Arenal Volcano Tour: Bridges, Lava Fields, Waterfall

Experience the best of Costa Rica on this full-day tour. Explore hanging bridges, hike through lava rocks, visit the stunning La Fortuna waterfall, and relax in hot springs. Book now!

Duration: 10 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Arenal Volcano - In this nature and activity-filled day, you will go on an immersive journey through La Fortuna and Arenal area. With the guidance of a professional bilingual guide, you will explore a series of spectacular natural attractions.
    The adventure begins as you traverse the hanging bridges, suspended amidst the lush rainforest. Each step…
What's Included
  • Pickup and drop-off from hotels in La Fortuna area
  • Professional guide
  • Hotsprings Resort Entrance fee
  • Park Entrance
  • Lunch
  • Hanging bridges Entrance
  • Cocktail in the Hot-springs
What's Not Included
  • Dinner not included
Additional Information

Our journey begins with a visit to the suspension bridges of Mistico Park. A knowledgeable guide accompanies you to introduce you to the ecosystem. As you navigate the trails and bridges, you are treated to expansive vistas of the forest, Lake Arenal, and Arenal Volcano.
We then short drive to another park, situated directly at the base of the volcano….

Location
Parada de autobuses
702
Red Lava Office in La Fortuna Bus Terminal
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.7
(167 Ratings)
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Summer_c
Sep 4, 2024
The perfect full day tour! - This tour was great! Our guide was amazing and very knowledgeable about the plants and wildlife. It was a full day with lots of stops which was perfect for us. We had sufficient time at each stop and loved that we were able to experience so much in one day! The hanging bridges were our favorite!
Review provided by Viator
Brennank421
Aug 14, 2024
Amazing tour - This is so far the best trip we’ve done. I would definitely recommend this to anyone. My whole family loves it (2 adults and 3 teenage girls). We had plenty of time and never felt rushed. Our guide Chris MQ was amazing and made the tour that much better. He even made sure we all got pictures of everything we wanted. We saw so much and even learned alot of new things thanks to him. Our driver William was also wonderful. If you’re near the area this is a must do
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mariam252525
Jul 25, 2024
Red Lava is the way to go in La Fortuna! - Yulian was an amazing guide! So thorough and helpful to get the most incredible pictures and videos of the wildlife! I highly recommend Red Lava for all of your La Fortuna excursions!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rory_c
Jul 23, 2024
Worth it, must do- great guide - Our guide (Jacob) has a passion for what he does. He got so excited for each of us to see the wildlife he spotted. You don’t need a guide to do the hanging bridges- but we felt this was the best way to go for sure after our experience. We would have missed spotting ALL the wildlife. Jacob said it doesn’t always happen this way- but he spotted a sloth, an eyelash pit viper (which is TINY), many monkeys, a tree frog, some red poison frogs, spiders, birds GREAT guide. He was mindful of the needs of all participants. This is the perfect excursion for people who want to explore many spots in one day. It is not for hardcore adventure junkies. But for most of us- it is awesome and the perfect amount of adventure. I would say my children (11 and under) would not have lasted the day. It is exhausting. But not too strenuous. Some of the hiking is very steep but not dangerous. Just exhausting. Hot springs were meh. I could have done without them. Basically a waterpark. But lunch was so good- authentic. I would do this all over again!
Review provided by Viator
George_m
Jun 21, 2024
A must do experience in Arenal Volcano - We had a great time on this full day excursion! After a short mix up with pick ups and timings the travel company went above and beyond to make sure we caught up with the group at the first location. Chino our guide was great he pointed out lots of wildlife whilst walking the Hanging Bridges and around the Arenal Volcano. Swimming under the waterfall was fun although the fast currents made it a little challenging. The drink in the spa at the end was the perfect way to rest tired legs after a lot of walking.
Review provided by Viator
Andrea_a
Jun 4, 2024
Best way to see La Fortuna - This was so fun! It was a full day of exploring La Fortuna. Our guide Christian was so nice and knowledgeable. I would 100% do this tour again. I highly recommend. We were able to enjoy the day without worrying about a single detail. They had a great team.
Review provided by Viator
Omar-elassi
May 5, 2024
