We spent two days in the Costa Rican city of Liberia, primarily as a base to visit the nearby Rincon de la Vieja National Park 15 miles away. There is accommodation nearer to the park, but this tends to be expensive.
How to get to Liberia
We stopped at Liberia on our drive from Arenal Volcano to the Pacific coast. The city is well connected by road; Route 1, the Inter American Highway, passes by the city, with route 21 leading to the coast. Liberia also has its own airport.
Getting around Liberia
The city itself can be explored on foot. However, as Liberia tends to be a base to visit other attractions in the area, a car is ideal.
Where to stay in Liberia
We stayed at Hotel Las Espuelas. It’s just off the highway, so very convenient if you’re just passing through. The rooms are clean and spacious and the free breakfast was good. The main draw, and a very welcome sight after a hot day of travelling or sightseeing, was the large pool.
Liberia in 2 Days Itinerary
| Day 1 | Drive to Liberia Accommodation – Hotel Las Espuelas Parque Central Iglesia Inmaculada Concepción de María Dinner at Masala |
| Day 2 | Rio Negro Thermal Springs Rincon de la Vieja National Park – Sector Las Pailas |
Liberia Day 1
Today’s drive is 80 miles, the first half of which skirts the shore of Lake Arenal. So, the plan is to go slow with plenty of photo stops, arriving at our hotel in Liberia around lunch time. By then, the temperature should be 32 degrees. Luckily, it has a pool!
Drive to Liberia
We skirt Lake Arena, drive up over a hill. On the hill is an enormous wind farm, and then, once over the top, it’s like entering a different world; we leave behind the cool, green rainforest and all of a sudden we’re on the hot, red plains of Guancaste – cattle country.
Accommodation – Hotel Las Espuelas
Soon, we reach the highway and drive the final 25 miles to tonight’s destination – Hotel Las Espuelas – a roadside motel ion the outskirts of Liberia. We reach the motel 90 minutes before check-in. Although it’s on the side of the motorway, it’s surprisingly quiet and serene inside the hotel itself. The accommodation is in rows of cabins, leading to a very nice pool.
There is no chance of an early check in. No matter, I settle myself down the pool. 100 laps later, we can finally check in.
We head into town for a wander and dinner. By now it’s gone 3 and the combination of no lunch and a long swim are taking their toll. A read of Lonely Planet’s guide to Liberia has left us with low expectations. The first thing we notice about the town is that many of the roads are one way, so getting where you want to go isn’t as simple as it sounds.
Parque Central
We finally reach the centre of town and park up near Parque Central. We take a wander around the park (which is really just a plaza) and take the obligatory photo next to the Liberia sign.
Iglesia Inmaculada Concepción de María
Overlooking the church is the very modern, very white Iglesia Inmaculada Concepción de María.
Dinner at Masala
For dinner, we opt for a nearby Indian restaurant, Masala. By the time the food comes, I’m ravenous, but it’s worth the wait – Palak Paneer served with cumin rice. Delicious!
Liberia Day 2
Today, we are going to Rincon de la Vieja National Park. It’s a 17 mile drive from our hotel to the park, starting on Route 1, before we have to turn off onto a smaller road. With 6 miles to go, we run out of paved road and the bouncing around in the gravel begins. A few miles later, there is a sign saying we are entering private land and must pay 700 colones each (about £1) to continue. Unexpected as we’re heading for a National Park, but the man has a gun, so we don’t argue.
Rio Negro Thermal Springs
We chose to start our trip with a visit to Rio Negro Hot Springs; a series of pools situated along the river, heated by volcanic activity beneath your feet. The springs are open from 9 am and you can book a 1.5 hour slot in advance on their website. We arrived at 9 am, just as the springs opened and as it was quiet, they weren’t bothered about sticking to the 1.5 hour time limit.
The $30 entrance fee gets you entry to the thermal springs plus a mud treatment and access to a short trail leading to a series of four small waterfalls. Towels are also provided. A 400 metre walk along a trail brings you, via changing rooms, to the pools. There are ten pools which range in temperature from pleasantly warm to f*** me that’s hot.
There’s also an opportunity to cover yourself in volcanic mud, which is alleged to have therapeutic properties. It’s not as exotic as it sounds – an attendant in wellies hands over half a coconut shell full of mud for us to smother on ourselves, then it’s time to sit on a rock and wait for it to dry…
After relaxing in the pools, covering ourselves in mud and a further pool dip to ensure most of the mud is out of our orifices, we take a walk along the waterfall trail included in the ticket.
The thermal springs are open daily from 9 am until 5.30 pm. Entry costs $30.
Rincon de la Vieja National Park
A 10 minute drive brings you from the thermal springs to Rincon de la Vieja National Park car park. Rincon de la Vieja is an active volcano and the park at its base provides visitors with the opportunity to hike trails past volcanic features and to bath in thermal springs heated by the volcanic activity beneath their feet.
Sector Las Pailas
The park is divided into two sectors; Sector La Pailas and Sector Santa Maria. Due to volcanic activity, when we visited, only Sector la Pailas was open.
Sendero la Pailas
The most popular trail within this sector of the park is the 3.5 km long Sendero las Pailas. This takes you over a hanging bridge onto a circuit with four viewpoints offering the chance to see various volcanic features. Towards the end, is an optional fifth viewpoint, accessed via a flight of steps, to a seasonal waterfall.
Fumarolic Lagoon
A lake with volcanic activity at its base, the fumaroles create the bubbles in the water.
Mud Pots
Rings of bubbling, stinking mud burst forth.
Mini Volcano
Volcanic activity in miniature.
Steam Vents
Vents of steam escape the earth and glisten in the sunlight.
Seasonal Waterfall
We visited during dry season, so the waterfall was a bit underwhelming.
The park is open daily except Monday from 8 am until 3 pm. Entry costs $16.95 (card only). Note: Much of the trail is exposed, so it can get very hot. Ensure you bring sufficient water – we didn’t!
It’s 32 degrees, the trail is longer than anticipated and we run out of water long before we reach the end. Just as I think things can’t get any worse, a snake slithers across our path! When we do finally do reach the end, we’re hot and dehydrated and the café is shut. We return to town stopping en route at Walmart for water and empanadas to refuel after our hike, followed by a lovely cool swim in the pool.
- Trip taken: January 2022
- Updated: March 2025
I hope you found the above information useful. For guides to more destinations in the 50+ countries we have visited, check out my full list of Independent Travel Itineraries here.
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