Arenal Volcano, Province of Alajuela, Costa Rica

4TangoNY 5:00 PM Dec 27, 2021

Magnificent mountain in the middle of the country
It’s a beautiful volcano mountain. Unfortunately when we visited one of the resorts nearby in the end of December 2021, the weather was pretty usual for La Fortuna area - rainy or cloudy. We could not even see the Arenal in 4 days we stayed right in front of it. Just bear this in mind. Also, the local driver told us that most people don’t regard weather channel here in Costa Rica seriously as the weather changes rapidly at times. Be ready for rain and shine. We would still recommend to visit the Arenal Volcano area if you are in Costa Rica to explore the country.

4Ken E 5:00 PM Mar 28, 2022

Expected a simple trail; got a moderate hike with lots of steep and slippery portions
Volcan Arenal is a picturesque national park. Our $19/per person admission gained us entry into a large park, but there were only 20 other cars in the parking lot. We encountered a few small groups on the trail but were largely on our own. We had planned our hikes utilizing guide books, but those trails were not offered by the park. There are no brochures available. A park employee discusses the hike options and one can photograph the map of the trails. The signage is adequate. We hiked the Sendero Lava Vieja trail (the red trail). It was 4 km, or 2.5 miles, taking 2 hours to hike this loop trail. It was nearly all uphill on the way to the high point of the trail, where a close-up view of Volcan Arenal could be had. We saw many blooming orchids along the way. The initial and final portions of the trail passed through second-growth rainforest. We did see a variety of birds, primarily in the clearings. The Sendero Lava Vieja loop trail terminates at the restaurant on beautifully manicured gardens. Bathrooms were clean and well-maintained. Another optional trail (the forest trail) was much longer and passed through more forested area, and a duck lake. It seems like this trail was twice as long, and included parts of the Lava trail. There are many opportunities to see a great view of Volcan Arenal in the surrounding areas. It seemed it was a lot of effort for little payoff.