Rio Celeste is undoubtedly one of the most incredible places in Costa Rica. This sky blue river enchants visitors with its stunning color and beautiful waterfall, making it a must see. Although it was a local secret for many years, word has gotten out about this spectacular natural phenomenon with more and more visitors adding Rio Celeste to their itinerary.
If you’re planning on witnessing the magic of Rio Celeste with your own eyes, you’ll be happy to know that you don’t need to rent a 4×4 to go to Tenorio Volcano National Park. The road from Bijagua to the park entrance has been re-done since it got damaged from Hurricane Otto in 2017 so now it’s in great shape. It’s paved all the way through!
Below you will find how to get to Rio Celeste from Bijagua, how to get to Rio Celeste from Liberia and how to get to Rio Celeste from La Fortuna. I also added Playas del Coco and Tamarindo since I know a lot of people are interested in doing a day trip from those destinations. This is for people who are renting a car which is the best way to visit Rio Celeste on your own as there are no buses or shuttles directly to the national park entrance.
Click the section to skip to it. *This post has been updated August 2019*
Rio Celeste Parking Lot (Tenorio Volcano National Park Parking)
There is a large parking lot at the entrance of Tenorio Volcano National Park. As soon as you park, someone will come collect 2000 colones per car. They’ll give you a parking slip, please place this ticket on the dashboard of your car so it’s visible.
Although this is a “secure” parking lot in that there is a “guard” and it’s at the park entrance, don’t leave any valuables visible in your car, make sure to lock your doors and roll up windows. There aren’t any security cameras and the national park/local community won’t take responsibility for any damage to cars or theft. There is a lot of traffic through this area and you will see many tour shuttles and vans.
If you have luggage in the car, I recommend to get there earlier and park as close as you can to the office and entrance where there are more people. Keep your luggage in the trunk (or covered if you have an open trunk in an SUV) and don’t leave any valuables visible.
What to Put in Your GPS
On Google Maps and Waze, put in “Rio Celeste Waterfall Parking.” Don’t put in Tenorio Volcano National Park or just Rio Celeste as it won’t take you to the parking lot. Renting a car? Get our Costa Rica car rental discount and extra freebies!
How to get to Rio Celeste from Bijagua
In the video below, you can see how to get to Rio Celeste from Bijagua and how the road is. Bijagua is the main town near Tenorio Volcano National Park and it’s about a 25-30 minute drive from the town center to the park entrance. As you can see, it’s a very easy drive! From Bijagua, there is only one turn.
This video was taken January 2018. The road is now completely paved in March 2019!
We took this video by strapping our Sony Action Cam to the top of our car so that we can show you what the route looks like. We saw a few sedans on this road so if you’re worried that you can’t make it in a sedan, don’t! You can definitely drive a sedan to Rio Celeste. Just make sure to drive slow and carefully because the road is narrow and windy.
How to get to Rio Celeste from Liberia
If you’re coming from Liberia International Airport, turn left onto the main road towards Liberia on Route 21. Then turn left onto the InterAmericana highway 1 for about 40 kilometers (25 miles) and then exit left off the highway towards Upala (Route 6). You’ll continue on this road for another 33 kilometers (20 miles) until you reach Bijagua.
Once you get to Bijagua, you’ll turn right about 1 kilometer (.6 mile) north of Pizza Barrigon. Continue on this road for about 25 minutes. This drive takes about 1.5 hours.
Below is the map:
This route is on all well paved roads and is a very easy drive.
How to get to Rio Celeste from La Fortuna
There is a newish road connecting La Fortuna to Tenorio Volcano National Park making it really easy to go from La Fortuna – Rio Celeste – Guanacaste. This road takes about 1.5 hours on a nice, paved road through small towns and farmland with scenic views.
