Monteverde Cloud Forest Hanging Bridges Tour from San Jose

San Jose, Costa Rica

12 hours (approx.)
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Visit the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve, a 26,000-acre (10,500 hectare) oasis of virgin cloud forest. Visited by roughly 70,000 people a year, the reserve is home to about four percent of the world’s animal species. Walk across suspended bridges and hike among native flora and fauna. You can also pay extra to zipline through the canopy. Lunch and a guide are included.

Day trip to Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve
Local guide
Lunch, water, and snacks included
Hotel/port pickup and drop-off included

What's Included

Hotel/port pickup and drop-off
Lunch
Hanging Bridges Entry
Driver / Guide
A/C Transportation

Food and drinks, unless specified
Alcoholic drinks (available to purchase)
Zip Line & Coffee, Sloth, Butterfly Garden Tour ( Extra Payment (schedule, time and available space)

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

We offer pickup in all Hotels

Arranged start time

Confirm time with the local provider in advance of your experience.

02/04/2026 - 01/01/2029
Monday - Sunday : 6:00 AM - 6:30 AM

Itinerary

Selvatura

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Near public transportation
Infants must sit on laps

Infant seats available
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Marie_M

The cloud forest is beautiful. The tour guide, Johan, was excellent! He was very knowledgeable, was great at pointing out various plants & knew the history of the area. Breakfast and lunch were outstanding & delicious. Highly recommend this tour.

Reviews

4.1

based on 95 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Unforgettable Tour

JeanPaul_L, Feb 2026

I rarely leave a feedback to a tour, but this one is highly recommended! Bryant and Steven were taking care of all of us (total 10x persons) during the trip. They made fragrant short stops for us during long distance drive. They also kept looking wild animal while they are driving and rewarded to see wild coati, sloths, scarlet macaws, and iguanas during the trip. We had good time with Bryant and Steven! Two thumbs up!

Response from Host, Mar 2026

Thank you for share and comment part of your experience in Costa Rica; each adventure lived with A&E Tours Travel. It was a great pleasure for us to help you get to know this country and all our destinations. Thank you for your trust and especially thanks for visiting Costa Rica. We hope to see you again in the future to you, your family and perhaps your friends. A big hug and Pura Vida.. A&E Tours Travel Team

Great tour with Johan

Tamika_E, Aug 2025

Johan was extremely kind and knowledgeable about Costa Rican wildlife and unique plant life. My son and I had a great time on the tour. I highly recommend Johan, he made our Costa Rica tour very enjoyable.

Response from Host, Aug 2025

Beautiful tour of Monteverde Cloud Forest

Marie_M, Jul 2025

Response from Host, Jul 2025

It’s good amount of...

Elaine_F, Jan 2025

It’s good amount of walking, stairs and incline. We saw some older people that couldn’t complete it. But it was worth it. Nice views.

Response from Host, Jan 2025

8 hours driving, 1 hour boring forest walk with little animal seeing

LeeLee_C, Nov 2024

If you only have one tour to choose, skip this one. We were not told about pick up time at night, unlike all other tours. So we showed up at 5:30am as the ticket says and were not picked up until 6am as the ticket says operating hour 5:30am-6:30am. We sat in a mini van with 4 rows of seats, but the leg rooms are very compacted. Our guide and also driver took us to breakfast, and then Monteverde. Be prepared for traffic as it took us almost 4 hours to get there. The guide then took us to the forest walk via 8 suspension briges. Didn't see any animals. The plant talk can be boring. After the walk, we were driven to an Italian restaurant for a covered lunch which has pizza, sandwiches and the local plate options. The fresh fruit juice was nice. And it came with dessert. After that, we spent another 4 hours in the van driving back to San Jose. The traffic is so bad that by the time we reached the breakfast spot, the toilet was already closed. The compacted leg room almost crippled my legs when I was getting out of the car.

