Irazú Volcano National Park

It’s hard to say what I like the most about Costa Rica. There are so many fun things one can do: watching sea turtles lay their eggs on the beach, humpback whales dance in the sea or to swim with dolphins. If you don’t have the time or come at the right period (especially if you want to see the turtles), you can always visit one of the many Costa Rican volcanos. Some of them are very close to the capital and easy to access. Irazú Volcano is one of them. It’s located above Cartago city (an hour drive from San Jose) and easy to access. I recommend avoiding Sunday as that’s the day for Costa Ricans to visit national parks.

With a latitude of 3,432 meters, the Irazú Volcano is the highest active volcano in Costa Rica. Its last eruption dates back to 1964. It gets quite cold and windy on the top of the summit but as soon as you see a green lake called “Diego de la Haya” located in one of its craters, you forget about temperature.

If you’ve been following me for a while, you’d know that it’s the third time I visited Costa Rica. I am talking about me because Alex (who is half-Costa Rican and half-Swiss) has been here countless of times. During our previous stays, we saw two other active volcanos – Arenal Volcano (1, 670 m) and Poás Volcano (2,708 m), and there are other volcanos that we want to see (Rincón de la Vieja, Turrialba, and Orosí).

When you travel through the country, you’ll understand why it’s being called “the Switzerland of Central America”. The mountainous relief contrasts beautifully green lowlands and I am not surprised anymore that Alex’s friends spend their holiday in Costa Rica. Putting aside that Costa Ricans don’t have much leave days when you find everything in your country, why would you go abroad?