When it comes to the best waterfalls in Costa Rica, Nauyaca waterfalls are definitely one of our favorites. Here is our guide to visiting this amazing natural beauty including tips for what to wear, how to get there and what you need to know about these waterfalls before you go.
This post was updated September 2020. Click below to skip to the section.
- Location
- How to get there
- Entrance Fee and Hours
- Hike, truck, horse
- The Waterfalls
- Videos
- What to Wear
- What to Know About Visiting
- Where to visit from
Location
Nauyaca waterfalls map.
The Nauyaca waterfalls are located 160 kilometers (100 miles) from San Jose and 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from Dominical in the South Pacific of Costa Rica.
How to get to Nauyaca Waterfalls
The waterfalls are located on a private property owned by a Costa Rican family, Don Lulo. You will arrive at their office to pay the entrance fee and then head to the waterfalls from there.
These are the GPS coordinates to plug into Google Maps or Waze: 9.280789 , -83.822594. The plus code is 75FJ+68 Santa Juana, Puntarenas Province, Pérez Zeledón.
Driving
From Route 34 (Costanera Sur), the Nauyaca waterfall office is about a ten minute drive from where you turn left onto Route 243 on the way to San Isidro de General. If you crossed the bridge and passed Dominical, you have gone too far. The turn is at a very obvious intersection with signs to Platanillo.
Once you turn left, you will see signs leading to the entrance and you will see a large waterfall sign at the office. When you see the office, you will see a road entrance about a kilometer north. Turn right to drive down to the parking lot.
The main road is well paved but there is a small section when you drive down from the office to the parking lot that is steep and unpaved. A 4×4 is highly recommended for the South Pacific area so it will be very useful to rent a SUV. In rainy season, a high car is required because that part of the road gets super slippery. In the driest months like March and April, it is OK for a normal car since the road isn’t slippery.
Nauyaca Waterfalls Entrance Fee and Hours
There are three ways to get to the waterfall from the Don Lulo office. You can hike, go on a truck or go horseback riding. Must make reservations beforehand.
They are open Monday – Saturday, no Sundays.
- The entrance fee for the waterfalls is $10 USD per person.
- The horseback riding tour is $85 USD per person.
- The 4×4 truck is $32 USD per person and they have schedules at 7 AM, 9 AM, 10 AM, 11 AM and 12 PM. They bring you back two hours after you arrive at the waterfall.
- They also offer a premium truck experience which includes light breakfast, entrance fee, roundtrip truck ride, lunch and guide for $85 USD per person. Starts at 8 AM and ends at 130 PM ish.
- Parking is $3 USD.
Nauyaca Waterfalls Nature Park
There is a NEW nature park that provides access to the eastern side of Nauyaca Waterfalls. They offer a 10 minute truck ride to the waterfall access and once you get off, it is a 600 meter walk down to the waterfalls. It costs $27 USD per adult and includes entrance fee, trolley ride, parking, bathrooms, changing rooms and access to their nature park hiking trails. Must make reservations beforehand. You can find them on Google Maps/Waze under Nauyaca Waterfalls Nature Park.
You can visit Nauyaca Waterfalls via this nature park or the Don Lulo family office (horseback ride, truck and the 4 km hiking trail).
Should You Hike, Truck or Horseback Ride?
The trail is about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) through the dense rain forest. You can choose any of the 3 options to get to the waterfall.
Nauyaca Waterfall Horseback Riding
We have gone horseback riding twice and it’s a very nice ride through the forest. They include a small breakfast and lunch on the tour. You’ll first ride to the little cottage to have a snack breakfast, ride to the waterfalls and then go back to the cottage for lunch.
The horse back riding tour runs everyday Monday – Saturday. Duration of the tour is 8 AM to 130 PM which includes light breakfast, horse, guide, lunch and admission fee. Additionally, the weight limit for the horseback ride is 104 kg or 230 lbs. Nauyaca Waterfalls horseback riding tour costs $85 USD per person.
Nauyaca Waterfalls Hike
For the Nauyaca Waterfalls hike, I recommend people to be in moderate shape. It is hot and humid with bugs so if that doesn’t sound appealing to you, then I recommend going on the horseback riding tour. And if horses don’t appeal to you, then there is the pick up truck option.
The trail is the same for both hiking and horseback riding so if you are hiking, make sure you are prepared to get a little bit dirty and wet, especially in rainy season. There are some puddles and muddy spots along the way (not to mention some horse poo).
The hike takes about 1-1.5 hours one way depending on how fast you walk to the waterfalls. As for the hike, it is wonderful since you can take your time, take pictures and spot wildlife (lots of sloths and toucans in this area). Definitely worth every step!