Response from Host, Nov 2024

Thank you for your comment, indeed the guide reported a lack of interest on his part, also according to his wife they were there because of their daughter's wish and not his own, since it was an almost forced family decision. The transports are all the same Toyota Hiace, Nissan Urban Hyundai H1 I don't know what I was looking for I think a Chevrolet Tahoe would have been great but this would be a private tour. Regarding the time of pick up, we have that it was sent at 6:00 am and picked up at 5:58 am according to the transportation log and GPS. The restaurant has more than 8 urinals and 12 bathrooms for men and women. I really think you didn't want to be there, because you repeatedly complained about the traffic to the driver and guide, unfortunately this is something out of our control, and regarding the food, I can say you have more than 20 options in an Italian restaurant in Costa Rica where they have typical foods as their main dish...I think it's just their need to attract attention. Recommendation: If you are going on a tour that is required by your family, it is better not to go, do not ruin your family's vacation because your daughter was the one who was really happy.

Fantastic day

Margaret_G, Sep 2024

Yojhan was our guide. He was patient, professional, and willing to go the extra mile. Our lunch was outstanding at an amazing restaurant. Fantastic day.

Response from Host, Sep 2024

Great Tour, Wrong Tour Company

Carmen_H, Aug 2024

The best parts of our 14+ hours trip were the 8 hanging bridges and lunch at Bistro Bon Appetit. These 2 activities were less than 3 hours. Our tour guide from AyE Tours was awful. He did not share any points of interest, never engaged us in conversation; but he and the bus driver had a merry time! We drove very slowly because another group was supposed to meet and join us somewhere along the way. The hanging bridges were awesome but we learned that in order to be above the cloud forest, you need to get there before 8 a.m. or after 4 pm. Visiting the Monteverde Cloud Forest and Hanging Bridges is a great tour.....just make sure your guide is not from AyE Tours.

Response from Host, Aug 2024

Hello, you indicate horrible, contemptuous, I think it was not to your liking, regarding the time to get to the cloud forest, the weather changes, low clouds depend on the day, to arrive at 8:00am you should leave at least at 2:00am. Which is illogical, after 4:00pm all the parks are closed so your assessment is wrong, of your group of 5 you were the only person unhappy with something since we received the report that you were a bit complicated. Indeed, at some times they make connections for other tourists, normal in the operations of the companies here due to having many mountain roads. If this bothered you on the regular tour, we have the option of a Private tour. We checked GPS and the speed of the minivan was 80kph average and taking into account the average speed to go down and up Monteverde is 50 kph so their assertion is false that they were going very slowly.

Great day trip to Monteverde

Margaret_G, Jun 2024

Loved the tour. Cloud forest was beautiful. My Grandson enjoyed the Zipline as it was much longer than our other ones! The guide was very good. And the Pizza lunch was delicious

Response from Host, Jun 2024

One of the best places we have experienced.

Robert_B, Jun 2024

Monteverde Cloud Forest is amazing. Seeing the lush forest underneath us was breathtaking. Luis was a fun guide and very knowledgeable. This was our second time with him, and we were very happy he was the one picking us up. He saw every little flower, animal, and recognized the sounds of birds. He was able to give little anecdotes that added dimension to the whole experience.

Response from Host, Jun 2024

Terrible experience.

Erik_c, May 2024

The company canceled at the very last min. They stated that it was due to weather conditions which didnt make any sense because we were able to use a different company to go to the same place on the same day. We were forced to pay much more out of pocket because of the short notice. Please listen to these reviews as I wish I had. Only after contacting viator did the company eventually respond and provide us a refund. Very unprofessional and would not recommend.

Response from Host, May 2024

Unfortunately our staff are certified guides. The day before there was a storm and more time was needed to develop the activities, this being the case and your reservation has a cancellation period of 24 hours, we used this time to inform you of the cancellation of the tour. We actually responded to your query. What was the return time to which Viator indicated it in 24 - 48 verbatim, if you answer your question, it seemed rude to you that this illness is you and you should visit a psychologist, or at least not believe yourself superior to others. For being a foreigner, I denote it in the conversation by insulting the staff.

Hanging bridges in Selvatura

Arun_I, Apr 2024

Although we were just the two going, the tour was not cancelled. Luis was very knowledgeable and guided us throughout the journey. Walking the 8 bridges was a fantastic experience. Both breakfast and lunch were excellent.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Went above and beyond!

