Destiny Travel Costa Rica · From San José
A ten-hour day from San José that adds a coffee plantation tasting and the full La Paz Waterfall Gardens, buffet lunch included, to the Poás crater. Pick it if you want the gardens properly, with every entrance fee and even the tips already paid.
Destiny Travel Costa Rica packs three stops into ten hours: a tasting at a coffee plantation, the Poás crater, and La Paz Waterfall Gardens with a buffet lunch. The price, from $189, covers a bilingual guide, air-conditioned transport, all entrance fees, lunch and gratuities. Few Poás listings include the tips.
The gardens are the difference. This is not the roadside photo stop on the day trip. It is the private park in Vara Blanca, about 20 minutes from the volcano, with about 3.5 km of trails past the waterfalls, a hummingbird garden with 26 recorded species, a butterfly observatory, a frog house and rescued wild cats (La Paz Waterfall Gardens). On your own, gardens entry is $56 for a foreign adult and the buffet $16, plus taxes, before the park's US$16.95. Close to $90 of the price is tickets and lunch.
Two corrections to the listing, and one question. It says the volcano last erupted in 2017; that is out of date, with eruptions in 2019, in 2025, when the park closed for four months, and again on 27 August 2026 (Poás Volcano). It also mentions a hike to Laguna Botos, a trail that was not among those named open in the August 2026 rules; expect the main trail, a helmet and 20 minutes at the viewpoint. The question: the coffee stop comes first in the listing, so ask what time the group reaches the crater. Cloud usually fills it by 10:30 or 11:00.
Air-conditioned transport out of San José toward the slopes of Poás.
A walk through a coffee plantation and a tasting, the listing says.
Ranger briefing, helmets on, the paved path of about 700 metres and 20 minutes at the viewpoint, 56 people at a time.
Buffet lunch, then the trails down past the waterfalls, the hummingbird garden, the butterflies and the animal enclosures.
About ten hours after the start, the listing says.
★★★★★Edgar was our tour guide and he was excellent! Highly recommend the full day trip.
★★★★★Ricardo & Christian were great, and we had such a fun tour! Very informative and we saw a lot during the day.
★★★★★Such a fantastic experience, truly the most amazing way to start our trip in Costa Rica!
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Yes. The listing includes all entrance fees and a buffet lunch at the gardens. Bought separately, entry is $56 for a foreign adult and the buffet $16, plus taxes.
The listing mentions it, but the Botos trail was not among those named open in the rules of 28 August 2026. Plan on the main trail and the crater viewpoint only.
No. The 2017 eruptions were the big ones, but Poás erupted again in 2019, in 2025 and on 27 August 2026. It is an active volcano, and the park can close at short notice.
Yes. The listing includes gratuities, along with the bilingual guide, transport, all entrance fees and lunch.
Ready to book
The crater, a coffee plantation and the full La Paz Waterfall Gardens with a buffet lunch.
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