Parking
This starts at an interior junction, not a road-side trailhead. Enter through the park's visitor entrance and follow the western trail signs to the Playa Gemelas–Puerto Escondido junction; no Gemelas-specific parking area was verified.
Overview
About Playa Gemelas Trail
Why go
- An easy add-on to two distinctive coves
- The footbridge and beach give a short walk a clear payoff
Heads up
- Very short as a standalone hike
- Rocky shore and surf limit relaxed beach wandering
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Manuel Antonio map
Full mapElevation8–34 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
1 active Manuel Antonio alert
- ClosurePunta Catedral Trail Temporarily ClosedPunta Catedral trail is temporarily closed; do not plan to use it. Check the current Manuel Antonio National Park status before traveling.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Manuel Antonio Tour Guide
Your drive to Playa Gemelas Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Manuel Antonio National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this area
Little Pools in the Canopy0:00 / 0:30
“On a forest walk, look up for leafy clumps sitting on branches. Some are bromeliads, plants that use the tree for support without taking food from it. In tank bromeliads, the leaves form a funnel that catches rain.”
Plays on the road 1.1 km from the trailhead in the Parkwolf Manuel Antonio Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Playa Manuel Antonio and Punta Catedral
- Playa Espadilla Norte
- The Iguana’s Sunny Perch
- The Garden Beneath the Ant Trail
- 18 audio storiesacross Manuel Antonio’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Howler Monkey, White-faced Capuchin Monkey, Three-toed Sloth, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 10 trails, 13 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Playa Gemelas Trail
A short walk to the covesPlaya Gemelas Trail is an easy out-and-back from an interior junction to two small Pacific…
Playa Gemelas Trail is an easy out-and-back from an interior junction to two small Pacific coves. The mapped path is about 0.45 mile round trip (0.23 mile each way); allow about 30 minutes if you stop at the beach. It's a good add-on if you're exploring the western trails, but it's too short to make a full hike by itself.
Concrete, steps, and a rocky shoreMost of the approach is concrete, with a small footbridge and a short flight of 14 steps near…
Most of the approach is concrete, with a small footbridge and a short flight of 14 steps near the beach. The mapped trail ends at the beach-side point; it doesn't include scrambling over rocks between the coves or continuing onto Puerto Escondido. Gemelas means “twins”: a rocky formation divides the two small coves. At low tide, the shore opens a view toward Punta Catedral and may let you walk between the coves. That beach crossing is a separate scramble, and the shore is rocky underfoot rather than an easy stretch of sand.
Make it a beach stopStart at the Playa Gemelas–Puerto Escondido junction inside the park; this isn't a road-side…
Start at the Playa Gemelas–Puerto Escondido junction inside the park; this isn't a road-side trailhead. Pets aren't allowed in the park; guide dogs are the exception. Monkeys and iguanas are sometimes seen near the beach trees.
Take care near the waterThe rocky shore can have strong surf, and visitors have reported rip currents.
The rocky shore can have strong surf, and visitors have reported rip currents. Don't assume the water is safe for swimming. The tide-dependent walk between coves is outside the mapped trail.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Manuel Antonio
411 sightingsHowler MonkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
1,193 sightingsWhite-faced Capuchin MonkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
803 sightingsThree-toed SlothMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
271 sightingsTwo-toed SlothMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
110 sightingsRed-eyed Tree FrogMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
170 sightingsCoatiMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Manuel Antonio. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
