Top Central Valley Food Tours

Sample a wide variety of Costa Rican flavors while learning about the country's cultural heritage with this San Jose walking tour. You'll shop for fruits and veggies at the Mercado Central and the Mercado Borbón, visit the National Theater and La Laguna Plaza, and try all sorts of local treats along the way.

Spend a delicious 2 hours learning all about the best type of chocolate in the world, along with coffee, tropical fruit, spices, rum, and sugar cane- all products of Costa Rica, on this tour. Explore the farm holding 1600 cacao trees, where they produce 150 pounds of cacao every week. The best part: sampling the chocolate and the rest of the delicious produce!

Learn about two of Costa Rica’s biggest (and tastiest) exports on this tour of a coffee and chocolate farm from La Fortuna. Not only do you go to a side of Arenal volcano that most visitors miss in order to see the coffee and cacao crops, but you also get to taste the final products—it’s as fresh as it gets. Your guide shares insight into the industries throughout the tour.

Take the stress out of eating and drinking at night in a new city with this fun-filled dinner and nightlife experience. Explore markets, check out neighborhoods you might otherwise miss, and indulge in a delicious three-course gourmet dinner with wine pairings. Learn about local food and culture from your guide throughout the evening.

Discover San Jose’s hidden delights with this unique evening tour of the Costa Rican capital. Get up close and personal with the nightlife in San Jose, starting with the Morazán Park where we will learn post-colonial Costa Rican history. From there, our appreciation for San Jose’s historical architecture continues, with a walk by the Metallic Building, then on to Spain Park for a fantastic view of the Yellow House (now the Ministry of Foreign Affairs). We’ll continue to charming Barrio Escalante, one of the oldest residential areas in San Jose. Finish the night with a 3-course meal and wine or beer pairings at a gourmet Costa Rican restaurant.

Get a taste of San Jose’s culture and cuisine on this 3-hour walking tour. Explore Costa Rica’s capital accompanied by an expert guide and learn about the city’s history, architecture and flavor. Explore the produce stalls of two traditional markets and discover what makes Costa Rican coffee so delicious as you sample some local brews. The tour is capped at 12 people for a personalized small-group experience.

Get a taste of Costa Rica’s famed biodiversity without straying too far from the city with this all-access day pass to La Paz Waterfall Gardens Nature Park. Featuring hiking trails through the cloud forest, cascading waterfalls, a rescued jungle cats educational program, and numerous specialty wildlife exhibits, La Paz Waterfall Gardens guarantees good fun for the whole family. This pass can be redeemed anytime during the park’s normal operating hours and is good for accessing all of the exhibits.

Explore the Costa Rican capital’s rich history, landmark buildings, and modern culture on a combo bus and walking tour of San Jose. Get a great introduction to city highlights like the National Theater and Art Museum, and stop to walk through bustling markets and public plazas to feel the pulse of this modern Central American metropolis. Get an extra boost of Costa Rican culture by listening to traditional folkloric music onboard the bus.

Hiking in the Costa Rican rainforest can be a dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing. Book this La Fortuna Sloths, Coffee, and Chocolate Experience and go with a guide who will keep you safe and well informed. Set out through the rainforest to spot sloth and other wildlife before stopping at a chocolate and coffee farm for tastings.

The aim of this tour is to reveal more about Costarican culture and food through a relaxed walk in the town of Santa Ana. We will start with one of the best coffees you can have in this country. As we sip our coffee, we will talk about the historical importance of coffee and how it built this country. Afterwards, we will stop for a delicious homemade empanada, before heading to our local "fruteria" (fruit shop) for a smoothie. Our next stop will be a local shop dedicated to chocolate and cocoa... Who does not like chocolate? We will learn how it is produced and we will enjoy a few bites. Our tour will then take us to a local cheese shop and as we make it there we will touch on some topics such as education, religion, not having an army and energy generation. Back to cheese, Costa Rica keeps it simple, fresh white cheeses that go well in many things and that are part of many local dishes. We will end the tour with lunch at a Caribbean place (together with some more stories)!

San José is characterized by its Spanish colonial buildings, Victorian mansions, and rich historical sites. This zero-emission bike tour allows you to see the city up close, avoid car traffic, and cruise through San José’s vibrant neighborhoods—past notable buildings, parks, and squares. Your guide navigates through the city and provides useful background information as you stop to appreciate local highlights.

Learn about the history of chocolate from the best chocolatiers in San Jose on this 1-1.5 hours chocolate tour. You’ll learn the history of cacao through stories and lessons, about the chocolate transformation in Europe in the 18th century, and end up making chocolate yourself! At the end you’ll have sampled chocolate pairings, and be able to share your knowledge and creations back home.

Visit the Central Market in San Jose on this guided tour and learn about its 136-year history. There, sample regional staples like tropical seasonal fruit, tortillas, ice cream, Costa Rican coffee, and other local specialities. Plus, find out how and why San Jose became the capital city of Costa Rica.

Learn about coffee production at Costa Rica's largest coffee farm on this guided tour. At the Aquiares Estate, you’ll see the process from seed to cup after visiting the local community and hearing about coffee agronomy and its importance to Costa Rica. Then, learn about coffee roasting and cupping and get a taste.

Combine Costa Rica’s best sensations into one with this private full-day tour. First, you’ll sink deep into the wild rainforest, where you’ll learn all about the country’s obsession with chocolate—and you’ll taste some of the best, too. After your time on land, you’ll soak in a hot spring, heated by the Arenal volcano, taking in the views and taking in that Costa Rica feeling.

Learn about the chocolate industry in Costa Rica on this private 7-hour tour from San Jose. You'll visit Tirimbina, a private biological reserve in the rain forest and take a guided hike across a suspension bridge to a cacao plantation. Get an intimate look at the chocolate-making process, from fruit to chocolate bar. Lunch is included.

This tour provides an opportunity to learn about cocoa cultivation and the chocolate-making process in a short amount of time, at a real working plantation less than ten minutes drive from La Fortuna. The tour also includes transportation to and from the plantation from town, so you do not have to worry about renting a car or taking public transportation.

Enjoy a typical Costa Rican lunch in a lovely home that’s over 100 years old with a huge garden to relax in. This small group experience will last about 1.5 hours, and you’ll have several wonderful things to try. Look forward to Carribean-style dishes, salads and fresh fruit, Turrialba cheese with banana in honey, Aquiares coffee, and more. Dietary restrictions can be accompanied for.

We are the first and only commercial winery in Costa Rica and Central America with international quality; as well we produce the first and only liqueur produced from the Golden Berry fruit, also known as the uchuva

This full-day coffee farm tour provides an authentic day-in-the-life experience you won’t find on many of the other coffee farm tours. While tours often only demonstrate a small fraction of the process, at Aquiares, coffee lovers can see what it takes to bring coffee from the seed to the cup. Plus, you can experience the welcoming community, rich foods, and stunning scenery of a farm in the Costa Rican rainforest.

This workshop takes place at a 160-year-old house in Santa Ana. After the workshop, we will have the chance to go for a walk in town and learn more about Costa Rican culture and history.

Chocolate-lovers in La Fortuna can’t miss this chocolate experience where you learn to harvest, dry, and grind cacao seeds into delicious chocolate products like drinks and bars. Plus, this tour combines a chocolate-making experience with a thrilling waterfall rappel, making it a top choice for family adventure.

With the view of the majestic Arenal Volcano in La Fortuna of San Carlos, enjoy the sweetest rainforest experience, discovering the ancient secrets of chocolate: from its discovery and use in tropical America to the processing of the product as we know it and enjoy it today .