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Hey Elyse!
Thanks so much for reporting back. Great news! Complimentary transportation to/from Arenal Paraiso is included with Desafio’s Arenal Highlights Tour. 🙂
Pura vida!
,Hi Elyse!
Thank you so much for your interest in our discounts! Quick question: Which tour discount(s) are you interested in? Transportation policies vary across tour operators, so once we know which tour(s) you have in mind, we can get back to you about whether Arenal Paraiso will qualify for free transport. 🙂
Pura vida!
,Hi Elyse!
Thank you so much for your interest in our discounts! Quick question: Which tour discount(s) are you interested in? Transportation policies vary across tour operators, so once we know which tour(s) you have in mind, we can get back to you about whether the Trapp Family Lodge will qualify for free transport. 🙂
Pura vida!
,Hi Jane and Arthur!
Thanks so much for your interest in our rafting tour discounts! I can certainly answer your questions for you. 🙂
The exact duration of the rafting tour depends on several factors, including the amount of rain (if any) the region receives the night before the rafting tour, which influences river levels and the speed at which rafting tours run. On average, though, the river trip ends around 2:00pm-2:30pm. Usually, rafters gather at a central meeting place at the end of the river trip (a headquarters of sorts that’s owned by the rafting tour company–the rafting tour company we recommend has their headquarters in Siquirres), where they can change their clothes, buy souvenirs (including photos of the day’s rafting journey), and board the tourism van that’s headed back to their destination. The vans usually get on the road about 3:00pm-3:30pm, but again, this time can vary significantly depending on several factors.
Travelers who don’t want to use the tour operator’s tourism van are welcome to drive themselves to and from the tour operator’s headquarters. From the scenario you explained, it sounds like you ideally want a combination of using the tour operator’s transportation (before the tour) and driving yourself (after the tour). This is certainly possible; the 3 people in your group who want to raft can use the tour operator’s transportation to get to the rafting tour headquarters, and then you can pick up those individuals at the headquarters later in the day after the rafting tour has finished. Though this plan is possible, it will cause you to waste a few hours of drive time backtracking. That’s because when you drive from La Fortuna to Siquirres (where the headquarters is located), you’ll later need to backtrack along part of that same route to get to San Jose and continue on to Manuel Antonio.
If you’d rather not waste the drive time, as an alternative option, you can plan to meet up with the 3 group members at a set place in San Jose. Since the rafting tour can include transportation between La Fortuna and San Jose, the 3 rafters in your group can take the tour operator’s van from La Fortuna to the river, go rafting, then take the van on to San Jose. If you plan to meet up with the rafters in San Jose, you’ll only need to make the trip between La Fortuna and San Jose (an approximate 3-hour drive) as opposed to from La Fortuna to Siquirres and Siquirres to San Jose (an approximate 5-hour drive).
Meeting up in San Jose would be a great option if you’re able to spend the night there. We typically don’t recommend travelers make lengthy drives after dark (it gets dark around 6:00pm), so it would be great to stop in the city, spend the night, and continue driving to Manuel Antonio the next morning to avoid making the 3-hour drive from San Jose to Manuel Antonio after dark, especially after you’ve already spent several hours on the road.
With respect to the different rafting tour operators, you’re right, some have headquarters in Siquirres and some have headquarters in Turrialba, but all raft the same section of the river. Their “put in” and “take out” (i.e., the places where they enter and exit the river) may be slightly different, but the majority of the river trip is the same. All pass by the waterfall, through the canyon, experience the same top rapids, etc.
Lastly, in case you’re interested in further reading about rafting in Costa Rica, don’t miss our related blog posts:
Pacuare River Rafting Tour: https://costaricatravelblog.com/pacuare-river-rafting-tour/
Your Costa Rica Rafting Questions Answered: https://costaricatravelblog.com/costa-rica-rafting-tour-questions/
Pura vida! 🙂
,Hi Kimm!
Thank you so much for your interest in our discounts! I’ll do my best to put your mind at ease, but if you have additional questions, feel free to write back here and I can answer them. 🙂
To confirm, we don’t offer our own tickets for any tours or activities, we simply provide access to discounted rates for the tour operators’ own tickets. For example, if you plan to visit the Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park to tour their hanging bridges, the tickets you’ll purchase will be the park’s own tickets, not ours. The only difference is, by placing your order through our site, you’ll pay the park our discounted rate for their tickets as opposed to their original rate for their tickets. Also to confirm, you won’t pay us for the tickets (we don’t accept any payment for tour operators’ tours or activities), you’ll pay the tour operators directly. So, in this example, if you plan to visit the Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park, the payment you’ll make for their tickets will be made to the park directly, not to us. 🙂
Pura vida!
,Hello Bijal!
Thank you so much for your interest in our services! We are different than most other companies in that we are discount operators, not travel agents. We focus only on providing discounts for Costa Rica day tours (not transfer services or hotels), so unfortunately we won’t be able to assist you with your transportation arrangements. For the tours you’re interested in, we have discounts for several. Please see the links below to the specific pages on our site where you can find more information.
