Written by Nikki Solano

Nikki is the CEO of Pura Vida! eh? Inc. (Costa Rica Discounts), and the author of the guidebooks Moon Costa Rica (2019, 2021, 2023, and 2025 editions) and Moon Best of Costa Rica (2022 edition) from Moon Travel Guides. Together with her Costa Rican husband, Ricky, she operates the Costa Rica Travel Blog, created the online community DIY Costa Rica, built the Costa Rica Destination Tool, oversees the brand-new (summer 2023) Costa Rica Travel Shop, and designed the Costa Rica Trip Planning 101 E-Course. Also, Nikki wrote the Costa Rica cover feature for Wanderlust Magazine's sustainability-focused Travel Green List issue, showcased Costa Rica destinations and experiences on Rick Steves' Monday Night Travel show and podcast/radio show, and served as the Costa Rica Destination Editor for Essentialist, a luxury travel brand. Want to show your appreciation for her free article below? Thank Nikki here. ❤️️

Want to know our pick for the BEST ZIPLINE TOUR and the BEST ZIPLINE CABLE in Costa Rica? They are featured on DIY Costa Rica!

Want to save money in Costa Rica?

Our sister site Pura Vida! eh? Inc. has Sky Adventures tour discounts. Con mucho gusto (you’re welcome) and pura vida!

click on a photo in the gallery above for discount and tour information

We know the Monteverde Sky Trek Canopy Ziplining Tour well because we’ve done it more than once

As we mentioned in our related blog post Sky Adventures Monteverde: Ziplining, Hanging Bridges, And Tram Rides In The Cloud Forest, we’ve been visiting Sky Adventures‘s Monteverde (Santa Elena) and Arenal (La Fortuna) adventure parks and experiencing the company’s adventure and nature tours for more than a decade. In that article, we detailed Sky Adventures‘s entire Monteverde operation, including their Monteverde Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour, their Monteverde Sky Tram aerial tram ride, their Monteverde Sky Walk hanging bridges, their Monteverde Sky Climb Arboreal tree-climbing tour, their Monteverde Vertigo Drop (free-fall activity), their off-site amphibian and reptile exhibit Herpetarium Adventures, and their on-site facilities including free lockers, free parking, dining opportunities, and more. If you’re interested in learning about the various tours, activities, and services that are available at the Sky Adventures Monteverde Park, please see the article linked to above. If you’re specifically interested in learning about Sky Adventures‘s Monteverde Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour, please continue reading below.

Monteverde Sky Trek experience

Unlike some other canopy ziplining tours in Costa Rica, which cut through the middle of rainforest and/or cloud forest ecosystems, Sky Adventures‘s Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour takes place above the forest canopy. More specifically, the tour zigzags back and forth over the forest and offers a bird’s eye view of treetops, clouds, and an endless sky.

Though several canopy ziplining tours are offered in the Monteverde region, the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour is the only canopy ziplining tour that utilizes a handlebar braking system. Most other canopy tour operators in the country use the traditional hand-braking system during their ziplining tours. Though both braking methods are regarded as safe, the handlebar braking system merely requires you to jostle a set of metal handlebars back and forth to slow your speed. In contrast, the hand-braking system requires you to place gentle pressure on the zipline using a thick leather glove to slow your speed.

In addition, the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour is the only canopy ziplining tour that automatically includes a complimentary aerial tram ride. While the Sky Trek tours run at Sky Adventures‘s Arenal park and Sky Adventures‘s Monteverde park both offer the free tram ride, no other canopy ziplining tours in Costa Rica provide this complimentary experience.

Only at the Sky Adventures Monteverde Park will you find the Vertigo Drop, a thrilling free fall that’s an included component of the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour. Note that the Vertigo Drop is not an included component of the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour run at the Sky Adventures Arenal Park. Like bungee jumping, participation in the Vertigo Drop requires you to jump off a tall metal structure. Unlike bungee jumping, where you bounce back up following the jump, with the Vertigo Drop, your free fall is slowed by ropes so you land softly on a crash pad amid the forest.

