The best all-inclusive & full-board resorts in Costa Rica

Costa Rica is not a classic all-inclusive destination, and that is part of its appeal. The country is best experienced beyond the resort, moving between rainforests, volcanoes, wildlife reserves, small towns, and two coasts that barely resemble each other. Most of the trips we design move through several of these in one visit.

Still, an inclusive stay can make sense for the right trip. Families may want meals and activities covered in advance rather than negotiated meal-by-meal with kids in tow. Couples may want a few quiet beach days after exploring Arenal or the Osa Peninsula. In remote areas like Tortuguero, meals, boat transfers, and guided excursions are often bundled together because there is little else nearby to book instead.

The catch is that "all-inclusive" does not mean the same thing everywhere in Costa Rica. Some properties follow the familiar resort model: unlimited meals, drinks, and entertainment. Others are small nature lodges where the rate includes meals, transfers, and guided wildlife experiences, but not a swim-up bar. A few hotels only include breakfast and call it a day. This guide sorts through all three and tells you which is which, so you can choose the one that fits your trip.

Quick answer: are there true all-inclusive resorts in Costa Rica?

Yes, but fewer than the search results suggest. A handful of beachfront resorts, concentrated around the Papagayo Gulf and Guanacaste's northern coast, run the traditional model: unlimited meals, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and organized entertainment. Everything else marketed as "all-inclusive" in Costa Rica is closer to full-board: meals and guided experiences included, alcohol and add-on excursions often not. Knowing which one you're booking matters more here than almost anywhere else we sell.

What "all-inclusive" means in Costa Rica

Four categories cover almost everything sold under the "all-inclusive" label here, and we've tagged every property below with the category it belongs to.

Traditional all-inclusive resorts. Meals, alcoholic drinks, entertainment, and resort activities are bundled into the rate. This is the Caribbean- and Mexico-style model, and Costa Rica has a real but small cluster of it, concentrated in Guanacaste.

Full-board nature lodges. Meals, transfers, and a set of guided experiences are included, but unlimited alcohol usually is not, and evening entertainment means the sound of the rainforest rather than a stage show. This is the more common Costa Rica version, especially in the Osa Peninsula, along the Pacuare River, and in Tortuguero.

Optional inclusive packages. A standard hotel with a meal plan or drinks package added on, either as the default rate or as an upgrade you choose at booking. Worth knowing what the base rate covers before you assume it's inclusive.

Not genuinely all-inclusive. Breakfast, resort activities, and not much else. These show up in searches and comparison sites because of a five-star reputation, not because the rate is inclusive. We've flagged the two worth knowing about further down so you don't book one expecting a Papagayo all-inclusive experience.

Comparison at a glance

Best traditional all-inclusive resorts

These are the properties that run the model most people picture when they search "all-inclusive Costa Rica": unlimited meals, bars that don't ask you to sign anything, and a full activities calendar.

The Westin Reserva Conchal

Playa Conchal, Guanacaste · Best for families · Not adults-only · Meals, alcohol, minibar, room service, kids' club included

A 2,400-acre property with direct access to Playa Conchal, a shell-sand beach that's genuinely one of the best swimming beaches on this coast. It's the pick for a family that wants a real kids' club, a championship golf course, and a resort large enough that nobody runs out of things to do over a week. The property holds a Level 5 rating (the highest of five) in Costa Rica's official Certification for Sustainable Tourism program.

Insider tip: Book a Royal Beach Club room. It's the same resort, just a quieter pool away from the main crowd, and worth the upgrade if the kids' club is doing its job and you want an hour of adult quiet.

Secrets Papagayo

Gulf of Papagayo · Best for adults-only couples · Adults-only · Meals, premium drinks, entertainment included

Polished and food-and-spa-forward: gourmet dining, a full spa program, and 24-hour dining that doesn't require planning around resort hours. The pick between this and Occidental if service and dining variety matter more to you than quiet.

Insider tip: Ask for a swim-out suite on the side of the property away from the main pool speakers. Same rate category, meaningfully quieter mornings.

Occidental Papagayo

Culebra Bay, Papagayo · Best for honeymoons · Adults-only · Meals, drinks, daily activities, entertainment included

Sits on a bluff over Culebra Bay and is built around quiet and Pacific views rather than a packed entertainment calendar; kayaking and archery are the included daily activities. The better pick between this and Secrets if the trip is a honeymoon and calm matters more than polish.

Insider tip: Rooms on the upper floors facing the bay catch more breeze and less afternoon sun than the lower bluff-side units.

Planet Hollywood Costa Rica

Papagayo Gulf · Best for families wanting entertainment · Not adults-only · Meals, drinks, kids' club, nightly shows included

Seven restaurants, nightly shows, and a splash zone alongside the usual all-inclusive drinks and meals. Louder and busier than the Westin, by design, for a family that wants that energy rather than a quiet beach week.

Insider tip: The splash zone gets loud by mid-morning. If you want a calm start to the day, eat breakfast at one of the specialty restaurants instead of the main buffet.

