Backroad Mountain Biking Around Lake Arenal, Arenal/La Fortuna

Get your thrills at Sky Trek, a zip line circuit and aerial amusement park. You'll start in an open-air gondola, rising up over the rainforest and enjoying sweeping views across the mountains. Arriving at the end of the line, the exhilarating adventure of whizzing down the mountain begins. Connect to a zip line cable stretching over rainforest treetops and clifftops. After traversing seven cables and reaching heights of 660 feet (201 meters), you'll arrive back at the starting point of the adrenaline-pumping adventure.

Embark on a guided adventure through Arenal Volcano 1968 Park, where you'll find the Arenal Volcano. As you navigate the path around the volcano's base, your expert guide will point out exotic birds, monkeys, and other creatures. You'll continue your hike through segments of the park that the lava flow affected during the volcanic eruption in 1968 that left the landscape devoid of vegetation. This unique terrain offers beautiful vistas of the crystal-clear Lake Arenal and the dormant Cerro Chato Volcano.

Explore the landscapes around the Arenal volcano on horseback with this scenic, three-hour excursion. Once you're paired with the perfect mount, you'll journey through diverse landscapes of farmland and forests as your seasoned guide points out local flora and fauna. Pause at a lagoon for photos, then ascend a high viewpoint for panoramic volcano views. Ideal for nature and animal lovers, this excursion offers a captivating glimpse into the region's natural beauty.

Embark on an adrenaline-pumping whitewater rafting adventure down the Río Balsa. You'll transfer from La Fortuna to the put-in spot on the river, where your guide will give you safety instructions and outfit you with a helmet and life vest. Then, push off into the current and start paddling through rolling Class II and III rapids with names like Morning Coffee and Rock around the Croc. Enjoy wildlife spotting along the way—you'll even have a chance to swim while passing through calmer stretches of the river. 

Explore the thrilling Arenal Hanging Bridges on this popular excursion. The trail system, located inside a rainforest reserve, features suspension bridges that take you high above the treetops before treating you to a once-in-a-lifetime view of Arenal Volcano. Venturing along these spectacular elevated walkways, up to 180 feet (55 meters) above the rainforest floor, you'll have a chance to appreciate this area's incredible biodiversity, including some of the 350 avian species that live here.

First, you'll head towards the base of the volcano to hike Arenal 1968. This is a network of trails named after Arenal's last major eruption. The event was so catastrophic it transformed some of the region’s topography, and lava fields now dominate one side of the volcano. The trails wind through those lava fields as well as the surrounding rainforest. Along the way, you'll find lookout points featuring prime views of Arenal.

Later in the afternoon, you'll experience the other star of the Arenal Volcano region: La Fortuna Waterfall. If Arenal is the most famous volcano in the country, then La Fortuna is easily the most famous falls. It's located a 15-minute drive from the town of La Fortuna, at the base of the dormant Chato Volcano. The waters here plunge 210 feet into a tropical lagoon, and a 500-step downhill hike provides the opportunity to see the falls from the bottom up. Besides taking photos, be sure to swim and relax in the La Fortuna River below the falls.

After a boat takes you to the center of Lake Arenal, you'll enjoy a 2.5-hour SUP session, complete with stunning views of Arenal Volcano, mountain vistas, and an island teeming with waterbirds.