Catarata Llanos de Cortes is one of the must see waterfalls in Costa Rica and one of the best waterfalls to see if you’re staying in any of the destinations in the Guanacaste province.
Catarata Llanos de Cortes waterfall (also known as Llanos de Cortez waterfall) is only a 5 minute walk from the parking lot to the waterfall and a great cheap activity in Guanacaste.
Important Things to Know About Llanos de Cortes Waterfall
- Open everyday from 8 AM to 4 PM
- 4×4 not required
- No pets allowed
- Free parking with a bathroom
- Short trail down to waterfall
- No market/restaurant, bring your own food and drinks
- Pay entrance fee upon arrival. Cash only in USD or CRC.
In the rainy season, please check the Catarata Llanos de Cortes Facebook page for updates. They will post if the waterfall closes due to weather.
Sometimes, when it has been raining heavily, they will close the waterfall for safety reasons. Other times, it is open but swimming may not be allowed.
Worse months for weather are usually September, October and November.
Location and Directions
The Cortes waterfall is in Bagaces, Guanacaste.
Catarata Llanos de Cortes is 36 kilometers (22 miles) from Guanacaste Airport and about a 35 minute drive.
Sometimes, the Llanos de Cortes waterfall is spelled with a z as in “Llanos de Cortez waterfall” and it’s the same waterfall.
How to Get to Catarata Llanos de Cortes
The best way is to drive to Llanos de Cortes Waterfall.
You can use Google Maps or Waze as your GPS. In Waze and Google Maps, enter “Catarata Llanos de Cortes” as your destination.
You will see a lot of signs at the turn.
Continue on this road for about a kilometer or so and then you will see another entrance to the right with a sign that says “Waterfall.” You’ll then see a security station which you need to go through to continue to the waterfall.
Continue on this road after paying the fee about another kilometer or so to the parking lot.
There is no pubic bus directly to the waterfall.
Road Condition, 4×4 required for Llanos de Cortez Waterfall?
The road to the Cortez waterfall is in good condition. It is not fully paved but there weren’t many big holes and it’s fairly flat, not many hills or anything.
You do not need a 4×4, you can drive to the Llanos de Cortez waterfall in a sedan in the dry season. There aren’t any steep hills or mountains roads to get to this waterfall.
If you visit during October or during a tropical storm in rainy season, the road may be muddy.
Catarata Llanos de Cortes hours
The Cortes waterfall is open 8AM – 4 PM everyday.
Catarata Llanos de Cortes entrance fee
4000 CRC for foreign adult
2000 CRC for foreign children ages 7-12
2000 CRC for seniors 65+ (must have passport if foreign)
2000 CRC for students with valid student ID
Parking and Facilities
The Llanos de Cortez waterfall has a large parking and they do have bathrooms (not a porter potty). No showers or changing rooms.
The parking lot is not under surveillance nor is there a proper guard so make sure not to leave any valuables visible in the car.
Also roll up your windows and lock your doors.
When we visited, there was a man sitting outside the bathrooms, kind of watching the parking lot.
What to bring
Swimsuit, change of clothes, towel, sandals or flip flops, snacks, water/drinks, sunglasses and sunscreen if you plan to stay for a couple hours.
They don’t sell food or drinks at the waterfall all the time. We have been there once during the holidays when some locals brought their own stand to sell shaved ice, snacks and cold coconut water but this is not always.
So make sure to bring your own refreshments.
The Trail to the Llanos de Cortez Waterfall
The total time to walk from the parking lot to the Llanos de Cortes waterfall is around 5 minutes.
From the parking lot, you will see a sign that says Catarata Waterfall 100 m with an arrow pointing left. Walk on this trail and you’ll get to the entrance of the main trail.
They have now made a very nice concrete path down to the waterfall.
It’s a very short walk, just about 3-5 minutes and they have a rope for a handrail and concrete steps all the way down.
The steps are not super steep so for anyone in good physical health, it is no problem. For anyone who may have ankle or knee problems, go slow and use the handrail.
Thankfully, there aren’t a ton of steps, maybe around 30 or so. It took me about 3 minutes to walk down to the waterfall from the parking lot.
When you get to the bottom of the trail, turn right to go to the waterfall.