AMAZING day trip with Chris MQ!!! - My girlfriend and I did the full day tour with Chris MQ on our first day in Costa Rica and it was hands down one of our favourite day trips that we’ve taken, all thanks to our amazing tour guide Chris MQ. He made sure everyone had a good time, spotted animals that we had 0 chance of seeing on our own, took pictures of the animals through his telescope, had an amazing sense of humour to keep everyone engaged and laughing, and overall just made sure he made this experience a memorable one. If you’re going to go on a day trip in La Fortuna, i highly recommend going with Chris MQ for a guaranteed great trip whether it’s raining or shining in La Fortuna (or both :))
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Vicens-amaya
Apr 23, 2024
Fun day all day - We had a really good time in this activity. We took so many great pictures. The final stop was lots of fun. I have never seen so many pools in one place.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
David_b
Apr 7, 2024
Family of 6 loved it! - This was an amazing family experience. The highlight of our trip. This is a very well run trip and at every stop we felt like we got to spend enough time to really enjoy it. Our guide Chris was amazing!! We saw tons of wildlife including monkey, sloths, pit viper and all kids of birds. If we come back we will be sure to find a way to have him be our guide again. I would come back to CR just to do this exact trip again. Our kids loved it despite it being a full day with lots of activity. It's great that the hiking is in the am and then you get to relax later in the day.
Review provided by Viator
Taylor_s
May 7, 2024
The Description is Deceiving! Will not book again! - Do not book this tour if you are looking to be active and ACTUALLY hike. This excursion was a huge disappointment. My boyfriend and I ended up leaving early because we were so disappointed. I also preface this with, I have done a lot of traveling and a lot of excursions in many countries. The description stated that we would spend our day on a "private hiking adventure" and would experience an "extreme hike through Arenal Volcano National Park." Both were a lie. First, despite the description also stating that round-trip hotel transportation was included, it was not. Our hotel, despite being one that was available in the drop-down selection, was not one that the company would pick up from. We were forced to provide our own transportation to the Red Lava Office. So I would recommend calling before booking. Next, we were told to arrive at 7. Despite arriving at 7, the bus to pick up other passengers did not even leave the Red Lava Office until nearly 7:30. The bus did not return to pick us up and go to the hanging bridges until nearly 8. That brings me to the second issue: this was not a private tour. We were sardined in the bus with nearly 30 other passengers. One girl on the bus did not have a seat and had to use a folding aisle seat that she had to struggle to fold up and remove at each stop. Once we got to the hanging bridges, we were separated into two groups of about 15. Many of the individuals in our group were elderly and moved extremely slow. My boyfriend and I were forced to constantly wait on other members of our group. This was the entire reason that we wanted to book a private tour. We are both extremely active and were looking forward to exploring the Arenal forest at our own pace. The path was paved the entire time....so much for extreme hike. Next, we stopped at the Arenal forest. We had a pineapple snack while our guide took a break to watch the soccer game. All of the group was a little annoyed that our guide was wasting our time. Next, we went on a very short "hike" in the lava fields. It was less than 900 meters and the 70-year-old couple was able to make the "climb." There was nothing "extreme" about this hike, after that, the bus was who knows where so we walked around on ROAD looking for wildlife. At this point, my boyfriend and I were so annoyed at the blatant false description of this excursion. After having lunch, we headed to the waterfall. This was the best part of the trip, but we left early and ended up not doing the hot springs because everything took twice as long as it was supposed to and it was such a disappointment. The most physically demanding part of the whole excursion was the stairs down to the waterfall. I would not recommend it if you actually want to hike. The excursion is completely overpriced for it not being an actual private tour. I would recommend just buying these passes to the parks yourself and then going at your own pace. I will not be booking through Red Lava Tours ever again.
Review provided by Viator
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
December 2024
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