Excellent day trip to the volcano and waterfall. This was our fourth trip through Leo and Douglas. They do a great job coordinating everything. They are always helping make for a great experience while insuring safety. We actually switched to a different waterfall for safety due to high water and current. Was perfect day.

At first, I didn’t think I was going to get to see the turtles nesting—this was because the recent tropical storm had flooded the access road and it was closed. The only way to get to the beach was an atv and a hike. But by the time we were nearing the end of our trip, the ground had recovered enough that I could go!! It’s a bumpy journey, to be sure. And once you get there, you’ll still have a small, although slightly treacherous hike to the beach itself. I say “slightly treacherous” only because you definitely need to watch where you walk because it’s rocky and you could fall if you don’t pay attention. But Leo provides you with a flashlight, so as long as you are careful, you’re just fine. Leo promises turtles, and he delivers! A couple of people on the tour has been there the night before but didn’t get to see any turtles, so Leo came and took them again for free until they got to see what they came for! Once at the beach, the white flashlights have to be turned off and you are led as a group by redlight flashlight. The tour companies work in concert, so we were easily able to find out where the turtles were. One had just left to go back to sea but the other one-a pacific green sea turtle-was just coming in to build a nest. We got to watch her pick her spot and dig it out—it was magnificent! Once she settled in to lay her eggs, we were able to get right up next to her and watch nature in action! They even propped her back legs open (which doesn’t hurt her in any way) so that we could watch the egg laying! Leo took video for every single person so we all have excellent photos and video of the experience! Highly recommend!!! This year was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

This trip is a MUST GO! We met Will (Will.I.am) the beach near the Tamarindo Diria. He hooked us up with the best tours and prices anywhere. This trip was my very favorite! We started the day picked up at our hotel by Henry (who owns Perez-oso tours, but works closely with side-by-side tours and the owner, Leo). We stopped for a break at El Jardin where you can get yourself breakfast, snacks or souvenirs (as well as a pee break). The place is clean and great for a stop. Then it was on to the mountains and waterfalls. We spent as much time as we wanted frolicking in the water before heading up to the next stop—horseback riding in the rainforest! After a fun jaunt up, you are dropped off for a hike through nature and suspension bridges (which are exhilarating!) where you can see more waterfalls and beauty. Afterwards, you stop for lunch (delicious and filling with a choice of tilapia, pork chop or chicken—the chicken was my favorite) . Then you enjoy exploring the sulphur springs on the side of an active volcano! Pop into the cave sauna for a few minutes, then go down to the warm-hot mud pits, where you can slather yourself in volcanic mud (that smells and feels like poo, but it’s still so fun). Let it dry and then shower off under the stone sculptures (a giggling about them and their rather generous architecture). Then you relax in the series of pools. The first one is the temperature of a regular hot tub, the middle is more like warm bath water temperature and the third is ice cold, designed to close the pores. Don’t miss out on the water slide! It’s right on-site, and worth the short trek up the hill to experience it!!! Henry and Larissa, our guides, made the trip! We never felt rushed and they were knowledgeable, friendly and so much fun!!

Avoid this tour company at all costs. They are unprofessional, disregard safety, and seem to make things up as they go. We ‘specifically’ asked Diego, the person who sold the turtle watching tour if it was safe for pregnant women. He assured us it was, explaining that we should wear dark clothing and we'll simply drive to the ocean, take a short walk, and see turtles with no stress involved. When we were picked up, we mentioned to them my that wife was pregnant again, and they said congratulations and even offered her a seat in front of the car which we kindly declined. Things started to fall apart when we met Leo. Immediately Leo got in the front seat, he didn't introduce himself or acknowledge the passengers in car. It was pretty awkward and I stuck a conversation by asking for his name and said, it's nice to meet you. They drove us along a bumpy road to a forested area. Another group of older people was in a bus behind us and we were eventually divided into two groups (ours being smaller). Our group was taken through a muddy road. Later, we were dropped off at a remote part of the beach, and were asked to walk through the woods on steep slopes with thorns. The guide left us in pitch darkness for two hours, instructing us not to touch the trees while he went to look for turtles. This was around 9pm 9:30 ish at night. During this time, no turtles were spotted, and the guide contacted Leo (now guiding the other group) to come get us as the other group had found turtles. However, Leo ignored his calls and asked us to walk back. The guide of our group was livid because he was ignored and asked me to talk to Leo over the radio where I pleaded with him to come get us because my wife was so tired at that point. Left stranded, we were forced to trek back through rough terrain, mud, and thorns for 35 to 40 minutes to reach the driver. At this point, I was deeply worried as the tour company clearly had no plan for emergencies, which made the situation even more distressing. When we finally made it back, the tour owner, Leo, casually offered to try again the next day or continue for another 15 to 20 minutes on the radio, without an apology. Us including the German couple we were in the group with declined and asked for a refund. Getting our money back was another ordeal since we had paid in cash. This tour was a nightmare; unsafe, poorly organized, and completely lacking in professionalism.

We booked with Leo and he was amazing! So incredibly helpful, not only with this tour but he also helped us book a golf cart rental and multiple suggestions & info on things to do in town. I can not say enough good things about Leo and his services. This tour was magical, we seen tons of wildlife including monkeys, several kinds of birds, crocodiles and lizards. The monkeys came right on board the boat and right to us. The lunch after the boat tour was honestly amazing, probably the best meal we ate on our entire trip. Such an amazing experience. I highly recommend.

We booked through Leo and everything was amazing! Henry was our tour guide and was very informative and showed us all the great things that Costa Rica had to offer. We loved him. Definitely worth the trip!

