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La Paz Waterfalls: Costa Rica's Rainforest Gem
4.6
38 Ratings
Fraijanes
Discover La Paz Waterfall Gardens: Hike, see wildlife, and enjoy a buffet lunch. Experience Costa Rica’s natural beauty with five majestic waterfalls.
Discover La Paz Waterfall Gardens: Hike, see wildlife, and enjoy a buffet lunch. Experience Costa Rica’s natural beauty with five majestic waterfalls.
Duration:
7 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Fraijanes - As the journey progresses uphill, a noticeable shift in temperature and vegetation will occur. Travelers will encounter coffee plantations, along with fern, flower, and strawberry farms, offering a stunning display of colors and textures.
- La Paz Waterfall Gardens - The journey continues to La Paz Waterfalls. Upon arrival, a scenic…
- Fraijanes - As the journey progresses uphill, a noticeable shift in temperature and vegetation will occur. Travelers will encounter coffee plantations, along with fern, flower, and strawberry farms, offering a stunning display of colors and textures.
- La Paz Waterfall Gardens - The journey continues to La Paz Waterfalls. Upon arrival, a scenic trail leads to various park attractions, including an aviary, the country’s largest butterfly observatory, a hummingbird gallery, a serpentarium, and exhibits of frogs, monkeys, and cats. A delightful buffet lunch is served amidst the rainforest, followed by a hike to visit three magnificent natural waterfalls created by the La Paz River. This hike takes place in the tropical rainforest area and includes steps along some parts of the paved trail.
Travelers will be picked up from San José between 10:20 am and 11 am. The time spent in the gardens is approximately 3 hours.
The estimated return to San José is at 6:00 pm.
What's Included
- Transportation included from San Jose Hotels and nearby
- Certified Bilingual Tour Guide during the visit to La Paz Waterfalls
- Entrance Fee/Admission La Paz Waterfall Gardens
- Lunch
- In-vehicle air conditioning
- All fees and/or taxes
- Special meal restrictions or allergies accommodated
- Transportation included from San Jose Hotels and nearby
- Certified Bilingual Tour Guide during the visit to La Paz Waterfalls
- Entrance Fee/Admission La Paz Waterfall Gardens
- Lunch
- In-vehicle air conditioning
- All fees and/or taxes
- Special meal restrictions or allergies accommodated
What's Not Included
- Tips
- Bottled water
- Tips
- Bottled water
Additional Information
Explore the stunning rainforest of Costa Rica with a full-day excursion to La Paz Waterfall Gardens, a renowned nature park in the country. Traverse lush jungle paths and witness the incredible biodiversity of this tropical haven.
Visit the butterfly observatory, home to the magnificent blue morpho, and explore wildlife exhibits where you might encounter…
Explore the stunning rainforest of Costa Rica with a full-day excursion to La Paz Waterfall Gardens, a renowned nature park in the country. Traverse lush jungle paths and witness the incredible biodiversity of this tropical haven.
Visit the butterfly observatory, home to the magnificent blue morpho, and explore wildlife exhibits where you might encounter pumas, monkeys, toucans, vibrant tropical birds, and other native species. Wander through the captivating orchid, hummingbird, and frog gardens, and marvel at five breathtaking waterfalls set against the dramatic backdrop of cloud-forest landscapes — a paradise for nature enthusiasts and photographers.
Savor a delightful buffet-style lunch featuring Costa Rican specialties and international cuisine before continuing your exploration of this enchanting natural sanctuary.
Ideal for families, couples, and eco-travelers, this tour combines wildlife, waterfalls, and rainforest exploration into one memorable experience near San José.
- What to bring? Hat – Jacket - Walking shoes - Insect repellent - Binoculars – Camera – Raincoat
- If you are travelling with children please let us know their ages, during the booking process
Location
Fraijanes
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(38 Ratings)
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Sm73am67
Feb 24, 2026
La Paz Waterfalls & Wildlife Sanctuary Guided tour - It's a great way to get to see some countryside out of the SJO area. And the
Waterfall Gardens are beautiful. This was a guided tour with Eric, our guide, and Roy our driver. We took this tour on a Saturday, so there were a few more people than expected, plus some extra traffic near the
Gardens. There were some logistics to deal with, as we were switched to another van, but it was done at a very nice stop, food, drinks, souvenirs. We as a group decided to tour the wildlife sanctuary first. Eric was very knowledgeable about the program, and how it worked. Lunch was next, and it rated 5 stars as well. Fresh, selections were very good, and a very nice setting. We then did the Waterfalls, and they were beautiful.
