The 15 Best San Jose Volcano Tours

1.Arenal Volcano and Thermal Hot Springs from San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 236 reviews · 13 hours (approx.) · from $195Our pick

Review of the 13-hour Arenal Volcano and hot springs tour from San Jose, with transport, meals, Sarchi, hiking, value, and practical tips.

“This tour makes for a long day. We were picked up at the hotel at 8:30, and weren’t back until 10:30. I was really expecting a relaxing experience at the hot springs, and a lunch with a view of the volcano (like the pictures)- neither happened. We drove 45 mins or so to Sarchi and the Ox Cart Factory (by far the highlight of the tour), and then 3 hours to lunch (not at the Arenal 1968 as advertised), then to a view point at the hotel hot springs - Los Lagos (not the advertised Baldi). The hotel hot springs were not peaceful, or relaxing- lots of families and kids…”

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2.Poás Volcano and Coffee Tour with Tasting and La Paz Falls

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 137 reviews · 7 to 8 hours (approx.) · from $105

Review of the Poás Volcano, Doka coffee plantation, and La Paz Falls tour from San José, with practical advice on weather, timing, and value.

“Wow!! What a great experience! Our tour guide, Victor, was excellent- great knowledge, patient and very accommodating. He provided great recommendations for coffee breaks, food and souvenir shopping. Once we got to Poas Volcano, we were not allowed to enter due to gas activity from the volcano. However, Victor was determined to wait it out until it cleared to provide us the experience which we finally did. No regrets- met great people, took great photos and overall my husband and I had an awesome day!”

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3.Poas Volcano waterfalls and coffee tour from from San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 108 reviews · 8 to 10 hours (approx.) · from $149Top rated

Review of a Poas Volcano, waterfalls, and coffee tour from San Jose, with practical advice on weather, value, guides, and a long day.

“Wonderful experience. We've been a small group of 5 people. Weather was pleasant. Beautiful exotic places - Volcano, waterfalls, jungle. A good professional guide. The cofee tour and the explanation of the making process was very interesting. Recommended.”

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4.Irazú Volcano National Park (Half Day)

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 104 reviews · 6 hours (approx.) · from $99Best value

Review of the Irazú Volcano half-day tour from San José, with crater views, Cartago’s basilica, transport, snacks, price, and practical tips.

“We had a good tour to Irazu Volcano. There were only five of us tourists, so it was a manageable group. We were the only ones when we got to the volcano site. It was pleasant to have the whole area to ourselves. It was a beautiful place t”

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5.Poas Volcano National Park Half Day tour from San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 69 reviews · 6 hours (approx.) · from $135

Review of the Poas Volcano half-day tour from San Jose, covering crater views, breakfast, coffee stops, guides, timing, price, and practical tips.

“Great tour guides Arturo and Armando! Fantastic breakfast and the sights of the volcano were spectacular!”

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6.Rio Celeste Waterfall at Tenorio Volcano and Sloth Watching Tour From San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 60 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $185

Review of the Rio Celeste and sloth tour from San Jose, with hiking, meals, wildlife, transport tips, costs, and honest drawbacks.

“We didn't know anything about Rio Celeste. We booked it because something else was canceled. Compared to the more famous places, we didn't expect much. But the walk in the rain forest, the little animals that we saw, the beautiful vegetation, and finally, the amazing waterfall at the bottom, were unexpectedly beautiful. And the sloth forest was fascinating, with a guide that showed us, in addition to the sloths, so many animals, including a fight between a beautifully colored Motmot and a Thrush over food. All this was narrated by Luis Molina, who very casually, while joking with us, found every animal and bird, shared with us the connection to…”

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7.Poas Volcano + Coffee tour + Waterfall tour day from San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 52 reviews · 10 to 12 hours (approx.) · from $149

Review of a Poas Volcano, Costa Rican coffee, and waterfall day trip from San Jose, with itinerary, value, timing, and practical booking advice.

“You get just enough time at the volcano and waterfall! The coffee tour was pretty cool, and the guide there was very informative.”

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8.Poas Volcano + Coffee Plantations & La Paz Waterfall Gardens Trip from San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 50 reviews · 11 hours (approx.) · from $199

Review of a Poas Volcano, Doka coffee, and La Paz Waterfall Gardens day trip from San Jose, with food, costs, walking, and practical tips.

“terribly cold and windy and you couldn't see the volcano for the clouds Not worth it. Guide was very nice and knowledgeable.”

