Starting at $188 per adult

Overview

Look no further if you are seeking adventure! The rappelling and rafting combo is an awesome full day of thrills and spills! Imagine rappelling down rainforest waterfalls and then wrapping up the day whitewater rafting on one of the most popular rivers in Costa Rica…

The day starts off when you are picked up from your local Arenal Volcano area hotel. You will be brought to the base of a hill on the other side of town. This is where the adventure begins. You will switch vehicles and ride a 4x4 thirty minutes up until you reach the base camp rancho.

Your guide will size you up and suit you up with high quality safety gear and then provide a brief safety and instructional course. Then you will be on your way to rappelling down four rappels of varying height from 45 to 165 feet! No experience is necessary. You will always have the comfort of a secondary safety line that the guide will control. Between each rappel you will scramble through the canyon which is surrounded by lush rainforest that is teaming with life. This is an epic adventure that is usually the highlight of the trip!

After the rappelling tour you will be whisked away to meet the whitewater rafting crew en route to the Rio Balsa. When you arrive at the river your guide will provide safety gear and another instructional safety course. Then you will be on your way down one of the most popular whitewater rivers in the country. The Rio Balsa offers a continuous adventure of class II and III rapids which your guide will navigate you through on a wet and wild adventure!

When the adventure is over you will be treated to a hearty Costa Rican style lunch. Then you will be returned to your hotel. Including transfers this tour usually lasts 8 – 9 hours, though this is subject to change. Please inform us if you weigh over 200 pounds as restrictions may apply or special accommodations may be necessary. No experience necessary for this fun filled day of adventure which includes, transportation, guides, equipment, lunch, snacks, drinks, and loads of fun.

Highlights

  • Canyoning and rappelling down rainforest waterfalls
  • Scrambling through a jungle canyon
  • Whitewater rafting on the Rio Balsa

What to Bring

  • Clothes That Can Get Wet
  • Secure Shoes
  • Dry Clothes To Change Into

Location and Availability

The Rappelling and Rafting Combo is available from Arenal, Arenal Zone 2, and Arenal Zone 3

Tour Time

  • 7:30am

Tour Type

  • Rafting
  • Canyoning
  • Waterfalls

Cancellation Policy

Cancellation Policy

Recommended Ages

Age 8 - 65

Location

Latitude: N 10° 18' 47.63"
Longitude: W 84° 32' 2.25"

Reviews

  • Overall 96.4% (232 Guest Ratings)
  • Experience: 97.3%
  • Expectations: 96.1%
  • Guides: 96.7%
  • Logistics: 95.7%
  • Value: 97.2%

05/02/2023

Definitely one of the highlights of our trip! We wished the rappelling was a little longer. Lunch was good!

01/06/2023

Would have like the experience to have been more exciting but understandably safety is a priority

08/04/2022

Awesome tour! Bryan was our guide on the raft so much fun! Gustavo and Harry did a great job on bus

06/28/2022

Oh my goodness this tour was incredible! I was terrified for both experiences but the guides made us feel so safe and welcome. It was so cool to rappel off 165 foot waterfalls. There was more hiking than I expected in between but didn't mind it at all. What a thrilling experience. The whitewater rafting was also amazing. Gussy was an incredible guide and teacher. He pointed out wildlife along the river and we all had a ton of fun while getting wet and wild on the river. The lunch afterwards was probably my favorite meal all week. Loved every bit of this tour. You can really tell they love what they do.

06/04/2022

Great

04/17/2022

This was probably our favorite part of the trip. The guides on the waterfall tour were very accommodating when my son chickened out at the last minute prior to the first waterfall. The lunch was delicious!

03/28/2022

The rappelling was super challenging and scary - loved it. Jorge saved my wife who was scared to death. Loved it! Momo was a terrific guide.

03/09/2022

Our favorite day!

02/18/2022

Wonderful tour. Our rafting guide Enzo was top knotch. The lunch was also outstanding.

01/03/2022

Loved this so much I did it again in Manuel Antonio

12/25/2021

excellent tours ; great day

12/07/2021

Great combo, however, there was confusion about our transfer between the two sections of the tour. Overall it was a fun day!

10/31/2021

Super fun! They explained well everything and tho I was scared to death it was safe! Lots of guides to help get the customers ready, lots of eyes on us. Great great tour!

09/13/2021

This joint excursion was exhilarating. We started the day rappelling in the forest down scenic rock faces & waterfalls. The second part of the day on the river was awesome. The rapids were challenging & fun and the guides were great! I loved stopping mid-way for fresh fruit & we even got to see a sloth along the way. Another 10/10 adventure

07/05/2021

This was our kids' favorite part of the trip!

