November is the best-kept secret in the Costa Rican calendar. Guanacaste’s rainfall collapses from 290 mm in October to about 80 mm, the whole Pacific side dries out and reopens – but the country is still deep green from six months of rain, and December’s high-season prices have not started. It is the dry season without the dry-season cost.
The rain map
Note what has happened: the two coasts have swapped back. Guanacaste is down to 80 mm while the Caribbean has climbed to 370. If you went to Puerto Viejo in September because it was the dry coast, November is the month to be on the Pacific instead.
Why November is the value month
- The Pacific is dry and green at the same time. By February the same landscape is brown; in November it still has all the wet season’s growth with the rains gone.
- Everything reopens. The lodges, tours and restaurants that shut for September and October are back by November.
- Prices are still low. Rates climb from mid-November towards the December peak, so the first half of the month is the window.
- Rivers and waterfalls are still full after the rains, unlike in March and April.
- Roads dry out, so unpaved routes and fords become manageable again.
- Whale season runs to about the end of the month.
What is still wet
Continue planning your Costa Rica trip
The Caribbean. Puerto Viejo and Tortuguero are in a wet run from November through to about January, so the September–October logic reverses completely. Green turtle season at Tortuguero has also ended.
Abolition of the Army, 1 December – and what it means
Worth knowing at the end of November because it shapes the country you are visiting. On 1 December 1948 Costa Rica abolished its standing army, and the anniversary is a national public holiday – a Wednesday in 2027. The money that would have gone to a military has gone to education and health for three quarters of a century, and it is the single fact Costa Ricans are proudest of.
Prices and crowds
The first half of November is one of the two or three best value windows of the Costa Rican year. Rates rise through the second half and jump sharply around 15 December for the high season. See what a trip to Costa Rica costs.
What to pack
Light clothing plus a rain layer – the Pacific is drying but not dry, and the Caribbean and cloud forest are wet. Insect repellent, closed shoes with grip, a dry bag. Binoculars.
The November 2027 calendar
- Through November – Pacific rainfall collapses to about 80 mm in Guanacaste; the coast reopens.
- Through November – the Caribbean turns wet again, about 370 mm; Tortuguero turtle season over.
- First half of November – dry Pacific, green landscape, low-season prices; the best value window.
- To about end November – southern humpback whale season closes.
- From mid-November – rates begin climbing towards the December peak.
- No national public holidays fall in November; 1 December is the next.
Read alongside
- Costa Rica in October – wet Pacific, dry Caribbean.
- Costa Rica in December – dry season and peak prices.
- Costa Rica in May – the other side of the green season.
- Best time to visit Costa Rica – all twelve months compared.
- Costa Rica in 10 days – how the regions connect.
- Costa Rica travel guide – coasts, volcanoes and cloud forest.
- Trip to Costa Rica cost – shoulder-season numbers.
Frequently asked
Is November a good time to visit Costa Rica?
It is arguably the best value month. The Pacific dries out to about 80 mm in Guanacaste while the landscape is still green from the rains, everything has reopened, and December prices have not started.
Why is November better value than February?
Same dry Pacific weather, but the country is still green rather than brown, the waterfalls are still full, and the rates are pre-high-season.
Is the Caribbean good in November?
No – it reverses. Puerto Viejo and Tortuguero are wet from November to about January, the opposite of their September and October window.
Have the Pacific lodges reopened by November?
Yes. The businesses that closed for September and October are back, which is one of the main reasons November works.
Can you still see whales in November?
Until about the end of the month, when the southern-hemisphere humpback season closes. The northern population arrives from December.
When do Costa Rica prices jump?
Rates rise through the second half of November and jump sharply around 15 December for the high season.
Why does Costa Rica have no army?
It abolished its standing army on 1 December 1948, and the anniversary is a national public holiday. The military budget went to education and health instead.
Are roads easier in November?
Yes, on the Pacific side – unpaved routes and river fords dry out and become manageable again after the green season.
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Written by
John Morrison is the founder and lead travel writer at Packzup. Over the past decade he has explored destinations across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Oceania — always self-funded, never on a press trip.