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9.Day Trip from San Jose to Irazu Volcano National Park, Cartago City and Orosi Valley

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 47 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $149

Review of a San Jose day trip to Irazu Volcano, Cartago, and Orosi Valley, with lunch, transport, guide, costs, and practical tips.

“Private tour, very knowledgeable guide, provided historical background of areas visited, fauna and flora. Personable and fun to spend time with. Flexible at each stop to ensure I had my fill. Excellent driver, felt safe in crazy San Jose traffic at all times.”

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10.3-Days Arenal Volcano Tabacon Resort -Monteverde – Manuel Antonio

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 44 reviews · 3 days (approx.) · from $850

Review of a 3-day Costa Rica tour covering Arenal, Monteverde, hot springs, and Manuel Antonio, with meals, hotels, and transport included.

“My husband and I just took this tour and found it to be a very mixed experience. So I will start with the good and follow with the bad. The best thing is the value. For all that is included, it is a very economical way to see a lot of Costa Rica without having to drive around on all the windy, unfamiliar roads. The tour did include transportation, breakfast, lunch, and hotel for 2 nights. The food was good. We ate traditional Costa Rican food for all but one lunch in La Fortuna - a fairly good Italian restaurant with lots of wine choices. Any alcohol bev's were not…”

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11.Secrets of Guayabo & Irazú Volcano National Park

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 43 reviews · 10 to 12 hours (approx.) · from $183

Review of a full-day Costa Rica tour from San Jose combining Irazu Volcano, Turrialba, Guayabo ruins, farms, and local food.

“Amazing guide, who I ended up sharing the day with alone, as I was the only booked for the tour. He was extremely knowledgeable and friendly, and it was a pleasure spending this experience with him, as he was sharing a lot of knowledge and in general a really nice guy. Be prepared for a lot of hours driving around in a car (and not much hiking, eg on the volcanic trails, which I had expected). We were a bit unlucky with the weather conditions, and couldn’t see Turrialba, a bit disappointing but the overall experience of the tour was great. Thanks Ricco!”

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12.Irazú Volcano, Orosi Valley & Lankester Gardens from San José

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 42 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $137

Review of the Irazú Volcano, Orosi Valley, and Lankester Gardens tour from San José, with practical advice on weather, value, stops, and timing.

“La cratera del volcan eres muy impactante, porque yo pude caminar por ella. Son 3 extensas crateras, y una muy profunda, en el día que yo fue, lluvió mucho y formó un arco iris. No eres posible mirar las dos costas (Pacifico y Caribe), el guia dice a nosostros que solo una vez en 34 años se fue posible mirar las dos en un dia. Em Valle Orosi con ruinas de Ujarras eres hermosa, y el almuerzo se fue en un sitio muy rico.”

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13.Super Combo Tour: Waterfalls Gardens + Coffee Tour + Poás Volcano

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 39 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $199

Review of Costa Rica’s 9-hour combo tour from San José, with Doka coffee, Poás Volcano, La Paz waterfalls, meals, price, and practical tips.

“We were so lucky to see a clear Volcano Poas after we waited a while. It’s so beautiful! I am not interested in Coffee factory and spent a lot time to listen the process of making coffee.”

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14.Doka Coffee Tour, Poas Volcano and La Paz Waterfall Day Trip from San Jose

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 35 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $184

Review of the Doka Coffee Tour, Poás Volcano, and La Paz Waterfall day trip from San José, with meals, tips, value, and practical advice.

“Our tour guide Carlile (not sure about spelling) was awesome! He went above and beyond to make our tour the best. He helped in making sure our picky eater had something to eat. He brought us to Hacienda Alsacia (Starbucks) to see the beautiful views. Took pictures of our group for us so everyone could be in photograph. He was great at explaining our tours. Worked with us on when to eat lunch. Made stops for the smokers. He was as entertaining on the ride as he was for the tour.AWESOME!!!”

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15.3 Days Costa Rica: Arenal Volcano- Monteverde -Manuel Antonio From San José

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 31 reviews · 3 days (approx.) · from $699

Review of a 3-day Costa Rica tour from San José to Arenal, Monteverde, and Manuel Antonio, with hotels, meals, transport, and guides included.

“Our guide Johann was very informative and entertaining in his discussions. We were picked up from our hotel in San Jose on the first morning and driven to Arenal volcano by Oscar (our driver) and Johann. We walked a short distance from the parking lot to the viewing point to view the volcano from a distance. In the afternoon after a sumptuous lunch, we were driven to La Fortuna waterfalls. To get an amazing close-up view of the waterfalls, one has to walk down 530 steps to the bottom and then come back up taking the same 530 steps. It may be an arduous task for some travelers. After checking…”

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