The 10 Best Río Celeste Tours

1.Rio Celeste Waterfall Plus Sloths and wildlife Sanctuary

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 110 reviews · 7 to 11 hours (approx.) · from $220Our pick

Leave Tamarindo at 6:30 a.m. for a private, air-conditioned ride to Rio Celeste and Tenorio National Park. Walk 2 to 3 hours to the blue waterfall, then visit Spring Paradise Bijagua Tours, where sloths are guaranteed, followed by lunch at Doña Carmen and its butterfly sanctuary. Guides may include Verny, Hernan, Allan, or Eric.

“Hernan was amazing. The tour was great! We got to see a baby sloth up close, which was worth the price of admission by itself!”

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2.Sloth Discovery & Swim in Rio Celeste

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 80 reviews · from $127

Travel from Playa Hermosa to Bijagua with a bilingual guide such as Kevin, Luis, Gabriel, Memo, or David. Hike a private reserve for sloths, visit a butterfly garden and snake park, enjoy a typical lunch, and swim in Rio Celeste. Expect an early start, about two hours of driving each way, and a full day in warm, wet forest.

“Our guides, Memo and David were amazing! They were so friendly and accommodating. Our group was small which made moving to the different locations much faster. Getting to be up close and personal with the sloths was such a joy aRead more”

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3.Tubing Adventure in the Río Celeste

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 78 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $50

You’ll tube the blue Río Celeste for about 90 minutes with a local guide such as Cristian, Alex, or Luis. Expect gentle rapids, natural pools, swimming, rope swings, wildlife spotting, volcanic mud, fresh fruit, and a private group experience.

“This was the best part of our trip in the La Fortuna area. We got lucky and it was the 2 of us guided by Cristian. He did a great job giving us a relaxing and fun tour in our tubes. While We had some time to swim in an area, Cristian did some cool flips for us and helped us swing from a rope.”

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4.Tubing Rio Celeste: The Longest Adventure With Lunch Included

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 72 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $65

Float through rainforest on Rio Celeste with Onca Tours for about three hours. Expect active tubing rather than a lazy river, a possible cliff jump, guides such as Anthony, wildlife views, equipment, insurance, and a typical Costa Rican lunch. You meet and finish at the Onca Tours base in Katira.

“Wonderful from start to finish. They accommodated our late arrival due to our flight coming in a day late. The guides were exceptional and we all had such a phenomenal time, kid particularly enjoyed jumping into the river off a high side/cliff. Highly recommend. And lunch was great at the end too. So friendly”

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5.Rio Celeste Expedition – Sloths, Waterfalls & Nature’s Magic

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 72 reviews · 5 hours 25 minutes (approx.) · from $188

Leave Liberia at 7:00 a.m. for Llanos de Cortés, Tenorio Volcano National Park, and sky-blue Rio Celeste. Guides such as Caesar, Grey, and Harold lead an active day with waterfall swimming, rainforest wildlife, sloths, toucans, coffee, chocolate, and a traditional Costa Rican lunch. Expect a moderately demanding hike and a small group of up to 15.

“The one and a half hour drive from our resort to the first waterfalls was scenic and fascinating. A hike to the first waterfall, was exhilarating, culminating in a dip next to the roaring Falls. The walk through Tenorio Park was moderately difficult, but beautiful. Our guide, Grey, was humorous and knowledgeable, pointing out the most poisonous snake in Costa Rica. In the sloth sanctuary ,we observed a tapir just feet from us, as well as a sloth hanging near by. We saw numerous toucans, which were breathtaking.”

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6.Rio Celeste Waterfall at Tenorio Volcano and Sloth Watching Tour From San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 60 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $185

Leave San Jose before sunrise for Rio Celeste and Tenorio Volcano National Park, then watch sloths, toucans, frogs, butterflies, and other wildlife with a local guide. Breakfast, lunch, transport, park admission, and hotel pickup are included. Guides such as Yancy, Johnhan, Luis, and Fernando have earned praise for their sharp eyes and friendly style.

“Tour muy completo! Luis y Johan muy buenos guías, nos dieron oportunidad de nadar en el rio (el tour no lo incluye, solo ver la cascada), muy amables todo el tiempo. Es importante tener en cuenta el tiempo de traslado si están en San Jose, es algo largo y mas si hay trafico. El ver a los perezosos y otros animales igual es interesante, se ven desde un telescopio entre la naturaleza con otro guía.”

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7.Tubing in Rio Celeste

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 59 reviews · from $44Best value

You float and bump along the Rio Celeste with a certified bilingual guide, using provided tubes and safety gear. Guides such as Carlos, Alex, Brad, Johnny, and Luis help groups navigate the river, spot monkeys and sloths, and capture GoPro photos and videos. Expect about two hours, fresh fruit, water, and transport back to the meeting point.

“Highly recommend,Brad our tour guide was really helpful and fun, he was focus in keep us safe and at the same time showing us the beautiful monkeys and mapaches. We will go back there soon.”

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8.Rio Celeste Aquatic Tubing Adventure

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 49 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $55

Float and ride gentle rapids through the turquoise Río Celeste with guides such as Mano, David, Christian, Gordo, and Gérald. This two-hour outing includes safety gear, calm pools, rainforest views, swimming, and a fruit-and-water stop. The meeting point is in Katira, about 20 to 30 minutes from the Tenorio Volcano waterfall area.

“Mano my water float guide (capi capi) and Jamie my driver were both amazing. I went the water was a level 1 but levels can go from 1 to 3 with 3 running smoother but more rapids. I highly recommend this activity with this company”

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9.Rio Celeste, Tenorio Hike, Sloths Sanctuary & Meal

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 48 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $170

Travel from Tamarindo in an air-conditioned vehicle to Tenorio Volcano National Park for the blue Rio Celeste, forest trails, Los Teñideros, volcanic vents, and a waterfall. Add a sloth sanctuary visit and traditional Costa Rican lunch. Guides such as Edgar, Willy, Nicole, and Martini have earned praise for spotting wildlife and explaining the area.

“So much fun. Tour guide was super knowledgeable everything wildlife/Costa Rica. They made sure we got in pictures and experienced everything both yours had to offer”

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10.Rio Celeste Waterfall Hike from Arenal

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 35 reviews · 6 hours (approx.) · from $108

From La Fortuna, a small group follows a guide through Tenorio Volcano National Park to Rio Celeste and Los Teñideros. Expect about two hours of hiking, steep stairs, mud after rain, wildlife spotting, and a Costa Rican lunch. Guides such as Santos, Rosa, Roy, and Samantha add local nature knowledge and adjust the pace to the group.

“This was my first trip to Costa Rica with my Daughter. Our tour guide was Santos. He was exquisite. He shared the culture of the country and showed us a wonderful experience. The your itself was 4 hours, including the transportation. The company was Desafio. His hospitality and warmth were top-notch. I would give this company 10 stars if possible. After a vigorous 2 hours hike through the jungle, which was Desafio (challenging) for me, but worth it! The waterfall was amazing and we saw interesting things along the way and ended our tour with an authentic lunch, Casado / fresh fish, rice, beans, avocado, salad and fresh-squeezed guava juice.…”

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