Tio Leo Coffee Tour

They prefer cash! They are very passionate about what they do. We made sugar cane, tried lemons, drank coco, made empanadas, grinded coffee & learned so much. It’s very interactive. Your shoes might get dirty. The mosquitos are everywhere. Close to the Liberia airport. Good for all ages! It’s all outdoors with no ac but there is a fan.

What a fantastic time we had with Tio Leo. This tour was the highlight of our trip. Tio Leo knows his stuff about coffee, and this is a slow-paced, learning tour. Don't expect just a tasting room thing. He'll teach you about the history of coffee all the way back from Africa, to Costa Rica in modern times. He'll show you the experimental farm that's on-site, and explain what all the trees around are (including coffee and cacau). Ask to see the cinnamon tree! We also learned about the history of cacau, and got to roast the beans, then turn them into the "cacau tea" the ancients used to drink, as well as a modern "hot cocoa" drink with milk and sugar. We had a small cooking experience as well, with his helper Mirna, where we prepared our own empanadas, which served as a snack. Then we got to press some sugar cane and sample the juice as well. Finally, we watched the coffee beans being roasted and coming out of the roaster just when Tio Leo felt they were ready. You can see the experience and passion he has for coffee at work. The whole experience lasted around 4 hours, and Tio Leo doesn't wear a watch, so take your time and enjoy it. 100000% recommended.

One of our favorite experiences in Costa Rica! 🇨🇷 We absolutely LOVED our afternoon at Tio Leo’s. We wanted to get off the resort and experience more of the culture and everyday life of Costa Rica, and this ended up being exactly what we were hoping for and honestly one of the highlights of our entire trip. Tio Leo is truly what makes this experience so special. He is incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about what he does, but also so warm, funny and welcoming. It never felt like we were just on a “tour.” It felt like we were being welcomed into someone’s home and getting to spend the afternoon learning, laughing, eating and experiencing Costa Rica with them. And the whole family/team was wonderful! His wife Cindy was so sweet and welcoming, and Mirna, who helped us cook and made so many of the delicious things we tasted throughout the day, was amazing. You can feel the love and care that all three of them put into the experience. We learned about coffee, cacao, sugar cane, plants and so much more, made empanadas and chocolate, tasted everything along the way, and laughed A LOT. It was interactive, personal and so much fun. If you’re staying in Guanacaste and want to experience something beyond the beaches and resorts, GO TO TIO LEO’S. It’s a small, family-run business and exactly the kind of place I’m so happy we chose to support while we were here. We left with full stomachs, lots of new knowledge, some delicious coffee to take home, and such an appreciation for the people behind it all. Thank you Tio Leo, Cindy and Mirna for making us feel so welcome. We’ll absolutely remember this experience when we think about our time in Costa Rica! 💙

An absolute highlight of our trip! We visited this wonderful family-run plantation today and were blown away by the hosts' passion for coffee, chocolate, and local food. Tio is incredibly knowledgeable and funny, teaching us about coffee in a way that keeps you completely captivated. We loved cooking delicious empanadas with his lovely wife while sampling their fresh coffee, mango juice, and homemade chocolate drink. Tio also explained the traditional sugar cane extraction process and had us actively participate in pressing our own fresh juice to taste at the end. The backyard plantation walk was highly educational, showing us how the surrounding trees protect and enrich the coffee crop. Roasting our own coffee at the very end was an amazing hands-on touch! This couple’s dedication is unmatched, and the atmosphere is priceless. We can't wait to return! Thank you for a great experience, your Canadian tourists :)

One of my absolute favorite tours from our trip! This is so much more than just a coffee tour. The family is incredibly sweet and welcoming, and they make you feel like a guest in their home while sharing the history and tradition of coffee production in Costa Rica. Learning about the entire process was fascinating, and the homemade chocolate, empanadas, and fresh sugarcane were an amazing bonus. Everything felt authentic, personal, and never rushed or overly touristy. We enjoyed the coffee so much that when I’m back in the States, this is where I’ll be ordering mine from. Such a memorable experience and one I would absolutely recommend!

We had a fabulous time with Tio Leo and Dona Myrna! The tour is highly informative, full of hands-on demonstrations and tasty snacks! Tio Leo leads you on a historical and scientific lecture to learn about Costa Rica's relationship with coffee, cacao and sugarcane. Throughout the tour, we were served delicious pour-over coffee, made our own rice and bean empanadas, ground roasted cacao beans to mix into cacao water and chocolate milk, and squeezed our own sugarcane juice. My sister and I were considering canceling our tour due to lack of transportation from Penninsula Papagayo, but a review on here persuaded us to continue with the tour. We are soooo glad we did and consider it to be one of the highlights of our Costa Rica trip. In case anybody needs help with transportation, Tio Leo is willing to call a taxi to pick you up from your hotel and drop you off if necessary. We also stocked up on locally-made souvenirs while we were there. We bought bags of their locally-grown and roasted coffee and cacao beans, as well as soaps made from cacao. The prices were very reasonable (as an American) and it feels wonderful to support a local business and family.

