Hot Springs La Fortuna Costa RicaEcoTermales Day Pass: La Fortuna Rainforest Hot Springs, 10am to 4pm
The EcoTermales day pass buys you a six hour window at one of the quieter thermal resorts near La Fortuna, from 10am to 4pm. The ticket covers the entrance fee, towels, lockers and free parking, with lunch available as an option at booking. EcoTermales is a constructed pool resort fed by geothermal water from the Arenal volcano system, not a free-flowing river. Capacity per session is deliberately limited, photographs are banned in the thermal area, and the listing recommends arriving by noon to get your money's worth. This page breaks down the price, the rules and the fine print, and compares it with the rest of the hot springs in La Fortuna so you can see whether this ticket or a different one fits your day, and it sits alongside La Fortuna, Costa Rica hot springs.
About This Tour
This listing sells the daytime session at Ecotermales Fortuna, running 10am to 4pm, for $81 per person. The water in the pools is geothermally heated and runs 99-106°F. The resort sits in rainforest about a 9 minute drive from La Fortuna town, with paved walking trails, a waterfall spot and a poolside bar where cocktails cost extra. It is a constructed pool resort rather than a natural river.
You can book access only, or add lunch served in one of two on-site restaurants. Towels, lockers and free parking are included. The listing recommends arriving by at least 12pm, because the ticket expires at 4pm and the afternoon session is a separate product. Cancel free of charge up to 24 hours before the activity for a full refund.
$81 per person on GetYourGuide, with free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance
The daytime pass only, 10am to 4pm, six hours maximum
Constructed thermal pools with water at 99-106°F, fed by geothermal heat from the Arenal volcano system, plus paved rainforest trails
Entrance fee, towels, lockers, free parking, and lunch or dinner if you select the meal option at booking
Up to six hours, though the listing recommends arriving by 12pm to make full use of the ticket
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the activity for a full refund, and you can reserve now and pay later
Check Dates and Availability
Ecotermales runs capacity-limited timed sessions and advance booking is recommended, especially in the December to April high season. Enter your date to see open slots.
Quick answer EcoTermales day pass at a glance
The EcoTermales day pass costs $81 per person and covers the 10am to 4pm session, towels, lockers, free parking and an optional lunch. It does not include transport, cocktails or the evening session.
Key takeaways
- The ticket is valid only 10am to 4pm. If you want to soak after dark, this is not your product, and the EcoTermales hot springs guide explains the session system.
- Arrive by 12pm, the listing says, because six hours shrinks fast once you add lunch and the trails.
- Photographs are banned in the thermal area, so plan for a camera-free soak or pick a venue with different rules such as the Baldi day pass.
- Compare the full day, not just the headline, on the main La Fortuna, Costa Rica hot springs comparison.
What the Price Actually Covers
The listing's own include list is short. Everything on it is bundled into the $81 ticket, and everything else costs extra or is off limits. Here is the breakdown line by line.
Included in the Ticket
The entrance fee for the 10am to 4pm session is the core of the ticket. Towels and lockers are provided, which not every venue in the area includes, and the parking lot is free. If you selected the meal option at booking, lunch is served between 12pm and 2pm in either the Sonidos del Agua restaurant, which offers a biodynamic buffet, or the Litos restaurant, which serves family style food in clay pots at the table.
The restaurant and the menu format are confirmed at check-in and depend on how many diners are booked that day.
- Hot springs entrance fee for 10am to 4pm
- Towels
- Lockers
- Free parking
- Lunch, only if the meal option was selected
Not Included
Transport from La Fortuna town is not part of the ticket, so you need your own car or a taxi for the roughly 9 minute drive. Cocktails at the poolside bar cost extra. If you booked access without meals, any food you order at the restaurants is at your own expense.
Drinks are not included even with the meal option, though the meal comes with a natural beverage. The evening session from 5pm onward is a separate ticket entirely, so do not expect this pass to work at night.
- Transport and hotel pickup
- Cocktails and other bar drinks
- Food if you booked access only
- The evening session, which is a different ticket
How It Compares on Price
At $81 with a meal option available, this sits in the middle of the La Fortuna market. The table below puts it next to other bookable passes so you can see what each dollar buys. Figures come from the listings compared on this site, and the token marks when the comparison was last verified against them.
| Pass | Price | Hours | Meal included |
|---|---|---|---|
| EcoTermales day pass (this page) | $81 | 10am to 4pm | Optional at booking |
| Baldi Hot Springs day pass | $60 | Until 10pm | Optional add-on |
| Paradise Hot Springs ticket | $47 | 11am to 9pm | No |
| Hot Springs Pura Vida river access | $29 | 1 day | No |
| Tabacón day pass | $180 | 3-7 hours | No |
Sources: Tabacón hot springs, Baldi Hot Springs day pass and Arenal Volcano on Wikipedia.
