Hacienda El Viejo Tours: Wildlife, Food and Cultural Tours

Tours and Activities > Coco/Papagayo and Tamarindo > Hacienda El Viejo Wetlands

Experience the best of Guanacaste culture and nature when booking any Hacienda El Viejo tours and enjoy their wildlife watching river boat ride, cultural experience, birdwatching in wetlands tour, beer tasting and rum tour.

Hacienda El Viejo Tours Highlights

• Exclusive river boat ride in Hacienda El Viejo's own private wildlife refuge.
  
• Opportunities to see animals like white face monkeys, howler monkeys, iguanas, crocodiles, caimans, bats, kingfishers and herons on the boat ride.
• Cultural experience includes hands on tortilla making class, coffee and local snacks tasting, and sugar can presentation.
• Birding activity is a custom experience - you can walk or drive with the opportunity to find and photograph specific birds.
• Rum tour includes sugar cane presentation, tasting and rum creation with an opportunity to purchase your creation.
• Beer tasting includes a flight of 4 beers.

Watch Our Hacienda El Viejo Tours Video!

Cancellation Policy

Read the cancellation policies here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Hacienda El Viejo located?
Hacienda El Viejo is located in the Guanacaste province, 1 hour from the Guanacaste Airport (LIR airport code). Click here to go to Google Maps.

Do you recommend Hacienda El Viejo tours for seniors with mobility issues? What about little kids?
Yes! The boat tour is very easy as you just sit on a covered river boat with plastic seat backs and there is a dock and ramp to walk down to the boat.

The cultural experience is fully outdoors, but under a covered space with sitting areas. For the cultural experience, you can sit for most of it it needed. Little walking required, as the cultural tour takes place very close to the operation center.

The beer tasting is sitting the whole time, no walking required. The rum tour requires little walking, and the second half you can sit indoors. 

There is no minimum age requirement for any of the tours, but we recommend the boat tour for kids and the cultural experience since kids can't participate in the rum or beer tasting and the rest of the tour is information, so it may be boring for them. The birding experience can be very cool for older kids who are interested in birds.

Are any activities indoor?
Yes. The beer tasting is indoors and the building has air conditioning. The rum experience is half outdoors in a small farm and half indoors in an air conditioned building.

The boat tour, cultural experience and birding tour are completely outdoors.

What is the road like?
The road is largely paved, as much of it is on a main highway. However, once you turn off the main road from the town of Filadelfia, it turns into a dirt road.

There aren't any mountains to drive up or elevation climbs, but we highly recommend a high clearance car in the dry season for the most comfort. A 4x4 can give extra comfort and security in the rainy season.

If you need transportation, please write a note in the comment section your hotel and we will get back to you with prices with transportation.

Is there free parking?
Yes, there is free parking at the Hacienda El Viejo Wetlands park.

I am a solo traveler. Can I do the tours?
The activities require a minimum of 2 people. The only option for solo travelers are for them to pay for 2 spots as they require a minimum of 2 people to operate tours.

What languages are available?
Spanish and English.

When is the best time to do the boat tour?
For wildlife, mornings are the best time for birds but there is a possibility to see wildlife any time of the day. In March and April, it gets very hot around midday, so we generally recommend the boat tour in the morning or the last schedule in the afternoon.

Are there vegetarian/vegan options available?
Yes! Just put a note in the special request section you would like this option.