Costa Rica runs on roughly 98–99% renewable electricity, protects more than a quarter of its land in national parks and reserves, and was the first tropical country to reverse deforestation. For a climate-conscious traveler, this is the rare destination where the conservation story is structural, not marketing.
Why Costa Rica is on every climate-conscious traveler's list
In 1997, Costa Rica launched its Payments for Ecosystem Services (PSA) program — paying landowners to keep forest standing for its carbon, water, and biodiversity value. The result: forest cover rebounded from a low of about 21% in 1987 to over 50% today. The country runs its grid almost entirely on hydro, geothermal, wind, and solar, and has committed to a fully decarbonized economy by 2050 under its National Decarbonization Plan, which targets electrified public transport and zero-emission freight. A 3.5% tourism tax helps fund the national park system (SINAC), so park entry fees and visitor spending directly underwrite conservation. Like Bhutan and New Zealand, Costa Rica treats its natural capital as core infrastructure rather than scenery.
Where to base yourself
Monteverde and the cloud forest
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve and neighboring Santa Elena are the country's eco-tourism flagship. Look for lodges certified under the national Certificado para la Sostenibilidad Turística (CST) — a five-leaf rating scheme that audits energy, water, waste, and community impact. Many lodges here run on solar and source food from on-site organic gardens.
Osa Peninsula and Corcovado
National Geographic famously called Osa "the most biologically intense place on Earth." Small jungle lodges around Drake Bay and Puerto Jiménez operate off-grid on solar with rainwater catchment. This is the place to spend more nights and travel less — the lower-impact way to experience primary rainforest.
Nicoya Peninsula (Nosara, Santa Teresa)
A Blue Zone with a strong surf-and-yoga culture and a growing number of bamboo-built, solar-powered boutique stays. Nosara's community has protected its beachfront forest corridor for decades, keeping development low-rise.
Arenal and Tilarán
Near the volcano, geothermal-heated springs and reforestation-focused haciendas dominate. Several lodges here are carbon-neutral certified and run reforestation tours where guests plant native species on previously cleared cattle land.
What you can do that meaningfully lowers your trip footprint
- Fly once, stay longer. The flight is the dominant share of your trip emissions. Two weeks across two regions beats two short trips.
- Use the public shuttle network or domestic buses instead of internal flights on Sansa. The country is small — San José to La Fortuna is around three hours by road.
- Book CST-certified accommodations. Five-leaf properties have independently verified sustainability practices. The list is public on the ICT (tourism board) website.
- Choose operators in the Bandera Azul Ecológica program for beach, river, and tour activities — it's a national environmental quality flag, not a paid badge.
- Hire ICT-licensed naturalist guides. They're trained, pay into the conservation system, and dramatically improve what you actually see in the forest.
- Eat casados at sodas. Small family-run kitchens serving rice, beans, plantains, and local produce have a fraction of the footprint of imported-protein resort menus.
- Skip captive wildlife attractions. Costa Rica banned sport hunting in 2012 and has strict wildlife laws — stick to reserves and reputable rescue centers like Toucan Rescue Ranch.
If Costa Rica appeals, the Galápagos offer a complementary marine-conservation story in the same region, while Kenya's community conservancy model shows a different approach to the same idea — paying local stewards to protect ecosystems.
Book a carbon-offset stay in Costa Rica on IMPT
Every hotel booking on IMPT automatically includes a verified carbon offset for your stay — no add-on, no upsell — and you earn IMPT token rewards on every reservation. Combine that with a CST-certified lodge in Monteverde, Osa, or Nosara, and your trip is doing real work for the forest economy that makes Costa Rica what it is.