Arenal Volcano Experience Full-Day Tour from San Jose

Juan was a great guide! It was disappointing that the coffee place was closed, but the stop for breakfast made up for it! Amazing tamales, great views of the waterfall and lots of animals, especially birds. The thermal pools were nice, but disappointing that they were not natural pools. Overall, enjoyed seeing the scenery around the country.

I think this is an excellent tour to see a variety of sites in Costa Rica. Juan did a great job! He was very polite and professional. I asked if he would stop by a pharmacy for me to pick up one medication and he made three stops until we found what I wanted. He spotted a sloth and some unusual birds that I would not have noticed on my own. He knew where the coati, sloths, iguanas and other wildlife hung out. He also had some videos on his phone to share with us some animals we did not see. We asked lots of questions and he was very knowledgeable. I would highly recommend this tour and if you get Juan as a guide, it is an added bonus.

Juan was an absolutely amazing guide! Our day was packed with activities but still didn’t feel rushed! He provided us with a wealth of information! This tour was worth so much more and than we paid and I would hands down recommend it to anyone! While it technically is a volcano tour we just viewed it from the distance, but again was an absolutely amazing tour!!

We stopped at multiple points on the way to La Fortuna. Our guide Juan is very good at spotting Sloths. We were lucky enough to spot a moving Sloth. The hot springs are more like a pool with hot water. Rest is all good! We loved the experience

This tour far exceeded our expectations!! Juan our tour guide was absolutely amazing!! He was accommodating, pleasant and knowledgeable. He shared information freely and we learned a lot about Cost Rica and the wonderful people who call Costa Rico home. We also a great, relaxing time!! Request Juan for your tour you will not be disappointed!!

Juan was a phenomenal tour guide not only was he professional, knowledgeable, and patient- he also drove the entire way for over 14 hours and spotted 2 sloths for us during our journey. This was our favorite tour we’ve taken in entirety. I highly recommend this. Bring a change of clothes, water case for phone, and comfortable shoes though since it’s a lengthy day. The hot springs was amazing and all the food was fantastic!

If you want the best tour and way to see Costa Rica, book this tour and if possible ask for Juan! From beginning to end, outstanding, personable service!! Juan and the tour exceeded my expectations. He was very knowledagle about the land, all of the agriculture, plants and animals. The included dinner and lunch were delicious. I highly recommend booking this tour. Juan did an amazing job showing us around, his knowledge, outstanding service and charisma surpasses all expectations; thank you so much Juan!! More than expected From beginning to end Juan was incredible

Wow! We had an amazing day thanks to our guide, Juan. He was extremely professional, kind and quite personable. We did all the stops mentioned on this tour where Juan shared valuable information on each as well as pointed out things of interest along the way. The food on this tour has been the best I’ve had so far on this trip and the portions were more than generous. Thank you Juan for such a wonderful day and for treating us so well!

Upon booking this tour, we received a confirmation instantly including our pick up time. This was much appreciated and when the pick up time came to pass....no pick up. Though it was only 15 minutes passed the pick up, we asked the concierge if they had seen the tour and we missed them. He stated that he had not and made a call to the company on our behalf. Now, everyone told us that San Jose traffic is bad and even worse on Thursday's and Friday's, so we pretty much had expected there to be a delay. The company confirmed that there was indeed a problem with the tour due to traffic, but we should be picked up soon. About 5 minutes later, the company had called the desk at the hotel and asked to speak to me. They started off with a ton of apologies for the delay and relayed that the bus was stuck in gridlock traffic and could not move or get off the highway due to an accident. They explained that another tour would be picking us up and it was the exact same tour and that they should be there in 7 to 12 minutes. No sooner did I hang up the phone then the other tour bus showed up! We got on the bus, and the guide Juan, express is greatest apologies for the delay and reexplained the situation. With that behind us, we were on our way...We reached the coffee plantation on time with no further issues or delays. We were a little more excited as our previous tour guide from the day before had told us that the three generations coffee was the best Costa Rica had to offer and here we were! As we got situation, our original tour showed up. While we were listening to Juan share information about the coffee, Alex came over and waved us to follow him. Alex was our original guide and took us back and gave us the info on coffee and explained we would be touring with him as the other bus had some no shows that grabbed a cab and were getting back on their tour. A little more chaos ensued, but back in the new van and off we went. It should be stated that this is a "highlights tour" and the reason we can do so much in such little time, is just that; it is a highlight of the location, topic or whatever else. Totally worth it; but many people on the tour kept asking Alex about doing things not included in the tour. The drive was long, but worth it, we saw many things and enjoyed our time on the tour. At the hot springs, we were not interested in this portion; but took the tour because we were very interested in all the rest. Alex was concerned and made sure that everything was ok with us; which it was. On the long journey home, we stopped at a little road side diner (for a lack of a better description) where our meals were already cooked, warm and ready to eat! Alex had (as he did for lunch) collected our meal preferences in advance and communicated to the restaurant making it a perfect conclusion to a great tour. Alex, as you may have read in other reviews, is the king of reviews and I just wanted to state that these reviews are true and well earned!

Kenneth was the best tour guide I’ve had in all my travels. His concern for our safety and fun really made our group connect and enjoy every second!