Volcano Tours in Costa Rica
Six active volcanoes, 112 experiences, and the fact nobody leads with: nothing here has produced watchable lava since October 2010.
Six volcanoes in Costa Rica are classified as active, and not one of them has produced lava a visitor could stand and watch since Arenal stopped in October 2010. That single fact explains the shape of the whole market. What the country sells is not eruption viewing. It is a set of national parks where the volcano heats the rivers, feeds the soil and holds up the forest, and where the day you book turns out to be a rainforest day with a crater somewhere inside it. Arriving with the other expectation is the most common way to be disappointed here, and it is entirely avoidable.
The three areas do not substitute for each other. Arenal is a small town with a mountain behind it and sixty-four things to do in the rain. The Central Valley volcanoes are craters you drive up to and look into, half a day from San José, usually with a coffee estate attached. Guanacaste is dry forest, boiling mud and the one volcano currently misbehaving. They sit three to five hours apart by road, which is more than most two-week itineraries allow for. What follows is what each costs, how far apart they really are, and how to choose between them.
Choose a destination in Costa Rica
-
Arenal Volcano
Arenal Volcano tours from La Fortuna: hanging bridges, hot springs, waterfalls, rafting and rainforest hikes. The cone has been dormant since October 2010.
64 experiences in 6 destinations -
Poás & Irazú Volcanoes
Volcano tours from San José: the Poás acid crater lake, Irazú's drive-up summit at 3,432 m and Turrialba. Which to choose, and why the morning cloud decides it.
28 experiences in 3 destinations -
Rincón de la Vieja
Guanacaste's volcanoes: Rincón de la Vieja's boiling mud, the Río Celeste inside Tenorio, and the Miravalles geothermal field.
20 experiences in 3 destinations
Volcano Travel Experiences in Costa Rica
Original Arenal ATV: La Naciente Mud Trails, La Guaria Village and a Volcanic Mud Mask
Two hours with the timings set out stop by stop, a village stop with its pulpería, and volcanic mud dug straight from the river if the group wants it.
Oropéndola Bridges and the Río Negro Hot Springs, Flat Trails
Both stops are a flat ten minutes from their car parks, with hanging bridges over the waterfall and the hot pools at different temperatures at Río Negro.
Outback ATV: 90% Private Trails, River Crossings and Maleku Land
Nine tenths of the route runs on land Outback owns and maintains, with river crossings, wetlands and a stop on Maleku ground. A driving licence is required.
Peñas Blancas by Kayak: Crocodiles, Basilisks and Tita Yolanda's Kitchen
A kayak rather than a raft on a river treated as an animal sanctuary, ending at Tita Yolanda's house for coffee, chocolate and sugar cane in her garden.
Peñas Blancas Safari Float: Wildlife Watched from the Water
A slow float on the Peñas Blancas with a guide reading both levels of the river: the arboreal species in the trees and the aquatic ones in the water.
Poás: a Crater a Mile Across, 40 Eruptions since 1828, and the Fraijanes Coffee Farm
The crater measures over a mile across and 1,050 feet deep, and the coffee stop at Fraijanes walks the nursery, wet mill, drying patio and roaster.
Poás and Botos Lagoon with a Four-Fork Buffet at La Paz Gardens
The lunch here carries a four-fork rating from the Costa Rican Tourism Council, and the walk at Poás continues past the crater to the Botos Lagoon.
Poás and the Botos Lagoon, Familia Vargas Coffee, and the Five La Paz Falls
The walk here goes past the crater to the Botos Lagoon, and the day ends with 100 rescued species, a 35-option buffet and the five La Paz falls.
Poás at 2,708 m, the Starbucks Farm at Hacienda Alsacia and Sarapiquí
Two coffee farms on one day: the Hacienda Alsacia estate and Mi Cafecito in Sarapiquí, plus the El Congo waterfall and the crater at 2,708 m.
Poás Before Lunch: a Mile-Wide Crater and Gallo Pinto First
A 6:30 start, back at your hotel by 1 pm, with gallo pinto, yucca chorriada and gallos for breakfast before the mile-wide crater at the top of the volcano.
Poás in Eruption Period, Doka's Organic Estate, and the Viewpoint Behind the Falls
A tasting of chocolate, liquor and coffee at Doka, a crater in its eruption period, and a viewpoint that puts you behind the water curtain at La Paz.
Poás, La Paz and a Coffee Plantation in Eight Hours
Eight hours with pick-ups in San José, Heredia and Alajuela, and a coffee plantation at the end. The order of the stops can change with availability.
Poás Volcano Half Day: the Sulphur Crater, Past the Strawberry and Fern Farms
Half a day up through the coffee, fern, flower and strawberry farms to the main crater of Poás, where the sulphur fumaroles are still at work.
Private 4-in-1: Sloth Reserve, Rio Celeste Swimming Hole and Llanos del Cortés
A private guide in a protected reserve, the swimming hole on the Rio Celeste, and the sand beach under Llanos del Cortés. The itinerary can be adjusted.
Private 500cc ATV Ride in La Fortuna with Rainforest Hot Springs
One rider per machine on genuine 500cc 4x4 quads, with routes set to your level, and hot springs in the rainforest instead of the commercial complexes.
Private Rio Celeste and Sloth Sanctuary Tour with Lunch at Doña Carmen's
A private guide, a guaranteed sloth sighting at the sanctuary, and lunch at El Sabor de Doña Carmen, where a butterfly sanctuary fills the wait for the food.
Private Transfer, San José Airport to La Fortuna and Arenal
A private vehicle booked in advance for the San José airport run to La Fortuna and the Arenal area, with the drop-off at the door of your accommodation.
Rafting 29 km of the Pacuare from Turrialba, with Lunch at the Take-Out
Twenty-nine kilometres on a river rated fourth in the world, through primary rainforest and past waterfalls with no path to them, then a Costa Rican lunch.
Rincón de la Vieja: 11 Cables, Horses and the Borinquen Steam Sauna
Eleven cables through humid forest, a horseback ride after them, and then the volcanic hot spring, mud baths and steam sauna at Borinquen. Lunch included.
Rincón de la Vieja: Las Pailas, Oropéndola and Ten Hot Pools
The Río Negro springs have ten pools heated by the volcano, and the Las Pailas circuit runs 3.5 km past fumaroles and a mini crater. Some pick-ups cost extra.
Rincón de la Vieja: the Las Pailas Loop and Oropéndola Waterfall
The Las Pailas loop runs 3.5 km past fumaroles, mini-geysers and boiling mud, and the swim afterwards is under a 25-metre waterfall in the Río Blanco canyon.
Río Balsa Rafting and an ATV Ride to La Guaria, Below Arenal
The ATV half runs two and a half hours on a private farm below Arenal and out to La Guaria, and the afternoon is Class II-III rapids on the Río Balsa.
Rio Celeste and Tenorio Hike: Bride's Veil Falls, Hot Springs and Mud Pools
The walk reaches the Bride's Veil falls and the exact confluence of the Buena Vista and Roble, then adds mineral hot springs and volcanic mud pools.
Rio Celeste Combo: 90 Minutes of Tubing, the Blue Waterfall and the Tree of Peace
Ninety minutes of tubing with swim stops and fresh fruit, the 400-year-old Tree of Peace, and a drive back routed for sloths and monkeys rather than speed.
Ratings collected by Viator, Tripadvisor and Civitatis