Manuel Antonio Catamaran Cruise

Last Updated: January 21, 2020

If you’re visiting Manuel Antonio on your next trip to Costa Rica, you’re no doubt looking forward to spotting wildlife in the national park, doing adventure activities in the nearby mountains, and relaxing on the beach. But a trip to this area wouldn’t be complete without experiencing the magnificent Pacific coastline by boat. We recently went on a catamaran cruise from Manuel Antonio with some family and friends. In this post, will tell you about our experience and how you can enjoy it too.

A Catamaran Cruise in Manuel Antonio

What to Expect

Setting Off

We started our tour at the brand new Marina Pez Vela in Quepos. Although Quepos has more of a city feel and the downtown isn’t very scenic, the marina has amazing facilities. Some of the best restaurants in the area are located here, and the views of the bay, especially at sunset, are outstanding.

Marina Pez Vela in Quepos Costa Rica
A look at the beautiful marina from the water

After waiting for everyone to arrive, it was time to board the boat. There are a few different options for cruises out of Manuel Antonio/Quepos. Since our son, Sam, was only one, we felt the most comfortable going out on the biggest boat, the Ocean King.

The Ocean King is a 100-foot catamaran with two decks (upper and lower), big open areas to relax, two Jacuzzis, a full bar, bathrooms, and waterslides off the back. After boarding, we were given a safety talk by the crew and were briefed about what our morning would entail. First, we would head south to the shores of Manuel Antonio National Park. On the way, we would be looking for whales (seasonal), dolphins, and seabirds. Next, we’d go to a secluded cove for some snorkeling, swimming, jumping, and water-sliding. And finally, we’d enjoy lunch (or dinner depending on your tour time) on the way back to the marina.

For information on booking this tour, see the end of this post.

The Ocean King Catamaran
The two large decks aboard the Ocean King

A Party on the Water

As the boat left the marina and headed into the ocean, the staff put on some upbeat music, set out fresh fruit and light snacks, and opened up the bar. Everyone was allowed four beers and four cocktails each, as well as unlimited juice and soda. Even though it was still mid-morning, the bar got busy with fruity cocktails being handed out with big smiles.

What You’ll See

The views of the hilly green coastline are amazing from out on the boat. While on land it seems like there is a lot of development, from the water you can really appreciate how much of Manuel Antonio and Quepos remains engulfed in thick jungle. Adding to the scenery, we passed small rocky islands and local fishing boats too.

View of the islands off of Manuel Antonio
A few of the small islands that we passed

Along the way, we saw some seabirds like the Brown Booby and Magnificent Frigatebird. For those of you into birding, these species are considered pelagic. This means that they spend most of their time over the open ocean, with only short periods of rest on tiny islands or drifting wood. Some of them were showing off and got very close to the boat, which was cool for us birding geeks.

The captain and crew were keeping a lookout for dolphins and humpback whales too, but we weren’t lucky enough to see any on our trip. Dolphins, we were told, can be seen any time of year, but the whales have distinct migration seasons. (Check out our Whale Watching post for more info.) We were at the very start of the December to April migration, which typically has lower numbers of whales. Nonetheless, we had plenty to look at with the islands, birds, and stunning coastline.

It was also interesting to get to see Manuel Antonio National Park from a different angle. As we motored close to shore, one of the crew members told us a little about the park over the P.A. system. Things like how Manuel Antonio National Park is among the smallest parks in the country but also one of the most visited. He then explained about the diversity of wildlife that can be found inside, both on land and in the adjacent area of protected ocean.

The View of Manuel Antonio National Park from the water
Cathedral Point (right side) inside Manuel Antonio National Park

Snorkeling

The snorkeling and swimming part of the trip was probably our favorite. We stopped in a tranquil cove of the secluded Biesanz Beach. Near the boat there was a rock protruding out of the water that attracted a lot of fish. Although Costa Rica isn’t known for having the clearest water for snorkeling, we were surprised that we could see a lot when we got close up.

