volcanogirl

I'm curious about doing the Rio Celeste hike. If you've done it, where did you stay? Which hotels will get you the closest? I've seen the Rio Celeste Hideaway suggested and also La Carolina Lodge. Are those good choices? Any others you would recommend? I know you can go from Arenal, but I think we'd like to stay closer to the area for a couple of nights. Thanks for any guidance you can give me!

Eliot_Greenspan

Both of those are great hotels, and I've loved my stay at both.

La Carolina is very simple and rustic, but with a great location, a converted old farmhouse on a bend in the river...

RC Hideway much newer and more luxurious.

Both are great bases for hiking RCeleste and exploring the area

volcanogirl

Thanks, Eliot. Are there any other activities you would recommend in the area?

How long would the hike to the falls and back take from each hotel do you think?

volcanogirl

In addition to other activities, I'd also like to know what kind of wildlife can be spotted in the area. How is it for birding and wildlife? Thanks for the help.

coryandcarissa

Volcanogirl, I don't have an answer for you now, however after our trip to CR in April, I will no doubt have an excellent report to give you both on the Rio Celeste Hike and our stay on La Carolina Lodge. Per the La Carolina website from the trailhead to the Rio Celeste falls it is 1.2 miles (which of course I've heard can be steep, muddy, etc.) but at such a short distance, I think most anyone could trudge through given the reward at the end! I'll be doing the hike with my 3 year old on my back. Glad I had lots of practice with this over the summer! In the meantime, happy planning!

volcanogirl

Thanks for the info. c and c. Wow only 1.2 miles? I was imagining much longer. I'll look forward to hearing how it was when you get back. I hope you get to see the beautiful colors and have no rain!

colibri

VG - I'll do a trip report after I return, will be there Feb. 10 and 11, but not back until March 1. I have read you should do the falls last, go to the thermal pools, river, etc. first to see the blending of the colors. Most people spend 1/2 day hiking the trails.

volcanogirl

col, I can't wait to hear your report too. Have a wonderful trip. Do most people go on their own or with a guide?

colibri

VG - I think most people use a guide. I believe Alejandro from La Carolina takes guests there, so we will probably go with him, although you can easily go on your own. I'll leave it up to my friends, but I know we would see a lot more with him!

I'm just praying for dry weather since I have read it is not worth the hike if it's been raining - colors become diluted, muddy, etc.

volcanogirl

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Happy travels!

Cattail

Hi, vc, We just returned from two weeks in CR, including five nights at La Carolina. It was our favorite of three spots we visited this trip. Yes, rustic, but very charming and friendly.

The trail to the waterfall wasn't long; 1.2 miles sounds about right, but adding on to the pools and the rest that colibri mentioned makes it a good half-day trek. It had been raining on and off for several days before we went, so the trail was indeed muddy, but at least it wasn't hot. The pools had retained their gorgeous blue hue. We didn't see a lot of wildlife other than some lovely birds our entire time at La Carolina, a blue jeans poison dart frog, and a couple of snakes.

You do not need a guide, but you do need transportation to the trailhead and back. La Carolina includes horseback riding, fishing and paddling on their own small man-made lake, and a guide if you want one (though sometimes they charge a super-minimal fee for shorter stays) in their rates.

volcanogirl

Thanks for the great info., cat. I'm glad you got to see the pools in their beautiful blue color. I always think it would be a bummer to hike all that way and then have them be muddy. Are you going to do a trip report? La Carolina always seems to get good reviews.

Cattail

A short one - La Carolina, Nosara, and Rincon de la Vieja.

colibri

VG - just back from our adventures, no trip report yet, thousands of photos to edit! But we loved, loved, loved La Carolina and Rio Celeste.

We lucked out - dry weather, trail was still a bit muddy, but no problem walking up to the falls. The color is just the most incredible turquoise blue - absolutely amazing!!! When we arrived we were the only three people there - just magical, totally unlike anywhere else in CR.

Alejandro was in the midst of cataract surgery, so Juan Carlos went to the falls with us. We saw a couple of trogons in the park, but nothing else, no problem as our goal was to see the waterfall.

We had a private cabin with our own hot tub on the back porch that overlooked the river - rustic, but clean and comfy. We would absolutely stay there again, will include more info in my trip report.

Be forewarned once you leave the paved highway at Bijagua the roads are the worst I've ever experienced - and that includes MV, the Osa and AOL!! I was driving and we did survive - LOL!!

volcanogirl

Thanks for all the feedback, col - I'm so glad you got to see the falls in all their glory!

virhua

Hi Volcano Girl, we did a driving tour to Arenal (stayed at the Arenal Observatory Lodge and Birdsong Villa both were great) then drove to Bijagua de Upala and stayed at the charming Casitas Tenorio which is a small bed and breakfast run by Donald and Pippa Varela (he is Tico and she is Australian). They have two charming casitas you can stay at on their farm, we had fresh milk and eggs for breakfast from their cows and chickens. We drove our rental car to the Rio Celeste and had a wonderful hike to see the falls. I agree with everyone else's observations about the wildlife, we didn't see much, but the whole point of the hike is to see the falls, hot springs, and place where the muddy river mixes with the blue waters, gorgeous! We didn't feel a guide was necessary. Donald is a fantastic guide and we loved the night walk we took with him to a local Tico's property that had been turned into a frog sanctuary. We also did an all day guided tour to the Cano Negro Wildlfe Refuge (it was a covered boat tour on the river) - fantastic birdlife and caiman viewing. Our guide also took us to a place where we could view the rare Jabiru stork's nests. I don't want to bore you with yet another video show but if you are interested, let me know and I can send you a link to the pictures we took of our trip to Arenal - Bijagua - Miramar last year in Feb. 2012.

volcanogirl

V, that sounds like a great trip. Can you post the link here? We love the Cano Negro tour, have done that a few times but have never seen the Jabiru storks - that sounds amazing. I never tire of seeing pics or videos of CR!

virhua

Hi VG,

I just read some of your trip reports, they are so entertaining! Here is a link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAWmo...4p8pOgD5_5-KKw

The first 3 minutes are of Poas, Arenal Observatory Lodge and Birdsong in El Castillo, the rest shows footage from Casitas Tenorio, our Rio Celeste Hike, and Cano Negro tour with a couple of pictures of the Jabiru stork nest taken through our guide's spotting scope.

Enjoy!

volcanogirl

Thanks, v - I loved your video - so many great pictures, and the music paired with it fits perfectly. Rio Celeste looks amazing. Cool to see the Jabiru stork too.

virhua

Glad you enjoyed the video Hope you enjoy Rio Celeste!