Monteverde Farm Experience & Horseback Riding Tour
Experience authentic Costa Rican farm life with this cultural tour that combines hands-on farming activities and scenic horseback riding through Monteverde’s countryside.
Here’s a Quick Summary of the Tour
- Interactions with the farm staff & animals
- Cheese-making explanation
- Sustainable farm walk & demonstrations
- Short forest hike (15 minutes)
- Farm-fresh snack & drink
- Short horseback ride
The Costa Rican Farm Experience
This tour starts with an introduction to the farmhands who care for the animals and work the land daily. In the barn, you’ll also meet horses, cows, donkeys, sheep, chickens, and some friendly farm dogs too.
Finca Madre Tierra is a real 30-acre (12-hectare) working farm, owned by the founder of Hotel Belmar. The products produced on the farm make a full cycle to the hotel and back. The milk is made into cheese for the hotel’s farm-to-table restaurant, and coffee, sugar cane, vegetables, herbs, and eggs are also part of the menu. Food scraps from the kitchen are then reused back at the farm for compost.
During your visit, you’ll get right in on the action. Activities vary seasonally but you may participate in milking a cow, caring for baby cows or sheep, feeding the animals, collecting farm-fresh eggs, picking coffee, fruit, or vegetables, or pressing sugar cane into juice.
As the tour moves through the farm, you’ll learn how they produce five types of cheese and get to taste each one. You’ll also walk through the organic vegetable garden, into coffee fields, and hike an easy forest trail (15 minutes) to a nice viewpoint. Along the way, you’ll learn about local plants, wildlife, cultural traditions, agro-forestry practices, and sustainable tourism.
Snack & Drink
Returning to the barn, you’ll visit the loft where a fresh snack and drink will be waiting. You can choose coffee, sugar cane juice, tea, or hot chocolate. The snack will vary seasonally but is typically a handmade tortilla with cheese, cheese empanada, or other traditional foods that use the farm ingredients you will have just learned about. Dietary restrictions can be accommodated.
Horseback Ride
Fueled up after your snack, you’ll be ready for a little excitement. To end your day, your guide will lead you on a lovely horseback ride up the ridge and through the rolling green fields. The healthy horses are raised and trained with positive reinforcement and natural horsemanship techniques. You’ll be fitted with riding helmets and be able to mount the horse inside the training ring first. No experience is necessary.
The horseback ride follows a rough farm road to the top of a ridge and through the grassy fields. From the top, you can get spectacular views of the surrounding mountains, the farm below, and even see all the way to the Pacific Ocean if the weather permits. The misty mountains of Monteverde often feature beautiful sunsets and/or rainbows!
To end your authentic cultural experience, you’ll meander through fields on the other side of the farm, back down to the barn.
This is a great tour for anyone interested in farming, sustainability, or local culture. It’s also wonderful with kids (ours loved it).
Tour Details
Cost (2025): $95 per person adults, $75 per person children (ages 5-11). Rate plus 13% tax.
Children 4 and under who ride with someone else are free.
*For peak season bookings (December 18-January 5), add $10 per person.
Offered: 8:00 a.m. or 2:00 p.m.
Duration: 3.5-4 hours (with transportation)
Includes: Round-trip transportation from Hotel Belmar in Monteverde, bilingual guide, cheese tasting, typical Costa Rican snack and drink, and all horseback equipment.
Weight Limit: Please advise us if any participant is over 6’3″ (190 cm) or 200 lbs. (90 kg) so that we can ensure the proper sized horse.
No experience necessary.
Have a question? Send us an email at bookings(at)
Two Weeks in Costa Rica, Inc. is registered with the State of Florida as a Seller of Travel. Fla. Seller of Travel Ref. No. ST41024.
