La Fortuna weather in November
November in La Fortuna: hot, soaked, with clean air — a gamble, with 27 rainy days.
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
#10 of 12 months in La Fortuna · #1205 of 1413 destinations to visit in November · comfort 56/100 (tier D)
- Days
- 26°C
- Nights
- 21°C
- Wet days
- 27
- Sun
- 7.8 h
- Humidity
- 94%
- Daylight
- 12 h

Traveller notes on La Fortuna in November
Notes from nearby Nosara (123 km away)
La Fortuna doesn't have its own notes for November yet — these are about Nosara, close enough to share the season.
November here is the rainy season's last real month, and regulars describe a specific daily shape to it: clear days with thunderstorms arriving reliably around six each evening, rather than rain spread evenly through the day. Our row carries the season's tail at 280.2mm across 25.5 days, still substantial, at 87.6 percent humidity - air reads 29.1C but as a real 35C, over 24.6C nights. The board's honest caveat is that Costa Rica has a dozen microclimates, so rain elsewhere on a given day says little about here. A four-wheel-drive is worth having for the last of the season's soft roads. The foliage is at its greenest now, before the dry months bleach it back. The sea is 28.7C. The record: 9.1 hours of sun, a 10.8 kph wind and one of this project's cleanest air readings at AQI 22.
Other months in La Fortuna
La Fortuna-forum threads on a January visit describe this as genuinely the start of the more favorable season, posters naming it one of the better months for a real shot at seeing the Arenal volcano's peak. Regulars call the summit genuinely elusive regardless of month, several posters naming roughly sixty clear-view days a year as the honest baseline. Posters call fast-drying clothes and rain gear worth packing no matter the month, several regulars naming this standard advice given how much cloud cover varies day to day. Regulars call January still genuinely warm and humid, several threads naming this a real contrast to how the season's reputation sounds. Posters recommend real flexible plans around volcano viewing, several regulars calling this standard given how unpredictable cloud cover remains even in January. The record: 25.7C days, 19.7C nights, 101.7mm across over 15 days and 89 percent humidity.
La Fortuna-forum threads on April weather describe conditions as genuinely intense in town, posters citing readings near ninety-five Fahrenheit on the hottest days. Regulars call Arenal National Park itself noticeably cooler, highs there typically running in the upper seventies to low eighties even when La Fortuna proper feels considerably warmer. Posters recommend the La Fortuna Waterfall, the 1968 Park, El Silencio Trail and the Mistico Hanging Bridges as strong April picks, several regulars naming all four in the same itinerary. Regulars recommend a Rio Celeste day tour as a real addition for anyone with an extra day, the drive there considered worthwhile on its own. Posters recommend Don Rufino for a nicer dinner and Soda La Parada for a casual, local option, both named repeatedly across April trip reports. The record: 28.9C days feeling like 33C, 21C nights, an extraordinarily high 58.8mm across over 11 days and 78 percent humidity.
La Fortuna-forum threads on mid-July weather describe a familiar daily pattern, posters calling on-and-off showers several times a day standard alongside genuinely hot, humid conditions at midday. Regulars call a heavy afternoon downpour the most likely single event, though some days stay largely sunny throughout with no real disruption. Posters recommend a real umbrella and rain jacket regardless of forecast, conditions here capable of shifting within the hour. Regulars call nearly every tour still running in this weather, zip-lining the main exception when conditions turn genuinely severe. Posters describe July as still worth visiting despite the wetter pattern, the volcano and hot springs both rewarding regardless of a passing shower. Regulars recommend flexible daily plans given how unpredictable the exact timing runs this time of year. The record: 26.6C days feeling like 31C, 21.4C nights, an extraordinarily high 251.2mm across nearly 28 days and 93 percent humidity.
La Fortuna-forum threads on September weather confirm this sits within the wettest stretch of the local year, mornings generally the more reliable window before cloud and a real system build through the afternoon. Posters call the Arenal volcano itself genuinely hit-or-miss for visibility, cloud cover and showers frequently obscuring the peak for stretches at a time. Regulars describe humidity as staying close to saturated throughout, laundry famously refusing to fully air out and a warm afternoon feeling considerably heavier than the same reading in a drier month. Posters recommend scheduling hikes for the morning, afternoon plans genuinely riskier. Regulars call the hot springs and waterfalls worth the trip regardless of volcano visibility, both largely unaffected by a passing shower. Posters recommend real rain gear. The record: 27.5C days feeling like a punishing 33C, 21.4C nights, an extraordinarily high 270mm across nearly 29 days and 92 percent humidity.
Add your own note from La Fortuna's card on the map.
La Fortuna climate normals — November
Monthly averages from ERA5 reanalysis. AQI is the mean US Air Quality Index for the month.
Crowds in La Fortuna in November
How busy the place itself is — school and mass holidays, the months an editor tagged, and how sought-after the weather makes them. Never part of the comfort score.
Quietone of its worst months for weather(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Best months for La Fortuna's weather
Ranked by this destination's own climate comfort score across the year — a different thing from how busy it gets (see Crowds above).
Toughest weatherLa Fortuna's weather peaks February–April.
Best weatherFair weatherToughest weather
What's on in La Fortuna in November
Recurring seasonal events, natural spectacles, closures and holidays — curated and sourced.
- Season
Green season
1 May – 30 Nov · usuallyMonsoonRain most afternoons, rates down, waterfalls at full noise. Arenal makes its own cloud, so the volcano is a lottery in these months whatever the forecast for the town says.
- Season
Rivers at full flow
1 Sep – 15 Nov · usuallyHigh waterRiskThe Balsa and the Toro run hardest in September and October and the rafting grades go up with them. After a heavy night the Rio Celeste loses its blue for a day or two, which catches people out.
- Season
Wet season
MonsoonRisk27 rainy days and about 300 mm in the month — the real kind of rainy season, not afternoon showers.
from the climate normals
Nearby, and something's on
Within 300 km of La Fortuna — a day trip or a short hop — with something on this month. Never part of the comfort score.
Where is La Fortuna?
La Fortuna in November — FAQ
- Is November a good time to visit La Fortuna?
- November in La Fortuna: hot, soaked, with clean air — a gamble, with 27 rainy days. It ranks #10 of 12 months for La Fortuna on SeasonMap's comfort score (56/100).
- What is the weather like in La Fortuna in November?
- In November, La Fortuna averages a daily high of 25.9°C and a low of 21°C, with about 299.5 mm of rain over roughly 26.5 rainy days.
- What is the air quality in La Fortuna in November?
- La Fortuna has a mean US Air Quality Index of about 17 in November.
Within 300 km: Jacó's Humpback whales around 15 Jul – 15 Nov, and Nosara's Arribada at Ostional around 1 Jul – 31 Dec.