Costa Rica keeps turning up at the top of lists aimed at older travelers and retirees. The latest comes from Travel + Leisure, which interviewed more than half a dozen travel, retirement and wellness experts about the best wellness destination for senior travelers and found them all pointing to the same country.
The magazine’s August feature starts from a shift in how older travelers think about wellness. Fewer are chasing spa days or demanding fitness regimens. More want to lower their stress, spend time in nature and with local communities, and stay active without feeling rushed.
Leigh Barnes, president of Intrepid Travel, North America, said Costa Rica gets people “to slow down without feeling like they’re missing out.” He told the magazine that travelers over 50 can stay active every day, walking in rainforests, watching wildlife and soaking in hot springs, while setting their own pace.
Nature is the core of the argument. The magazine notes that Costa Rica holds about 6% of the world’s biodiversity across 12 distinct climatic zones, from jungle and cloud forest to beaches on both the Caribbean and the Pacific. Other experts in the piece made similar points. Simon Jones, CEO of tour company Trafalgar, highlighted natural hot springs, flat and well-kept walking trails, and wildlife outings such as boat tours and guided rainforest walks that require no strenuous hiking.
Arnaud Dieuteguard, spa and wellness director at Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo in Guanacaste, said being surrounded by nature takes away some of the pressure people associate with wellness. Exercise becomes a walk, a swim or a surf lesson rather than another obligation.
Food and culture also feature. The magazine points to tours that include a home-cooked meal with a local family in Santa Cruz, visits to a family-run heart of palm plantation, coffee estates and chocolate experiences. It also mentions the Camino de Costa Rica, a coast-to-coast trek of about 280 kilometers (174 miles), as a draw for more adventurous hikers.
The recognition builds on earlier nods from the same publication. In July, Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards placed two Costa Rican properties among the top five international wellness retreats of 2026: Surf Synergy in Jacó and Tabacón Thermal Resort & Spa in La Fortuna.
Retirement rankings have been telling a similar story. Costa Rica placed third among 24 countries in the 2026 Annual Global Retirement Index, behind Greece and Panama and ahead of Portugal, Mexico, Italy, France and Spain. The index weighs cost of living, access to health care, climate, visa options, housing, infrastructure and overall quality of life.
Forbes also included Costa Rica among its 24 best places to retire abroad in 2026, chosen from 96 destinations on five continents. The magazine pointed prospective retirees toward San José, the Central Valley, Atenas and Santa Cruz. It highlighted a cost of living well below the U.S. average and good-quality medical care in the larger cities.
Forbes noted that foreigners who obtain residency can join the public health system run by the Costa Rican Social Security Fund (CCSS). It estimated the cost for retired residents at around $150 a month, though actual contributions are set according to declared income and vary from person to person.
Costa Rica has also collected tourism awards this year. According to the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), these include Best Nature Destination at the Forbes Travel Awards 2026. The run of accolades arrives at a mixed moment for the tourism sector. ICT figures show that arrivals of U.S. travelers by air fell 13.9% in August compared with the same month last year.
The institute links the slowdown largely to the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines and to flight cuts by JetBlue, Volaris and Avianca, while arrivals from Canada and Europe have grown over the same period. For Costa Rica, whose economy leans heavily on visitors, and on the people who choose to settle here, rankings like these carry weight beyond bragging rights. Whether they translate into more arrivals in the coming high season remains to be seen.