LA FORTUNA/ARENAL
Balsa River Rafting Tour (Class 2/3): https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/balsa-river-rafting-tour-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
Sarapiqui River Rafting Tour (Class 2/3): https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/sarapiqui-river-rafting-tour-class-2-3-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
Canyoning Tour through Pure Trek: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/canyoning-tour-adult-la-fortuna-pure-trek/
Canyoning Tour through Desafio Adventure Company: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/lost-canyon-canyoning-tour-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
Mambo Combo Tour (combined canyoning tour and Balsa River rafting tour): https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/mambo-combo-tour-canyoning-tour-and-balsa-river-rafting-tour-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
Mambo Combo Tour (combined canyoning tour and Sarapiqui River rafting tour): https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/mambo-combo-tour-canyoning-tour-and-sarapiqui-river-rafting-tour-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
For a volcano hiking tour and a tour of the La Fortuna Waterfall, we don’t have discounts for these tours individually, but we do have discounts for a combo tour that includes these experiences: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/arenal-highlights-tour-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
MONTEVERDE
Canopy Tour and (Guided) Hanging Bridges Tour at the Sky Adventures Monteverde Park: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/sky-trek-canopy-tour-ziplining-sky-walk-hanging-bridges-tour-sky-tram-aerial-tram-ride-adult-monteverde-sky-adventures/
Canopy Tour and (Unguided) Hanging Bridges at the Selvatura Park: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/selvatura-canopy-tour-ziplining-and-hanging-bridges-self-guided-adult-monteverde-selvatura/
MANUEL ANTONIO
Manuel Antonio National Park Tour: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/manuel-antonio-national-park-tour-adult-manuel-antonio-desafio-adventure-company/
Mangrove Kayaking Tour: https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/mangrove-kayaking-tour-manuel-antonio-amigos-del-rio/
Pura vida! 🙂
,Hi Silvana!
Thanks so much for your response!
Unfortunately, we won’t be able to provide you with our discount for the Springs Resort hot springs pass this close to your desired visit date, but if you’re able to submit an order through our website for Selvatura’s tour by tomorrow at the latest, we should be able to make that work for the 28th. 🙂
Until soon!
,Hi Silvana!
Quick question: Which exact tour were you hoping to do on the 25th, and which exact tour were you hoping to do on the 28th? We have different arrangements with different tour operators, so whether or not we can rush a discount request for you will depend on which exact tours you’re interested in doing, and on which dates. If you’re able to respond to us asap, depending on the tours you have in mind, we may be able to make them work! 🙂
Pura vida!
,Hi Kumaran!
Correct! The discount voucher you’ll receive for your visit to Vandara will be sent as a PDF document.
For cancelations, you can contact Vandara or us. If it’s a last-minute cancelation, please contact Vandara to ensure they receive your notice to cancel within the window of time they require. If you decide to cancel in advance, you contact us, and we’ll forward your cancelation request to Vandara on your behalf to ensure they process it. For Vandara’s cancelation policy, please see this link: https://puravidaeh.ca/partnerpolicies/vandara-hot-springs-and-adventures/
Pura vida 🙂
,Good morning Isabel!
I can certainly answer your question for you. 🙂
Both the canopy tour and the hanging bridges tour must be experienced together on the same day when requested as a combo tour. It’s possible to arrange both activities for separate days, though, so you can experience the zip-lining tour on one day and the hanging bridges tour on another day if you’d prefer to do so, but the two activities will be treated (and priced) by the tour operator as individual items in that case.
Pura vida!
,Hi Linda!
Thanks so much for your interest in our discounts! 🙂
You’re absolutely correct–the Springs Resort won’t be able to provide availability to you on December 29th because they close availability to the public between December 17th, 2021, and January 8th, 2022. This rule applies to everyone, so, unfortunately, we won’t be able to provide availability for any date within that range of dates either. 🙁
Pura vida!
,Hi Lisa!
Unfortunately, we don’t. At the current time, we only have discounts for the guided hanging bridges tour at Selvatura Park. We do have discounts for the hanging bridges without a guide at Sky Adventures’s Monteverde Park, though, in case that option interests you at all.
Pura vida! 🙂
,Hi Rosemary!
Unfortunately, the tour operator isn’t operating the horseback riding tour between La Fortuna/Arenal and Monteverde at the current moment. They do offer a few other ways to travel between these two destinations while participating in a tour along the way, though. We don’t currently have discounts for any of those experiences, but I can send you a link to the page on the tour operator’s website where you can receive more information. If you decide to proceed with booking any of the tours listed on the page, you’ll just need to request the tour through the tour operator (not us) in that case. Here’s the link: https://www.desafiocostarica.com/transports/la-fortuna-and-arenal-volcano/monteverde/desafio-adventure-connections/option-1
Pura vida! 🙂
,Hey Lisa!
We do! Here are links to where you can find those particular discounts on our site:
Balsa River Rafting Tour (Class 2/3): https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/balsa-river-rafting-tour-adult-la-fortuna-desafio-adventure-company/
Treetop Walkways Natural History Walk (Selvatura’s Hanging Bridges Tour): https://puravidaeh.ca/discounts/treetop-walkways-hanging-bridges-tour-adult-monteverde-selvatura/
Pura vida! 🙂
,Hi Monica!
Thanks so much for your interest in our discounts! 🙂
You’re absolutely correct–the Springs Resort does not provide availability for their hot springs pass between December 17th, 2021, and January 8th, 2022. This rule applies to everyone, so, unfortunately, we won’t be able to provide availability for the hot springs pass between those dates either.
Pura vida!
