Rio Celeste & Tenorio Volcano Sloth Sanctuary Tour from Tamarindo

One day reaches four distinct ecosystems without switching guides or vehicles

A private guided tour from Tamarindo that combines Rio Celeste, Tenorio Volcano National Park, a sloth sanctuary, and coffee and chocolate tastings in Bijagua. Your guide navigates the turquoise river, leads hikes to waterfalls, takes you through the rainforest to watch sloths in their habitat, and walks you through working plantations where you taste both coffee and cacao. Hotel pickup and lunch are included. The tour runs 10 to 11 hours and adapts to your pace.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Rio Celeste and Surroundings

• Pick up at hotel at 7 am
• Visit Tenorio Volcano National Park
• Explore Rio Celeste and waterfalls
• Visit Sloth Sanctuary of Río Celeste
• Take Coffee and Chocolate Tour in Bijagua
• Return to starting point

The experience

What makes this tour work is that it stays private: one guide, one vehicle, no group schedule to follow. You pick up at your hotel at 7 am and spend the day with a local English or Spanish-speaking guide who knows the geology, the plants and the animals. The route itself is the draw: Rio Celeste's turquoise color comes from volcanic minerals in the water, and the park's trails lead to waterfalls like Los Teñideros where you can see the color shift as different mineral streams meet. The rainforest around it holds exotic birds and orchids, and your guide points out what most visitors miss.

The sloth sanctuary sits within the same ecosystem. You watch them move through the trees in their natural habitat rather than in a cage, and the guide explains their behavior and why they matter to the region's conservation. Then the tour shifts to the coffee and chocolate farms near Bijagua. You walk through a working coffee plantation, see how the beans are harvested and dried, and taste the result. The cacao farm shows you the pods on the tree and the process that turns them into chocolate, with a tasting that lets you taste the difference between varieties. It's learning and eating at once, not a sales pitch.

Lunch and bottled water come with the tour. The vehicle is air-conditioned, which matters on a 10- to 11-hour day in the heat. Weather has to cooperate. If it doesn't, the operator offers another date or a full refund. You'll need a moderate level of fitness for the hiking. The tour is not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health. Bring a camera and comfortable shoes. The trails are the whole point.

What’s included

• Private transportation in an air-conditioned vehicle.
• hotel pickup and return.
• lunch.
• bottled water.
• live guide in English or Spanish.
• entry to Tenorio Volcano National Park and the sloth sanctuary.

Before you book

Days and timesEvery day

AgesUp to age 90

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish and Spanish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated yesterday

Operated by Guanacaste Airport Shuttle Cr

Is this one for you?This is a private tour, so one guide stays with you all day and the itinerary bends to your pace and interests: ideal if you want to linger at Rio Celeste or spend extra time at the sanctuary rather than move through on a fixed group schedule. If you prefer a smaller budget and don't mind sharing a van with other travelers, a group tour covers the same sites for less.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English and Spanish.

What does Rio Celeste actually look like when you get there?

Rio Celeste is a river with vivid turquoise water caused by a unique mix of volcanic minerals from Tenorio Volcano. The color shifts and deepens depending on where different mineral streams meet, and the park's trails lead to waterfalls and viewpoints where you can see the effect up close.

Can you really see sloths at the sanctuary, or is it just a zoo?

The Sloth Sanctuary of Río Celeste is a protected natural environment where sloths live in their habitat. You watch them move among the trees and learn about their behavior and conservation from your guide, rather than viewing them in enclosures.

Do you actually taste the coffee and chocolate, or just see how they're made?

You taste both. At the coffee plantation, you taste Costa Rican coffee after learning how the beans are harvested and dried. At the cacao farm, you taste artisanal chocolate made from local cacao and can taste the differences between varieties.

Is this tour crowded, or do you move at your own pace?

It's a private tour, so it's just you, your guide and your vehicle. The itinerary adapts to your interests and pace, and you avoid the crowds that gather at the main attractions during peak hours.

How long is the hike, and how difficult is it?

The tour includes hiking trails in Tenorio Volcano National Park, but the operator structures the day around multiple activities rather than a single long trek. You'll need a moderate level of fitness. The tour is not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health.