Arenal Full-Day Combo: 9 Hanging Bridges, Peñas Blancas Viewpoint and the Maleku Palenque

One day, one vehicle, one bilingual guide who carries spotting equipment and uses it. The route strings together what people come to La Fortuna for, in one organised day. Nine hanging bridges open it, high and long, linked by two miles of trail through jungle at the level of the canopy, with Arenal standing behind them. El Silencio follows: stairs and trails climbing over the lava fields left by the 1968 eruption, up to a viewpoint that takes in the volcano, Lake Arenal, the jungle and the northern lowlands. The last leg is a rough three-mile drive to the Peñas Blancas viewpoint, where two waterfalls are visible across the canyon. One of them is the La Fortuna waterfall, and the trail goes down to it, crossing a high, narrow hanging bridge on the way. There are about 45 minutes at the pool to swim or sit. Lunch is at the ecological park by the Maleku village, where the community talks through its own history in the Palenque. Butterfly and frog gardens sit around the lunch area.