What the Day Is Really Like
There is no guided itinerary here. The listing sells a session with a fixed window, and the rhythm of the day comes from the venue's own rules and meal times.
Arrival and Check-in
The ticket runs from 10am, but the listing recommends arriving by at least 12pm to make full use of it. You show a mobile ticket at the Ecotermales Fortuna entrance, no printing needed. Lockers and towels are waiting, and the changing rooms and showers get good marks for space in verified reviews.
Free parking is on site.
The Pools and Trails
The thermal pools are constructed, filled with geothermally heated water at 99-106°F. Several pools are cleaned twice daily. Around them run hundreds of meters of paved trails through tropical rainforest, with a waterfall spot for photos. Since photography is banned inside the thermal area itself, the trails and the waterfall are where you take pictures.
Lunch, If You Booked It
The meal option covers lunch served between 12pm and 2pm. You must be dressed and dry to enter the restaurants. Depending on the day's bookings you get either the Sonidos del Agua biodynamic buffet or the Litos entry package with a main course served at the table in clay pots, plus a starter, dessert and a natural beverage.
Dietary restrictions need 48 hours notice.
Afternoon and Exit
The session ends at 4pm sharp. That gives you roughly four hours of soaking if you arrive at noon, less if you start later. There is no evening access on this ticket.
For a soak after dark, the Paradise Hot Springs ticket runs its pools until 9pm.
EcoTermales Day Pass on Video
A day at EcoTermales, the pools and the setting. Third-party video by Ryan & John Review It. We did not shoot it and have no relationship with the creator.
Who This Tour Rules Out
The listing is explicit about who should not book, and the venue's own rules remove a few more travellers.
Stated Health Limits
The listing says the pass is not suitable for people with heart problems or pre-existing medical conditions. Long soaks in 99-106°F water put real strain on the cardiovascular system, so take that warning seriously. No minimum age is stated for this listing.
The Photo Ban
Photographs are not allowed in the thermal area where they invade the space of other clients. If you want soaked-in-the-pool shots for the album, this venue will not provide them, and drones are prohibited outright. Travellers who care about photos usually look at the Baldi day pass or the Los Lagos admission ticket instead, where the rules are less restrictive.
The Fixed Daytime Window
If your plan is an evening soak after a day of hiking, this ticket expires at 4pm. The daytime session is the quieter one per outside reporting, but this product simply does not offer night access. Look at the La Fortuna, Costa Rica hot springs for passes that run later.
Rules That Catch People Out
No pets, no smoking anywhere on the property, and no outside food or drinks. In a thunderstorm or any situation staff judge dangerous, you must follow the established protocol, which can mean leaving the water.
Arenal Volcano near La Fortuna. Photo: Bernard Gagnon, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
What to Settle Before You Book
A few practical points decide whether this ticket goes smoothly. Most of them are about the meal option and getting there without a car.
Cancellation and Payment
You can cancel free of charge up to 24 hours before the activity for a full refund, and reserve now and pay later keeps plans flexible. Cancel inside 24 hours and you lose the money. Note that the official EcoTermales site does not print its day-pass prices in crawlable form, so the booking platform figure is the one to plan around.
Confirm in Writing
If you booked the meal option, tell the operator about any dietary restrictions at least 48 hours in advance, and confirm which restaurant you have been assigned at check-in. The restaurant and menu format are only confirmed on arrival, so if a buffet versus a served clay-pot meal matters to you, ask before the day.
What to Bring
The listing suggests sunglasses, a change of clothes and biodegradable sunscreen. Towels and lockers are included, so leave your own towel at the hotel. Bring cash or a card for poolside cocktails, since drinks are not part of the ticket even with lunch.
Getting There from La Fortuna Town
The venue is about a 9 minute drive from La Fortuna. Transport is not included and there is no hotel pickup, so without a car you need a taxi for both directions. Free parking is included if you drive, which removes the parking fee that some other venues charge for lockers or lots.
Hour by Hour at EcoTermales
The listing sets the window and the meal times rather than a timed schedule. Here is how the session maps out.
