rincon de la vieja national park

A spot that offers fumaroles, bubbling mud pits and boiling ponds, together with views of native mammals (agoutis, white-nosed coatis) and toucans is a natural gem. The park could use a bit more help (all those entrance fees should go back to it) such as: labels with names of the beautiful trees and shrubs, fixing the swinging bridge broken slats, some information and pictures of the fauna and flora one can encounter. Well worth the visit, though, the natural beauty is striking, and we got to see toucans!

I have visited many of the parks in Costa Rica and this is one of my favorites!! I had transportation to and from the park arranged through my hostel for $20 round-trip. Be advised that there is no public transportation to the park to my knowledge. Unfortunately when we went, the hike to the summit of the volcano was still closed due to winds. It seems it has been closed for years and is unlikely to open in the near future. Instead of opting for the popular Las Pailas loop first, we opted to hike to the La Cangreja waterfall first and finished with the Las Pailas loop in reverse. Best decision! We seriously had the waterfall to ourselves in the morning for a swim and by the time we did the Las Pailas loop, the crowds had diminished tremendously. Make sure to wear a swimming suit and bring plenty of water and bug spray. The little restaurant/store is pricey, so I would suggest bringing a lunch. They have some very nice picnic tables in the park.

The waterfall is very beautiful. The hike is quite easy and around 10-15 mins long one way. However, please note you will get nickeled and dimed at ANY attraction you want to see. The entrance to the "national park" is 700 colones. The "attractions" of the park however are private property belonging to the "Guachipelin" locals. We are still trying to understand what is the "National Park". The roads? Maybe the power lines? There are no signs indicating you have to pay the locals to hike to the volcanos, hot springs, or waterfalls. The first time we went we paid nothing in addition to the park fee. That was just last week. The second time a local man in unofficial clothing hunted 2 in our group down and said "Give me $10". We were at Oropendola Waterfall. We spoke to other hiker tourist there and they said no one made them pay anything. Other hikers from Europe were very irritated with the tourism in Costa Rica because every turn, they want MORE money for you to see or do anything. Costa Rica was not so money hungry when I was here 10 years ago. I advised the Guachipelin that visitors were angry with the lack of information that they would have to empty their wallets once they entered the park. Also, that it's not right to charge some and not others and Please! Put signs of fees up where all can see! People need to know how much money they will need to bring. Especially backpackers on a budget. Fyi the Oropendola Waterfall is $5 per person. Path to La Cangreja & Escondidas Waterfall is $15 per person and 4 hour total hike. Path to Las Pailas Trail & Sector Santa Maria is also $15 per person and 2 hours total. Rio Negro Hotsprings was $10 per person. The park is not open on Mondays and closes at 5pm on open days.

True Special Places where we rented the condo, we booked a day tour to Rincon de La Viega forest trip. Almost two hours each way for a two hour tour of the forest. Plan was to see the wildlife, monkeys, exotic birds, snakes etc. We saw two monkeys, one bird, one snake. Although our guide was good the trip was a disappointment. The waterfall which was an attraction was dried out. We understand it is mother nature, but we should have been told.At a price of $90.00 per person plus tip, I feel there must be other tours which are better. My comments is just for future traveller to be aware.

It is worth the hike!!! We went at 200pm and not too many people there. Spectacular show of nature and a fun dip in her pool at the same time. Go for it!!!

Good walking area, among others to a nice spot with a small waterfall and natural swimmingpool. So bring not only water and some snack, but also your swimmingsuit.

HUNDREDS of people here, many buses and parking lots over flowing. I have never seen so many people at a park, and that was less used entrance. Tried to do a hike, stuck single file people in front and behind. Stood at a little bridge, waited for an endless steam of people, gave up and turned back. We did another side trail that was nicer, part closed for volcanic reasons, maybe 30 people using it, which is still quite a few. No birds. Saw one coati. I will give this park another try in the slow season. We didn't get far enough in to give it a chance. Definitely avoid in high season.

