Whitewater Rafting Sarapiqui Class 3-4 from La Fortuna
Recommended by 97% of travelers
La Fortuna, Costa Rica
- 6 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Take a wet and wild ride down the Sarapiquí River on a thrilling white-water rafting tour. Paddle your way through Class III and IV rapids with the expert guidance of your instructor, while surrounded by the lush tropical scenery of the Costa Rican rainforest. This adventurous tour includes hotel pickup and drop-off from La Fortuna, so you don't need to worry about finding a meeting point.
- Splash and bump along through Class III and IV rapids in the rainforest
- Dig into a hearty Costa Rican lunch at a rustic local restaurant after rafting
- Safety briefing, gear and instruction provided by first aid–certified professional guides
- Don’t worry about packing kit, everything you need is provided for ease
Why Travelers Choose This Tour
Unlike gentler rafting trips, Class III–IV rapids offer maximum thrills.
What's Included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Lunch
- Local guide
- Photographer (photos available for purchase)
- Use of safety equipment
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
You can head directly to the meeting point, or request pickup
What To Expect
Prepare to get soaked on this adrenaline-boosting ride down the Rio Sarapiquí! After morning pickup at your La Fortuna hotel, enjoy the scenic 2-hour drive to the launch site near the town of San Miguel de Sarapiquí. Gear up with a helmet, life vest and paddle, and receive a safety briefing from your expert rafting guide.
Test your mettle as you navigate through 30 Class III and IV rapids with names like the Terminator, the Pipeline and Dos Locos. Your guide will offer tips and techniques to help you triumph through the churning chutes. A professional photographer follows in a separate raft to capture all the action on film so you can focus on paddling. You can purchase photos at the end of the tour.
Midway through the 6-mile (10-km) descent, take a riverside break and recharge with a snack of tropical fruit. You may have a chance to swim in calmer waters or even splash into the river off of a cliff. Hop back in the raft to continue the white-knuckle adventure for another several miles.
Celebrate your triumph over the Sarapiquí with a savory lunch at a local restaurant. Shower and change into dry clothes before the return drive to La Fortuna.
Test your mettle as you navigate through 30 Class III and IV rapids with names like the Terminator, the Pipeline and Dos Locos. Your guide will offer tips and techniques to help you triumph through the churning chutes. A professional photographer follows in a separate raft to capture all the action on film so you can focus on paddling. You can purchase photos at the end of the tour.
Midway through the 6-mile (10-km) descent, take a riverside break and recharge with a snack of tropical fruit. You may have a chance to swim in calmer waters or even splash into the river off of a cliff. Hop back in the raft to continue the white-knuckle adventure for another several miles.
Celebrate your triumph over the Sarapiquí with a savory lunch at a local restaurant. Shower and change into dry clothes before the return drive to La Fortuna.
1
Sarapiqui River
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Infant seats available
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Travelers should have a strong physical fitness level
- Minimum age is 15 years
- Not recommended for people over 55
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 25 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Veronica_E
Our most fun experience in La Fortuna. Josef, our guide, was amazing! He was very playful but he also made us feel safe. We highly recommend this activity for anyone who want to do a more advanced rafting.
Reviews
4.9
based on 136 reviews
Jill_H, Mar 2026
The best rafting experience. Our guide was so much fun. So beautiful rafting in the jungle!
The lunch was yummy too!
Brady_W, Feb 2026
We had fantastic morning of white water rafting and a nice meal included. The drive of about an hour to and from La Fortuna was comfortable. The guides were great and included safety kayakers which I’ve never seen before. The rafting was about two hours of 3-4 level rapids with short floats between and a couple of stops for swimming and fresh fruit. It was quite enjoyable!
Andre_F, Feb 2026
My husband and I had a great time today white water rafting the Sarapiqua river with our guide Gabriel, and David, the safety kayaker.
They were both very friendly, and very experienced on the water, so rafting with them was a blast.
In the calmer river sections, Gabriel pointed out to us all the wildlife on the shores we would have otherwise missed,
We also saw a very exotic, large neonblue butterfly on our quick snack break.
The lunch afterwards was also very good with meat and vegetarian options.
Overall, we were very happy with this excursion.
Jennifer_C, Jan 2026
Rafting the Sarapiqui river was amazing. Our guide David took great care of us. Definitely recommend.
Kerri_D, Jan 2026
Amazing adventure! Highly recommend. My 18 year old son and I (50 year old female) had a great time on the full day Sarapiqui Class III/IV trip from start to finish. We were picked up at our hotel in La Fortuna with a few others and the river was about an hour away. We had a great guide (Roland) who kept things fun and made us feel safe the whole trip. Rafting time is about 1.5-2 hours with one stop for a break with pineapple and cantaloupe. Professional photographers travel with groups and you can buy pictures at end if you want. They were great and really captured the moments well. Would not recommend this trip if it is your first time rafting. Was a bit intense and for more experienced rafters. We also saw lots of cool animals while rafting including sloths, iguanas and eagles. It was beautiful and truly amazing. The trip ends with a delicious Costa Rican lunch. Worth every penny!
Veronica_E, Dec 2025
Our most fun experience in La Fortuna. Josef, our guide, was amazing! He was very playful but he also made us feel safe. We highly recommend this activity for anyone who want to do a more advanced rafting.