Nauyaca Waterfalls Truck
Don’t want to pay for horses but don’t want to walk? Take the Nauyaca Waterfalls 4×4 truck! This is by far the easiest and fastest way to get to the waterfalls. The truck tour fee includes entrance fee and truck ride. Or you can opt for the premium tour and get a guide, light breakfast and lunch included.
Nauyaca Cataratas
Upper Falls
The upper falls comprises of several cascades and you can’t swim or bathe in this area. You can walk around the rocks (careful it’s slippery) to get amazing views of the upper fall and the top of the lower falls.
This upper falls is a 45 meter (147 feet) drop. Also keep your eyes out when you go up there because I saw an otter jump into the water once!
Lower Falls
This is where most people spend their time, the lower falls. There is a lovely deep pool you can swim and bathe in and plenty of rocks to sit on. You get a stunning view of both waterfalls surrounded by lush green jungle and the sounds of nature.
This second fall is a tiered waterfall of 20 meters (65 feet) and the pool is six meters (19 feet) deep.
You can have a picnic, lay around, swim and relax. The local guides tie a rope onto the rocks and help visitors so they can climb up and jump off. Be very careful and do not climb up there on your own if there’s no guide, it is slippery!
Videos
Yeison brought his drone and took an awesome video of the waterfalls from the air. See what it looks like from above and watch one of the guides leap off a high ledge of the waterfall. Truly amazing! (And don’t try this yourself!)
We also took a video of the Nauyaca horseback riding tour. Watch it below!
What to Wear and Bring
- You can bring your swimsuit and change at the office.
- Bring lots of water, bug repellent and sunscreen.
- There are no food or snack stands so bring your own.
- Bring waterproof equipment if you plan on bringing electronics. A waterproof backpack is highly recommended.
- Wear closed toed shoes (no flip flops) since it get muddy/steep on some parts of the trail. The rocks are slippery at the waterfall. If you wear tennis shoes, you’re going to have wet socks and shoes by the end of the hike.
- Wear shorts and a tank top/short sleeve shirt that dry fast. It is very humid! If you are visiting in rainy season, I do recommend a rain jacket.
What to Know About Visiting Nauyaca Waterfalls
First, I recommend going there as early as possible if you want to have it for yourself. This waterfall has gotten very popular and it gets crowded in the afternoon, particularly the months of December – April.
Second, when it comes to water levels, we visited in February and August. The photos and videos above are from our visit in February. The photo below is from August. When we visited in August, the waterfall was SO full, we couldn’t walk down to the pool because it wasn’t there! It was extremely windy and not nice for swimming.
This is something to know about visiting Costa Rica during rainy season as waterfalls are a lot fuller. If you’re visiting August – October, see how the conditions are first. All we could do is stay near the steps as it was raining too hard.
Remember, this is the South Pacific of Costa Rica where it is very humid and can rain even in the dry season so pack appropriately. When we visited in February, it poured every day for almost a week! Check out our ultimate Costa Rica packing list and rainy season packing list for more tips.
Third, there are no facilities at all at the waterfall itself. So if you get hurt, need assistance or anything, help won’t come quick. Cell phone reception is pretty much nonexistent too. Bring plenty of food and water.
Fourth, make sure to keep an eye on your belongings while at the waterfall. Don’t leave your phones and cameras sitting out in plain sight.
Lastly, please be very careful on the rocks!
Where Can You Visit From?
You can visit the Nauyaca Wateralls from Manuel Antonio, Dominical, Uvita and Ojochal. From Manuel Antonio, it is about a 45 minute drive. From Uvita, it is about 25 minutes. The best way to get there is via car, it is very complicated to get there via bus.
If you don’t have a car, there are some tour companies from Manuel Antonio who offer this tour such as Paddle 9.
This is one of the most magnificent natural attractions I’ve ever seen in Costa Rica. It is now one of my top favorite waterfalls along with the Catarata Llanos de Cortes in Guanacaste and Catarata del Toro in the Central Valley. You can read about other Costa Rica waterfalls we love in this post.
Looking for more things to do in Dominical? Check out our top 10 things to do in Dominical and Uvita post!
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Paul says
I’m trying to figure out the difference between the two different entrances. Someone recommended the new nature park entrance. Is one experience better than the other? We plan on taking a truck either way.
Sammi says
They’re both nature parks, the new one has just the 4×4 truck and you only have to walk maybe like 5 to 10 minutes down to the waterfall from where they drop you off at the truck. The other one, the older one (Don Lalo) offers the truck, hiking and horseback riding and if you do horseback riding, they also include a small breakfast and lunch so that one offers some more options to get to the waterfall but the new one has a fun truck experience and doesn’t require as much walking. The new one also has the entrance to the waterfalls on the other side.
Beth Kipping says
We are driving our kids to this, dropping them off and picking them up later. 2 questions
Is there anything near by 2 people in their 60’s (one with a bad knee) can do while the others are hiking?
