La Paz Waterfalls

We had a free day before all of our family gathered I. San Jose to begin our vacation. We were at this point a group of 8 , consisting of 4 adults and 4 children ranging from 6-11. A friend teaching in San Jose Costa Rica suggested a day trip to the La Paz waterfall and the Animal recovery in La Paz. VIAJES NANA AND OUR guide, Mauricio Ulloa were incredible. From the start, his explanation of the day was geared to our grandchildren and they became part of the decisions made. We saw a facinating array of animals , many of which we had never seen before. Our hike to the waterfalls was truly beautiful and at our own pace. I would suggest this activity for anyone visiting Costa Rica. With or without children Mauricio Ulloa is a guide that brought our visit to Costa Rica a remarkable journey. I hope you will take the time to enjoy this activity!

The actual tour guide was so kind and knowledgeable but the rest of the trip was awful. I was picked up from my hotel around 1015. The pickup option was super convenient but knowing the weather in Costa Rica I wish it was Earlier to try and beat the weather that passes through mid day. My driver didn’t understand English and my Spanish isn’t that great so we were unable to communicate. We stopped twice for about 5 minutes each time and I have no idea why. After a very very slow drive, two hours later I arrived at a rest stop. A worker at the rest stop informed me I would have to wait here for another van to come pick me up and continue on with the tour. Almost an hour later the other van finally showed up with the rest of the group who then shopped around for 10-15 more minutes. We finally boarded the van and still had a half hour drive to the waterfalls. While in the van the weather finally caught us and it was Down pouring for the rest of the day. The new driver was excellent. The weather so was terrible that it just Made the experience awful. Nothing the guides could of done to make it better. The description of the tour mentions strawberries and stopping to see coffee bushes, a photo opportunity, I never did any of that. The animals were nice but again the awful weather made it so Unappealing. The buffet was mediocre food wise but the views were stunning. We spent more time looking at caged animals than we did the waterfalls. When it finally Came time to see the waterfalls they were stunning and have it not Been torrential down pouring I’m sure it would Have been more beautiful but it was Muddy water that looked disgusting. By the end of the tour I was so soaked I had to buy new clothes at the gift shop. After the falls we immediately got in the van and left. At one point I had to switch cars again to be dropped off at my hotel and that took close to two hours. So between 10am-7pm I sat in a car / waited on other people for close to 5 hours in total. On my final ride back the driver complained the entire time about my hotel. Next time I would just take Uber. I spent more time in a car than I did at the physical site, the communication was terrible and I have no idea why I never did the entire first portion of the tour.

It’s hard to mess up La Paz it’s absolutely beautiful and our tour guide was so educated on everything. However I do not appreciate the pick up instructions changed. The location for pickup was moved last minute to a place we were not close to. And the pick up time was pushed an hour back. Which made us hit traffic both ways. Also it was supposed to be a private tour but someone else joined.