Hacienda El Viejo Wetlands

We took our out-of-town guest to spend the day at Hacienda El Viejo and it exceeded every expectation. From the authentic tortilla making to the seeing a live ox doing traditional work to seeing alligators as we glided on a boat down the wetlands. The rum and beer tasting were the pinnacle of our experience, especially when we got to make our own flavored rum to take home. If you have guests who are not oriented to the action of ATVs and zip lining, this culturally immersive experience cannot be missed.

Okay, there is a lot to address about this piece of Costa Rican history. First, the house is over 150 years old, and it has been updated to maintain its characteristics. The staff members that were encountered were attentive. The guides were unique and full of knowledge that enlightened your cranium. Hernan was awesome, earning an A+ for the boat tour. Alonso was knowledgeable and explained the making of ron/rhum/rum ( learn the difference) A+. The food served was above average A. The maintenance team should be acknowledged as well because the cleanliness of the grounds A+.

Our visit to Hacienda El Viejo in late March 2025 was fascinating and thoroughly worth the drive from el Coco beach. The river cruise allowed us to observe communities of white face monkeys, crocodiles, bats, king fishers, and much more. Our guide was knowledgeable and shared exerts and figures from nature books along the way. The hacienda itself is set amidst a sugar planation with a mill that produces its own power from the sugar cane. As a result of this reliable source of electricity, the property hosts a space radar to track space junk in low Earth orbit. We were shown the radar by an incredibly kind gentleman from the hacienda, along with one of the few stalk nests in Costa Rica nearby, where a lifelong nesting pair has produced many offspring. Lunch at the hacienda was as exceptional as the organic coffee we purchased there, rounding out a wonderful day.

Did the cultural, rum and wildlife tours this afternoon. Hands down the wildlife tour was fantastic. Ask for Hernon as your tour guide, he made the trip worth every penny even if we didn’t do anything more. But even if you dont get him everyone there was AWESOME and do it All!! So much fun, worth the 90 minute drive on the less than ideal roads. The food, the drink, The education was all top notch. Be a good guest and bring some cash to tip your hosts, many in our group did not and they truly deserved every penny!!! Would gladly do this again!!!

We did the full day tour and it was great. The cultural tour was good, the boat tour was as well. The lunch was very good. The rum and beer tasting were very well done as well.

Great tour of the river, saw crocodiles, birds, monkeys, was really fun and interesting. The tour guides did a great job stopping and pointing things out. Was very impressed with the food, the steak was delicious and the service was great. The last stop was the rum tour and enjoyed learning so much about Rum from and tasting it made it even better. We got to make our own rum which was so cool and they give let us choose a label for it! Worth the drive out here to this beautiful land!

Hacienda El Viejo birding with Henry was great. We saw Jabiru storks, monkeys, crocodiles and more. Took a boat ride in Palo Verde NP, toured the wetlands and had a delicious lunch at the historic hacienda. Saw a number of life birds.

This is a hidden gem that needs to be visited. Everything we did at the Hacienda was better than the next. If you are looking for a place to visit where you can pick and choose or do a full day of fun this is your place. We started with a snack and cultural tour. It was engaging and fun. Then we went on a boat ride where we saw more animals than anywhere else in Costa Rica. Our guide Henry was amazing and fun. He had so much knowledge and took pictures with my camera through the binoculars. Next we had a delicious lunch of a traditional Casado. Finally, we went on a rum and brewery tour. The best part is we had a private tour without paying for it! If you are in the area this is a MUST visit.