02/14/2020

both tours were outstanding with wonderful guides

01/12/2020

So much fun! Glad we splurged on the photo package-- great memories captured. Our tour guides were entertaining and helpful.

01/11/2020

Our favourite activity.

01/01/2020

Many people on the rafting portion so a bit of waiting to get everyone organized but was reasonable

12/29/2019

super day; we had so much fun; i do wish after the rafting there was a better way and cleaner area to change into dry clothes; the rapelling guides and rafting guides were so much fun and safe and my daughters just love it; the farm and lunch were so wonderful; thankyou so much; also one thing that was different from last year was getting pool towels; i dont think this system is necessary;

10/10/2019

Great service all around! The staff knew so much about Costa Rica and we learned so much! Such a fun day and quite the adventure!

08/12/2019

Highly recommended would use anytime again.

08/03/2019

This was so much fun! The rapelling, although scary at first, was my favorite activity on the trip. The white water rafting was also fun. We appreciated the fruit pit stop. Levels 1 2 3 were perfect.

07/29/2019

Most adventurous day of the trip. We really pushed some boundaries!

07/18/2019

Awesome guides, equipment, friendly and very knowledgeable staff. Highly recommended!

05/27/2019

Rappelling crew did a nice job handling all different levels of experience, had a little fun too. Rafting guide, Jorge or 'air Momo' made the ride fun, got everyone into it, even the one scared of the water!

05/25/2019

My FAVORITE day by far!!! Excellent Adventure

04/20/2019

We loved the two experiences but there is a lot of wasted time throughout the day. I guess it was my fault I did not really realize the two experiences were completely separate.

04/16/2019

Both rappelling and rafting were fun. Both tours were VERY large. The rafting portion accommodated everyone well (100+ people). The rappelling portion could not accommodate a group this size (40+) because everyone has to use the same lines. Group sizes should be more limited.

03/02/2019

Rappelling was a hit for all of us. The guides did a great job making sure everyone felt safe/had fun and experienced the day to the fullest.

01/11/2019

Excellent logistics going from rappelling to rafting, no wasted time

12/29/2018

This was so much fun. Both groups were well run. All the guides were fantastic. It was a great excursion!

12/18/2018

This combo tour was our favorite, packed full of adventure and adrenaline.

11/24/2018

The rappelling was awesome and we felt really safe the whole time. Same with the rafting. The staff were friendly and attentive. It was a fabulous day!!

09/05/2018

also, a must have attraction.

08/24/2018

It’s was an excellent experience

12/12/2017

Busy but amazing day. Rappelling location was beautiful and activity was fun and exciting. Rafting was great, guide was absolutely amazing and went out of his way to tell us about the environment as we went, even stopped to find a frog for us. Rapids were exciting but not too challenging for first-timers. Saw plenting of wildlife (birds, iguanas, sloths) on the way which was unexpected. Meal at the end was great.

10/21/2017

The guide we had seemed a little bored and I feel he could have made it a little more fun. the guide on the other boat was much more lively and involved.

08/10/2017

We had a wonderful time at the rappelling. The rafting trip was a little bit less organized, but they made up for it with amazing food at the end.

07/24/2017

Both activities were excellent! There was some confusion combining the two together since they are two separate companies and some were not aware of this. Made tipping confusing since you really needed to tip after each separate activity.

03/24/2017

Fantastic organization and execution - the guides were all friendly , professional and knowledgeable - loved the lunch experience

03/15/2017

This was a busy but awesome day. Loved the rappelling and the guides were great. We were with a rather large group, though, and while I never felt rushed I know they were trying to get people through so it was hard to stop and enjoy the scenery. Rafting was a lot of fun--not too technical but never a dull moment either. Great pictures. Saw plenty of wildlife, too. Really enjoyed the farm lunch afterwards and the coffee and sugarcane demonstrations--a pleasant surprise.

02/03/2017

We were so pleased with the guides and how friendly and informative each of them were. The pictures given were awesome action shots in we're glad we purchased them. I was so sore but thankful for the experience. They even if you in the water when you were rappelling off of the biggest waterfall for the ultimate experience

12/19/2016

This was a great way to spend the day. The best part was the end when they gave you authentic food and drinks.

12/06/2016

This was a perfect day! So much fun!

10/28/2016

Such a fun day!! Rappelling was the coolest activity. Our guide for white water rafting was so fun!

07/30/2016

What a blast

07/28/2016

The tour was totally exhilarating and exceeded our expectations. It is very memorable and will a highlight of our vacation. The staff make sure everything was safety conscious and the on-site photographer was good to have since we could not take our phones and cameras. I will highly recommend to clients, family and friends. The waterfalls and river rapids were in a beautiful rainforest surroundings.

