The El Tigre Waterfalls walk takes you through stunning rainforest, past four big waterfalls, endless cascades and over ten rickety swing bridges. There are options for taking a dip along the way and the walk is alive with birds and butterflies - it’s the most Blue morpho’s we’ve seen anywhere in Costa Rica - which was a real treat.
It’s a beautiful walk, and because it’s not especially manicured, it retains a more wild feel than if the paths were to be made pristine.
The main trail is predominantly downhill and then you have the option to either hike back up the hill, or take transport in the form of a horse or 4WD.
The hike up is nowhere near as long as the map suggests, so if you’re on the fence about whether to take the transport or do the longer hike, make sure you read the section on the big hike below.
Here’s everything you need to know about visiting El Tigre Waterfalls.
The El Tigre Waterfalls
The horses vs “the big hike” - it’s not what you think
If you want to ride a horse or take a 4WD back up the hill you’ll need to pay double the price of the big hike (the big hike is USD $31). Both online and in person at the El Tigre Waterfalls reception area, you’ll be told the extra 3km which make up the big hike is steeply uphill.
We couldn’t justify the extra cost to skip a hill, so we opted for the big hike, but I have to say I wasn’t looking forward to a steep 3km uphill in the main heat of the day.
We were therefore really surprised to discover the actual hike back up was only 1.4km! The entire circular hike which the map shows as 8km, was only 5.8km, and we didn’t skip any sections.
This wasn’t just the measurement from our Applewatch, but also matches the signposts once you begin the hike up, so it will likely be much easier than you are expecting.
It took us 30 minutes to complete the hike up, and although it was uphill and didn’t have the beauty of the rest of the trail, it wasn’t that bad.
We personally met two couples who hadn’t booked the transport, but after starting up the hill decided they couldn’t face 3km and paid for the horses. I wonder if they had known it was just 1.4km whether they would have decided to do the walk!
We’re not sure why the distances are so far out, but we wondered if the trail used to start somewhere else and the maps haven’t been updated - as there is now only one car park, but there are two marked on the map.
I would say the only reason to pay so much extra for transport would be if you fancy a quick horse ride, or you really don’t fancy a 30 minute uphill walk.
We aren’t fast hikers, but after starting the trail up at the same time as a group taking the horses, we were surprised to find they were only a couple of minutes faster than us!
The El Tigre Waterfalls Walk
The stats
Distance: 4.4km one way, or 5.8km circuit
Elevation gain: 150m one way, or 400m for the circuit
Difficulty: Easy - moderate with the 4x4/horses, moderate without
Summary: As mentioned if you’re just doing the one way walk then the track is mainly (but not exclusively) downhill. It is a natural dirt path, with sections which are rocky and have loose soil.
Luckily these slippery bits and in fact much of the track have rope handrails if needed. There is one short stream crossing, where you’ll need to use rocks as stepping stones.
The path leading to waterfall four is more rustic, but only on the way up. On the way down, where it could be slippery, the path is in good condition.
The main trail is almost entirely shady.
If you’re completing the big hike, you’ll have a steady uphill climb on a well maintained path. Around 1km of this is exposed, so if it’s a sunny day you’ll feel it.
Starting the trail
From the dining area where the trail begins you’ll have a brief 100m walk on a dirt path, and then you’ll enter the forest. If you’re really lucky you’ll see Arenal Volcano peeking up from behind the distant mountains.
We stayed a week in La Fortuna and never saw the full cone, yet here it was teasing us from Monteverde! It was a great start to the walk.
The path through the forest begins descending immediately. There are the odd rocks and tree roots, but it’s generally a good trail.
After 250m you’ll reach a slightly steeper section of track, where you’ll also find roped handrails. Apart from one tiny uphill stretch, you’ll be descending for quite some time.
After 1.3km you’ll reach a small waterfall and this bit is quite slippery as you’ll be walking over a few rocks.
Taken slowly it was ok and the cascade marks the start of a lusher section of rainforest.
