Uvita Waterfall (aka Cascada Verde) is a gorgeous little waterfall located just outside the town centre. There are several great swimming holes, including the one at the base of the falls, but most people come here searching for an adrenaline rush. This comes in the form of climbing a cliff using a rustic ladder and then sliding down the cascade into the pool below! It’s the biggest natural water slide I’ve ever seen and draws in quite the crowd.
Even if sliding down a waterfall is your idea of hell, it’s still well worth a visit. Watching people slide is a lot of fun and the swimming holes are great. At under USD $4 to enter, it’s a bargain by Costa Rican standards!
Here’s everything you need to know about visiting Uvita Waterfall.
Uvita Waterfall - the three possible entry points
There are three different routes you can take to reach Uvita Waterfall.
We used the easiest and shortest route, which can be found on Google Maps here. Just a minute or so down the road you’ll find a second entrance. At time of writing this entrance is 500 colones (USD $1) less, but a slightly longer, and said to be harder walk.
The third option is if you’re staying at the Osa de Rio Guesthouse. In fact there may be other guesthouses with private access too, but this is the one that I stumbled upon. The guesthouse looked great and we’d been planning to staying there, but by the time we came to book, it had sold out!
What I’d gathered from the reviews is that you can simply walk up the river and reach the falls, and this way you get in for free (although I guess with such low entry fees, this isn’t anything too wildly exciting!) However, I liked the idea of the guesthouse and falling asleep to the sound of the river, so it’s worth looking into if you don’t have any accommodation booked in the area.
The walk to Uvita Waterfall (via the easiest route)
The stats
Distance: 150m each way to the waterfall, 100m extra to the swimming hole
Elevation gain: 20m
Difficulty: Easy, but not flat
The trail
From the cafe where you buy your entry ticket, you’ll head down some steps and straight into the forest. It’s a lovely shady track and the trees and plants give it a lovely tropical feel.
Whilst the track was very damp, it was easy enough to do even in flip flops (although do watch your step). It was damp and uneven, but not slippery or muddy (our visit was in the dry season).
After 60m you’ll come to a junction and you can go left to the waterfall, or right to the large swimming hole. We headed to the falls first.
You’ll have a series of steps downhill, which will take you to the creek in just 50m.
From here you have a creek crossing, which in the dry season was just a case of rock hopping, and there was a wooden beam in place if you needed extra stability.
After this you’ll reach a few more rocks to climb over, and then you’ll be at the base of the falls just 40m later (150m from the parking area).
Uvita Waterfall and slide
The waterfall is very pretty, it was just a thin ribbon of water in the dry season, but the setting is great, with the cliff walls and lush rainforest. The deep green pool is also very inviting.
However, if you’re not visiting early in the morning, then it’s not actually a great swimming spot, as you’ll have loads of people constantly sliding, as well as an audience!
We visited at the very end of the day, and did get a short window for a dip, but the other pool is much better for swimming.
Entering the pool at Uvita Waterfall is easy as there are just a couple of rocks to climb over and then the water gets deep quickly. It would be a lovely swimming spot if it weren’t for the crowds. The water is cool, but not freezing like some of the waterfalls at higher elevations.
When it comes to the slide, although some people do still scale the cliff wall, there is now a ladder in place to get you up more easily.
Full disclosure: we didn’t do the slide (wussy I know!) but we spoke to many people that did, and the top recommendation was to wear water shoes.
The ladder is quite hard on your feet and most people said that this made it challenging and a bit unnerving.
The people with water shoes shot up by comparison to those that went barefoot. Once you’re at the top you cross over to the top of the falls and then slide down!
Some people were really gung-ho and some people sat a while before going for it - I swear it’s taller than it looks in photos! Having said that, it only seemed to take a second for people to slide down!
The other swimming holes
Just 80m from the bottom of Uvita Waterfall you’ll come to a fantastic swimming hole. The walk to get there takes you back to the junction and then over a bridge.
There are metal stairs down into the water, which were a bit slippery, but there are handrails.
The pool is amazing, it’s huge and deep, with very few rocks, so you can have a long leisurely swim. You can even see the top of Uvita Waterfall from inside the pool.
It’s really beautiful and would have been worth the entry fee alone.
There is a second much smaller swimming hole a minute further downstream, but it’s not as good for swimming, so probably only one for if the bigger pool is crowded.
Essential info about Uvita Waterfall
The best time to visit Uvita Waterfall
With Uvita Waterfall I think it depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for quiet serenity and a swim at the base of the falls, then you want to come at opening time on a week day. If you’re looking to slide then you might like the atmosphere, encouragement and tips from others, in which case you can come any time!
In terms of seasons, the waterfall will be more dramatic in the rainy season, but I am not sure how that affects the slide experience!
Uvita Waterfall entry fee and opening hours
Depending on which entry you use it’s between 1500 (USD $2.80) and 2000 colones (USD $3.80). Or free if you’re staying at a guesthouse with access, like the one mentioned above.
The opening hours for the entry point we used was 8am to 6pm.
Getting to Uvita Waterfall
The waterfall is located just a couple of kilometres from the town centre - no matter which entrance you use. The parking area for the upper entrance we used is a gravel area to the side of the road. It’s included in the entry fee.
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