We had a absolutely lovely day with the whole team at TioLeo coffee tour. We went with our 2 kids who also enjoyed the tour - they went out of their way to include them in everything, which they really loved. We were a small group and so had an amazing personal touch. Leo is exceptionally knowledgeable and we genuinely appreciated our experience there. An amazing team and could not recommend more!

We had the best time cooking and walking the fruit trees, coffee and chocolate plants. What an amazing experience! Thank you for the wonderful tour!

If you are anywhere near Liberia (we drove 1 hr. 15 mins. from Tamarindo), but it’s very close to the Liberia airport, this is an absolute must do! Fun for the whole family ages 13, 15, 24, 39 and 50! The 24 year old said it was the “best day ever” and even the teens were having fun! The place is very unassuming and looks like a tourist trap when you pull in, but it’s just an amazing, small family run business. The price is extremely reasonable for the experience! We learned so much about coffee, chocolate, sugar cane and various fruits and trees/ plants. Tio Leo is so knowledgeable and passionate about what he does! We tried many different things, not just the coffee and cacao and the empanadas were delicious! Highly recommend this adventure, it is 3.5 hours full of info and experience! Muchas gracias Tio Leo and team!

Tio Leo and his team offered us a great afternoon which combined coffee, chocolate, sugar cane and empanada experiences followed by a tour of the wonderful flora and fauna of their finca. Loved it!

If you are looking for an absolute diamond in the rough on your vacation to Costa Rica, this is it. Easily was our favorite thing we experienced in Costa Rica. Tio Leo is an exceptional tour guide. He was extremely knowledgeable, so much fun, and was pretty hilarious too! The tour was about four and a half hours of laughter, some amazing history, and great food/drinks. We got our hands dirty engaging in various stages of coffee and cacao processing. The walk through his garden was one of our biggest highlights. Hands down would recommend this experience to anyone and everyone coming to Costa Rica! And we would likely come back just to hang with our new Uncle Leo on our next trip through.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This was one of the best experiences of our trip to Costa Rica! Tio Leo is incredibly knowledgeable and does an amazing job teaching about Costa Rican culture, coffee, and chocolate in a way that’s both fun and engaging. We learned so much and left with a much deeper appreciation for the country and its traditions. The hands-on activities were a highlight, especially learning how to make delicious empanadas. Everything felt authentic, interactive, and welcoming. We highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting the Liberia area

Informative tour about the history and making of coffee and chocolate along with making empanadas to eat and taste testing coffee and chocolate. Fun filled experience with a cocoa exfoliating session for our arms and hands.

This is an average tour. He is knowledgeable but it’s the whole set up is very tourist oriented with no actual bean productions of the coffee or chocolate on site. Further the cooking class ruined our experience. Their idea of vegetarian is leaving the meat out in our empanadas, so basically giving us rice and beans cooked with beef without the chunks of beef. This was after we clarified at least 3 times this is vegetarian. And I would not have even known, but the pot they were giving us the food from had chunks of meat.

My family and I really enjoyed the tour at first I thought it was not going to be good but we ended up enjoying it. We did hands on activities and learning at the same time. The tour also included tasting of chocolate, coffee and sugar cane and learned how to make tortillas!!!

Excellent. Don’t hesitate to visit Tío Leo and sign up for the tour. It may be a long commitment, but well worth it. It’s an informative and fun way to spend an afternoon learning -in an hands-on way- about the overall Costa Rican coffee and agriculture industry albeit on a very small scale farm. We went as a family with a 6-year old and even he was kept entertained by the interactive tour activities. (There was also a table full of toys, which was a great distraction for the interim moments when he needed something to do - a great idea). As recommend by Tío Leo, do bring bug spray.

This coffee tour was truly one of the highlights of our trip! The tour itself was fascinating, informative, and delivered with so much passion that it felt really special from start to finish. As parents of a toddler, we especially appreciated how wonderful the staff were with children. The planned activities kept our little one engaged throughout, and they even have small dedicated kids’ area with toys for children who need a bit of extra stimulation. Families with toddlers should absolutely consider visiting, from the taste tests to the hands on aspects, both our kids truly loved it! The food was excellent, the coffee was incredible, and every member of the team clearly loves what they do. Their enthusiasm was infectious and made the whole experience memorable. We left feeling like we’d experienced something truly authentic and special. Highly recommend!

