Day trips
from San José

How to use this guide

For anyone based in San José who wants a day out. The trips group by direction, so pick one direction per day. To the north, through Alajuela and Heredia, are Poás Volcano (crater viewpoint), La Paz Waterfall Gardens and the coffee tours at Hacienda Doka and Café Britt. To the east, Cartago brings together Irazú Volcano (Craters sector), the basilica, the Santiago Apóstol church ruins and, a little further on, Lankester Botanical Garden, in Dulce Nombre, and the Orosi Valley lookout.

Do the volcano first and leave the rest for the afternoon: at Poás, cloud usually fills the crater by midday, and at Irazú it pays to arrive around 8:00. From Poás, carry on to La Paz Waterfall Gardens, about 20 min away (allow at least 2 hours), or a coffee tour. From Irazú, drop down to Cartago for the basilica and the ruins, and finish at Lankester or the lookout, which closes at 15:00. Poás is under a green alert, with reduced capacity, and can close at short notice: if it does, Irazú is the nearest alternative with a visible crater.

Rafting takes the whole day. The Pacuare, class III-IV, is for strong rapids; the Sarapiquí, class II-III+, is shorter and gentler, good for first-timers. To the west, the Sarchí giant oxcart and the Zarcero topiary park are stops on the road to La Fortuna. If money is tight, a Cartago day without the volcano is cheap: the ruins and the lookout are free. Barva Volcano, with about 10 km of cloud forest trails, is for those who want to walk.

Tips

• Tickets for Poás, Irazú and Barva are sold online only; at Irazú they are not refunded if the crater is clouded in, and parking at both volcanoes is paid by card.
• Bring a warm layer: Irazú averages 5 to 9 °C, and for Barva add waterproofs. The last stretch from Sacramento is unpaved and a 4x4 is recommended, especially in rain.
• 2 August is a national holiday and over two million people walk to the basilica in the pilgrimage: avoid those dates if you want quiet.
• The minimum age for Pacuare rafting is 12 with Exploradores Outdoors, and for the Sarapiquí, 10 with Ríos Adventure; if you leave from San José, ask about the pickup point and surcharge.
• The inner garden of the ruins opens 8:00 to 16:00, but hours have changed and it sometimes closes; the exterior is always visible.