The Divine Jungle Town of La Fortuna

After a long day of flights and layovers, I arrived at the Juan Santamaria International Airport which is one of four international airports in Costa Rica. This airport is in San Jose, the capital of the country. To make this trip as cheap as possible for myself, I did not rent a car and booked a shared shuttle through Interbus for all my long-distance traveling. The shuttle picked me up from the airport early in the morning and took me on the three-hour scenic drive to La Fortuna. The shuttle dropped me off right at my hostel location. I stayed in a private room at La Choza Inn Hostel which ran me about $40 a night. There was free Wi-Fi, free traditional Costa Rican breakfast, and most importantly I felt safe here. Walking through the streets of La Fortuna, I was captivated by the vibrant atmosphere. The local markets, shops, and restaurants offered a wonderful glimpse into the heart of the town. In the center of La Fortuna is a huge park square and a massive tree that you cannot miss. During the day there are locals selling food and drinks from food carts. There are many markets with amazing fruits and vegetables as well as local restaurants with delicious Costa Rican Cuisine. My favorite restaurants were Soda Mimi (cheap) and La Fonda (pricier).

History

La Fortuna is a volcano jungle town located in the Alajuela province. It is home to the Arenal Volcano, a conical stratovolcano that is one of the youngest and most active volcanoes in the world. During my tour of the volcano, my tour guide informed us of the history of the town and how it got its name. Originally, the town was called El Burio and was founded in the 1930s by settlers who came from other parts of the region. On July 29th of 1968, the Arenal Volcano started violently erupting after previously thought to be dormant. This eruption produced massive rocks of lava that crushed the towns of Tabacón, San Luís and Pueblo Nuevo releasing acid burning gas that made identification of the casualties impossible. While there was no way to identify them, 78 deaths were recorded. Because El Burio was the only town not affected by the eruption, the name was changed to La Fortuna which translates to the fortunate ones. This history alone tells you about the divine energy that encompasses La Fortuna. There's another story that the town was named La Fortuna because of the fertile lands and opportunity. The economy now thrives off of eco-tourism, hospitality, and their fertile growing lands. Their top exports are pineapple, bananas, and coffee.

Exploring the Town

As soon as I got to my hostel, I set my stuff down, got a map, and headed to the free local rope swing called El Salto Rope Swing. Here there are three waterfalls on the El Salto river and locals have tied up a rope swing into the swimming pool at the bottom of the falls. This was about a 15 minute walk from my hostel, but you could also Uber here. Side note - Ubering is technically illegal in the country but it is widely used. Make sure to tip your driver as the prices are extremely unfair. At El Salto you can swim under one of the waterfalls and sit in a small cave or jump from the top of the waterfall into the pool. The water is a beautiful crystal-clear blue, but if it has recently rained it will be murky from mud. You can wade further up or down the river if you want to feel more secluded, but I recommend talking with the locals or other travelers to make some connections. I made friends with two guys from the Netherlands, a girl solo-traveling as well who graduated from my university (small world), and a local who helped me jump off the top of the waterfall. Sometimes there will be locals selling food outside the entrance! After getting cleaned up, me and my friends from the Netherlands checked out a bar/club called Charlies-CR. It was quite dead when we went because it was on a Monday night, but regardless it was a cool place. 

Excursions

On my second day, I booked a tour with Red Lava TSC eco-tourism because it was the most efficient way for me to see everything I possibly could in one day. I would recommend taking 2-3 days to visit the Arenal Volcano and all the attractions around and within it. The tour I booked was to the La Fortuna waterfall, the lava rocks, the Maleku indigenous village, and the natural hot springs. The waterfall is best done early in the morning or later in the day to beat the crowds. It is about a 20–25-minute hike down and going back up is a little longer because of the steep incline. If you do not book a tour, there is a $20 fee to book your ticket. It got pretty crowded around 10-11 am, but it was a truly magical experience to swim in the ice-cold volcanic water. After the waterfall, we had lunch at the Maleku indigenous village and afterwards were given a tour of the village and an informational presentation given by the leader of the people. I will be posting a separate blog post regarding this experience and the history of the Maleku. Next, the lava rocks have a trail that goes to the furthest point up the volcano. It is actually illegal to go past the designated trails, and quite dangerous as the volcano is still extremely active. Being here I could feel the energy of the past ancestors of this land, it felt extremely sacred, and I was very grateful to experience it. We were supposed to end our tour at the Tabacon Hot Spring Resort, but it started storming so we were not able to due to safety precautions. However, there is a free local hot spring called Choyin Rio immediately after the Tabacon Hot Springs entrance. There is a path that leads you to the river where the hot springs pools are.

Experience the Magic of La Fortuna