Pops’ Costa Rica Travel Guide, La Fortuna

La Fortuna is a town in northern Costa Rica at the base of Arenal volcano and near Lake Arenal. Arenal is a classic looking active volcano and you can see the steam coming out of the top. The last major eruption was in 1968 but it is still active. You can drive from either San Jose or Liberia. Both will take you between 3 and 4 hours. We drove from San Jose. The drive was very scenic with part of the drive through a cloud forest. Driving in Costa Rica is easy and very scenic.

When visiting the volcano, La Fortuna is the place to stay. There is a lot to do in and around the town. You can book most tours at your hotel or on the main street you will see many tour agencies.

Activities include:

There are many zip-lines to choose from.

 

 

Hot Springs flow out directly from the volcano. The larger ones are Baldi and Tobacan hot springs. I have been to Baldi and they also have a hotel there for a resort atmosphere. Baldi had a series of pools and some with swim up bars. The pools had different temperatures. I talked to people that had been to Tobacan and they would also recommend that one. Either one is a must have experience in La Fortuna.

Although for safety concerns you are not allowed to hike on the volcano you can schedule a volcano hike where they will take you as close as you can get. Along the hike you get close up views of the volcano and you might see a monkey or two.

They also offer white water rafting trips.

We tried to do a repelling excursion but due to the weather opted out. The one we wanted to do was repelling down 3 waterfalls. It would have been cool.

 

We hiked from town to the La Fortuna Waterfall which was 5 miles in each direction. When we got there we went swimming in the pool at the bottom of the falls. The cold water felt good. You don’t have to take the 10 mile hike like we did. You can drive directly to the waterfall.

                                                         View from hotel

We stayed at the Hotel Las Colinas which is a boutique hotel in the center of town. They offer a free breakfast cooked to order, the rooms are large and the staff very friendly. It also has a deck on the second floor that has a great view of the volcano and where you can relax and meet fellow travelers. We lucked out finding this hotel. There was a tour group there and we met some really nice people.

For something to eat just walk out the front of the hotel and go in any direction. The main street has many excellent options.

If you are in Costa Rica this is one of the must see areas. Whether you want to relax in a hot spring, or want adventure La Fortuna has it all.