Kelly_B, Feb 2024

Eric was amazing! He went out of his way to make sure we had the best experience!! We had great food, amazing hike in the rainforest and ended the day with sunset on the beach. Thank you, Eric

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Cloud Forest is beautiful- tour guide makes a difference…

Heidi_K, Jan 2024

The cloud forest is beautiful and if you know how to spot wildlife it would be amazing. The bridges are right in the canopy and the trails are easy to navigate in sneakers. Our tour guide did not really talk to us after introducing himself. He did not tell us anything about our day until we got to the stops. He did not accompany us on our walk in the cloud forest. We asked how to spot animals and he said, “lots of animals today, go look for them.” At the end of our walk he met us on the bridge to make a short video. He asked us what we thought of the forest. It was beautiful but we saw not one animal. There are zip-lines there and butterfly exhibits etc. our guide dissuaded us to pay for those. It seemed like a very nice place.

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Horrible experience the tour was cancelled with no communication

Ashish_K, Jan 2024

Please do not book anything with this tour operator. They canceled this tour on us and never even informed us. We had to leave costa rica without experiencing Monteverde hanging bridges. We called the operator 20-30 times but they didn’t respond. Then when we called viator and told them after that they picked up our call. This is a highly unreliable tour operator

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Dear Costumer, the company dont use rented vehicles to take tourists, or will it have drivers or guides to carry out this type of tour. Due to this, the tour was canceled well in advance, the client, according to our call log, made several calls outside of business hours and threatened to write a bad comment for not agreeing to take the tour under his condittions.

Last Minute Canceled Tour, Refund Potentially Granted

Kamila_Z, Jan 2024

Our trip was canceled last minute. We were outside of our hostel and waiting for 20 minutes for a response from the WhatsApp phone number. Finally got in contact with the owner and they informed us the hose in the van had broken. Still waited for 30 minutes to see if the hose could be fixed. Unfortunately, it could not. We are promised a refund back. This was yesterday, so no refund yet, but it is the new year. I will update only if the refund is not given. Not sure how often of an occurrence this is, but it was difficult getting in contact with the WhatsApp number.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Well worth it - but there is a bit of walking

Tara_Y, Nov 2023

The cloud forest is absolutely magical and I highly recommend to anyone visiting Costa Rica. The amount of plant biodiversity is especially stunning. We saw monkeys and birds and a sloth in the wild (though at a distance). Even spotted a flying toucan on the drive over but that seems to have been uncommon. We came during the transition to the high season so we were able to get a private tour with just our group, which was nice. There is a decent bit of walking so keep that in mind if you’re traveling with seniors - especially if you’re seeing all 7-8 bridges. Recommend asking your guide to allot some time at the end to see the sloth sanctuary if you didn’t get to see any in the wild.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Poor customer service

Keith_D, Oct 2023

Customer service was very poor. We were given a 1 hour hotel pickup range from 5:30am and 6:30am, but tour never showed or attempted to contact us. The telephone number was not “in service”! The hotel front desk discovered WhatsApp worked. By 7:10am we found out the tour was cancelled. I called Viator help number and they confirmed the telephone number was not active. Viator registered our case via email. We did get out full refund. Other Viator tours have used WhatsApp and been in contact telling us exact pickup times or if any delays occur. Do not use AyE tours.

Response from Host, Oct 2023

Hello, the problem is maybe you dont comunicate directly with the company, we dont have any call or WhatsApp from you. You dont response any message sending at the moment of your reservation Also the nigth before recieve other call indicated the costumer dont need the tour, no is the first oportinity that recieve this call from the guys that work in this hotel. In any case we proceed to cancel the tour and refund your money. Thanks for visit Costa Rica Pura vida

Wonderful experience

Ian_M, Sep 2023

Wonderful guides and experience! Loved this tour & would definitely recommend. Didn't get to see animals, but we did hear plenty howler monkeys, and the hanging bridges are absolutely worth the hike along. Guide and driver were really accommodating and knowledgeable.

Response from Host, Oct 2023

Pura Vida!

Shelly_D, Sep 2023

This was a perfect last hike to wrap up my trip. My two guilds were super nice and had a since of humor. The view and trail were stunning.