This was such an amazing experience! Great coffee, great food, great people. Plus you get to learn so much!

Tio Leo's Coffee Tour has been one of our best experiences so far in Costa Rica! Tio Leo himself led the tour; he's such a passionate man and knowledgable tour guide. The other staff were also incredibly kind and did a fantastic job communicating with us despite our limited knowledge of the Spanish language. As tourists, we are very weary of tourist traps and want to avoid them at all costs. This experience is the furthest thing from that. Tio Leo not only taught us about the history of sugar cane, cocoa bean, and coffee bean production, but we got hands-on experience with the crop production process; we made empanadas ourselves, peeled cocoa beans, and ground them up to make cocoa nibs and powder. He detailed the coffee and cacao production from seedling to final product, giving us the opportunity to taste test and participate in that process ourselves. They also made us several delicious, in season drinks from the crops grown on the farm. On top of that, Tio Leo led us through his farm where he pointed out the medicinal benefits of different crops and crushed up leaves for us to smell. Throughout our time on the farm, nothing ever went to waste and "leftover" product was always reused for other purposes. This experience felt distinct and down-to-Earth without any cash grabs. Our time at the farm was well worth the price. There is something so special about this farm that's hard to put into words. We are lucky to have been taught a sliver of the traditional knowledge Tio Leo has cultivated through stewarding this land. There are only a few small farms like this left in the world, so it was an absolute privilege to witness Tio Leo's ingenuity and support his livelihood. Make sure to buy some coffee beans on your way out - the coffee here is wonderful!!

If you are looking for a truly unforgettable experience in Costa Rica that goes far beyond the typical tourist activity, stop searching right now — Tio Leo Coffee Tour is exactly what you need. My wife and I had the incredible fortune of being the only two guests on our visit, and what unfolded was a perfectly personal, deeply immersive, and utterly joyful adventure about coffee, chocolate, sugar cane as it relates to Costa Rica. From the moment we arrived, the warmth and genuine hospitality of Tio Leo and his wife and small team made us feel like family. There was no rushing, no crowds, no distractions — just the two of us being guided through this beautiful family-operated plantation with all the time in the world to ask questions, absorb every detail, and truly connect with the experience. It felt personal, homey, and completely one-of-a-kind. Tio Leo is an absolute wealth of knowledge and his enthusiasm for coffee, chocolate, and Costa Rican culture is completely infectious. He walked us through the fascinating history of coffee in Costa Rica, shared stories about the land and the plants, and made what could have been a dry, educational tour feel like an exciting journey of discovery. The coffee and chocolate experience was the heart of the tour but was so much more. Seeing trees with coffee beans and watching them roasted (the aroma alone is worth the trip!), and brewing a fresh cup of the most delicious coffee we have ever tasted. For the chocolate portion, we peeled cocoa pods, ground the cacao, and made our own hot chocolate from scratch. It was rich, authentic, and absolutely divine. There is something incredibly satisfying about tasting something you helped create with your own hands. Oh… and nothing is wasted as the cocoa grinds, sugar and milk were used to scrub your arms and hands. Amazing how that leaves them feeling… such a treat!! Beyond the coffee and chocolate, the tour took us through a lush garden filled with mango trees, banana plants, cacao trees, orange trees, star fruit, and so much more. We also pressed fresh sugar cane juice using a traditional ancient mill from the 1800s— one of those wonderfully hands-on moments that reminds you how much fun learning can be. Every corner of the plantation had something new and interesting to discover. Because it was just the two of us, the experience felt entirely tailored to us. Every question we had — and we had many — was answered with patience, depth, and genuine enthusiasm. There was laughter, stories, tastings, and a beautiful sense of connection to the land and the people who care for it. This is the kind of experience that reminds you why you travel in the first place. If you are visiting the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica, do not — we repeat, do not — miss Café Tio Leo. And we drove over an hour from Playa Conchal and would do again in a heart beat. Whether you are a couple like us, a family, or a group of friends, this tour will be one of the standout highlights of your entire trip. We cannot recommend it highly enough. Tio Leo, thank you for sharing your passion, your knowledge, and your beautiful home with us. Pura Vida! ❤️

Great addition to your stay. Hands on learning about coffee growing, cocoa, cooking class to make empanadas, roasted cocoa beans for use, andmedicinal use for all the trees on the land. Loved all the knowledge shared on coffee and sugar cane. The entire staff was amazing! We booked with a travel guide but you can get better pricing booking direct on the TioLeoCafe site. Empanadas were so much fun to make. A nice touch to have the hands on experience as part of the tour. Fried plantains, mango, green mango juice and cocoa...all were amazing !

