Balsa River White Water Rafting: Class III & IV, Organic Lunch and Cultural Insight

1,113 Ratings

La Fortuna

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Experience the thrill of Class III & IV white water rafting on the Balsa River, accompanied by expert guides. Enjoy a delicious organic lunch and learn about Costa Rican culture and nature.

Duration: 6 hours

Cancellation: 24 hours

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Highlights

Rafting Class III & IV on the Upper Section of Rio Balsa!
Tour Includes: transportation, towels, a bilingual river guide, a delicious Costa Rican organic farm lunch, fresh fruit, and a Trapiche demonstration.
What to bring: simple dry clothing like shorts and a t-shirt, a swimsuit, sunscreen, secure footwear such as sport sandals or water shoes, and a…

What's Included

Snacks
Lunch
Rafting class III & IV on River Balsa
Pick up and drop off in La Fortuna
Adventure Rafting

What's Not Included

No Gratuities - There are not included in the price.
Photos

Additional Information

Navigate Class III & IV rapids
Engage in an unforgettable journey through the largest gorge of the Balsa River. Feel a rush of adrenaline, a sense of peace, and a profound joy as you witness the miraculous transformation of this heavenly rift and its brave navigators.
Your adventure will be guided by seasoned river experts and safety kayakers. You’ll…

Location

Costa Rica Descents Adventure Company

Via 702, 500 meter south from the Catholic Church of La Fortuna, next to Supermarket "Super Rosvil", 21007, Alajuela Province, La Fortuna, Costa Rica

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

4.9

(1113 Ratings)

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A5493zidaniela

Aug 23, 2025

Great time and really friendly guides especially Roland :) - We had a great time on this excursion! Ronald was our guide for rafting - he was great, made it a very fun experience. The lunch was super tasty, we wanted seconds. Orlando gave us a tour around the gardens and gave us a demonstration of how sugar is produced. Overall a very fun and experience. I would happily book another tour with them - they have lots of other options!

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Gregory_m

Aug 18, 2025

It was a good way to see part of costa rica. The whole experience was good. The fruit in the middle of the trip - You will get wet, and you will use your paddle. Warner was an awesome guide. The bus ride to the launch was interesting.

Review provided by Viator

Javier

Aug 16, 2025

Family Vacation - The White Water rafting experience was an excellent experience for our family, as they were rafting for the first time. Our guide, Werner, was very accommodating and helpful, making our experience fun, engaging and exciting. We recommend this to other families with teenage children or groups

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Richstone

Aug 13, 2025

Great experience with friendly &professional local company - My family (children 12 & 14) had a great time rafting today with a very friendly and professional set of guides. We were picked up from Arenal Springs (tip - book directly, as the hotel seems to have added a decent markup) and briefed on the bus. Suitable footwear was rented for $5 ea. On the way the bus stopped suddenly so that the guide could help a sloth across the road (see photo)! There were a number of families and rafts took between 4-6 people, meaning that we had a private guide & boat. The rapids were suitably challenging for us to make it exciting, but there was nothing crazy. The instructions were clear and the guides knew what they were doing. There were a couple of canoeists for safety, but no one from the 6 boats fell in. We took a break half way through for some delicious pineapple and watermelon. After that the rapids became less frequent and the guide pointed out sloths, iguanas and numerous types of birds. After we finished we were taken off for lunch, via a shop with a changing area. Lunch was a tasty local meal, followed by local coffee in the company’s base on the edge of La Fortuna. We were shown around the gardens and introduced to a number of local plants and fruits, before a demonstration of sugar cane extraction. The transport back was fine and we arrived back around 3.30. All in all it was a super experience that broke up the nature trips and walks for the children.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

F1034whjackiel

Aug 13, 2025

First time whitewater rafting - Cristopher was the best guide ever ! It was my first time rafting and was very nervous but he calmed me down and showed me that it was the most fun ever! We were a family of 5 and he made our tour so exciting and enjoyable! 10 out of 10 !!!

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Angel

Aug 5, 2025

Vibrating - Our guide/instructor (Orlando or Pedro, depending on the moment, hahaha) gave us the training, security and confidence needed to deal with these rapids with guarantees. Very grateful Orlando!!

Review provided by Tripadvisor

U6379uktrevord

Aug 3, 2025

White Water Fun with Friendly Guides! - Juan Carlos, Mike Mullen and Alejandro were fantastic! Lots of prep, local knowledge and friendly-fun attitude. Highly recommended and thanks for the exciting white water memories!

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Alexismy638ac

Aug 1, 2025

Amazing, Breathtaking, Fantastic! - Absolutely fantastic! Warner ES an excellent teacher! Happy Birthday Warner! Note: Pay EN to your instructor and take this activity very seriously.

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Meztlia2025

Jul 29, 2025

Amazing rafting - We were with Tala and without doubt DE the best, always knew how to handle very well EN the whole situation making all the time we felt safe in the boat, I would certainly repeat it many times and the team has very good vibe, they are very chimbas more than anything Orlando and Jean Carlo

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Yonidyv

Aug 5, 2025

Detailed experience... be aware - The actual experience rafting was amazing, our guide Mauro made it soooo fun. Be prepared for a waiting periods. They really take their time to get everyone ready, so you have an idea, started at 9am at the office, meeting point. We hot to the river by 11am, the ride was 40min approx, had to wait seating on the raft, in the river, for an hour with our guide holding the boat the whole time. It takes almost 2 hours going down the river, first part has good rapids, we stopped for pineapple and watermelon treat (they were warm, I guess they didn't care to keep them cool while waiting for the group) a 15 to 20 min stop for fruit treat. And then the next part is mostly floating down the river. Once back to the main office and restaurant, you will have lunch, which was good and after lunch a little walk thru the garden area in the back of the restaurant, nothing out of ordinary if you are familiar with a little farms or gardens. The whole experience from 9am to 4 pm could be made short and less aggravating if they cut the waiting time. If you don't mind that the experience is great. All the tours in the area pretty much follow that schedule when they offer a day tour. Someone has to be creative and come up with a faster tour, cut wasted times and just go down the river, could do more trips down the river in one day..... They were nice and polite, that gets them four stars...

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Check Availability

From $85

up to 15 guests

1 - Adult