Venado Caves
by mim95
The Venado Caves are located about an hour drive northwest of La Fortuna. It is all natural inside - there is no lights, stairs, railings. You get a helmet, flashlight and rubber boots at the entrance. Once you are inside, at first there is some water on the ground, but as you go further in, the water level rises higher, to a point that it starts to go into your boots! Some parts of the caves are very narrow and there is a part that is so small that the only way to get through is to crawl! At some point, you'll have to use all your strength to climb up the rocks to keep going. You'll also pass through waterfalls as well.
The limestone rock formations are beautiful, which take thousands of years to form. There are also some strange cicular holes on the ceiling of the caves, which are still unexplained as to how and why they are there.
There are bats, fish (yes, I forgot what they are called but they are blind) and spiders inside the caves.
Most ppl take a tour from La Fortuna, which was how I got there. Shop around for the best prices in town. I'm not sure if you can get a guide if you go there on your own.
Definitely bring a towel and a change of clothes, as you'll get wet and dirty! And don't wear anything nice. There is a shower facility at the entrance. And there is a lot of walking, climbing and crawling inside the caves. This is a demanding tour for physically fit ppl only.
Drink Fresh Coconut Juice
by twoinluv
At the entrance to the La Fortuna waterfalls little boys are selling fresh coconua juice. They use their machete to slice off the top of the coconut. They have unwrapped straws which they hand to you and you poke your straw down inside of the coconut. It is refreshing after the long, hot hike to the waterfalls.
Arenal Volcano (2)
by SumTingWong
If you go to Fortuna you must see the Arenal Volcano. The town was made around the volcano, and almost everything dealing with tourist revolves around the volcano. It is very active and at night be sure to look up and some red lava chunks falling out of the rim, looks like fireworks. During the day head over to the Volcan Arenal Parque National and take a hike around the base of the volcano. Be sure to be very quiet and you can hear the rumbeling of the volcano. Also about every three minutes a car-sized chunk of lava falls from the rim and tumbels down the side of the volcano, it appears like a falling cloud down the volcano during the day and a firework at night. Really awesome!
I guided tour of the national park is extremely informative and interesting. My guide, Frank, told me many interesting things about Arenal. The last time Arenal erupted was in 1968, and wiped out the entire town under it. If you, or your guide, has binoculars, bring them so you can see the lava comming out of the rim to the volcano.
Canopy Ziplining from tree to tree
by twoinluv
We ziplined in the canopy/tree tops. The ziplining was 15 lines for a total of 3 kilometers. It was very safe. We felt comfortable the entire time. It is held on the property of the Los Lagos Resort www.hotelloslagos.com
It lasted about 1.5 hours. They gave us a 10 minute safety briefing and instruction, then they took us to the top of the mountain to zipline to the bottom. It was fantastic. Again, I stress that it is very safe. I think it cost us $35 per person.
Baldi Termae Hot Springs
by twoinluv
As you can see, Baldi Hot Springs has a fairly large swim up bar, so if you want the music and drinking experience while enjoying hot springs you can do so here. Go to Tabacon or Las Fuentes (least expensive and most exotic) if you want a natural experience.
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Las Cabanitas Resort
Church with volcano behind
Looking for the tucan in El Silencio
Volcan Arenal