Here is the map:
You will need to head east out of La Fortuna on Route 142, and then turn left onto Route 4. This road has a lot of signs so make sure you follow the signs. At first, follow the ones to Upala and then you will start seeing Tenorio Volcano National Park, Rio Celeste and Bijagua. This is one of the few routes where I recommend to follow the road signs instead of Waze. Waze kept trying to turn us onto the old road, which is on a not so good road and took much longer.
Here are some photos of this route.
How to get to Rio Celeste from Playas del Coco
This route is very easy. All you have to do is drive from Playas del Coco to Liberia and then follow the same directions from Liberia. Playas del Coco to Liberia is about a 40 minute drive on an easy route.
Playas del Coco to Rio Celeste is about 2 hours.
How to get to Rio Celeste from Tamarindo
From Tamarindo, you will need to go back out the way you came from Liberia Airport and follow the same directions. Good road, easy route.
It’s about a 2.5 hour drive from Tamarindo to Rio Celeste.
Amrutha says
Hi! Thank you so much for this info! I was wondering – once we get there, will we be able to see/hike/hike nearby the volcano?
Thank you!
Sammi says
You can hike in the Tenorio Volcano National Park.
Celeste says
Thank you so much for all of this information! I am so glad I read the comments where you referenced the Facebook page for the river conditions. So helpful! One question, we are driving from San Jose to Rio Celeste and Google Maps says that take 27 to 1 going east and then north takes a little longer than if we went west on 32 and jumped on 4. Any suggestions on which route is best? Also, we will be taking 4 back down when we head to Puerto Viejo so I kind of wanted to take the route to the east heading there so we could see more of Costa Rica. Thanks again for your help!
Sammi says
I would recommend to take the 27 and then the 1, the Interamericana highway 1 is really nice so you can drive a lot faster and not deal with as much traffic because it’s a huge highway, I would say it’s actually faster than going all the way through the 4 and Sarapiqui because the 1 is such a nice highway. There is sometimes traffic on the 27 though. Since you’re taking the 4 back, you can take the 27 and then 1 to Bijagua.
Sammi says
You can do either way, it’s up to you depending on scheduling if you want to fit it in during the day of your drive, which will save you a day in Guanacaste/Arenal or use it as one of your days in La Fortuna.
Leona says
Hi,
I’m finding your information to be extremely helpful in planning our first trip to Costa Rica in Feb. Thank you!
We are renting a car and we will be staying for 2 weeks.
Starting in La Fortuna, we are staying there 4 nights then driving to Playa Flamingo area.
We really want to check out Rio Celeste and wonder if we should make it a day trip while staying in La Fortuna then when we head to Playa Flamingo area, we would take the 142. OR, should we leave for Playa Flamingo after stopping at Rio Celeste.
I appreciate your advice
Lexi says
Hi! We are going to be in Costa Rica in a week! And we really want to go to Rio Celeste. We know its rainy season and that the water could be brown. I also heard they could close it. Is there a way to check the day of and see if it will be open? Thank you!
Sammi says
Hello Lexi, I would check this FB page, it is the official national park and they post updates and they have a phone number: https://www.facebook.com/PNVolcanTenorioACAT/
Maxime says
Hi,
Having the driving direction would be very useful.
Also, is there more than one entrance?
Thanks,
Maxime
Sammi says
There’s only one entrance and driving directions from Liberia are in there now 🙂
Shelby says
Just wondering if it is possible/ enough time to travel from Monteverde to Rio Celeste to Arenal/La Fortuna in one day? Trying to make the most of our days! Thank you for all your help in planning our trip!
Sammi says
You could! Just make sure to leave early ad get a good night sleep because you’ll have to drive a bit. Around 3 hours for Monteverde to Rio Celeste and 2 to La Fortuna. Then the hike could take around 4 hours depending on how long it takes you and the weather so it’ll be a long day. The park also closes at 4 and you need to be in the park by 2 PM.
Journey Filkosky says
Hi I just returned from Costa Rica and Rio Celeste and they recently replaced the entire road all the way up. It is 100% paved until you get to the parking lot.
Sammi says
Hi Journey! Thank you for the update, great to hear!