Riu Palace Costa Rica

Matapalo Beach, Guanacaste · Best for straightforward, large-scale value · Not adults-only · Meals, drinks, snacks, group activities included

Roughly 40 minutes from Liberia's airport, which is a genuinely short transfer by Costa Rica standards. A large, no-surprises resort with four pools and a full activities calendar. RIU runs its properties, this one included, under a chain-wide, third-party-verified sustainability program (ECOSTARS, covering energy, water, and waste) rather than a property-specific certification.

Insider tip: The 24-hour sports bar is the best-kept secret here for a late snack once the evening shows wind down.

Azura Beach Resort

Playa Samara, Nicoya · Best for small-scale adults-only value · Adults-only · Meals, drinks, beach access included

Worth a correction from how it's often described online: Azura is an adults-only property, on one of Costa Rica's calmest swimming beaches. Smaller and more relaxed than the Papagayo cluster, with a walkable village nearby, and a genuine all-inclusive rate without the scale of a 500-room resort.

Insider tip: Request an oceanfront room specifically. Several of the standard rooms face the garden instead of the water.

Best full-board nature lodges

These properties include meals and guided experiences in the rate, which is why they get called "all-inclusive" in searches and on comparison sites, but the model is different: no swim-up bar, no nightly stage show, and usually no unlimited alcohol. What you get instead is a rate built around access, a guide, a boat, a trail, rather than a bar tab.

Lapa Rios

Osa Peninsula · Best for wildlife · Not adults-only · Meals, guided hikes, park tours included (non-alcoholic drinks only)

Sits on a 1,000-acre private reserve at the edge of Corcovado National Park and runs on solar power. The pick if wildlife is the actual point of the trip. Corcovado itself is reachable only by small plane to Puerto Jiménez or Drake Bay, or a long drive, and that inconvenience is a real part of why the biodiversity here holds up.

Insider tip: The best sightings happen on the guided 6am birdwatching walk, not the afternoon hikes. Worth setting the alarm.

Pacuare Lodge

Pacuare River, Turrialba · Best for adventure · Not adults-only · Meals, guided hikes, river activities included

Reached by raft down the Pacuare River, which sets the tone before you've even checked in. Treetop suites for travelers who want the jungle close. Not a lodge to book if the trip also needs to be restful; it's built for people who want the whitewater arrival to be the first of several adrenaline moments, not the last.

Insider tip: Ask about the treetop suite upgrade if seeing the canopy at eye level matters more to you than a quiet night; the standard suites sit lower and closer to the river's noise.

Playa Cativo Lodge

Golfo Dulce · Best for a small, intimate lodge · Not adults-only · Meals, guided tours, boat transfer included

Reachable only by boat, and the smallest, most secluded option on this list. Runs on 100% clean energy (hydropower and solar) and grows much of what it serves through an on-site organic farm, both concrete claims rather than a general sustainability gesture. Good for a couple who wants seclusion without an activity-packed itinerary.

Insider tip: There's essentially no light pollution here. If stargazing matters to your trip, this beats every beach resort on this list.

El Remanso Lodge

Cabo Matapalo, Osa Peninsula · Best for active travelers · Not adults-only · Meals, guided hikes, waterfall rappelling included

Built for a few active, off-the-grid days: guided hikes and waterfall rappelling are both included, and several units have private plunge pools for downtime between excursions.

Insider tip: The waterfall rappelling books up early in high season. Confirm it at the time you book the stay, not after you arrive.

Tortuga Lodge & Gardens

Tortuguero · Best for Tortuguero and turtle season · Not adults-only · Meals, guided tours, boat transfer included

Sits along the canals of Tortuguero National Park on the Caribbean side, the strongest pick if Tortuguero is on the itinerary. There's no road access; you arrive by small plane or by a drive plus a canal boat, both included. This coast isn't a swimming beach (strong currents, and it's a protected sea turtle nesting site), so the appeal is entirely the canals and the wildlife they hold. Nesting season runs roughly July through October.

Insider tip: If turtle season is the actual reason you're booking, say so at booking. Not every room category includes priority access to the night tours.

Best resorts with optional inclusive packages

These are standard hotels first, with a meal plan or drinks package layered on as an option rather than baked into every rate. Worth booking deliberately rather than assuming.

El Mangroove

Gulf of Papagayo · Best for boutique design and flexible stays · Not adults-only · Breakfast standard; all-inclusive upgrade optional

A sleek, design-forward hotel and the calmer alternative to the large-scale Papagayo resorts nearby. The all-inclusive upgrade is worth it mainly for a traveler planning to stay on property most of the trip rather than venture out to eat.

Insider tip: Skip the upgrade on a short stay, two or three nights, if you're planning to eat in the small towns nearby. The base rate plus a couple of dinners out usually comes out ahead.

Margaritaville Beach Resort Playa Flamingo

Playa Flamingo · Best for a walkable beach-town base · Not adults-only · Meals and snacks standard; unlimited drinks optional

Sits directly across from Playa Flamingo with a relatively compact layout. The drinks upgrade is optional, not automatic; the appeal here is walking to the beach and the marina rather than staying inside a large gated resort.

