La Fortuna is a picturesque little city right underneath a volcano. If you’re into fun forays that’ll take you to some of the neatest places in Costa Rica, look no further! Here are five thrilling escapes in La Fortuna!
5 Day Trips in La Fortuna, Costa Rica
1. Sky Arenal Zipline
You’ll find so many zipline operators in La Fortuna, mostly because this is an awesome place for ziplining! The views are delightful and the weather can be pleasant.
My recommendation here is Sky Adventures Arenal Park. They offer quite a few thrill-seeking adventures (canyoning, tarzan swing and the like) but ziplining stuck out to me. You’ll venture to your first ziplining station up a tram, so you’re able to take in the view. Once you’ve arrived, there’s a nice lookout area where you can take pictures and chill before you start.
From there, it’s seven cables that offer some truly magnificent views. Once you’re done, you can grab lunch at their cafe that looks over Lake Arenal. Bliss.
2. La Fortuna Waterfall
In terms of day trips without technical difficulties, La Fortuna Waterfall is an excellent idea. All you really have to do is focus on getting up and down nearly 900 steps. No rappelling, secret trails or intense hikes involved.
Plus once you manage to meander down those many, many steps, you can swim in the waterfall! There’s a lifeguard on duty and benches where you can stack your stuff.
Whether you choose to swim there or not, the view alone is worth the steps. It really is a magnificently beautiful waterfall.
3. Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park Night Tour
Mistico Park is really pretty during the daytime. There’s a scenic lake and waterfall, and the hanging bridges provide a view for miles. If you visit while the sun is out, you won’t be disappointed.
But I think while you’re in Costa Rica, you should take a least one night tour of a nature preserve. You can see so many animals, like the red-eyed leaf frog, that you wouldn’t be able to see otherwise.
Mistico Park is a great place for a night tour. Animals are abound, and you’ll be paired with a great guide who can point them out for you. We were fortunate enough to see the red-eyed leaf frog, snakes, army ants, bats, field mice, a tapir and a wide variety of frogs.
4. Arenal Natura Ecological Park
Ok, this may be confusing, but there are two parks named Arenal Ecological Park. You want to visit the Arenal Natura Ecological Park located near La Palma.
There are a few tours offered, but I thought it was fun to choose the self guided tour and explore on my own. They’ll give you a flashlight to spot the nocturnal creatures in the frog garden (the largest frog garden in the country) and a map so you can make your own way.
It’s quite the beautiful park with lots to see. There’s a section devoted to housing non-stinging bees, a turtle pond, butterfly garden and a nature trail where you may be able to spot some wildlife. Walking the whole trail will take roughly a couple of hours, depending on how long you like to linger over the animals.
5. Hike Arenal Volcano
Hiking an active volcano. Does it get any better than that?
Arenal Volcano National Park technically has two volcanos; Arenal and Chato. Chato is inactive and Arenal is anything but. Hence why I suggest booking a tour for this, as the guides will quickly shut things down if the lava flow is too much.
Also, somewhat important to know, it rains a lot in Arenal. So the volcano is usually partially obscured by clouds. I was in the La Fortuna area for three nights and I had a full view of the volcano for a whopping 13 seconds when the clouds cleared briefly. So don’t be bummed if you can’t see it all.
Most tours will take you through the secondary forest and lava fields. You’re likely to spot birds, tapirs, monkeys and deer.
Did these thrilling escapes help you plan your trip to La Fortuna, Costa Rica? Leave a comment below!
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Safe travels!
-Maggie