The Stunning Cortes Waterfall
The Llanos de Cortes waterfall is no doubt, impressive. Especially if you go in the rainy season and it is very full from all the rains.
It is truly like an oasis in the desert as the water is super refreshing. It feels oh so good in the heat!
Important: They do not allow people to climb up the rocks under the waterfall.
During the rainiest months like October and November, the wall on the right side of the waterfall activates a second smaller waterfall!
It has a pool you can swim in too. It is seasonal so it won’t be there during the drier months like February, March and April.
If conditions are good, you can also walk up to the left side of Cortes waterfall to climb up to the top.
Be very careful as it may be slippery or muddy, it’s not a proper trail at all, just climbing up through the forest.
You’ll be able to see the river that supplies the waterfall and even walk all the way back to the parking lot from there.
We did this in March, the driest month in Guanacaste so it wasn’t muddy and all the foliage was dead/dry. I do not recommend it during the rainy season (May through November).
If it has been raining a lot, they may not allow you to swim in the waterfall due to unsafe conditions. PLEASE adhere to the regulations, they are for safety purposes.
Other Things to Know About Visiting the Llanos de Cortez Waterfall
- No bonfires or grills allowed.
- No smoking, no camping.
- Keep your ticket, they can ask for it anytime.
- You can stop by if you’re driving from Guanacaste (like Tamarindo/Playas del Coco/Conchal) to La Fortuna or vice versa. You can also stay for as long as you want, as it’s a nice day trip.
- To get the most of your day trip, you can visit the waterfall in the early morning for about an hour or just a photostop on your way to Rio Celeste. Or do Cortes Waterfall + zipline at Rincon de la Vieja or Diamante Eco Adventure Park.
What Else to Know About the Cortes Waterfall
This waterfall is now a popular spot for tours and it’s not as “hidden” as it used to be when we first visited.
Tour companies start stopping there 930, 10 AM or so. Or, go around 1-2 PM on a weekday.
Holidays are crazy busy, particularly Costa Rican holidays: Chrismas, New Years, Holy Week, Mother’s Day (August 15) and Independence Day (September 15).
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Other beautiful waterfalls are the Nauyaca waterfalls near Dominical in the South Pacific, Rio Celeste waterfall in northern Costa Rica, Catarata Rio Agrio, Blue Falls and Catarata del Toro in Bajos del Toro. Or check out our post on 12 amazing waterfalls in Costa Rica!
Mariette says
Hi- in the rainy season it might be closed due to flooding of the access road. We stopped there today November 9,2024 and the very friendly gentleman at the gate told us that is why it was closed and they evaluate on a day to day basis. We were passing by there on the way to the coast but to be awhere if you do a day trip. thanks for your blog!!!
Todd says
Went there in June 2024. I tried to go here in 2016, but couldn’t find it. This time there were huge signs for it out on route 1, so it was easy to find. I think it was $30 for four people, but it seemed like he didn’t charge me for the my youngest son (age six). Road down was a bit rough but you could make it in a normal sedan. Went on a weekday so there was lots of parking. I thought I saw a guatchiman, but he was gone at the end of the day, so maybe not. Was about a ten min hike down. There were three or four guys down there that always wanted to take your picture and show you hidden spots for money. We didn’t take them up on that though, plenty of others did though. When they saw you taking a picture or having someone else take your picture they could be a bit aggressive. Thankfully, the picture boys left maybe around 2 or 3pm. We had a lot of fun though. I swam up to the waterfall a few times. There is a small creek to play in and a small sand beach. There is some shade and one or two benches. There also seemed to be a lifeguard too. We either sat on the sand under the trees or on one of the benches. The walk back up to the parking lot is not for the faint of heart. I had to take one break and my wife had to take two breaks, but we made it with not much difficulty. My youngest needed some help on a few of the steps, but he did fine. It was one of my favorite activities that I have done in Costa Rica.
Sammi says
Yes a bit, you can go in the pool to a certain distance (can’t go behind or under the rocks) and if the conditions are good (sometimes when its raining hard and the waterfall is too full, they will not let anyone in the pool)
Tara says
Hi
Are you (still) able to swim at this waterfall?
Kizi says
Hi,
I’ve been there today- open until 16:00:)