How long is the drive from Playa Bejuco, Pantarenas?
Beth
Sammi says
It’s about a 1.5 hour drive from Bejuco. I don’t know if you guys want to do anything while you wait but you can check out Dominical which is very close and drive around the area and check out different beaches.
Jessica says
Which tour company did you use for booking horseback riding to the falls? There are multiple ones online when I was searching ranging in prices from $75.00-85.00.
Sammi says
We went directly with the Nauyaca waterfalls office!
Chris McW says
My husband and I will be in Dominical Feb 9th -15th. and are planning to do the horse back riding to the falls. I noticed that most people in the video had backpacks. Is it safe to leave your backpack on the rocks while you swim. Do most people just not bring money with them?
Sammi says
Hi Chris, if you bring anything, always keep an eye on your belongings and don’t leave your cameras or phones in plain view. I haven’t really heard of too much theft at the falls because usually people who visit go in groups but unfortunately it is always a possibility. You won’t really need to bring a lot of money since you can bring exact cash to pay for the horseback riding tour.
Karen says
Is it possible to park our car at the office and walk the rest of the way? We will NOT have an SUV, just a regular car, so we’re worried about driving down to the parking lot (given your description above). We plan to be there this coming January.
Sammi says
Hi Karen! So we spoke with the Nauyaca waterfalls office and they said that during rainy season, that part of the road is very slippery and it is not suitable for a sedan or normal car, a 4wd/4×4 is necessary. For January, it will be the start of our dry season but the South Pacific does tend to rain a bit more. When we visited the waterfall in mid-February, it had rained pretty hard nearly that entire week so it’s really difficult to say whether it’ll be dry enough for the road to be OK because there is a possibility for it to rain in January in that area too.
The office is right off the main road and they don’t really have anywhere else to park. They have all the guests drive down to their parking space by the horse stables.
I wish I could help more but that’s what they told us and when it comes to weather, it is very hard to say how it will be. For the South Pacific and that area, it is always best to have a high car due to the road and weather conditions in that area.
Karen says
Thanks a million for the information!!!!!!!
Marlon says
Hey Sammi, first of all thanks for the great guide!
I plan to go there tomorrow. Hiking is no problem for me I am used to temperature etc. However I have a huge backpack and a small one. Do you know if there is anyway to store the big backpack at the entrance? I will visit it while traveling through, so there is no way for me to leave it elsewhere. Thank you in advance!
Sammi says
Hi Marlon, you can ask the office to see if it is possible to leave your backpack there since last time I remember they don’t have lockers.
Felicia Murrell says
How far are the falls from Playa del Cocos? Do you need to rent a car to get there?
Sammi says
It is about a 5 hour drive from Coco, the best way would be to drive and stay a night in Dominical or the area.
Richard says
It seems that the third option, taking the truck , there is a schedule were your thwere for 2 hours, Has anyone done this and is it worth it ?
Sal says
can you hike in and take the truck back out?
Sammi says
The truck has to be reserved in advance so I think if you reserve it, you should be able to. You will need to contact the park office to make sure and make reservations.
Tommy K says
I’m going to be driving down from Manuel Antonio. Where do we pre-book the 4×4 ride to waterfall once there?
Sammi says
You can check on the Nauyaca Waterfalls website and contact them to book it.
Sammi says
Hi Dianna, I am not sure if you will be able to do Manuel Antonio to Nauyaca by bus (enjoyably) due to the schedule and the bus will only drop you off at the entrance office, the falls is still a long way in (around 4 kilometers one way). You need to take the bus from Quepos to San Isidro, ask the driver to get off at Nauyaca and for the whole hike and time staying at the fall is around 4-5 hours (or you can take the truck which saves some time). If you want to take the bus, it looks like there’s a bus from Quepos to San Isidro at 530 AM and 1130 AM and a bus from San Isidro to Quepos back at 1130 AM. The bus ride from Quepos to Nauyaca is maybe around 2-2.5 hours so you will need to make sure you make it to the entrance office by 1130 AM.
Dianna says
Hey, first of all I wanna say that your posts about Costa Rica have been super helpful to me as I plan a 5 day trip for my boyfriend and I. We are going this May and will be in Quepos for about 2 1/2 days, which I fear isn’t long enough for everything we want to see/do. But we’re trying to make the most of our time without feeling too rushed. This waterfall has essentially been on and off our list several times because while we really want to see it, we aren’t sure we’ll have time. One of the issues is that we won’t have a rental car and are depending mostly on the public transportation in an effort to keep costs low. I have had trouble finding info on getting to the waterfall via bus. I realize it will make the ride longer and I have no problem getting up a little earlier to ensure that we have plenty of time to enjoy it. But I am wondering if the bus would drop us off at the entrance area or if we would have to find additional transportation from where ever it does drop off. I’m also wondering how getting a bus back would work. Any help or advice on this issue would be really helpful! Thanks 🙂
lango says
Hi,
Is the falls closed on Christmas day? We are visiting this month and want to hike on our own to the falls.
