Published on Oct, 2024

We contracted Olman Arce Mejía (recommended highly by the Marriott Hotel Hacienda Belen) for a full day tour with a focus on the Poas Volcano and the La Paz Waterfalls & Gardens. Our expectations were greatly exceeded and the tour was truly memorable. We were picked up early in the morning for the trip to Poas Volcano as many Costa Ricans we spoke to emphasized that the volcano may not be visible in the late morning and afternoon. Upon our arrival we were initially disappointed as the early morning fog was blocking the view of the volcano. We chose to wait it out and take a hike to nearby Botos Laguna. The hike was through the forest around the volcano was amazing. The vegetation and wildlife was one of a kind. On an aside, the hike is not for those who struggle with hiking up and down paths for an hour or so. We were pleasantly surprised upon our return to see that the fog had burned off and the spectacular view of the Poas Volcano crater was staring us right in front of our eyes! The view was truly beautiful and we stood there in awe taking pictures from the different platforms overlooking the crater. We were fortunate enough to see steam spewing from cracks around the crater! We then drove about 30 minutes or so to the La Paz Waterfalls and Garden. We hiked through the gardens and observed the wildlife in their enclosures as well as all of the gorgeous flowers and plants. We saw toucans, parrots, sloths, butterflies, mountain lions, snakes, frogs, etc...After a delicious lunch, we then made our way down to the waterfalls along a path perfectly constructed with the objective of blending into the environment. The series of waterfalls were stunning and we loved the opportunity to view these falls up close! Finally, we made our way to the coffee plantation and also had the opportunity to visit Starbuck's coffee processing facility nearby. All in all it was an incredible day and our host, Olman, did a great job acting as our tour guide. Highly recommended and well worth it!

Published on Jun, 2024

This tour was a perfect introduction to Costa Rica’s stunning nature and rich coffee culture. I highly recommend! The tour started with a 7:30 am pick up by Carlos, our driver and tour guide. We started out by visiting Hacienda Alsacia, the Starbucks coffee farm in Costa Rica. We then moved on to Poaz Volcano, but the visibility was very low due to fog. Carlos assured us he’s never missed the volcano when taking his groups out, and true to his word, we got some glimpses of volcanic activity before the fog returned and our 20-minute viewing time ended. The highlight of the tour was the Mi Cafecito farm visit, which included a traditional Casado lunch, coffee after lunch, and a demonstration on coffee production. Luna the dog then led us on a short jungle trek towards Congo Waterfalls, where we spotted monkeys amidst the lush greenery. Great day.