This is our favorite National Park in CR. We love the fumerols, and boiling mud pots. We have hiked several times on this active volcano, and really enjoyed the geothermic wonders, animals, waterfalls and surrounding forest. We normally do the short 4k hike that allows the visitor to see the fumerols and mudpots. We have also done the 10k hike to Congrejo Falls which is one for the more adventurous visitor, but well worth the trip. We always stay at Hacienda Guachepelin because included with the room is their private hot springs, access to three other waterfalls, ziplines, white water rafting, canyoning, and horseback riding adventures. This is CR's least visited park, but one of its best.

The park was difficult to find. The road to the entrance was so bad I was driving 5 km an hour.The green private toll gate was strange too.The hike took you through rainforest and wood forests and then suddenly desert and hot mid pools. Interesting. But the trial is not clear and only after did I realize the danger of snakes, etc.$15USD entrance fee is also really high.

This is an amazing place where you can get close to the volcanic activity. We entered at the Los Pailas entrance & took the 3k loop trail. Upon the advice of our B&B owner, we went clockwise, starting with the more difficult part of climbing over rocks & trees. While we met a few people going in the opposite direction we were alone for a good bit of the hike. Loved seeing the fumaroles & mudpots. Bring plenty of water.There is a soda near the entrance but drinks are expensive. Off of its parking lot you can hike down to a pool & Orependolo waterfall. Fairly easy except that last part.

This National Park was about 1½ hour from Playa Hermosa. You have to pay this man for use of his “private” road to get into the park. The park has many activities to enjoy: hiking, tubing, horseback riding, zip lining, hot springs. You can do one are several activities in a day. There is also a very nice restaurant. We chose to do a 2½-hour trail hike. There was a $15 per person fee given to a ranger at a guardhouse and he gave us a map. BRING YOUR INSECT SPRAY. We got eaten alive and are still itching 10 days later. The trail wasn’t too difficult if you’re wearing good walking shoes. There were some slippery rocks and a waking stick would’ve been very helpful versus wet sneaks. Saw pretty falls, fun bridges, heard but didn’t see monkeys, volcano steam vents, and great huge trees. As seniors, we felt very good about completing this hike without hurting ourselves.

Great park for a wide variety of animals, butterflies, birds and flora/fauna. Definitely worth paying a little extra for a guide - these guys really know their stuff and you will see a lot more wildlife. Cover up - some really persistent flies that seem immune to bug spray and leave very irritating bites. Take your passport along - you need it for the 'jobsworth' at reception.

We drove up to the Santa Maria entry and the drive itself was an adventure !Not as many (in fact only 2 other cars) tourists and I am not sure that the hot springs or waterfall are as nice but the plus was the monkeys which followed us for about 20 minutes.Easy walk to the hot springs and back.Really enjoyed our half day

I think the park is so large there are many ways to book the activities there. We booked through yellowfin sportfishing tours and I highly recommend them for any activities you would want to do in Guanacaste. Our Family of eight ages 7-63 chose two plus activities to do at the park and it was a big hit with all ages. First we did the canopy tour (zip lining) all of us were first timers so I cannot compare it to other places. I can say that the guides/instructors were excellent with the entire group from young to old, we felt safe the entire time and they were very patient and fun. The scenery is beautiful and the canopy exhilarating. Heads up there is a bit of hiking, drink well beforehand. Our second activity was Colorado river rafting, again we were all novices. These are two man inflatable "boats" each boat has a guide with one passenger per boat. The river was level 2 which I believe is moderate. The Guides and leader were very professional there were life vests for all and the instructions were perfect. The rafting was exciting, the nature around you is wonderful, and getting wet very refreshing. I should note that at each activity there were always guides who spoke English, communication was no problem.The plus was jumping into the pools they have there after the rafting and putting the mud on. A perfect end to the day.We chose to do only these two activities at the park but there are so many others ATV, Rapelling, Hiking, Tubing and more.

We were fortunate to meet Hugo Guadamuz Rojas at the park and engage him to accompany us on a tour of the trails. He was fluent in English and incredibly knowledgeable about the flora and fauna in the park. We would highly recommend that you engage him if you have the chance as his keen observations and depth of knowledge hugely enhanced our experience!!The hike was easy and we learned so much-not only about Rincon De La Vieja but about all of Costa Rica!! Pura vida!!