Puerto Viejo · With kids

A rescue and rehabilitation centre at Playa Chiquita with public guided tours daily at 9:30 and 11:30, plus a limited private tour at 2pm. You walk the enclosures with a guide rather than handling animals; book online in advance because tours fill.

Near Cahuita, about 35 minutes north of town. The one-hour Buttercup tour runs hourly from 8am to 3pm at US$30 for adults and US$15 for ages 5–12, under-fives free, closed Mondays. They are explicit that nobody but staff touches the sloths.

A bean-to-bar tour with a short forest walk and a tasting, ₡20,000 per person with discounts for children, at 10am or 2pm — daily January to April, Monday to Saturday the rest of the year. Well pitched at school-age children.

The reef and the headland make Punta Uva the calmest water on this coast, and the beach on the north side of the point is where families end up. Elsewhere, including in front of town, there are rips and no lifeguards.

The trail from the Kelly Creek entrance in Cahuita village runs flat along the shore, and howler monkeys, sloths and capuchins are usually visible in the first kilometre. You can walk as far as small legs manage and simply turn back.