Insider tip: The marina side is a five-minute walk to real restaurants in Flamingo. Worth doing at least one dinner out instead of the resort's own dining room.

Best specialized inclusive stay

Surf Synergy

Pacific coast · Best for structured surf coaching · Not adults-only (skews adult travelers) · Meals, daily coaching, board use included

A purpose-built surf retreat where the inclusive rate is built around instruction rather than dining variety. The right pick only if surfing is the actual focus of the trip, not a resort with a surf lesson bolted on.

Insider tip: This is built for someone who wants daily coaching, not someone who already surfs well and just wants an uncrowded break. A strong intermediate or advanced surfer will likely outgrow the program by day two.

Luxury resorts that are not all-inclusive

Two hotels come up constantly in "all-inclusive Costa Rica" searches because of their five-star reputations, and neither one runs an all-inclusive rate. Worth knowing before you book expecting one.

Andaz Papagayo (Peninsula Papagayo · breakfast and resort activities only) is a well-designed resort with strong architecture and two beaches, but the standard rate stops at breakfast. W Costa Rica Reserva Conchal (Playa Conchal, beside the Westin · breakfast and beach access only) is the same story: the rest of the stay is à la carte. Both are worth considering for a Costa Rica trip; neither belongs on an all-inclusive shortlist as the rate stands.

How to choose the right format

Choose a traditional all-inclusive when you want predictable costs, multiple restaurants, kids' programming, and minimal day-to-day logistics. This is the right call for a family that wants one easy stretch of the trip, or a couple who wants a no-planning honeymoon finish.

Choose a full-board lodge when wildlife, guided activities, and a remote setting matter more to you than unlimited drinks or evening entertainment. This is most of what we book in the Osa Peninsula, along the Pacuare, and in Tortuguero, often as one stop within a longer, multi-region Costa Rica itinerary.

Choose an optional meal plan when you want some cost certainty but still plan to eat out, whether that's a soda in town or a restaurant down the beach.

Skip all-inclusive entirely when the trip is built around visiting several regions, trying independent restaurants, or spending most days touring away from the resort. That's the more common Costa Rica trip, and it's the one we design most often: see our Costa Rica honeymoon guide or wildlife destinations guide for what that looks like in practice.

What's commonly not included, even at "all-inclusive" rates

A few gaps show up often enough that it's worthwhile checking these are included before you book:

• Alcohol, at nearly every full-board nature lodge, and sometimes at "optional package" hotels unless you add the upgrade.
• Off-property excursions. Most rates cover on-site or immediately nearby activities; a day trip to a different national park or town is usually extra, guide and transport included.
• Spa treatments, at almost every property on this list, traditional resorts included.
• Airport transfers, except at the remote lodges (Osa Peninsula, Pacuare, Tortuguero) where getting there is part of what you're paying for.
• Park entrance fees, at properties bordering national parks like Corcovado or Tortuguero, even when a guided tour inside the park is included.
• Gratuities, almost everywhere, whatever the marketing copy implies.

Planning your own stay

If you're trying to decide between a traditional resort, a full-board lodge, or skipping all-inclusive altogether, that's a decision we help clients make every week. Tell us about the trip you're planning and we'll help you figure out which format, if any, fits it.

Frequently asked questions

Are there true all-inclusive resorts in Costa Rica?

Yes, but the real, traditional-model cluster (unlimited meals, drinks, and entertainment) is concentrated in Guanacaste and the Papagayo Gulf. Much of what shows up in "all-inclusive Costa Rica" searches is a full-board nature lodge or a hotel with an optional meal plan instead, which can be a better fit depending on what you want from the trip.

What's the real difference between an all-inclusive resort and a full-board lodge?

A traditional all-inclusive bundles unlimited alcohol and organized entertainment into the rate, alongside meals. A full-board lodge bundles meals, transfers, and guided experiences, but usually not unlimited drinks or a nightly show. Both are "inclusive" in the sense that the rate covers most of your costs; they just cover different things.

Is an all-inclusive resort a good way to see Costa Rica?

For part of a trip, often yes. For an entire trip, usually not. Costa Rica's appeal is its range of landscapes and regions, and staying inside one resort the whole time means missing most of that. We typically build inclusive stays in as one stretch of a longer, multi-region itinerary rather than the whole plan.

Are Costa Rica's all-inclusive resorts good for families?

The traditional resorts in Guanacaste, the Westin Reserva Conchal and Planet Hollywood in particular, are built for families, with real kids' clubs and activity programming. The full-board nature lodges work for families too, but expect a slower, guide-led pace rather than a pool with a swim-up bar and organized games.

Do all-inclusive resorts in Costa Rica include alcohol?

At the traditional resorts, yes, alcohol is included as standard. At full-board nature lodges, usually not, or only at meals rather than throughout the day. Always worth confirming at booking rather than assuming either way.

Is Corcovado or Tortuguero difficult to reach from a full-board lodge?

They're the destination, not a side trip. Corcovado-adjacent lodges on the Osa Peninsula are reached by small plane or a long drive, and Tortuguero has no road access at all, only small plane or boat. The included transfers at these lodges account for that; budget the travel time as part of the stay rather than around it.