Duration: 2 Days · Price: From $400 USD per group of 1–4 · Difficulty: Easy
About this tour
The Gulf of Nicoya holds one of Costa Rica's most quietly magical phenomena: on dark nights, the water lights up. Disturb it with a hand, a paddle, or your own body and it answers in cold blue-green sparks — bioluminescent plankton flaring at the slightest movement. This two-day trip is built around that moment, and around the boat that gets you there: Catamarán La Raya, a 63-foot catamaran that sails from its own private dock in Puntarenas across the gulf.
Day 1: private transport collects you from your San José hotel and drives you to Puntarenas (roughly 1.5–2 hours), where you board La Raya — two splash pools, shaded and open-sun decks, a full bar, and a sound system — and cruise out across the Gulf of Nicoya toward Punta Eternia. Tucked into Punta Cuchillo and reachable only by sea, Punta Eternia is a private beach used exclusively by La Raya: calm crystalline water, kayaks and paddleboards and snorkel gear, jungle trails through tropical dry forest dotted with large-format sculptures, and a natural amphitheater facing the water. Lunch is traditional Nicoyan cooking done over a wood-fired fogón, sourced together with the local community. As the sun drops behind the gulf, the day aboard the catamaran winds down — and once it is fully dark, the bioluminescence tour begins aboard a smaller boat that slips quietly into the calm, shallow water where the plankton glow brightest, every paddle stroke and trailing hand lighting up in cold blue-green sparks.
You spend the night on land at the Amazilia Bacardí bungalows on Playa Órganos, set inside a mangrove forest about 200 meters from the sea — quiet, green, and a world away from the city you left that morning. Day 2 is unhurried: breakfast among the mangroves, time on the beach, and a relaxed return sail to the Puntarenas dock before your private transport brings you back to San José. Bioluminescence is a natural phenomenon and is strongest on dark, moonless nights — this is a wild encounter, not a light show on a timer, which is exactly what makes seeing it feel like a secret.
What's included
- Private round-trip transport from your San José hotel
- Catamarán La Raya cruise across the Gulf of Nicoya from the private Puntarenas dock
- Day at Punta Eternia private beach with kayaks, paddleboards and snorkel gear
- Traditional Nicoyan meals cooked on a wood-fired fogón
- Night bioluminescence tour aboard a smaller boat
- 1 night at the Amazilia Bacardí mangrove bungalows (Playa Órganos) with breakfast
- Bilingual crew
Not included
- Premium or additional alcoholic drinks
- Gratuities
- Personal travel insurance
- Items of a personal nature
Good to know
- Bioluminescence is a natural phenomenon — brightest on dark, moonless nights and never guaranteed
- The night bioluminescence outing is done in a smaller boat (not the catamaran) to reach the calm, shallow water where the plankton glow
- Punta Eternia is accessible only by sea and used exclusively by Catamarán La Raya
- The catamaran (63 ft, up to 115 passengers) has 2 bathrooms and 2 changing rooms aboard
- Bring a swimsuit, towel, reef-safe sunscreen and a light layer for the night sail
- Drive from San José to the Puntarenas dock is approximately 1.5–2 hours each way
- Suitable for most fitness levels and families — minimum age confirmed at booking
- Free cancellation 48 hours prior