Río Celeste, Costa Rica
The drive from La Fortuna to Rio Celeste is about 1.5 hours.
Pro planning tip: If you are driving from La Fortuna – Guanacaste (like Tamarindo/Playas del Coco), you can stop by Rio Celeste on your way. Carefully and completely cover all your luggage in the car, park as close as possible to the ticket office and take ALL valuables (wallet, credit card, passport, phone, etc.) with you. We recommend to leave La Fortuna early around 7 AM to get to the park around 9 AM, hike around 3 hours, have lunch and depart Bijagua by 2 PM to drive 2-2.5 hours to your final destination in the daylight. *These are our tips but we are not responsible if something happens to your car or belongings as everyone needs to take extreme caution when leaving valuables in the car in Costa Rica.*
The Tenorio Volcano National Park entrance fee for adults is $12 USD, $5 USD for children (ages 2-12) plus tax. Credit/debit card only (Visa/Mastercard) – no cash. **As of August 1, 2023, the national park will require all visitors to purchase park tickets online beforehand on the SINAC website. They no longer sell tickets at the door. Please note we have NO affiliation with SINAC so if you are having trouble on their website, please contact them directly for help. They have set up an area with Wifi near the entrance so you can use Internet to buy tickets on your phone.**
Parking is ~2000 colones per car, cash only. Give this to the parking attendant that comes up to you when you park. They will hand you a slip of paper in return, which you must display on your car dash.