1 day Pacuare River Rafting with Transportation and Lunch

Recommended by 93% of travelers

San Jose, Costa Rica

4 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

What's Included

Breakfast
Lunch
Rafting equipment, vest, helmet and rowing guides and raft

Alcoholic Beverages
Bottled water
Dinner

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Pickup details

You will be picked up at the main hotels in downtown San Jose. From 5:00 am to 6:30 am depending on the location of your hotel. Exceptions can be made please inform the company, the name of the hotel in which they stay to check if they are picked up at that hotel.

Operating hours
.5:00 am

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking, unless booked within 1 day of travel. In this case confirmation will be received as soon as possible, subject to availability
Not wheelchair accessible
Not recommended for travelers with back problems
Not recommended for pregnant travelers

No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 120 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)

Reviews

4.8

based on 14 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Once you get to the river...

mandi_k, Feb 2026

Once you get to the river it is wonderful. Be patient with the transport from the city. The quality of driver/vehicle is never guaranteed.

Great experience

Miley_N, Jan 2026

This was my first time white water rafting and it was absolutely amazing! The guide, Tiara made me feel safe, confident, and excited the whole time. The rapids were thrilling but not overwhelming, and the scenery was beautiful. Such a fun experience—highly recommend, especially for first-timers!

Response from Host, Jan 2026

Hi Miley. Thanks for your comments, We try every time that our clients feel safety and much comfortable possible to enjoy the adventure. We hope to see you soon. Best Regards.

Great adventure, shame about the travel

Ian_P, Oct 2025

My Viator ticket specified a 5am start time with pickup from my hotel. Eventually, at 07:15, after waiting outside the hotel for two and a quarter hours, a private car turned up to take me join the rest of the group (the bus driver had forgotten me). In terms of the rafting, our guide, Carlos was really excellent and we all had a great time even though we were decending down grade 3&4 rapids, which wasn’t mentioned in the description (I wouldn’t have booked if I had known as I’m not a strong swimmer). On our way back to San Jose, the bus driver made a 45 minute detour to drop off a member of staff. The round trip was over 13 hours. This travel company appears to place no value on your time. Avoid!

Response from Host, Oct 2025

Good morning, Mr. Paddick. We really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts about our activity. Every opinion is very important to us, and we sincerely appreciate it. I'll try to briefly explain each of your concerns: 1. My Viator ticket specified a 5:00 a.m. start time with pickup from my hotel. ***Our transportation starts pickup at 5:00 a.m., depending on the location of the hotel. That's how we define the times. In your case, and given the location of your hotel, the estimated pickup time was 6:10 a.m. However, as you rightly point out, our driver didn't include your hotel, so we decided to pay for a vehicle to pick you up at your hotel and take you to the restaurant where the other guests would be, so you could participate in the activity. 2. We were descending down grade 3 and 4 rapids, which wasn't mentioned in the description (I wouldn't have booked if I had known, as I'm not a strong swimmer). ***Our activity description states the following: Rafting on the Pacuare River, ranked one of the best rivers in the world, is an incredible day trip in Costa Rica. You will raft through an incredible tropical rainforest on 30 km of Class III-IV whitewater. Waterfalls, lush forests, exotic plants, birds, and other animals—the exhilarating rapids make this a tropical adventure full of rich experiences. ***The type of rapids included in the activity is clearly described. 3-On our way back to San Jose, the bus driver made a 45-minute detour to drop off a member of staff. The round trip was over 13 hours. This travel company appears to place no value on your time. Avoid! ***On the return trip, when weather conditions permit, Route 32 is normally used; this route passes through Braulio Carrillo National Park. Due to its geographical conditions, this route frequently experiences humid and rainy conditions, so road closures are often made to remove debris falling from the mountains and obstructing the road. Due to this situation, and the fact that our country is currently experiencing a tropical wave, the operations department decided to avoid reaching this route and potentially closing it by returning via the same road you used in the morning, as it does not pose the risk of temporary closures that occur on Route 32. Therefore, when returning via the same road, one of the staff members you mentioned lives along that route, so the driver, given the situation, brought him and stopped to drop him off en route. Our tour is a one-day tour, as our information indicates, and the time is not specific. However, we once again appreciate you sharing your thoughts and feelings about your experience with our company during this wonderful rafting trip. Best regards.

Adrenaline

Andrea_M, Jan 2026

The experience on the Pacuare River is very amazing! Despite being a great route, it was very quiet, our guide Tara, was fantastic, very careful at all times. The only question was the scheduled time to pick us up, it took almost 50 minutes, and as it was a very early and very long walk, this time made a difference.

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