To waterfall one
The trail undulates for a couple of hundred metres before heading more steeply downhill on a zigzag dirt track.
You’ll then come to a junction between the main trail and a mirador. This lookout offers a view over waterfall one, it’s not as good as the views from the main trail, but it’s only a 30 second detour (each way).
Back on the main trail there’s a brief stony descent and then you’ll come to the best view of the waterfall.
You can continue a little further along the track and then make a right to walk to the base of the falls, which you’ll reach 1.7km into the trail.
The final metre or so to the waterfall pool is all on slippery rocks. If you only want to look at the falls, you don’t need to negotiate the rocks because the view is great from the main path.
It’s only if you want to take a dip that you’ll rock hop, and on that note, this is the only waterfall that offers a reasonable sized swimming hole (at least in dry season).
It’s still not massive, but significantly bigger than the others. It’s a lovely spot, with the large waterfall surrounded by dense rainforest.
To the swing bridges
Just 100m beyond the waterfall is the first of the swing bridges and this one is particularly fun because it’s quite long and has a lot of sway.
These aren’t your ultra fancy hanging bridges, but rickety wooden ones, which personally I love. The view over the river and to the distant waterfall is gorgeous.
At the end of the swing bridge you’ll come to one of the only bench seats on the whole walk.
That’s because this is the start of the barefoot trail, so the benches are there to allow you to remove your boots. It’s also where you’ll find the first of four first aid kits and a satellite phone if you run into any difficulties.
The barefoot trail runs for 250m and is about connecting with the earth. It’s not different to the rest of the trail in terms of path conditions, but it’s a chance to practice a bit of intentional forest bathing.
The path is quite muddy, but happily at the other end there is a stream where you can wash off before putting your boots back on. There’s actually a bench seat in the stream which was quite novel!
Along this section you’ll pass a view of waterfall number two (2.1km into the walk). You can’t get close to this one, but it’s another pretty waterfall.
More swing bridges and waterfall three
At the end of the barefoot trail you’ll come to the small river crossing. For us in the dry season, this didn’t involve wet boots as there were exposed rocks to use as stepping stones.
Somewhat surprisingly there weren’t rope handrails along the crossing, which was interesting as there was a greater chance of slipping here than on many of the other sections of trail which were roped!
After the crossing you’ll come to three more swing bridges, one after the other. These are much like the first one and a really fun and beautiful section of track.
From the final swing bridge you’ll have a great and close up view of waterfall three.
This was the most impressive, along with waterfall one for me, and reminded me a bit of Bali’s Munduk Falls.
To waterfall four
After waterfall three you’ll start heading uphill, mainly on stairs, and then come to a junction 150m later. This is where you can take the optional detour to waterfall four (it’s 350m away).
If you don’t visit the waterfall then the sign said you are now 1km away from the horses. However, we’d highly recommend seeing waterfall four, not just because it’s pretty, but also because the descent from there is through the most spectacular rainforest of the whole trail in our opinion.
The path up to the falls is quite steep and rougher than any other part of the walk. I thought you had to return the same way and was anticipating it would be slippery, but happily there is a different path down - which is in great condition.
The very last couple of minutes to the falls were a bit muddy, but nothing major, and you reach the falls 2.8km into the walk.
The waterfall is very picturesque and has several additional cascades to the right, which reminded me of a vertical garden. They streamed down the dark foliage covered rock, and the effect was quite hypnotic.
To the river
Taking the trail marked as salida (exit) after leaving waterfall four, you’ll follow a different route down through the forest. The path is in really good condition and the rainforest was especially dense.
This was the most stunning section of forest on the whole track for me, with endless mossy trees, epiphytes and hanging vines. After 450m you’ll reach another salida sign (saying the horses are now 1km away) and after another 50m, rejoin the main trail.
The track continues downhill for the next 400m and then you’ll come to swing bridge number five.
This one is possibly the most beautiful of all. The rainforest is amazing and the river is a stunning pale blue.
