Explore Playas del Coco

Located on the west coast of Costa Rica, on the Pacific Ocean, in the Guanacaste Province, is the buzzing beach community Playas del Coco, which is one of the fastest growing holiday destinations in Costa Rica with some of the most exciting diving in the area. This is not the destination to visit if colourful coral reefs are what divers are looking for, but instead, this area has thrilling topography made up of caves, caverns and unique volcanic rock formations and the highlight being the high abundance of pelagic species which visit this area. Despite there being less coral and less ideal visibility, there are still a very high number of fish here to still make every dive exciting.

Courses and Events

Dive Activity

Diving in Playas del Coco

With over 20 dive sites near the coast of Playas del Coco, all around a 10-15 minute boat ride away, there are a lot of different types of diving to be done. There is a cave to explore with sleeping sharks inside at Virador dive site, a small shipwreck and wall formations at Tortuga, coral pinnacles with White Tip Reef Sharks zig zagging through them at Shark Point and many more unique volcanic formations to explore. The diving is all done from speedboats or by the odd liveaboard which visits here. The dive centres and dive resorts here also offer dive courses. 

Top Wildlife Sightings in Playas del Coco

This may not be the most colourful area in terms of coral, but the nutrient-rich waters here attract many different species. Meros has a large pinnacle which is scattered with colourful Nudibranchs and has large Groupers gliding past. Tiburones and Tortuga are known for their resident White Tip Reef Sharks, which are always exciting to spot. Sorpresa dive site has some of the largest Moray Eels (as big as a human leg), and Monkey Head is the place to go to spot large schools of Eagle Rays and Stingrays. The lack of coral does not affect the number of fish here and so there are schools of fish all over this area.

Wildlife Sightings are Based on User Generated Content

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 200

Moray Eel

96 Sightings
J
3
F
0
M
3
A
3
M
3
J
16
J
26
A
15
S
1
O
6
N
14
D
6

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 25

Eagle Ray

58 Sightings
J
0
F
3
M
4
A
0
M
4
J
9
J
16
A
11
S
1
O
2
N
3
D
5

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 300

Octopus

48 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
3
J
9
J
17
A
12
S
0
O
1
N
6
D
0

Green Turtle

15 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
2
J
1
J
1
A
0
S
0
O
2
N
7
D
2

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 600

Wrasse

7 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
4
A
1
S
0
O
1
N
0
D
1

Whitetip Reef Shark

122 Sightings
J
9
F
1
M
7
A
2
M
11
J
13
J
17
A
22
S
4
O
9
N
10
D
17

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 80

Stingrays

87 Sightings
J
3
F
3
M
4
A
2
M
6
J
9
J
18
A
12
S
5
O
6
N
12
D
7

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 130

Pufferfish

57 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
7
J
12
A
10
S
1
O
6
N
15
D
6

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 90

Angelfish

41 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
4
A
0
M
4
J
4
J
17
A
2
S
0
O
6
N
3
D
1

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 100

Parrotfish

39 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
2
J
5
J
14
A
5
S
0
O
3
N
8
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 20

Porcupinefish

34 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
3
A
0
M
3
J
1
J
5
A
8
S
1
O
4
N
8
D
1

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 3

Trumpetfish

28 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
5
J
8
A
4
S
1
O
5
N
5
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 130

Butterfly Fish

26 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
4
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
12
A
6
S
1
O
2
N
0
D
1

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 90

Goatfish

23 Sightings
J
1
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
5
J
7
A
1
S
1
O
5
N
3
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 3

Cornetfish

17 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
3
J
6
A
2
S
0
O
3
N
1
D
0

Common Seahorse

15 Sightings
J
0
F
2
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
4
J
5
A
0
S
2
O
0
N
0
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 350

Damselfish

15 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
3
J
6
A
2
S
1
O
3
N
0
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 3000

Nudibranch

14 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
1
A
2
M
1
J
9
J
0
A
1
S
0
O
0
N
0
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 25

Boxfish

12 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
1
A
4
S
0
O
1
N
6
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 250

Scorpionfish

11 Sightings
J
1
F
0
M
1
A
0
M
2
J
2
J
1
A
1
S
0
O
1
N
2
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 110

Snapper

11 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
3
J
2
A
1
S
0
O
2
N
0
D
1

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 60

Soldierfish

11 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
5
A
1
S
1
O
1
N
0
D
1

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 60

Spiny Lobster

11 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
0
A
0
M
0
J
3
J
0
A
0
S
0
O
0
N
8
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 85

Surgeonfish

8 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
3
J
1
A
1
S
0
O
1
N
0
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 8

Bannerfish

8 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
0
A
1
S
0
O
0
N
5
D
0

The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.

Total number of species: 40

Triggerfish

7 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
2
A
0
M
0
J
0
J
1
A
1
S
0
O
2
N
0
D
1

The best Months to Dive in Playas del Coco

The climate here is split into the rainy and dry seasons. The rainy season runs from May to November, which involves showers in the afternoons and windier conditions. October has the most extreme weather, so it is advised not to visit then. The benefit of the rainy season is an increase in nutrients in the water, which attracts larger species, including the thrilling bull sharks. The dry season, from December to April, means calmer waters, better visibility—reaching up to 30 meters/98 feet—and smaller marine species to admire.

Dive Centers

Dive Sites