Response from Host, Sep 2023

Don't book with AYE tours

Kent_S, Mar 2023

After two days of getting up at 4am we still were not able to take the tour. On our scheduled day the tour was canceled do to a vehicle issue. When asked if it would be acceptable to reschedule for the following day I immediately said yes and asked for confirmation that the tour would infact proceed the following day. I recieved no confirmation after four attempts to contact AYE tours but decided to go to the pickup location just incase because we were really looking forward to this tour. After waiting for an hour without any contact from AYE tours we finally called it. Do yourself a huge favor and go to AYE tours and read the reviews. Save time,money and frustrations by booking with another company. I would have given AYE tours a zero star rating but this was not an option.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Dear traveler, we recommend you make your reservations in advance, although we can give you a tour from one day to the next, there is a risk that someone gets sick or that a transport is damaged. steve your annoyance lies in the return which can take up to 72 hours to be refunded. However, you assumed that the tour was going to be given the following day, but your return had already been returned, so we cannot guarantee an immediate return Thans for visit Costa Rica Pura Vida

Memorable Experience but long journey

GlenW, Mar 2023

Cloud forest hanging bridges was a memorable experience. Guide was nice but didn't seem as knowledgeable and interactive as others guides we overheard. Also, this is a very long trip from San Jose and that should be considered when selecting this tour.

Response from Host, Mar 2023

Hello. We appreciate your comment, obviously each guide is different and offers their knowledge according to the place that is visited. Indeed, not only are the transfer distances to the main tourist places outside of San Jose, you can avoid going to and from San Jose if you take one of our multiple tours on viator or tripadvisor.

Long day but worth it

gttxyz4g6w, Feb 2023

We were the only people on our trip so it was a bonus . Johan was brilliant , he had so much knowledge about the plants and animals in the jungle and beyond . It’s a really long drive there and back for just over two hours in the jungle but Johan suggested other things we could do on the way back to make up the time , he was great and the trip was great .

Response from Host, Feb 2023

Hello, Thanks for your comments, Pura Vida

Connect with Nature!!

Tevita_S, Mar 2022

Thank you Yancy for providing us with excellent service on this tour! We were very fortunate to be the only on this tour for the day.

Response from Host, Mar 2022

Hello Tevita, Thanks for your commnents. Pura Vida

Not impressed with the communication

katyhy_f, Jul 2021

Customer care could use some work,one day in a foreign country and my tour canceled last minute,now it's 5 am and we are struggling to find another excursion with little time and a language barrier,another trip offering and someone from the company going out if their way to communicate would sure of made our experience less if a hassle...

Response from Host, Jul 2021

We regret that due to weather conditions we have not been able to make your tour. We send your confirmation 24 hours in advance, however, your external confirmation did not arrive. Thanks for your comments. Pura Vida.

Great experience

Marie, Mar 2021

We had a great time visiting the cloud forest! We weren’t able to see much wild life but that’s understandable since they are deeper in the jungle a lot of the times due to the influx of tourists roaming through. We saw a bird & heard monkeys. Yojhan and Juan Jose were both a great guide/ driver and knowledge and friendly. The food was amazing. Some of my favorite food we’ve had in CR. Highly recommend doing the zip line tour.

Response from Host, Mar 2021

Thanks for your comments, We hope you enjoy your stay in Costa Rica and enjoy our tours. Pura vida!

Ziplining was amazing

Lalaine_L, Mar 2020

Thumbs up to Albano and Arturo. They’re not just my tour guides but they also were my photographer. It was a great jungle experience.

Response from Host, Mar 2020

Thanks for your comments, We hope you enjoy your stay in Costa Rica and enjoy our tours. Pura vida!