The swimming was nice since the water was warm. With the boat parked, the crew opened up the two waterslides off the back and a jumping-off point from the top deck. The slides were a hit with kids and adults alike and really shot you out into the water at the end. The jump from the deck was just scary enough to be fun too. It was about 15 feet high and some of the more adventurous people even dove head first!

Waterslide aboard the Ocean King Catamaran
Shooting off the waterslide

Lunch/Dinner

After we dried off from the swim and snorkel portion, lunch was already being served. It was buffet style and we were each given a delicious heaping plate with locally caught fish, rice, vegetables, and salad.

Soon it was time to head back to the marina. We took in the views again and got to talk to some of the other people to see where they were visiting from. The crowd was really mixed, with people of all ages from all over the world. We loved the morning tour, but are already looking forward to taking the afternoon one next time. The sunset views are supposed to be spectacular!

Manuel Antonio Catamaran Cruise with Kids
Matt and Sam taking in the view

Additional Info and Tips

Staff and Boat: The staff was very professional, but friendly and fun too. The boat itself was in excellent condition, clean and well maintained. We felt very safe on it.

Rainy Season: Tours are offered twice a day, but during certain times of year when rain is likely later in the day (May through November), they may only run the morning boat.

Music/Environment: The music on the boat makes for a fun, party-like atmosphere, but it is quite loud, so skip this tour if you’re looking for a quiet excursion.

Sun: The upper deck is nice and sunny if you want to work on your tan, but the lower deck is mostly covered if you prefer shade.

Snorkeling: If your main goal is snorkeling, you may be disappointed with this tour. The snorkeling component is only a small portion of the day, as conditions are usually not the best in Manuel Antonio. Caño Island is a wonderful spot for snorkeling, however, and isn’t too far from Manuel Antonio. Tours to Caño leave out of Drake Bay and Uvita (about 1 hr. south of Manuel Antonio). If you want help booking a tour to Caño, email us at bookings(at)twoweeksincostarica(dot)com.

Kids: The crew took safety very seriously and had more than enough life jackets for everyone. They had some smaller ones for kids, but nothing small enough for a toddler or baby. If you’re traveling with a little one, we recommend bringing your own lifejacket like we did. We bought this one that goes up to 30 pounds for our one-year old. Also, if you have a toddler, there is a lot of room for them to run around in the middle of the lower deck. This area is surrounded by benches so it is fairly easy to keep track of them too!

What to Bring: The boat has cubbies that close for your valuables, but we recommend bringing only what you need, just to be safe. You’ll probably want your bathing suit, sun hat, sunglasses, towel, sunscreen, extra clothes, camera, and cash for tips or to buy photos.

Photographer: The boat has a professional photographer on board. CDs with your personal pictures and some stock ones are available at the end of the tour for $30 (cash only).

View of Manuel Antonio from Ocean
View of the main beach in Manuel Antonio, Playa Espadilla

Information on Booking a Catamaran Cruise on the Ocean King

If you would like to book this tour, we’ll make all the arrangements for you. Booking through us costs the same and helps support our website!

To book this tour, contact us through our Tour Booking Service Page or email us at bookings(at)twoweeksincostarica(dot)com and let us know your preferred date and time along with the number of people in your party (adults and children) and your exact pick up location, if you’d like the included transportation.

Price

$87 Adults | $55 Children 6-10 | Children 5 and under are free.

Tour Times

9:00 a.m. or 2:00 p.m. Depending on time of year and number of signups, only one tour time may be offered. Duration: Approximately 4 hrs.

Included in the Tour

Simple snacks and fresh fruit. Lunch (a.m. tour) or dinner (p.m. tour). 8 alcoholic drinks and unlimited non-alcoholic. Equipment for snorkeling. Round trip transportation for hotels in Manuel Antonio/Quepos.

Have you taken a catamaran cruise in Manuel Antonio? What did you think?

Looking for more info about Manuel Antonio? Check out these posts:

Manuel Antonio Trip Planning – If you’re still early in your vacation planning, use this post to get a feel for Manuel Antonio. Covers things to do and places to stay.