My son and I went on this excursion. They let me pick my own horse and he was big and beautiful. The river was quite a thrill w much excitement. The lunch was delicious and healthy. We were a peaceful group and I feel like everyone was enjoying there day. I felt very fond of Douglas on the Beach at Occidental and would love 💗 another chance to do an excursion through him. They also set us up w a surf guide that I felt very relaxed in booking with. Louise was awesome. Douglas was so handsome.

My husband and I did a private kayak tour with our tour guide Anthony. We went up the river near Langosta. It was a 2 hour morning tour. We saw beautiful birds and it was just so beautiful and peaceful. We also saw a small baby crocodile. Anthony was so knowledgeable about the trees and wildlife on the river.

We booked an all-day 4 adventure with Leo (outside of Coast Beachfront and Occidental Hotel. Leo is a scam-artist! He booked 8 couples on the same shuttle. We all assumed we were going together on the same tour (waterfall, horseback ride, water tubing, and zipline, lunch included). It was supposed to be a 5-hour tour, w/ 2 hours travel time total. It ended up being a 10-hour day. Eduardo (shuttle driver) dropped off one couple (2 hours away), then continued to drop off each couple to different tours. Eduardo LEFT me and my 16 y/o daughter off to do the zip line, etc. However, it rained, and all tours were cancelled. Eduardo came back 2.5 hours later (from picking up another couple). it was just awful. Leo never refunded our money ($300 for two), nor would he answer our phone calls. Everyone on our shuttle were pissed. We never even got the lunch bc Leo didn't pay for any of us. He just kept our money.

We used this company to take a day excursion to Rio Celeste for a rainforest hike and to see the water fall. From there, we went to swim in the Rio Celeste river, and finished with an ecological tour where we got to see sloths, among many other gorgeous plants and wildlife. A wonderful local lunch was included. This is a day I will never forget and Junior, our driver/guide, was nothing short of phenomenal!!!

SCAM!!!! We built a custom package and each paid 120.00 US Dollars for a hike to waterfall, lunch, hot springs and tubing. A van picked everyone up for the hike, when it was time for lunch the place had not been paid. Leo who we booked our package through was given a call. He said he just didn't get around to paying them and if we would just pay the $400 + in cash to them he would get it taken care of. After 3 calls back and forth we realized we were scammed. We grabbed the bus back and caught Leo who said he would give us each a $75.00 refund back on Tuesday. He didn't show up on Tuesday. Wednesday he said he would be there all day and was going to the bank. Thursday when we left we caught him, he assured us he was going to bank again. No refund, it was all lip service. When they say go to guest services in your hotel do it!

An absolute SCAM, we paid leo $1440 for a full day excursion for our group. We got done with our first adventure only to receive a call from Leo to pay another $500 so we could “continue” our plans- after much consideration, no cell service, and not wanting to hand over more money as we paid already - we asked for a refund to which he agreed to MULTIPLE times. He even went so far as to pull over a few couples from our group to say that we would be getting our refund to PayPal soon. Then the next day it was “my wife is coming to get me to take me to the bank” - only to disappear from the beach for the day. Day 3 another promise of a refund, nothing. Day 4, early morning, again walks up to 2 of us saying I will get you your money. Lies, it would have been done if it were to happen. Stop saying things that are untrue. We didn’t let you ruin our trip but it was sure disappointing to know that there are companies that don’t take pride in keeping their word - we trusted you and to take advantage of that - shame on you!

We stayed at the Occidental Tamarindo and booked with Side by Side for the volcano hike and the waterfall! We worked with Leo and Douglas to book and they were very informative and helped me and my husband to help us narrow down what my husband and I wanted to do in Costa Rica during our stay. Our tour guide during the hike, Edgar, was incredible as well. We saw so much wild life. Edgar was very patient with us, explained so much to us about Costa Rica and the animals we saw. Edgar knew so much about the animals, plants, and the volcano. He was so great! 10/10 can’t wait to come back see you guys again Pura Vida

We stayed at the Occidental Tamarindo and booked with Side by Side for the ATVs. We worked with Leo and Douglas to book and they were very informative and helped me and my husband to help us narrow down what my husband and I wanted to do in Costa Rica during our stay. Our tour guide during the ATV trip, Bernal, was incredible as well. We saw monkeys, rode to a couple beaches and ate at a local restaurant, Soda las Playas (10/10 food), and even practiced our Spanish with him! Bernal was very patient with us, explained so much to us about Costa Rica and the places we visited, he took pictures of us and sent them to us. Douglas, Leo, and Bernal were so good to us and so helpful to us during booking the ATV tour and the actual tour itself. We went back and booked a hike around Rincón de la Vieja and the waterfall with Douglas and Leo too and Edgar was our tour guide and was absolutely amazing as well. 10/10 can’t wait to come back and see you guys again! Pura Vida

We were offered a combo tour with the Palo Verde Jungle Boat Tour, a trip to swim in the water fall and then to the sloth sanctuary. We were told we would leave at 6 am, and then it was changed the night before to leave at 7:30 am. We were told we would be back around 5 pm. What we were NOT told is that only about 2-3 hours of that was actually spent touring. The rest of the time, we were in a van in horrible traffic without any water or offers for breaks. We ended up skipping the waterfall because we just couldn't stand being in the van any longer. I think both of those trips are good, but NEVER try to do them both in one day. The delay in departure made it worse as well, as the traffic would not have been as bad earlier in the day. Our guide, David, and his father Willy were great, but the van time put a damper on what could have been a much better day.