If youre lucky, you might [], Youll depart San Jose and head to Alajuela, driving through coffee plantations and strawberry farms before arriving at a higher cloud forest altitude. This excursion to the Eastern part of the country its a great combination of nature and beach. Yep! The walk to the crater is very short, it doesnt take more than 5 minutes and its done on flat terrain. This tour is recommended for people in any physical shape, walking is only involved in the Central Avenue and the Central Market for about an hour. It is not uncommon to see a continuous flow of steam spewing out of the crater. This tour goes to the beautiful Caribbean Beaches of Costa Rica, as well as to the world famous Sloth Sanctuary, located in the Limon province. This tour is recommended for people of all ages and in any physical condition, since the walking at the park is easy. For anyone who loves the beach, this is one of the best San Jose, Costa Rica day trips! The Arenal Volcano Experience tour is a great combination of nature-sightseeing and relaxation. For those booking tours with transportation, dont forget to get our San Jose day tours discount! These are the best options for Adventure Tours from the Capital City of San Jose: This tour is done in the Rainforest Mountains of San Ramon, it includes 10 adventure cables, 1 thrilling Tarzan Swing and an amazing Superman line. If you have some days in the city, here are our recommended best San Jose, Costa Rica day trips. In the mood for adventure? [], Early this morning youll depart on a 2.5-hour drive to Manuel Antonio on the Central Pacific Costa. Tortuguero National Park is probably the most unique wilderness place of Costa Rica, where the only way of transportation is by boat through its beautiful canals, and due to this, the place is known as the Amazon Jungle of Costa Rica. On this tour you would stop in a coffee plantation where a briefing of Costa Rican coffee will be done, including degustation of coffee accompanied by local snacks (this degustation will be done in a typical restaurant further ahead). Please click to get your San Jose day tours discount! Doka Coffee Plantation, Poas Volcano, & La Paz Waterfall Gardens Tour, La Paz Waterfall Gardens Tour (afternoon), Manuel Antonio National Park Tour from San Jose, Pacuare Whitewater Rafting Day Tour: Class III-IV, Bay Island Catamaran Cruise to Tortuga Island. This Arenal Volcano and Baldi Hot Springs tour starts in the morning when you get picked up from your San Jose hotel, and just like the Arenal Volcano and Tabacon Hot Springs tour, it goes to the folkloric town of Sarchi to admire its oxcarts factory, where shopping can also be done at their souvenir shop, which is the largest of the country. Participants of this tour must also understand that this will be a very long day, but the benefit is that you will see on this tour more of Costa Rica than in any tour offered from San Jose. The tour also includes stopping in a couple of waterfalls to take pictures, in a birds observation station and in a place where we normally observe lots of iguanas and other forms of rainforest wildlife. The tour starts in the morning by traveling towards the foothills of the Poas Volcano and Barva Volcano, on the most scenic route to Arenal (there are a few ways to get there), and you will do several stops to enjoy many interesting attractions. The walk to the look-out point is very short, just about 300-400 yards, which makes this tour appropriate for people of all ages and in any physical condition. This one is probably the most complete adventure tour offered from San Jose, which combines zip lining in the rainforest, rappelling, horseback riding and white water tubing, as well as relaxation in mineral hot springs. The following are the best of the Beach Tours that can be done from San Jose, where you can relax for a long time on the beach: On this tour you will visit one of the most beautiful beaches in Costa Rica at Tortuga Island. The tour continues directly to the Arenal area, where you will have lunch upon arrival. 1.5 hours drive, and breakfast will be served on the bus. On this activity you will learn the whole history of cocoa in Latin America, the uses our ancestors gave to it and the history on how it turned out to be chocolate. This is also an excursion for those travelers who are looking for a relaxing time during their stay in San Jose. This is the absolutely best rafting trip in all Costa Rica and has being ranked as the 5th best in the world. Arrive at tiny Manuel Antonio National Park, home to rainforest wildlife and beautiful Pacific beaches. The idea of this tour is to travel to the Arenal Volcano area in a very different way than other tours offered by tour companies in San Jose, by doing multiple stops in attractions that are along the way. This tour is the absolutely best combination for those who seek to experience the amazing Nature of Costa Rica and its beautiful beaches. If you go ziplining, their canopy tour gives you fantastic views of the jungle as you fly over the trees! The tour also goes to the beautiful Orosi Valley in the Province of Cartago, one of the favorite touristic spots to go on the weekends for local Costa Rican people. There are some companies who offer 1 day tours to Tortuguero which give you just enough time to see the park, town and beach on a quick trip. Next to the crater there are other areas for hiking, like a plain called Playa Hermosa, as well as trails that go to the mountains around the crater. Here you will enjoy a Costa Rican breakfast before heading to the put-in on the banks of the Pacuare River. After this visit you will be taken back to your hotel in San Jose. Day tours