Barva Volcano & Braulio Carrillo National Park is a primary forest that occupies about 445 sq. km (170 sq. mi) of land near San Jose. Braulio Carrillo about 20-km (12 mi) from San Jose with a highway that makes it easily accessible. It may only be minutes from the highway, but it is peaceful and beautiful. Braulio Carrillo has an extraordinary biodiversity due to its steep altitude and lush lowlands. It contains the massive Barva Volcano.

Braulio Carrillo contains five forest habitats where orchid and fern varieties number in the hundreds. Many, if not most, of Costa Rica's bird species can be found in this park. and the current count is some 500 species. There are some noteworthy animals in Braulio Carrillo, including jaguars, pumas, ocelots, howler and white-faced monkeys, tapirs, and peccaries.

It's possible to climb to the Barva Volcano in four or five hours, as the trail is well-maintained. From the western side of the park, there are signed tracks to climb to the summit of Barva. The terrain is muddy and travelers should be prepared for rain.

From the Braulio Carrillo ranger station there are several hiking options on shorter trails and one of these include a one-hour hike to Laguna Barva (2,900m/9,500 ft). Hikers are rewarded with a scenic view of this beautiful green lake.

The Rainforest Aerial Tram gives travelers a bird's-eye view of Braulio Carrillo and Barva Volcano. It's a 90-minute ride that is 1.3-km (0.8 mi) long and about 35m (100 ft) above the forest floor. This tour of the forest's treetops lets visitors get up close to the steamy air and see elusive wildlife.

Nearby the Aerial Tram is a Tropical Frog Farm (6-km/4-mi past the tram) that displays more than 2,000 colorful poison-dart and red-eyed leaf frogs. The red-eyed frog has become an omnipresent symbol of Costa Rica.

The creation of Braulio Carrillo National Park was a result of a need to build a highway to Costa Rica's deep sea port of Puerto Limon. Built in 1987, the highway had only feasible route to Puerto Limon, which was via a route that passed between Barva Volcano and Irazu Volcano — an area which was virgin rainforest. The Costa Rican government decided to bisect this area with a highway but would conserve 48,000-hectares (118,500 acres) around the highway in a national park. This national park protects the watershed for San Jose.