-
10:00
Session opens
The daytime pass becomes valid. Early arrivals get the quietest pools and the most hours for the same $81.
-
Arrive by 12pm at the latest
The listing recommends arriving by at least noon. Show your mobile ticket at the entrance, collect towels and a locker, and change in the rooms with showers.
-
12:00
Lunch service starts
The meal option runs from 12pm to 2pm. You must be dressed and dry to enter the restaurant. Expect either the Sonidos del Agua buffet or a served meal in clay pots at Litos, confirmed at check-in.
-
Soak and walk the trails
Rotate between the thermal pools at 99-106°F and the paved rainforest trails. The waterfall spot is the one place cameras are welcome, since photography is banned in the thermal area.
-
14:00
Lunch service ends
After 2pm the restaurants close for lunch service. Cocktails at the poolside bar are available at extra cost through the afternoon.
-
16:00
Session ends
The ticket expires at 4pm. This is the end of your access, because the evening session from 5pm onward is a separate product.
Pros and Cons
An honest read of this listing against the rest of the La Fortuna market.
What we genuinely like
- Towels, lockers and free parking are included, which several similarly priced passes leave out
- Capacity is deliberately limited per session, so the pools stay quiet, and verified reviewers repeatedly mention the calm
- A proper restaurant meal is available, with a natural beverage and either buffet or clay-pot service
- The water runs 99-106°F and the pools are cleaned twice daily
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before, with reserve now and pay later
The honest downsides
- The 10am to 4pm window is the shortest fixed session in this price bracket, and arriving late cuts it further, so plan the day around a noon arrival
- No transport is included and the venue is a 9 minute drive from town, so a taxi both ways is a real extra cost
- Photography is banned in the thermal area, so there are no pool photos from your own visit
- Cocktails and any food outside the booked meal cost extra on top of $81
- The restaurant assignment and menu format are only confirmed at check-in, which makes the meal option a bit of a lottery
Who it's NOT for: Travellers who want an evening soak, pool photographs, or hotel pickup should book a different pass.
EcoTermales Day Pass FAQ
What hours does the EcoTermales day pass cover?
The ticket covers the daytime session from 10am to 4pm only. The evening session that starts at 5pm is a separate product, and the EcoTermales hot springs guide explains both sessions.
Is lunch included in the $81 price?
Lunch is an option you select at booking rather than automatic. If you selected it, you get a meal served 12pm to 2pm with a starter, main, dessert and a natural beverage, in either the Sonidos del Agua buffet or the Litos clay-pot service. If you booked access only, food is at your own expense. The Paradise Hot Springs ticket sells no meal at all on its base price.
Can I take photos in the pools?
No. Photographs are not allowed in the thermal area where they invade other guests' space, and drones are prohibited. You can take pictures on the rainforest trails and at the waterfall. If photos matter, the Baldi Hot Springs day pass is a bookable alternative with no such ban stated.
How do I get to EcoTermales from La Fortuna town?
The venue is about a 9 minute drive from La Fortuna. The ticket includes no transport and no hotel pickup, so take a taxi or drive, with free parking on site. Tours like the waterfall, volcano and hot springs tour include round-trip transport if you would rather not drive at all.
What is the cancellation policy?
Cancel up to 24 hours before the activity for a full refund, and you can reserve now and pay nothing today. Within 24 hours the booking is not refundable, so confirm your plans before the deadline.
Who should not book this pass?
The listing says it is not suitable for people with heart problems or pre-existing medical conditions, since long soaks in 99-106°F water strain the system. There is also no minimum age stated. If the health warning applies to your group, the cheaper Hot Springs Pura Vida river access puts you in a natural river with cooler sections, though its rocky bed has its own cautions.
Is EcoTermales a natural hot spring river or a pool resort?
It is a constructed pool resort. The water is geothermally heated by the Arenal volcano system and pumped into pools, several of which are cleaned twice daily. For water that runs as an open river, see the free hot springs at El Choyín or the river at Hot Springs Pura Vida on the main hot springs La Fortuna Costa Rica site.
What Travellers Said
Loved the place. Quiet and relaxing, not crowded at all, with spacious changing rooms and lockers. Staff is very kind and professional.
Lovely and quiet. An attractive, well maintained setting and the staff were very pleasant.
This was the ultimate relaxation day and we loved it. The included lunch was fantastic too.
Prices, availability and terms are set by the operator and confirmed at checkout.
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