See pics. Note, there are stairs involved and to see all 5 falls there is some walking involved, and stair climbing. Be in decent shape to do all 5. We did 2!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
James_t
Jan 27, 2026
Good day trip from San Jose - A good day out from San Jose. The trip involves passing through countryside and coffee plantations and local villages. La Paz has a large variety of Nature exhibits and several impressive waterfalls but viewing them involves quite a lot of steps up and down
Review provided by Viator
Maddison_h
Jan 4, 2026
I had an amazing... - I had an amazing experience and felt so comfortable being a solo traveler. My tour guide was amazing.
Review provided by Viator
Jenny
Dec 14, 2025
La Paz Waterfall Gardens provides a wonderful concentrated experience of Costa Rica,showcasing the wildlife & waterfalls - I enjoyed seeing the butterflies and the rescued animals. The waterfalls are stunning. The buffet lunch was satisfying
Review provided by Tripadvisor
D2387rnjohanl
Oct 18, 2025
Recommended! - A great daytrip! Strongly recommended! The guide was great, the driver drove safe and the minibus was very nice! The lunch was very, very good.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
P_p
Oct 3, 2025
It’s a great experience,... - It’s a great experience, very chill, nothing rushed, saw a bunch of animals, really cool. Lunch was also very delicious.
Review provided by Viator
Paulette_n
Sep 27, 2025
Fabulous - This was the most fabulous day. Gardens, birds, butterflies, snakes, and beautiful jungle cats. And of course, the beautiful waterfalls do you keep in mind there are hundreds of steps so be prepared with your walking stick! It was an absolutely perfect day on the other hand, I did Tortuga Island Yesterday and I was very disappointed. The advertisement did not say anything about swimming or snorkeling so I was not at all prepared and ended up having to purchase a swim dress for after I was sending in my clothes and we were on the island for five hours with absolutely nothing to do Unless you wanted to pay more money, fortunately I had my book with me. Very disappointing day. We got dressed with the rain coming back on the boat, I don’t think I’ve ever been that wet! That was not necessarily a bad thing except for snorkeling. It was the adventure of the day!
Review provided by Viator
Gloriafn5939qi
Nov 17, 2025
Great location but poorly guided. - The tour itself was amazing. There were smaller crowds due to the weather. Admission fee was included in our tour. Beautiful location and wonderful people. Families would enjoy this but it is very physically demanding because of the stairs. The guide however, was a little sporadic. He would disappear, and he didn't seem to know where anything was. He rushed us through a lot of the tour due to the lateness. The pick-ups took so long that it really cut into our time in the park and seeing the animals. That made it less enjoyable.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Stacey_j
Jan 11, 2026
Don’t bother with the tour. Just do it solo. - The actual waterfall gardens were great lots of lovely animals and wildlife. However this is advertised as a full day tour which only true in some aspects and for all the wrong reasons. I was picked up at 10:30, we stopped off a a shop around 12:30 which was fine and was good for buying souvenirs. However when we left there we were about 20 mins away from the falls yet we pulled over again a few minutes later. The driver then told us we had to wait 10 minutes for another bus with more people on to take us the rest of the journey. 10 minutes turned into 45 and we didn’t arrive at the gardens until 14:00. At this point we had been faffing about for over 3 hours and no one had eaten as lunch was supposed to be included. The actual gardens are lovely and I would recommend you go here just not with the tour group. We didn’t eat until 15:00 due to the lunch being halfway through the tour of the gardens. 3 hours is enough to see all the gardens and waterfalls and eat lunch so that was fine. We left about 17:00 but didn’t get back to the hotel until 19:30 as we were made to stop at the same shop we had already been to in the morning due to the other people on the second bus having not been there before.
So ultimately what was advertised as a 6 hour tour with 3 hours of actual tour turned into sitting on a bus/coach for 6 hours then 3 at the actual garden, including lunch. Not worth the money and faff, just uber it there and buy your own ticket, if you’re with a group then it will probably be cheaper than a tour anyway and you don’t need the tour guides anyway even though they were nice people if you can read a sign (everything is labelled in the park). You don’t need them. I wish I could get my money back.
Review provided by Viator
Dawn_m
Jan 20, 2026
Gardens are good but this tour isn’t. - Very disappointed in this tour. Pickup was at 10:30, which was fine. The bus drove to a location with an ok view and a store and said we would be there for 30 minutes. Then back on the bus and to another store for another 30 minutes. Driver spoke no English so no one knew what was going on. I txted the operator and they said it was a bus transfer. Then we actually got to the gardens, which was really nice. Then, back on the bus and back to one of the stores we had already been at, for just 20 minutes this time. And back to the hotel at 7:30.
If this tour had disclosed the 3 shopping stops and the late return I would not have chosen it. I chose it because it said it was a 6-7 hour tour starting at 10:30. I missed a 6:00 dinner planned with a group tour.
Again, the gardens are nice, but unless you have lots of time and like to shop, choose another tour. Our hotel offered one that would have been better. had the description been accurate I would not have chosen it.
Review provided by Viator