Diane_A, Dec 2025
Great experience! Plan to get wet!! Class 3 and 4 was totally doable and not dangerous at all. Just do it!
Dhiren_B, Oct 2025
Great experience. Excellent staff . Great food. I would highly recommend this company. Very reasonable price
Ady_B, Aug 2025
This tour was great. Aurelio was exceptional. We were two families with teenage children (ages 13,16,16,17). Aurelio made everyone feel safe and everyone had a great time. Felix, Rolo and David were also very good. They all made sure we had fun.
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much for your fantastic feedback! We’re thrilled to hear that your tour was great and that Aurelio made everyone feel safe and comfortable, especially with two families and teenage adventurers on board. 👨👩👧👦💪
We’ll be sure to share your kind words with Felix, Rolo, and David as well — it’s wonderful to know the whole team helped make your experience fun and memorable! 🎉😊
Looking forward to welcoming you all back for more exciting adventures soon! 🌴🇨🇷🌊
Pura vida,
Desafío Adventure Company 🌋team
Ryan_P, Dec 2024
Fantastic experience all the way through! Our
shuttle driver, Manfred, picked us up at our VRBO, which was very convenient since we had 8 in our group. It’s about an hour shuttle ride from Fortuna to the river, but goes by very quickly and great opportunity to see countryside.
Our group split into 2 boats and both guides were awesome! The class 3&4 rapids were a ton of fun, and even the people in our group who had never rafted before had a blast! Just the right amount of thrill. It took us about 2 hours to finish the rafting then they had an excellent Costa Rican lunch for us back at base camp.
Highly recommend.
Response from Host, Dec 2024
Hi,
Thank you so much for your amazing review! 🙌🌟 We’re thrilled you had a fantastic time with us! 🚐✨ Manfred loved being your driver 🧑✈️, and we’re glad the convenient pickup and scenic ride made things easy for your group of 8! 🏡🛣️
So happy to hear your rafting adventure on the Class 3 & 4 rapids was a blast! 💦🚣♀️🔥 It’s great that everyone – even first-timers – enjoyed the perfect dose of adrenaline and fun! 🤩👏
And nothing like a delicious Costa Rican lunch to refuel after conquering those waves! 🍽️🇨🇷🥳
Thank you for the high recommendation! 🙏 We hope to see you back for more adventures soon! 🌴💚
Pura Vida! 🇨🇷🌞
Desafío Adventure Company
Edith_M, May 2024
Great rafting trip with Ema(Fuzzy) and Felix. Not the highest water levels since it was May but they still made it a great trip. Highly recommend the rafting with this group.
Mica_M, Dec 2023
Every minute was perfect!!! Guides we incredible!!! Knowledgeable friendly and super fun!! I’d recommend everyone!!!
Kailyn_A, Nov 2022
This tour is so much fun! Our guides Jackson and Gabriel were amazing. We felt very safe the entire time, even when we fell out a couple times. Fresh fruit provided and an amazing traditional Costa Rican lunch at the end. Very professional tour company.
Jeffrey_I, May 2022
Heart was racing. Exciting. What an adrenaline rush. Do it!!! You wont be sorry. Guides were nice. Food and coffee was great!!
David_T, May 2022
On a scale from 1-10, this is an 11. What a section of class 4 !!! Almost no dead spots, tons of rapids, great guides, and a well done tour. I’d do this every day if I could. A+
Kate_D, Oct 2021
We had such an amazing time on this tour! David was the best guide and everyone with the company was so friendly. I would book any tour through this company again because this was the highlight of our trip!
Diane_H, Apr 2021
Our River guide was great, our driver was good, the lunch was delicious, but, this was not a full day adventure. We were on the road one hour each way, lunch and showers took a half hour., And we were only on the river less than 2 hours and That was including a stop for pineapple chunks. We were taken on the class 2-3 section of the river instead of the class 3-4 section.
Isaac_R, Dec 2020
We did class 3-4 and loved it. There were only 3 of us in the raft plus the guide so we didn’t have much weight but we handled it well. We flipped twice in the class 4 but we were able to get back in after drifting down some. The kayak safety guide was very helpful and professional as well and he helped us both times. The water felt great and it was a fun experience. Good food at the end !
Pendra L, Jul 2017
This was such an exciting trip. And our tour guide, Maurice, was outstanding. Besides making sure we were all safe he made it FUN. He purposely caught us in waterfalls and spun us to make the adventure even more memorable. As though 3s and 4s weren't exciting enough! He even let my daughter ride on the front of the boat! All the guides created a fun brothership and their comradery was infectious. Highly highly recommend this tour!
Barbara C, Jul 2016
This was the best tour we did. Don't be afraid of the class of Rapids. Most of us have never rated before but this was totally worth it. The food was amazing but very small portions. Still best trip we did, just take a snack with you too. You'll need it.
Orla C, May 2016
Staff very friendly. However during the dry season the rapids were not quite as big as I was hoping. Still a great time and I would do it again!
Tara M, May 2015
First time river raftibg and this was an amazing experience. I had so much fun. I felt very safe during the entire time. Do it!!!
From $83.00
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Whitewater Rafting Sarapiqui Class 3-4 from La Fortuna
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