Arenal Volcano

At 5,437 feet, the Arenal Volcano looms large and ominous over the pastured green hillsides that surround its base. Although currently in a resting phase, Arenal remained the countrys most active volcano for the past 43 years. Its storied history is charged with eruptions both major and minor that have intimately affected the region and the people who live here. Thanks to the Arenal Volcanos geothermal acti vity, there is a number of natural hot springs throughout the area. Warm and soothing, these springs offer visitors an ideal way to relax after a day spent exploring Arenal.
The Arenal area is privileged to have some of the countrys best hotels and resor ts. Affordable and accessible options can be found within the town of La Fortuna, while more elaborate resorts tend to skirt the base of the volcano and the surrounding rainforest. Whether its a budget hotel with basic amenities or a lavish luxury resort with a five-star restaurant and private hot springs, this area has it. Most accommodations have spectacular views of the volcano, and many are equipped with swimming pools, spas, restaurants, and bars. Our comprehensive database does not include every hotel in the Arenal area, but rather only the hotels with the best volcano views and great quality-tovalue ratios. We dont recommend driving at night youll miss the scenery and will likely have trouble distinguishing signs and the roads painted lines. The roads in Costa Rica are extremely windy and often in poor condition. Because of this, daytime driving is generally much easier. As Costa Rica is set along the Earths equator, the sun is in the sky from 5:30 AM to 5:30 PM. This is the time of day that we advise visitors to drive.

From San Jos, there are two ways to get to Arenal. The shortest the blue line on the map runs through San Ramon and takes around three and a half hours. The other route, marked in green, is a more cultural driveyoull pass through quaint villages, including Sarch, the countrys handicraft capital. This route takes about four hours.