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Rio Celeste y Los Teñideros

Rio Celeste y Los Teñideros: Our most recommended tours and activities

From La Fortuna: Rio Celeste Full-Day Tour

1. From La Fortuna: Rio Celeste Full-Day Tour

Start your full-day tour with a scenic drive from La Fortuna to the Tenorio Volcano National Park. Head out on a 4-hour hike that will take some effort but is definitely worth it. At the end of the hike you’ll have reached the Rio Celeste. The river’s blue color is the result of a chemical reaction between 2 merging rivers having different volcanic minerals. This rare phenomenon creates a fairy tale-like beauty. Visit a waterfall and a lookout point for great views and see the place where the river changes color. Your guide will point out local wildlife on this adventure as well. After your hike, enjoy a delicious lunch before the drive back to La Fortuna.

Katira: Adventure Zipline Tour in Rio Celeste

2. Katira: Adventure Zipline Tour in Rio Celeste

The best combo tour in Costa Rica, fantastic zip line adventure in Rio Celeste, the only adventure of its kind in the area. It is a special tour, with 7 lines and from the heights you can observe the majestic river, fauna such as birds, sloths and endemic trees of Costa Rica. The best combo tour in Costa Rica, fantastic zip line adventure in Rio Celeste, the only adventure of its kind in the area. It is a special tour, with 7 lines and from the heights you can observe the majestic river, fauna such as birds, sloths and endemic trees of Costa Rica

Rio Celeste: Tubing Tour with Snacks and Drinks

3. Rio Celeste: Tubing Tour with Snacks and Drinks

Expereince the rush of spilling over the rapids of the turquoise Celeste River on this tubing tour in Katira. Spot colorful birds, monkeys, and frogs as you float safely along with the provided safety helmet and life vest. Refuel with some delicious fruit and drinks that are included in the tour.  Meet your guide and get set up with your well-maintained tubing gear. Set off down the river through dense jungle over the blue water. Keep an eye out for local birds like toucans, bear-necked umbrella birds, woodpeckers, and hummingbirds.  Awaken your inner adrenaline junkie as you glide over rapids on this family-friendly adventure. Relax and get some incredible photos of this area that is just outside the Tenorio National Park. 

Río Celeste National Park Hike

4. Río Celeste National Park Hike

Once we arrive to the Río Celeste National Park, you may use the facilities to get ready and look at the information booth provided by the Río Celeste National Park. We will then begin a hike through the dense, lush, tropical rainforest that surrounds the Río Celeste National Park. The hike is approximately 3-miles long and considered intermediate. You and your naturalist guide go at your own pace and you'll learn interesting things about the rainforest along the way. We then arrive to "Los Teñíderos" where two rivers come together to form the celestial, turquoise blue water color that gives the waterfall its name "Celeste." We'll return, walking back through the Rio Celeste National Park to the "Ollas" -- or mud baths -- and take a moment to relax in the natural hot springs. For the grand finale, we then walk-on further to see the spectacular Río Celeste waterfall - the perfect place to take photos. We finish off with a delicious lunch at a local restaurant and then head back to La Fortuna. Please note: the Río Celeste waterfall may lose its blue color during rainstorms. Our policy is to advise clients the day of the tour if it is raining in the area and offer the tour for the following day, should clients want to postpone or change to a different tour. No refunds for inclement weather.

La Fortuna: Rio Celeste Hike

5. La Fortuna: Rio Celeste Hike

After being collected from your accommodation in La Fortuna, you will make your way to Rio Celeste. Rio Celeste is located in one of the most beautiful areas of Costa Rica, and on a clear day, it is possible to receive spectacular views. Upon arrival to the park you will set off on a 7-kilometer hike, which passes by the River Celeste Waterfall, the Tenorio Lookout, the Blue Lagoon (a great place for taking pictures), and Borbollones (little geisers), before you finally arrive to Teñideros.  In this area, mother nature magically mixes the water of two crystal clear streams, changing the water's color to a beautiful bright, light blue (hence the name Rio Celeste, or "Light-Blue River"). After visiting the most beautiful places of this park there is a tough hike back to the park entrance, where you will have a delicious, well-deserved lunch waiting for you.

Katira: Adventure Tubing and Zipline Tour in Rio Celeste

6. Katira: Adventure Tubing and Zipline Tour in Rio Celeste

The best combo tour in Costa Rica, fantastic zip line adventure in Rio Celeste, the only adventure of its kind in the area. It is a special tour, with 7 lines and from the heights you can observe the majestic river, fauna such as birds, sloths and endemic trees of Costa Rica, our guided tour is incredible, fun together with our famous tubing tour, an adventure through the river with rapids, adrenaline, pools of water for swimming. It is an adventure that you cannot miss when you visit Costa Rica.

La Fortuna: Rio Celeste Full Day Tour

7. La Fortuna: Rio Celeste Full Day Tour

Discover one of the hidden mysteries of Costa Rica tucked next to the Tenorio´s Volcano. We will take a 4 hours hike through the beautiful rainforest. Along the way, we will visit the Los Teñideros, a magical place where two streams with different minerals and chemical composition meet and change the water to a heavenly turquoise blue color. At the last stop we will enjoy the magnificent Rio Celeste Waterfall. After the national park we will stop for a picture with our giant ARBOL DE LA PAZ. Once on the way we will have a delicious costarican lunch, after we will hike trought the farm to check cacao, pineaple, corn, banana and many more plantations to finish enjoing a pristine pool in the Rio Celeste to swim. After this relaxing time we are ready to come back to La Fortuna.

Other Sightseeing Options in Rio Celeste y Los Teñideros

Want to discover all there is to do in Rio Celeste y Los Teñideros? Click here for a full list.

What people are saying about Rio Celeste y Los Teñideros

Overall rating

4.7 / 5

based on 85 reviews

Had a wonderful time exploring Rio Celeste on this tour! The hike was a good workout (3.5+ mi with a lot of stairs down/up to the waterfall), which I really enjoyed. Mario was an awesome, energetic guide who made the experience fun. Rio Celeste is a must-see in Costa Rica - would highly recommend this tour esp if you’re a solo traveler!

Our guide, Christian, was excellent! He was extremely knowledgeable and could spot hidden wildlife easily. He was funny and made our hike bearable, as it heavily rained midway through our tour. He showed us the best spots for photographs, and served as our photographer! We also ate a delicious local lunch! I highly recommend this tour.

LOVED this park! Our guide was great, she allowed us the time to enjoy the details of the jungle, while still making sure we made it all the way out and back in time! Definitely recommend going to Rio Celeste, and this tour was a wonderful way to see it!

I definitely recommend this trip. Santiago was super nice, knowledgeable and made sure everyone had a great time. Rio Celeste was very beautiful. Swimming in the river was great and even the food was very tasty. All in all a perfect tour.

It was a really nice tour! The water was not so blue because of the rain and clouds but it was still very enjoyable. Our guide showed us two snakes, a frog, caterpillar, monkeys and many plants that smelled and tasted amazing!