Thanks!
Sammi says
Ni Iango, the falls are open but only for hiking.
Kelly says
We area travelling to the area in January. Do you know if the pick up truck option is still available? Do you we need to book ahead of time and what time would you recommend getting there? Your website has been so helpful in planning our trip. Thanks so much for your help!
Sammi says
Hi Kelly, it should be and I do recommend booking in advance because the waterfalls are very popular and January is a busy time. I recommend going early in the morning (weather down in the South Pacific doesn’t always adhere strictly to dry/rainy season and we have been there in February where it poured rain for days) and so you can have all day to enjoy it.
Sammi says
About 25 minutes
Ashley Cubillo Devine says
How long is the drive from Uvita?
Sierpe Outfitters says
Beautiful video!! good info too! thank you!
Sammi says
Thanks!
Jeff says
Going in a few weeks , is the waterfall still worth the hike in the dry season. Went to a few last year in feb. that were just a trickle
Sammi says
I think so – the pictures in the post were taken when we went in February 2015 and it was gorgeous. Way better than when we went last August when it had way too much water
Saana says
Hi! How much time do we estimate for the whole trip including the horse back riding part to the waterfalls 🙂 We plan to head out there from Manuel Antonio
yeison says
Hi Saana, around 6 hours from Manuel Antonio but it all depends of how long the group will stay at the waterfall and traffic.
Landon says
Could you give me an idea of how long it would take to vist this waterfall. We are driving from San Jose to Uvita and wondering if this would be a good stop. Our flight gets in at 11 so there is no way to get an early start.
Thanks
Sammi says
The hike 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) each way so you won’t be able to stop by on your way to Uvita. It gets dark at 6 PM and by the time you drive from San Jose to Dominical, it’ll be at least 2 or 3 PM and the waterfalls close at 6 PM. You should do it the day after or during your time in Uvita since Uvita and Dominical are very close. You need at least 5-6 hours for this waterfall/hike.
Sammi says
Manuel Antonio to Dominical is a fairly straightforward, paved road. However, if you are planning on driving to the waterfall do know that the property’s parking lot requires a SUV because the road down although short, is not paved and very steep with lots of holes. YOu may be able to scrape by with a sedan but even the tour people and property owners told us it’s better to have a SUV. You can get a short glimpse of what the road is like in this video of the horseback riding tour here: Nauyaca waterfalls
Evelyn says
Ok, the thing is we’re planning on renting a sedan because we’re only using it to go from San Jose to Manuel Antonio and Puerto Viejo, but we want to go to the waterfalls, and i can’t find any information on tours departing from Manuel Antonio and going to the waterfall. So renting a SUV just for that part of the trip it seems a little too much.
Sammi says
You can probably do it with a sedan, just be super careful because it is a bit steep and unpaved. But if it rains, it might not be possible since it’ll be super slippery and muddy. So you can probably get away with a sedan for that area (I think I remember seeing a Honda Civic in our group), just drive very carefully.
Olga says
We just went there few days ago.
Here is the scoop.
There is 4 kilometers steep and pretty bumpy road that we drove to the point where the parking is. We had AWD and it was pretty rough, so I would NOT recommend sedan at all, even to get to their parking lot. Then, there is another 4km to the falls that you can either walk or ride a horse.
After parking lot there is about 1-1.5 kilometers you still can drive down, but ONLY if you have 4WD, but then – there is absolutely no way. There is a huge boulder on the way and the road is pretty much impassible by any vehicle. So, we hiked for another 2.5 kilometers.
Now, if you don’t might hiking, I would recommend rather to do that, since if you manage to get there before (or after) the horseback riding group does, you have the place pretty much to yourself, except may be very few people that also were walking by their own (or none). We did that and that was awesome, but then – bid group of horseback riders arrived and it got little crowded. Not to mention the price difference.
Enjoy.
Evelyn says
Hi! How’s the road to get there driving from Manuel Antonio? Can you do it in a sedan?
Gareth says
great thanks 🙂
Could you please explain the difference between the Nauyaca Waterfalls and the Baru Waterfalls? The internet shows pictures of them both as the same thing, it’s very confusing hahah
Sammi says
I have no idea, maybe Baru was their previous name. Never heard of it
Gareth says
Is there a specific opening time for entrance to the waterfall?
Sammi says
The office opens around 8 AM. You have to stop by there and pay your fee.
Zascha says
A friend of mine used to live in Costa Rica, and the more stories she tells me about that place, the more I want to go there.
And this post certainly helps. Such a beautiful waterfall!
Sammi says
Hi Zascha, glad you enjoyed it. It is a gorgeous waterfall! Hope you can visit one day!