Manuel Antonio Restaurant Guide Manuel Antonio has a long list of dining options. Check out our picks from years of living nearby.

7 Off-the-Beaten-Path Things to do Near Manuel Antonio Looking to get a taste of authentic Costa Rica on your trip? Check out these seven fun activities.

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25 Comments

  1. I did this with my 24-year-old daughter and we had a blast. I was worried about the 8-drink limit (4 beers and 4 mixed drinks), but I ended up stopping at 5 or 6.

    Our only complaint was that they made us wear life preserver belts for snorkeling so we couldn’t leave the surface to explore underwater. We had to find rock outcroppings that were just below the water to watch the fish.

    1. Agreed Wayne. We weren’t big fans of the life jackets either, but they did come in handy on the way back to the boat. The current was very strong when we went out and made for a tiring swim back, especially after all the snorkeling. Thanks for sharing your experience. Glad you and your daughter had a good time!

  2. We just did this in December, which can still be rainy. It was one of the highlights of our trip. Beautiful views of the coast and sunset. Dolphins jumping beside us! Birds and stingrays too.
    Healthy, fresh food with great cocktails.
    The staff was fun, attentive and responsible.
    Highly recommended.

  3. Hi and thanks for your previous info on another thread! About the catamaran cruise from Manuel Antonio, does it ever get cancelled due to rough seas? What is the ocean usually like at end of February? Two of us get motion sickness but will be taking a small dose of Gravol before heading out.
    If booking through you, is it just a reservation and we pay at the marina? I am just thinking about the weather before we confirm.
    BTW, we ended up booking our 2 nights in Jaco. Places were getting booked up quickly online.
    Thanks again,
    May

    1. Hi May, Sorry for the delay. It takes us a few days to respond to comments because we receive a lot of them. The catamaran cruise can get cancelled due to rough seas, but the ocean is very calm in February so I wouldn’t worry at all about that. This is dry season when we don’t really see any rain or storms. Rough seas are more of a concern in the rainy season.

      The boat is really big so you will probably be fine with sea sickness, but it’s not a bad idea to take something for motion sickness just in case.

      When you book through us, we take care of everything for you. Once we confirm availability for your preferred date, we send you an invoice through PayPal and then reserve your spot with the tour operator. We also send you a confirmation with all the details for the tour like when to arrive, transportation, etc. Let me know if you would like us to book it and I can send you an email. That’s great that you found something in Jaco too!

  4. Do you suggest this tour for people who can’t swim? How much of the tour is devoted to the snorkeling/swimming? Thanks!

    1. Hi Zainab, Only about 1 hour of the tour is dedicated to snorkeling/swimming so it is still a great tour for non-swimmers. While people are in the water, you will have more of the boat to yourself (more space on the upper deck, on the trampolines for sunning, etc.). They also start lunch towards the end of the swimming portion.

  5. Great info on this site! We are going on a catamaran cruise and we’ve never snorkeled before (so, even though it isn’t the best snorkeling there is in Manuel Antonio, we’d still like to try it out!). The equipment is included in the cruise… because it’s unfamiliar, I just had a question about hygiene and how that’s handled with equipment that you don’t own yourself. Are there parts (mouthpiece) that are disposable? (Hope that’s not a silly question!)

    Also, thanks for mentioning about the cubbies on board as I’ve been wondering about storing my camera while swimming. Do they usually lock? Or is this usually a non-issue in your experience?

    1. Hi Coco, We’re not totally sure but think that they soak the equipment in some kind of disinfecting solution. When they hand them out to everyone, they’re stored in a big barrel with water and what we would assume would be some type of cleaner. Not sure, though, you could ask. I wouldn’t worry too much about having things stolen. We’ve never heard of any problems and usually people don’t hang out near the cubbies because they’d rather be out on the deck. It’s still a good idea to sort of keep an eye on your stuff, but we did store our camera in there when we took the tour.

