Also.. night or day passes to Tabacon Springs are available

http://www.tabacon.com/costa-rica-resort-thermal-springs-one-day-passes-1-48.html

Also some say you can do the volcano hike on your own, do a search on this topic for information

Do not worry...it is possible and you can do it everything on your own...you do not need any middle person to book anything for you...even you can ask directly for good deals.

I'm with you why follow anybody timetable...?

1-Hanging bridges you can go there almost any time during the day and pay the entrance fee in person ...ask for a good deal..

Same day you can drive to La Fortuna waterfall and pay the entrance fee...anothe good saving!

2- Any where around the volcano could be nice place to see it...even pay at Los Lagos and hike inside the property...or El Silencio, or drive to the bridge on the way to El Castillo...

The same day later on the afternoon you can go to some of the Hot Springs...like Eco Termales...if you can make the reservation early in the morning...fo me the best time is around 5:30PM with dinner included!

Again you do not need any middle person you can book everything yourself...you will even save money!

I have been visiting Arenal and even I spend 5 years of my life living there...nice people and try to deal with local people incredible nice educated people!

roadadvisor from Costa Rica and in Costa Rica

Let me know if you have any other question....

You can cover just about every tour worth doing with 2 companies Skytrek - http://www.skyadventures.travel/index/index.html and Desafio - http://www.desafiocostarica.com/ both some of the best in Costa Rica.

Cheers

Inca

If you have a car, I would recommend doing the hanging bridges and La Fortuna falls and you can go to the Springs on your own as well, it's very easy with a car.

If you don't have a car, then I would take a horseback ride to the Falls, and then a fun combo tour to do the Liquid Lava hike with the Springs hot springs and dinner. This way you're not rushed.

However, with my experience, the 14 hour tours are the best priced and they are very flexible with small groups and are great fun.

Hope this helps,

Marina K. Villatoro

If you can rent a car ...about $50.00 per day including insurance...you will save so much money and time...it is worth it...then you can drive to most of the tours and ask for good deals... that is a good way to go!

roadadvisor from Costa Rica and IN COSTA RICA

Let me know if you have any more questions...

Wow...lots of great information! Thank you so much for taking to time and trouble to answer, I really appreciate it. We are definitely going to go on our own and do the things you suggest. Thanks again!

www.puravidaeh.ca

good discounts for some adventures usually saves

prefer to DIY as much as I can

www.ruralcostarica.com Rio Celeste hike

is awesome my fav might head there if time...

It seems you have already decided, but I'll give you my feedback anyway! We did that exact combo tour (using Pura Vida eh, which gave us a great discount) and we really liked it. It was a long day but very enjoyable. We didn't have a car and didn't feel like doing everything on our own, so this was the perfect alternative. We loved the hanging bridges (especially with a guide, he showed us so many things we would have missed), the waterfall was great, the volcano hike was cool because we could hear the volcano rumbling (no lava that night though =( ) and Tabacon was the perfect ending to a day of hiking. They did give us about an hour and a half break between the waterfall and the volcano hike, which was great - we took a much needed nap :) Like others have said, you can totally do it all on your own, but if you want the convenience of a guided package I say go for it. We went with Canoa Adventures and they were great.

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