07/20/2016

Jairo was great!!

07/19/2016

Best part of the trip. So much fun. Still talking about it. Gerald was our guide and he was amazing. My son got very scared at one point of rough rafting, and Gerald pulled him over to sit next to him during the calm parts of the river and comforted and reassured him. Gerald was charming and great fun. My son would go back to Costa Rica just to raft with him again!

06/29/2016

The waterfalls were great, the guides were fun too. The whitewater rafting was ok. The river was low and I'm not sure the guides are very in control. Our first raft actually punctured, which I didn't even this was possible they seem so tough. That was a bit scary. It was not as neat as the waterfalls, they don't really provide any information about anything other than paddling. I give the rafting a 5/10 and the waterfalls a 10/10.

06/24/2016

Sign me up to go again!!!!

06/22/2016

This was an awesome experience. Everyone was to happy and made you feel very comfortable

06/15/2016

The kids loved this tour combination. All of the guides were helpful and kind especially with the children.

06/04/2016

The guides were excellent for both rappelling and rafting. The transition between activities were seamless and the food was great!

05/24/2016

The guides were very efficient in the guide and helped us rapell safely through the courses. The whitewater raft tour was excellent. Our guide took every opportunity to show us a good time and even found wild life along the way for us to see. He also stopped at a rope swing for the teenagers to jump from.

05/16/2016

Very exciting and great guides. Water was not released from the dam the day we rafted, so the river was running a bit slow

05/09/2016

My favorite

04/10/2016

Again, wonderful guides. Slight problem with the transfer but it worked out so all is good.

03/29/2016

They needed to do a better job making sure that we were to the front of the line of the rappelling so that we could get to the rafting with more time to spare. If it weren't for some people telling us to go ahead, we would never have made it.

03/14/2016

Again, too many people. Was rushed on every rappel and rafting. Again, TOO MANY PEOPLE.

03/07/2016

Guides were great, all I would change is the meal in between the two tours

02/19/2016

Super fun staff, who made sure 'Safety First' at all times. A must do activity

01/19/2016

They forgot to pick us up in the morning but made it up to us with free pictures and sincere apologies. The overall day was a blast!

01/01/2016

loved it - fun, yet we thought they focused on safety properly. A lot to do in one day.

12/14/2015

Rappelling was the highlight of the trip. a total blast. very safe but thrilling, would do it again. Rafting on the Balsa river was also a lot of fun. Good class 2-3 rapids but nothing that one couldn't handle. Great pictures by the photographer. The drive up the mountain on the rocky pitted road left a little to be desired but you got used to it.

12/13/2015

The rappelling company was amazing. Friendly, informative, made us all feel safe and fun. Love, loved them
The rafting was great too.

11/22/2015

Loved it.

08/09/2015

Absolutely awesome!

08/03/2015

We had to cut the rappelling short so they could take us to the rafting trip in town. We would have been happy to go earlier to have the entire tour. Or take a group of rappelling and rafting together so we go at a speed that allows us to enjoy both rappelling and rafting. Both rappelling and rafting were excellent experiences - our best excursion day!

07/26/2015

This was the highlight of our trip. Both tours were amazing. I can't say enough on how professional both groups of tour guides were. Rappelling was awesome and scary and the same time. The rafting ended up in this restaurant where they made a demonstration of making coffee and served some great coffee. In addition a demonstration on sugar cane. Just wonderful. Would do this again in a heart beat!

07/02/2015

The guides for the rappelling were very professional and super-friendly. We felt very safe in their hands! As for the rafting - Fabio & Melvin were very professional and it was an awesome experience. This was my first time doing white-water rafting, but definitely not the last with this group. We will be back and bring our friends with as well!

05/24/2015

The only reason why I gave it 9 points instead of 10 is because there was ~30 people on the rapelling tour so there was a lot of standing around and waiting. Still a great experience. Rafting was wonderful and the lunch after was great!

03/30/2015

I was really expecting more rappelling,

03/17/2015

Awesome experience! Maria was right - this was one of the highlights of our trip (even for me and I hate heights). The guides at both Pure Trek and Wave expeditions are incredibly professional and fun. The added trip to the sugar / coffee farm was a very nice addition and the meal was great. This should be advertised as part of the experience.

01/05/2015

Another amazing excursions, great tour company, very safe and professional

11/12/2014

The rafting and rappelling were excellent, but the logistics were not good and we were told that no pictures had been arranged. Later on we found out they were arranged, and we received all the pictures. Better late than never, but they are GREAT.