Monteverde Sky Trek duration and tour times

Monteverde Sky Trek tour costs

Monteverde Sky Trek logistics

The Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour experience begins with the collection of safety equipment at Sky Adventures‘s operations center. To confirm, the use of all necessary ziplining equipment is included in the cost of Sky Adventures‘s tour, so no equipment rental fees apply. Following an instructional briefing led by your tour guide, you’ll proceed to the first zipline cable, which is a practice cable. The practice cable allows you to sample ziplining to make sure you feel comfortable participating in the activity. If you don’t feel comfortable participating in the activity, you can opt out of doing the tour. Do so here, if that’s your choice, because there’s no turning back once you proceed beyond this point.

If you’re up for participating in the Sky Trek tour, you’ll first take a 20-minute ride on the Sky Tram aerial tram that will bring you to a platform at the top of the cloud forest. At the platform you’ll find the canopy ziplining tour’s first zipline cable, which is technically the second cable if you count the practice cable as the first. The Sky Trek tour in Monteverde has 10 cables in total, including the trial cable. Here’s how the various cables compare with one another according to the length of the cable, the height of the cable, the average speed you’ll travel when you cross the cable, and the average number of seconds it takes to cross the cable:

Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour cable details for the Sky Adventures Monteverde Park:

Cable #1 (practice cable): 40 meters long / 15 meters high
Cable #2: 400 meters long / 60 meters high / 44 kms per hour / 44 seconds
Cable #3: 520 meters long / 60 meters high / 53 kms per hour / 45 seconds
Cable #4: 420 meters long / 50 meters high / 35 kms per hour / 33 seconds
Cable #5: 560 meters long / 38 meters high / 52 kms per hour / 38 seconds
Cable #6: 320 meters long / 100 meters high / 54 kms per hour / 32 seconds
Cable #7: 380 meters long / 70 meters high / 53 kms per hour / 32 seconds
Cable #8: 420 meters long / 65 meters high / 64 kms per hour / 34 seconds
Cable #9: 750 meters long / 60 meters high / 75 kms per hour / 41 seconds
Cable #10: 70 meters long / 42 meters high / 42 kms per hour / 17 seconds
Total ziplining distance: 3,880 meters

It is important to note that it is not possible to participate in the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour without riding the Sky Tram. The Sky Tram ride is a required component of the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour because it delivers you to the tour’s second cable.

Though the duration of the Sky Trek tour varies from day to day due to group size, weather conditions, and other factors, on average, the actual ziplining portion of the tour takes roughly 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete. The entire tour experience, including the collection of equipment, the instructional briefing, the one-way Sky Tram ride, and the ziplining portion of the tour takes roughly 2-2.5 hours to complete. This estimate excludes extra time needed to travel between the Sky Adventures Monteverde Park and downtown Santa Elena (an approximate 10-minute drive) and/or area hotels before the tour begins and after the tour wraps up. It also excludes the 15 minutes that Sky Adventures asks you to arrive at their operations center in advance before participating in any of their tours.

Monteverde Sky Trek minimum age limit

For years, Sky Adventures maintained that their minimum age limit for participation in the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour was 12 years old. Then they swapped their minimum age limit to a minimum height limit (1.2 meters tall). In 2017, Sky Adventures announced that children as young as 5 years old would be allowed to participate because they obtained equipment that was suitable for children weighing 10-40 kilograms. 5 years old remains the current minimum age limit for Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour participants.

Monteverde Sky Trek maximum weight limit

The current maximum weight limit for participation in the Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour is 300 lbs. Individuals who exceed the maximum weight limit will be evaluated by Sky Adventures‘s technical staff according to their height and physical condition to determine eligibility for tour participation.

Monteverde Sky Trek discounts

Don’t miss our Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour discounts:

Sky Trek Canopy Ziplining Tour (includes one-way tram ride)(Monteverde)
Sky Trek Canopy Ziplining Tour (includes one-way tram ride) and Sky Walk Hanging Bridges Tour Combo (Monteverde)

QUESTION TO COMMENT ON: Have you experienced the Monteverde Sky Trek canopy ziplining tour before? If so, what did you enjoy about the experience?

Pura vida!

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