    2. We have a large group of 22 people with teens and adults. Can they accommodate a group that size in March? What is the name of this charter, so I can contact them?

      1. Hi Heather, We’d be happy to check availability with the catamaran for your group of 22 if you would like. We may also be able to get you a small discount as well. Feel free to reply to this thread with some dates that would work for you, and we can contact the company, and then get back to you by email. You can also contact us through our Tour Booking Service page if you would prefer. Thanks!

        1. We are interested in a tour on Wednesday 3/25 for the afternoon tour. Do you have availability for 22 travelers? Please send total and do you pick up from our hotel? Please confirm availability, as we are also looking into additional options. Is there an additional fee for park entry with this tour?

  6. My husband and son will be in CR March 3-10, After spending 2 nights in Monteverde we were planning on taking the ferry over to the Nicoyan Peninsula ( is this the best option or should we drive) Wwill be spending 2 days at a hotel near the Paquera ferry on the the Nicoyan Peninsula. Other than the bioluminescence kayak tour we have nothing else planned. We are renting a 4 x 4 and have our own snorkel equipment. We really would love to do some snorkeling ( but don’t want to take a boat out to Tortuga Island because we heard it is very crowded), would love to see some waterfalls with swimming below. Any recommendations…. sounds like we might want to head to Montezuma Beach, but there is not much mention of Tambor beach which is much closer(not sure why)? Or should we just do Curu? Thank you for the detailed page regarding taking the ferry. Would like to take the 5pm ferry from Paquera back to Puntarenas. We will be staying in Bejuco. Wondering if the roads from the ferry to Bejuco are okay to be driven after sunset. After reading many posts re: roads, signs, conditions traveling is questionable especially after dark. We will be using the WAZE app to get to our destinations. So guess I’m mostly concerned about the road conditions. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

  7. Hello. We are interested in booking an sunset cruise with you for Jan 15 or 16th. Do you have availability? There will be 3 of us.

  8. You mentioned that you did the Ocean King because it’s larger and you had a child with you. Is there reputable, smaller catamaran that you have used?

  9. Can you comment on the round trip hotel transportation they provide? If the allotted time is from 1:30 to 5:30pm, does that mean you will be dropped off by 5:30, or the tour will run til then, and transportation will require additional time? Trying to make the most of our time in Manuel Antonio lol

    1. Hi Naureen, The boat leaves at 2 pm so pickup times start a little after 1:00. The boat gets back to the marina after at 5:30 so you’d get to Manuel Antonio around 6 pm. Hope that helps!

  10. We live in CR so we tend to avoid touristy stuff but friends came to visit for a week. We decided to play tourist with them in Manuel Antonio and decided our big splurge would be the catamaran booze cruise. EXCELLENT choice! We had so much fun. We were also concerned about the 8 drink limit/weak drinks and brought our own bottle of rum. We never did hit our 8 drinks but we were glad we had our bottle as the first couple of drinks were weak (so we added a shot to them). But once our waiter got to know us he started bringing us doubles. If you like your drinks strong just be honest from the get-go and you probably won’t need your own bottle. Highlights were…

    The people watching. Very entertaining. We sat on the upper deck at the front so we had views of the party action in all directions.

    Dolphins. We saw lots.

    Swimming/Jumping from the top deck.

  11. We are looking for a big boat, like the one in your blog. But to go out to Cano island. So far the ones we have found, were small boats. Please advise.

    1. Hi Jackie, Cano Island is a national park so I think the government regulates which boats can go to it. There are no large boats that we know of. You could probably get a bigger boat out of Manuel Antonio to take you to that general area, but I’m not sure they would be able to go to the actual island and waters surrounding it that are protected.

  12. We are planning a trip to Manuel Antonio Dec 27th – Dec 31st and would love to include this in our itinerary! We will have 6 children ages 10yrs – 2yrs; do you think this would be appropriate for them? Any survival suggestions?? 😉 We’d be happy to book through you; your website has been so helpful in planning our vacation!

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