I have a few favorite places in Costa Rica that I like to bring visitors to. Bajos del Toro is one of them.
I LOVE BLUE WATER!
This is a great and easy day trip from San Jose, Costa Rica (though be careful, the roads really can be rough….not dangerous, just rough. Take your time).
It is one of my favorite areas in Costa Rica. It is not overrun with tourists, it is quaint and beautiful, and to me it feels like “real Costa Rica”.
There are 3 different options for viewing my favorite waterfalls in this area Catarata del Toro, Blue Falls “Light” and Blue falls “Heavy”) and I will tell you about each of them.
They are all owned by the same guy, but you can choose what you would like to see, according to your budget, fitness level, and ability.
Hint: Go during the dry season to see the bluest water! January-April have the bluest water. Go during rainy season to see the most impressive rain flow of waterfalls (July-December).
This video from when my brothers were visiting includes clips Blue Falls “Heavy” (0:34, 1:01, 1:08, 1:36, 2:01, 2:35, 2:54, 3:27, 3:35, and 3:47).
1) Catarata del Toro
This is the most popular waterfall, and said to be the tallest in Costa Rica.
It takes your breath away. It is literally incredible and if you love waterfalls, you will not want to miss this one.
This waterfall doesn’t have blue water, but it is quite an incredible site. It is also the easiest accessible, and most popular.
There are 350+ steps to get down to Catarata del Toro. The steps are made of cement, so it isn’t really slippery, but it is a workout.
It took us about 15 minutes to get down and 30 to get up. We are good hikers, but we were dripping by the time we got up.
If you are not able to go all of the way down the stairs (which I would definitely recommend if you can), this view is available at the top.
You cannot swim in Catarata del Toro. It is fenced off, though you can’t really tell from the picture.
You can feel the spray from far away, though! It is such a surreal experience to stand at the bottom and look up at the canyon walls.
I could spend all day at this waterfall. The power and force is something you really can’t tell from the pictures!
I prefer when I have gone during dry season. When I have gone during rainy season, these views are pretty covered up. That said, there’s something cool seeing the power of the waterfall at full force!
2) Blue Falls "Light"
This is for people who want to see the blue water of the falls, but do not have the time or physical ability to hike for several hours. You hike to two of the seven blue waterfalls.
Blue Falls “Light” took us about 2 hours in all, including the hour we spent just playing in the water.
The water is so incredibly blue, we literally couldn’t believe it!
Catarata del Toro is included in the Blue Falls Light/Heavy hike, so you can go there before or after.
To get to Blue Falls, you walk down the road from the main entrance (you HAVE to go with a guide, which you can organize with the main office).
You walk through this mystical fairy land to get to the river that will take you to the first waterfall.
We took a two year old on this. It’s very accessible for all types of people.
The second and final waterfall on Blue Falls “Light” is literally right next to the first.
But it is different. It is in a little cove and the water is darker blue. I imagined ferries to be flying around (I know I’m so weird haha) because it literally looked like something made up from a fairy tale!
We named this one “fairy land” hahaha.
3) Blue Falls "Heavy"
This is a challenging hike, especially if you do it during rainy season, when the mud is next level.
We had been warned when we got there and it was raining that it would be slippery, but we had NO idea.
We were COVERED in mud, which was really fun. We fell so many times.
We were actually really tired by the end, not because of the distance (it’s only like 5k or something short) but because of how much climbing up and down we did.
This hike starts with the exact same waterfalls/route as Blue Falls “Light” but then goes on to do 5 more waterfalls.
The guides are great. They know the route so well. There is literally no way to go without a guide. You would never find your way!
I didn’t take as many pictures on Blue Falls “Heavy” because we were so muddy and used our hands most of the time to hold on to ropes or grab branches of trees.
We had so much fun swimming and laughing about the mud all over us.
It ended up taking us about 6 hours to do the whole thing, but we gave ourselves plenty of time to swim at all of the waterfalls!
I totally recommend coming to Bajos del Toro (one of my favorite places in Costa Rica) and AT LEAST doing Catarata del Toro and Blue Falls “Light”. If you want an extra challenge, change it to “Heavy”.
I know I will be back!