| December | 278,437 | Informe II Semestre 2024 |
The series is useful for understanding timing, but it should not be read as a direct measure of crowding at outdoor sites. Air arrivals can be distributed across different regions, accommodations, activities, and travel dates. Still, the contrast between March’s 322,400 arrivals and September’s 105,100 provides a clear national-level picture of changing travel volume during the year. (ICT, Informe I Semestre 2024; ICT, Informe II Semestre 2024.)
Where air visitors came from
North America was a major source region in the reported monthly snapshots. It contributed 198,613 air arrivals in January 2024 and 175,461 in July 2024. Central America contributed 6,955 arrivals in January and 8,513 in July. South America contributed 10,052 in January and 10,592 in July. The Caribbean contributed 548 in January and 942 in July. These regional figures are reported by ICT for those specific months and should not be treated as full-year regional totals.
The supplied ICT annual country figures add further detail to the 2024 market picture. The United States accounted for 1,587,138 air arrivals, while Canada accounted for 257,395 and Mexico for 92,404. Among Central American countries, Guatemala contributed 42,485, Honduras 11,969, Nicaragua 8,373, and Panama 17,678.
South American country figures included 25,009 arrivals from Argentina, 20,102 from Brazil, 17,377 from Chile, 30,531 from Colombia, 6,529 from Ecuador, and 14,964 from Peru. The Dominican Republic contributed 5,360 arrivals. The country figures are part of the ICT 2024 reporting and measure arrivals by air; they do not identify the purpose of each trip or the destinations visited within Costa Rica.
For outdoor businesses and travelers, this geographic breakdown gives context about the international audience interested in reaching Costa Rica. It does not establish that every arrival participated in eco-tourism. A precise eco-tourism participation rate is not included in the reported figures, so the statistics should be used as tourism-access context rather than as a quantified count of nature travelers.
The scale of Arenal Tempisque
SINAC’s Area de Conservación Arenal Tempisque, commonly abbreviated ACAT, covers 395,046.14 hectares. SINAC reports that this equals 7.73% of Costa Rica’s national territory. The area spans parts of 10 cantons and 32 districts, showing that its ecological and management footprint crosses multiple local jurisdictions.
Water is a major measurable feature within ACAT. The Arenal Reservoir includes a freshwater lake of about 8,317 hectares. That figure describes the lake’s approximate area inside the conservation area; it is not a measure of the whole conservation area or of all water bodies within it.
SINAC reports that 24.84% of ACAT consists of protected areas and 28.81% consists of biological corridors. These are different categories and should not be added together as though they were automatically separate, non-overlapping parts of the landscape. Protected-area coverage indicates land under the reported protected-area designation, while biological corridors describe connected ecological spaces used in conservation planning.
The conservation area also has a documented botanical dimension. SINAC reports that about 190 endemic plants have been identified in ACAT. The word “about” matters: this is an approximate reported count, not a claim that the number is fixed or that it represents every plant species in the area. Together, the hectares, reservoir, corridor share, and endemic-plant estimate illustrate why Arenal Tempisque is relevant to Costa Rica’s outdoor and nature-travel identity.
Protected landscapes and conservation administration
SINAC is divided into 11 conservation areas. This administrative structure places individual parks and landscapes within broader conservation regions rather than treating each site as an isolated unit. The figures for Arenal Tempisque therefore fit into a national conservation framework that includes multiple areas with different ecological and management characteristics.
The Central Conservation Area covers 860,800 hectares, according to SINAC’s Área de Conservación Central information. SINAC reports that this equals 16.84% of Costa Rica’s terrestrial area. The Central Conservation Area contains 25 protected wilderness areas and encompasses approximately 54% of the country’s population.
Those measurements describe an unusual combination of conservation and human geography: a large conservation area, a substantial number of protected wilderness areas, and a region associated with approximately 54% of the national population. The population figure is explicitly approximate, so it should not be treated as a precise census count. It also does not mean that 54% of residents live inside protected wilderness areas; it describes the population encompassed by the conservation area’s reported geography.
For visitors, the Central Conservation Area statistic is a reminder that outdoor access and conservation management operate alongside major population centers. Travel conditions, visitor pressure, and the practical experience of a protected site can differ considerably by location even when sites belong to the same broad conservation administration.
Tortuguero, Central, and Guanacaste
SINAC reports that Tortuguero National Park expanded from 64,701.45 hectares to 76,937 hectares. The two figures describe the park before and after the reported expansion, rather than two competing estimates for the same date. The change is therefore important historical context, but the supplied information does not give an expansion date or quantify the area added in a separate calculation.
The Tortuguero figures also demonstrate why measurement dates and administrative history matter when comparing conservation statistics. A park’s reported area can change after a boundary expansion, so comparisons should identify which version of the boundary is being used. The supplied SINAC figure gives both the earlier and expanded areas but does not independently verify either legacy measurement.
Guanacaste provides a different scale of biodiversity context. SINAC’s Área de Conservación Guanacaste estimates that the area contains approximately 235,000 species. SINAC also estimates that this represents 65% of the species estimated in Costa Rica and 2.6% of global biodiversity. Each figure is explicitly an estimate, and the percentages are tied to the estimated species totals used by SINAC. They should not be read as a complete census of all global species.
Taken together, the Guanacaste estimates, ACAT’s approximately 190 endemic plants, and the national network of 11 conservation areas show the breadth of Costa Rica’s biodiversity story. They also show why a single visitor-arrival number cannot capture the full meaning of eco-tourism. Tourism data measures movement into the country; conservation data measures landscapes, designations, ecological connections, and estimated biological richness.
Reading the statistics responsibly
The most defensible interpretation is to keep the measures in their original categories. ICT’s 2,661,488 figure is a 2024 total for international tourist arrivals by air. Its monthly values describe national arrival timing, and its country values describe reported arrival origins. SINAC’s figures describe conservation-area extent, protected-area and corridor shares, freshwater area, park boundaries, administrative geography, and biodiversity estimates.
These categories complement one another but do not substitute for one another. No supplied figure states how many visitors entered a national park, how many travelers chose certified eco-lodging, or what share of air arrivals took part in a nature activity. The available statistics can therefore support careful planning and context: they show when national arrival volumes were higher or lower, where visitors came from, and how extensive and diverse the conservation landscapes are. They do not support an invented eco-tourism participation rate.