How to get from Monteverde to La Fortuna (and vice versa)

Jeep boat jeep to La Fortuna from Monteverde

If you’ve been following the Costa Rica trip thus far, you’ll know that I was adamantly refusing to lose precious time traveling via shuttles or shared transport right up until this ONE leg of the trip: Monteverde to La Fortuna.

Let me give you the lowdown - both of these places are separated by the absolutely stunning Lake Arenal. However the cliffs notes version is that you either have to drive all the way around lake Arenal (which is a HUGE lake) on roads that are FAR from being well paved or you can do the more popular and frankly, more scenic option, better known as a jeep boat jeep transfer. What jeep boat jeep really means is shuttle, boat, shuttle. Now be warned, that this may not be the most organized transportation option of them all. At one point upon arriving to the boat, I felt like I was someone being smuggled across a border.

Still stunning views (despite the rain)

Of course, I made friends with several other gals who were doing their hostel thing and so we all got through it together, but it is a bit of mayhem. The boat is supposed to be the most stunning views (and I imagine it is) but full transparency on the day I went, it started pouring rain and while beautiful, it got quite cold and was super cloudy. I shared some video of our boat take off here:

Once we arrived at the La Fortuna side of the lake, it’s basically a slew of drivers and they’ll ask where you’re staying. I really lucked out with this part because I just so happened to be the first one dropped off at my stunning hotel. Though it felt a bit disorganized, even in the rain, I would definitely recommend jeep boat jeep as the most efficient way to transfer between Monteverde and La Fortuna, or vice versa.

Hope this helps and don’t hesitate to shoot me a message if you have any questions!