Rio Celeste is located in Tenorio Volcano National Park and is one of Costa Rica’s most famous and beautiful waterfalls. The reason why it’s such a beautiful place to visit is because of its stunning turquoise water in the waterfall lagoon and its surrounding rivers. The native Costa Ricans, Maleku, claims the water got its color because God put his brush down here when he was painting the sky with the same color, that’s why they call the place the Heavenly River. The more scientific explanation is that when the Buenavista River with its aluminum and silicon particles meets the South Creek with its acidic water, the suspended articles combine with the scatter light of Rio Celeste and that creates the turquoise color. This phenomenon is called Mea scattering.

The visit to Rio Celeste is divided in a few different stops and sights along the 3.7 miles (6 km) trail. The hike is about 2-3 hours long and our first stop is at the stunning waterfall with its turquoise lagoon called Laguna Azul, the Blue Lagoon. This is a great place to take beautiful pictures to save for memories. As we carry on our hike we will get to walk uphill for a while until we reach a viewpoint. From here we will have amazing views over the tropical rainforest and the mountain areas. After our stop here, we slowly start to descend to Borbollones, a part of the river bubbling with hot springs. From here we walk on over a hanging bridge, which is another perfect photo op. Next we get to the end of the trail where we can see where the rivers meet and how the water changes colors at a place called Tenidoros. This is truly a fascinating thing to see in nature!

This tour is available from Guanacaste, the northwest part of the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica with departure locations such as Papagayo, Flamingo, Conchal, and Tamarindo. This magical place is located between the Pacific Coast and La Fortuna, the cozy mountain town of Volcano Arenal. That means that you can choose to tour from Arenal as well. Swimming is not allowed in the Rio Celeste and the water might be muddy and lose its color during rainy conditions. Then we reschedule your tour to your liking.