After crossing the bridge, you can take the one minute detour down to the river and this is the spot we saw all the Blue morpho butterflies. We have seen them all over Costa Rica, but never in these numbers.
Their iridescent blue wings are dazzling and we spent ages sitting at the water’s edge and watching them crisscross the river. We were also lucky enough to spot a Ringed kingfisher here.
It’s the best spot on the whole trail to simply sit and soak up all the scenery. It was so serene.
If I hadn’t been unwell at this point, I would have gone for a dip because the river was crystal clear and very inviting.
Finishing the main trail
After leaving the river you’ll continue on the main trail and over yet another swing bridge, which is a tiny one. You’ll then arrive at the zip line bike station 100m later.
We hadn’t heard of this option, but the sign said you could take a zip-line bike to close to where the horses are stationed. There was a little setup with gear and helmets and also some hammocks.
From here you’ll continue past a cool canyon with several small waterfalls, although the views are mainly obscured by foliage, it’s still very pretty.
At the 4.2km mark you’ll cross a final wooden bridge, with yet another small cascade, and from here you have just 200m uphill walking before you reach the horse station.
When you get to the horses, you’ll also have access to a toilet and drinking water.
The ‘Big Hike’ up
The hike up is just 1.4km and took us 30 minutes, and trust me I was not walking fast!
You’ll start on some steepish stairs in the shady forest before the gradient slackens a little and you’ll soon see the sign that says you have 1.4km to go.
This was music to our ears when we’d been expecting almost 3km, and even better was that it was only actually about 1.2km from here!
The path begins to zigzag up the hill, it gets relatively steep again, but in the dry season, it’s not in the least slippery.
Once you’ve been walking for 550m you’ll pass through a small gate and you get a lovely, albeit short, section of flat track. It only lasts for 150m, but it’s very welcome.
You’ll then emerge from the forest and the rest of the trail is exposed. Luckily for us it had clouded over, so we didn’t have to worry about the ferocious sun.
You’ll head uphill on a grassy dirt track and soon see the road that the horses use. You bear left up a short rubbly dirt hill, which lasts for 100m, and then you join the road the horses use.
The road is steep, but it’s easy terrain. It begins to curve and you’ll soon see the visitor centre and restaurant above you, which is great motivation for the final slog.
After 400m on the gravel road you’ll see the turn off to the visitor centre, which is just a few minutes away. However, unless you want to use the bathrooms or grab some food, you can instead just go to the car park, which is 100m away, and not uphill.
All in all, I wouldn’t say it was an enjoyable part of the walk, but it really wasn’t that bad, and we were glad we hadn’t succumbed to getting a lift up!
Facilities at El Tigre Waterfalls
There are toilets at the visitor centre and at the horse station. You’ll also be able to get drinking water in both these spots. You can grab a free tea, coffee or hot sugar cane drink in the restaurant before you leave too.
At four different points along the trail you’ll have access to a first aid kit, or a sat phone if needed. You can also take a wooden stick on the walk if you like.
El Tigre Waterfalls cost and opening times
If you do the Big Hike, it’s USD $29 for adults and $19 for those under 18. You need to add tax to this, so for us the Big Hike was around USD $31.
If you take the 4WD or horses, the price is USD $59 for adults and $49 for those under 18. You need to add taxes to these prices.
At time of writing El Tigre Waterfalls is open daily from 7.30am. The last entry is 13.30pm.
Getting to El Tigre Waterfalls
The El Tigre Waterfalls are roughly a 30 minute drive (10km) from Santa Elena (the main town at Monteverde). There is a long stretch of gravel road to get there. You don’t need a 4WD in the dry season, but it’s potholed in places and does go uphill. A car with a bit of clearance will be preferable.
If you don’t like the sound of the road, or don’t have a rental car, there is a shuttle organised by El Tigre, or you could take a taxi. The price is currently USD $10 pp round trip for the shuttle.
This post may contain affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, we will earn a small commission if you click through and decide to make a purchase. This helps towards the costs of running our website. Thanks for your support.