usually consist of breakfast, lunch, an Arenal volcano hike and Arenal hot springs (Baldi, the Springs or Tabacon). Then you will visit the Mistico Hanging Bridges Park (commonly known as the Arenal Hanging Bridges), where you will hike in the Rain Forest for about 2.5 hours; seeing wildlife on this hike is also very common. Sit back as local chefs prepare dishes that combine Costa Ricas most traditional ingredients with international cooking techniques. Poas Volcano is also a great stop in between the drive from San Jose to La Fortuna. Rainforest Adventures is an eco-adventure park near Brauilio Carrillo National Park with a variety of activities such as hiking, bird watching, ziplining and an aerial tram. Check our list of best hotels near San Jose Airport. At the end of your day you will relax at the mineral hot springs of the area for about 2 hours before returning to your hotel in San Jose. Mytanfeet LLC Copyright 2013 - 2022 - Thank you for supporting our Travel Blog! Once in Manuel Antonio you will hike on the main trail with your guide, where you will have the chance to admire the intense rainforest nature and look for the abundant local wildlife, we normally observe a lot of wild animals on this tour. It is important to know that this zip lining-rappelling-native tribe presentation is all done in the same property, but for those who dont want to do these activities we have the option of doing a short rainforest walk that includes the largest frog exhibit of Costa Rica with more than 30 species; a large butterfly garden; a turtles exhibit; a snakes exhibit; and a crocodile-caiman exhibit (this requestmust bedone at the time of reservation). After all of these stops you will be taken to your hotel in San Jose. After lunch you will visit the volcanos main look-out point, which is located at the base of the mountain, you will spend a few minutes taking pictures of the volcano (weather permitting), before going to Baldi Hot Springs. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. These are the Combination Tours available from San Jose: This tour is our best seller, considered the most complete combination tour offered from San Jose, which is a great blend of Nature, Culture, Adventure and Relaxation activities, all done in a single day. Right after the rappelling you will participate of a brief native tribe presentation for about 15-20 minutes, where local indigenous people will talk about their traditions, music, dialect, etc. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. You will walk through the plantation and the coffee processing plant, where you will learn everything about Costa Rican coffee, the way is planted, the way is harvested and the way is brewed in a traditional way; this interesting experience takes about 1.5 to 2 hours all together. The first stop is done at about 2 hours after leaving San Jose, where you will visit the Rainforest Aerial Tram Atlantic; here you will take an hour long tram ride to admire the lush rainforest located next to the Braulio Carrillo National Park. The Manuel Antonio National Park tour departs early in the morning from San Jose, and goes directly to the park with just one stop for breakfast along the way. This day of adventure starts with the zip lining tour in the rainforest, which includes a total of 9 adventure cables that are normally done in approximately 1.5 hours. Sarchi is also an excellent place to buy Costa Rican souvenirs as they are well known for their woodwork. Other important landmarks will be visited by vehicle, such as the Sabana Park, the National Stadium, the Congress, the National Cathedral and other places of interests; the time exploring San Jose will be about 2-3 hours. At the end of this Zip lining and Rafting tour you will be taken back to your hotel in San Jose. and it is done mostly on flat terrain at a slow pace. If you love coffee, you have to take a tour to learn about how Costa Rica grows and processes their coffee. All Rights Reserved. Follow your guide through the giant aviary, hummingbird garden, serpentarium, butterfly garden, the frog house, and the big cat exhibit. On this tour you will hike on the trails and hanging bridges of Sky Adventures Park, where you will also be able to ride its tram and get the best aerial views of the Monteverde and Santa Elena areas. The zip lining tour lasts for about 1.5 2 hours, and it is done in the beautiful rainforest jungles of Sarapiqui. With your guide, youll hike along the park trails, observing rainforest vegetation and trying to spot wildlife along the way. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Once at the island you will be able to relax on the beach for a few hours, or do some of the activities available, like beach volleyball, banana boat ride, snorkeling, etc. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. This is a full day tour that starts in the morning with pickups in the different hotels of the San Jose area. Afterwards you will go to the hot springs at the base of Arenal Volcano to relax for a couple of hours before going back to San Jose and dinner will be served along the way. We offer a total of 3 tours to the Beautiful Beaches of Costa Rica, although 2 of them will be presented on the Combination Tours section because they are both combined with other intense nature activities: The Manuel Antonio National Park Tour and the Sloth Sanctuary and Caribbean Beaches Tour. People of all ages can also participate of this tour, however, the minimum age to do zip lining is 5, so if you are traveling with children 5 years of age or younger, they must participate of the short rainforest walk with animal exhibits, accompanied by at least one adult.