31.10.2021 | Central America, Costa Rica

Poás Volcano and Pozas Celestes Pools

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There are two incredible things to do just a 1.5 hour car ride away from the capital city of Costa Rica, San José. Visit the light blue crater lake of the Poás Volcano and the incredible surrounding volcano landscape. Afterwards, hike to the Rio Agrio waterfall and take a swim in the deep blue and cold outdoor pools Pozas Celestes. You can either do a day trip from San José or take a stop on your way from Volcano Arenal to the capital city.

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1. Experience the Poás Volcano

The Poás Volcano is situated in the centre of Costa Rica, 1.5 hours away from San José. First you have to drive along steep hilly roads up the mountain with amazing views of the villages and landscape, until you reach the park entrance. Online you have to book a ticket with a defined time slot before you visit. You wait in a line in front of a gate, until they let you in. Then you have to pay 15 USD per person, before you leave your car at the parking space. We got some helmets and had to watch a small video how to act in case of an eruption. Then we hiked up to the crater platform.

Poás is an active volcano with two craters sitting on 2.700 metres above sea level. Due to the eruption in 2017, the volcano ejected a dense plume of mud and steam 300 meters into the air, the park had to be evacuated. After this eruption, they decided that tourists had to stay on the main paths, are only allowed to stay 20 minutes at the platform crater and wear helmets incase of another unexpected eruption. Before the eruption it was possible to hike around the whole crater.

The size of the crater is impressive and the place really looks like another planet. The crater lake is one of the most acidic in the world, having a pH of around zero. This makes the lake very toxic but also gives it an intense blue color This large active crater is 1.5 km wide. Unfortunately you can only watch the lake from the viewing platform, you can’t walk around the crater anymore.

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2. Swim in the Pozas Celestes pools and visit the Rio Agrio Waterfall

Located in Bajos del Toro you will find these incredible but cold outdoor pools. The color of the water varies depending on the volcanic activity and the weather conditions. We saw pictures with light blue water, however when we visited in the rainy season in August it was more like a dark blue color.

The entrance is at the main building at the Catarata Rio Agrio waterfall, where you can leave your rental car at the free parking space. You can buy a ticket in the restaurant either for both the waterfall and the pools or a ticket for only one site. We only visited Pozas Celestes pools, since it looked like rain was coming. We paid around 3 dollars per person only for the pools.

For the Rio Agrio Waterfall you walk through the jungle, crossing several wooden bridges. It’s only a 1 km walk until you reach the waterfall with a 50 meter high fall.

To get to Pozas Celestes pools they will organize you a transportation (like 5 minutes car ride). From there you have to walk down a staircase until you reach the platform at the pools. Actually, you can also drive with your rental car directly to Pozas Celestes, since it’s a public road. But I guess the pools are located on private land of this family.

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About the weather?

Dry season: December – April

High chance of no rainfall and clear blue sky. February, March and April are the hottest months.

Rainy season: May – November

It stays hot and humid. Mornings are usually sunny and clear and it will start raining in the afternoon. It often rains throughout the night. September, October and beginning of November are the rainiest months. We’ve visited in August and had clear skies in the morning and heavy rain in the afternoon and night.

Anzeige / ad: The hotels, restaurants and companies we mentioned above didn’t sponsor us. All our recommendations are always based on our own opinion.