Arenal Volcano- Rainforest - Hanging Bridges-Waterfall-Hotsprings

We booked a private tour and had Minor as our tour guide! He was kind attentive and extremely knowledgeable! He made the day fantastic and we would recommend this to everyone!

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This was a long but well organized tour from our all inclusive resort inland to see the rainforest near La Fortuna. It was a good way to get a taste of Costa Rica in a day; we enjoyed some good food, our guide was very helpful on our hike and pointed out lots of wildlife; make sure to bring swimsuits for the thermal pools, we totally forgot and paid a fortune for some when we got there, still worth it though

We were in the Papgayos area for our vacation and stumbled on Simbiosis Bistroin Playa de Coco, and met Rosbin. What a great person. The Bistro he runs with his wife is very nice and the tours he offers are great! We did the Coffee/Cocoa tour the day before and had a fantastic time with our guide, Mainor, and decided to do this tour with him.

What a wonderful day trip. We started by having a delicious authentic Costa Rican breakfast at a local restaurant . The hike through the rainforest near Arenal Volcano was beautiful. Lunch was tasty. Nes was a great guide. The day ended with a couple of relaxing hours at the hot springs.

Manuel helped us a lot though out the trip. He had lots of patience and explained everything in detail through rainforest hike.

It was refreshing to venture away and see a different part of Costa Rica. We stayed in Tamarindo (great town). It is a LONG day on the road for 2 activities + 2 meals. A few had nauseous (3 of 6 adults) as the drive went uphill and many switchbacks in the Arenal region. We all agreed we wouldn't want to drive this on our own, leave it to the locals. Roads very narrow. We were very happy to see we were provided rain ponchos (by the tour co.) as it was misty rain while hiking in the Arenal rain forest (which it does 75% of the time). The hanging bridges are a part of the hike, not a separate stop. It was fairly easy but some inclines. We are all early 50's. I'd recommend wearing water resistant tennis type shoes (socks) an as we all had wet feet. Or bring extra shoes & socks (flip flops for the pools). The hot spring pools were in a hotel type setting (where late lunch was as well) not out in nature (as some of us thought). One of the pools has a bar so you can grab a drink (MC & Visa accepted, no Amex). Breakfast and lunch were fine - typical CR food offerings. We eat pescatarian and there was varieties so no issue. It might have been more authentic to eat at a small venue or soda type restaurant along the mountain drive. Manuel was such a pleasant guy. He was conversational and shared CR tidbits with us throughout the day. He continually kept watch on the hike for cool species to share with us. Came across a couple. If you want to spend a night or two in Arenal (La Fortuna) on your own plan a driver. Overall it was interesting but wouldn't need to repeat.

Celeste is must see Waterfall. Our guide Julio from Native Way was great. Knowledgeable, caring, attentive to our needs, funny. Trip and hike was worth every penny and effort.

To start the driver was on time. We ended up having a private tour, we were the only ones who booked that tour that day. We stopped for traditional Coata Rican breakfast. Next stop park with hanging bridges. As they day progressed we were able to see more of the top of volcano. We saw different birds, lizards and a squirrel. We went a good pace and finished in about two hours or so. We a traditional lunch and spent time in hot springs . On the drive home we a sloth on the side of the road. 10/10 experience Manual was a great tour guide.

Ask for Nesmar- brilliant person and guide. Perfect day in Arenal- you can’t go wrong with this one. Fyi bit of a long day- however very comfortable throughout!

The private arenal hanging bridges tour is worth your time and money! From start to finish, Manual was at our service. He picked us up from our hotel and explained the entirety of our day. We stopped for a typical Costa Rican breakfast and then headed out to the rainforest. The drive is very long from Papaguyo(2-3 hours depending on traffic), but the rainforest is gorgeous! Once we made it to Mistico park we started out on our adventure. We saw birds, frogs, monkeys and even a tree sloth. Our kids 18 and 21 loved the experience. After the hike and hanging bridges, we headed to the hot springs for lunch and relaxation. It was an amazing day and Manual was an excellent tour guide!

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