Rio Celeste Horseback Riding: Swim in Natural Pools Unavailable in National Parks

Experience a personalized horseback riding tour in Rio Celeste, where you can swim in natural pools not found in national parks. Avoid waiting lines and crowded tourist destinations.

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Rio Celeste - Tour starts in the local town El Pilon with panoramic views of the Arenal Volcano and Caño Negro then we will take the horse trail through farm land and primary forest where we will stop in the Tarzan swing and the hanging bridge before we get to beautiful natural swimming pool in the river Celeste
What's Included
  • Expert local guide
Additional Information

Visitors are offered the unique opportunity to swim in the beautiful natural pools of the Celeste River, an activity that is not allowed and unavailable in the national park. Without the hassle of waiting lines or overcrowded tourist spots, this isn’t a standard commercial tour. Tourists will enjoy a personally-crafted tour led by a local guide and proprietor.

Location
Calle Asentamiento el Pilón
1/2 Mile Northwest from Station El Pilon Tenorio National Park (waterfall entrance) in the Guatuso direction, then turn left in the grave road continue 1/2 mile turn left in front of the local School and continue 1/2 mile on left side before the La Posada Rest and Hotel
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(179 Ratings)
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Ginary_v
Apr 10, 2025
Very nice... - Very nice Horseback ride to the river . We spent time swimming in the river. The water was a beautiful blue color. We were given mango to snack on and it was delicious. The ride back was nice and I’d recommend this tour to anyone considering it.
Review provided by Viator
Caroline
Apr 2, 2025
Favorite part of our trip! Adventure and beauty! - David and his horses are so wonderful! This was a magical experience and my favorite part of our week in northern/central Costa Rica! The horses were steady and eager, and we got to canter on the road afterward! The trail to the water is beautiful and David has even made a swing along the way!!!! The river is even more beautiful than I imagined. David is so friendly and he let me practice speaking my bad Spanish with him, even though he spoke excellent English. The trip had a relaxed and fun atmosphere and we got to play by the water a long time. The thing that really made this extra special was David took us to see a sloth down the road! He knew the sloth would be going down the tree to sleep and he timed it so we cantered there quickly on the horses. It was truly a peak experience! I loved everything about it and would give 6 stars if I could!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Austin_s
Mar 24, 2025
Best tour ever - David was great! It was worth the 3 hour drive from San Jose and there were hidden surprises we didn’t know about. I would recommend this tour to anyone who was interested!
Review provided by Viator
Jennifer_z
Mar 23, 2025
Wow absolutely amazing - WOW! My family and I typically aren’t fans of the nose to tail trail rides, but this was INCREDIBLE! First the property where they keep the horses is GORGEOUS! The horses were beautiful and well taken care of. I was impressed! The swing?!? OMG terrifyingly thrilling and so much fun!!! A MUST do. Rio Celeste may be the most beautiful waters I have ever seen. I could have spent every day just here. Gorgeous doesn’t even come close. And PRIVATE. There were 7 total people on our trip and we were the only people there.. So it’s not like you are competing for space or time or views… it’s all yours! Our guides were awesome. They helped us take pictures, drug us around in the tubes and made the experience fantastic. We have fresh cut pineapple as a snack. We spent about 45 ‘minutes or so in the waters and headed back up the trail with spectacular views. I definitely recommend this excursion. Our family absolutely loved it!
Review provided by Viator
Kim_s
Mar 22, 2025
Best part of trip - I would love to stay in that area if I came again. - This was one of the best memories of our trip. The area is beautiful, the horses were amazing, and David and his brother were wonderful guides. There was a lot of mud that the horses had to walk through but you could tell they knew what they were doing. To see the horses grazing in the beautiful field after you could tell they were well taken care of. We ate lunch there as well and the food was very good.
Review provided by Viator
Gaylordn395
Mar 9, 2025
Beautiful, to do! - Superb outing with David who is very friendly and who makes us live a magnificent experience both on horseback because we are beginners and it is quickly impressive but rest assured it is the ideal format. Both with a beautiful swim in the celestial rio in a private place, a piece of paradise. We can only recommend this outing 👌 and thank you again David 👍
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Terry_b
Feb 27, 2025
Great Horse ride and David was a great host! - Great experience! The swing and swim were awesome additions to the horse ride! We also had lunch at the restaurant afterwards and was also great!
Review provided by Viator
Kathleen_t
Feb 14, 2025
Highly recommended - The excursion was amazing. Scary at times with steep muddy ground, but hands down my favorite thing we did in costa rica!
Review provided by Viator
Aliciastvictor
Feb 13, 2025
A beautiful adventure with awesome people - The views were absolutely amazing and David and Elias were excellent hosts. They took really good care of us and handled the horses with care. This was an excellent tour that I would love to do again with my family.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sdrolet69
Feb 11, 2025
Beautiful - We had a memorable time!! David is amazing, funny and very professional! The horses are very quiet and docile, the surprise of the swing in the void was cool, the swimming in the river was magical and the pineapple succulent. Even in the rain we greatly enjoyed our activity 👍👍👍
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $58
up to 12 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).