Peaks and valleys of experiences

Stephen_H, Mar 2020

It should be noted that this tour is primarily a transportation tour with a little bit added in. It should also be understood that from San Jose to Monte Verde is about a 3 hour jaunt. With that said and understood the tour had pluses and minus which is why I am applying a 3 star rating. I had booked three other tours while we were in Costa Rica and the other three were extremely prompt in responding to me that they had received the booking and what my pick up time was going to be. I had to reach out and confirm my pick up time with this company. During my stay, the company did reach out with a change of pick up time which was appreciated. When they arrived, they were actually 10 minutes past their stated time, but really a non issue; just offering for reference of expectations. Once on board, we were presented a bottle of water and explained that we had some more passengers to pick up. The drive was long, but went well...we had a short stop to stretch our legs and admire some howler monkeys. A pleasant surprise and we enjoyed the chance to observe them. There were option tours that were offered including the hanging bridges, but they were not through the company (hence more of a transport tour). We were told in advance of these tours and informed in pretty good detail about them, their costs and how things would have to go in order to take them. We arrived at the rain forest and got to observe tons of hummingbirds. The park stated that they had over 15 different varieties and we saw too many to count. After that, we went on the trek through the rain forest and the hanging bridges. This part of the tour was a little chaotic, but managing 16 people can be challenging. Since there were 3 guides on this tour, it would have made more sense to have one at the front, the rear and the middle to help keep the group organized and on point. My wife and I selected the coffee, sugar cane and chocolate tour. We stopped at a small building just before the Don Juan Plantation and made our purchase while the guide paid for our food. The food was really good at the location, and service was ok. Most of the staff at the Don Juan Plantation on point, except for one gentlemen who kept forgetting about us.....After lunch, the tour guides seemed rather checked out. We received no explanation of how the tour was going to be, where we needed to go and at what time. When we asked them, they gave us a general timeline and went on the bus and left. Fortunately it wasn't hard as we had received colored stickers and walking around we found the tour white board and it was colored coded so we knew what time and location from there. This tour was fantastic and if you have any interest in any of the three I would totally recommend taking the tour as it was well done, set up and our guide was rather humorous with perfect English. The bus came back shortly after our tour and then we went to another location to wait for the rest of the guests from their tours. Because it was international woman's day; the tour guide presented all the women on the bus with a small gift. It was a nice touch and a great gesture. On the way back, the bus took an unknown stop to see the sunset. Then we took the long road back listening to sketchy radio crackling on the way to the hotel. I would recommend to the company to be a little better on the communications, for example, if you know you are going to make a stop; notify the bus about 10 minutes prior. This will allow them to wake up or at least know a stop is coming and get ready to get off the bus. Please provide a little more information about the tours. The upfront was great, but after you get to the sites, at least point the people in the right direction to gather whatever info they may need. Lastly, I would offer a little better background noise/music for the passengers. When we got on the bus, the men were broadcasting a futbol game across the radio, clear; clean and crisp. I would have been appreciated if that quality of sound was provided with the music. The crackling radio was very annoying for such a long drive home. I would recommend this tour, as long as you have read the review and the insight provided fits in your comfort zone.

Response from Host, Mar 2020

Thanks for your comments, We hope you enjoy your stay in Costa Rica and enjoy our tours. Pura vida!

Hiking in the cloud forest

Ryan_W, Feb 2020

We very much enjoyed hiking in the forest. The hanging bridges were awesome and the experience of the hike was unlike anything we have done before. The guide was a very nice man, but his English was very basic. It was only by luck that we ended up being the only two people in his group as the others had a local guide meet them for their language. We feel had there been a larger group we would not have had near as much fun. We had to ask the guide lots of questions and pull information from him, he was not volunteering a lot unfortunately.

Response from Host, Feb 2020

Thanks for your comments, We hope you enjoy your stay in Costa Rica and enjoy our tours. We make changes to provide a good service Pura vida!

Not recommended

jingg1971, Feb 2020

I don’t recommend this tour. We’ve done 4 tours in Costa Rica and the other 3 were wonderful. The problem with this tour is that the park is very far, we left at 5:30 am and reached at 10:30 am, we walked around for an hour and half, left at 12:30 and got back at 6pm. The park is like other parks, beautiful with 8 bridges but not worth the travel time. The guide was unenthusiastic. He pointed out some trees. We saw 1 squirrel and no other animals or birds. They took us to restaurant for breakfast and lunch, both were good food. Costa Rican food is good in general. I don’t think the tour is over priced because it was a lot of driving, but the tour description should clearly list that only 2 hours out of the 12 hour is in the park. 10 hours will be on the road.

Response from Host, Feb 2020

A comment similar to those who pay to make those who do not work well .... If you visited other parks, you could understand everything is far from San José, you walk in the forest and the animals do not have a fixed station .... it's nature ... maybe it wasn't the tour, it was your bad attitude. Thanks for "visit" Costa Rica.

Late start but still great day

rizasitton, Feb 2020

There was some confusion on pick up time but it all worked out. Our driver, Arturo, was skilled and very safe. The guide, Eddie, spoke English well enough for us to understand though we already knew some Spanish ourselves. They made us feel safe throughout the trip which, for mom & daughter traveling alone, was very important. It was a long drive but the destination was worth it!