La Fortuna: Budget Travel Guide, La Fortuna, Costa Rica (B)

La Fortuna lies in the shadow of Arenal volcano; wherever you are in the town you can look over your shoulder and spot Arenal to the west. On some days all you can see is the mysterious outline of the volcano vanishing amongst cloud cover, but on a clear day you can see the perfectly-conical volcano rising up just outside the town limits. If someone asked a child to draw a volcano, Arenal is exactly what the child would draw, from its wide base up to its smoking spout. 

Arenal Volcano was continuously erupting between 1968 to 2010, spewing red-hot lava and projectiles from its peak. Since 2010, the volcano has been classed as dormant but some volcanic activity can still be witnessed in the smoke rising from the summit. You can even experience the volcanic activity first-hand by taking a dip in the nearby hot springs, heated by the geothermal energy. Arenal volcano is now off-limits for hiking; there is currently a 4km exclusion zone in place around the volcano, established in 1998, to prevent injuries from falling ash, landslides, toxic fumes and plummeting rock missiles. Before this date, tour groups used to be able to visit the volcanic crater but authorities acted quickly after some tourists were injured and stopped this from happening. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).