Very friendly staff and informative tour. A very memorable Costa Rican experience

Great experience overall! Loved the cooking of empanadas, grinding coco beans, preparing the peaberry coffee. Loved it! Highly recommend, but make sure eto be prepared for the Costa Rican weather. The whole tour is outside with no ACs, so hydrate and stay cool!

We enjoyed every part of the tour! The history of coffee, chocolate and sugarcane; sampling all of these; learning and participating in the process of making them; and touring the orchard. Oh, and making empanadas! Tio Leo was very endearing and kept everyone engaged. And we got to meet his puppy!

Tio Leo Coffee Tour was excellent and a truly authentic experience! Led by Tio Leo himself, we got to learn about the coffee roasting process, cacao beans health benefits, and sugarcane in the region. We tried his fresh roasted coffee, cooked empanadas, and had chocolate made with cacao beans we ground ourselves. We came during the less busy season so the crowd size was small, and the atmosphere was laid back. Our tour took the full 4 hours, we definitely got our money’s worth! He even took us on a walk through his coffee bean plantation and taught us about all the medicinal uses of his plants. Overall an authentic, interesting, and delicious tour - highly recommend!

Our experience at Tio Leo Coffee Tour was exceptional, especially as a family traveling with a 3 year-old and a baby The tour perfectly balances an educational and hands-on experience that kept everyone engaged, The incredibly welcoming vibes from everyone made us feel right at home with our little ones. It was a bit lengthy for the little ones, but worth it for the experience and education! And, they have a little play area for young kids which was a.plus!

This is one of the best tours we did in Costa Rica. It was an exceptional experience. We learned so much about how coffee grows, how it is harvested and brewed. Tio makes an incredible coffee! We also had an opportunity to learn about cocoa and taste some yummy chocolate. We made our own empanadas with Grandma Queen. Also fun and delicious. Then Tio gave us a tour of his coffee plants and different fruit trees. Very educational. Tio was very patient and answered all our questions. We had such a wonderful time. We would highly recommend this tour to everyone. Thank you Grandma Queen and Tio!

Really enjoyed our experience. It was a great blend of some history and interactive activities from shelling chocolate beans to making empanadas. For the price of the tour you really can’t go wrong.

I highly recommend this tour. Tio Leo gives an amazing amount of information about so much more than coffee. He and Mirna(sp) made it fun and yummy. We had home made chocolate and chocolate tea. We made empanads they were delicious. This was one of my favorite activities in Costa Rica. I am going to do it again when I go back. I want to take notes next time. That's how interesting the information he provided was and oh boy did he provide a lot!! You will be glad you went!!!

Wonderful tour - you see the plantation, a cooking class and a full demonstration and explanation on the roasting process. Great price on the coffee (and better than many, certainly store bought).

You MUST go on this tour. It will be the highlight of your trip. Learn all about coffee of Costa Rica, cocoa, sugarcane, and the history of all these. Cooking class, garden tour, but best was Leo and his team's heart. They keep a piece of your heart. Over the top. Can't say enough. 1000% worth the very low price. Memorable experience.

This tour was extremely informative for the real coffee drinkers. The presentation from start to finish opened my eyes to be more mindful about the coffee that I purchase. We were also taught how to make empanadas and walked through the beautiful vegetable and herb garden. It was other incentives as well, so please don’t hesitate to book this tour. Tio Leo did a great job! I was there for my birthday on 4/18 and he treated me and everyone else like family.

This was an amazing experience. It was very broad covering cooking, coffee, chocolate and so much more. My faveourite part was the cooking class ! Tio Leo is so knowledgeable. I would recommend to everyone. Great idea to do either leaving airport or before going to airport. A true authentic experience.

Top notch coffee tour led by the most genuine, warm people who gave our family and friends an unforgettable several hours. Tio Leo himself leads this tour, and he is so knowledgeable annd warm that it was a privilege for him to share his farm with us. I also appreciated him accommodating for our young kids and making sure that they had fun while he shared stories about Costa Rican, coffee, history and culture. Mirna cooked the most delicious food and juices, some of which I’ve never had before in my life. We also got to walk around the farm and try anything from the trees. We really felt at home with Tio Leo and Mirna and are grateful to them for their hospitality. Gracias Tio Leo y Sra. Mirna!

This is a unique hands-on experience you won't get anywhere else with a charming and informative host. We loved making empanadas, all the tastings and the plants and trees that grow the food.

I have been coming to Costa Rica for many years, and always passed by this fantastic place, but never went in, but it’s a must visit. Ti-Leo is extremely knowledgeable about coffee and chocolate production. We even had a cooking class, and crushed up the branches of the sugar cane branches and drank the fresh juices from it!!

This was such an informative tour about the Costa Rican coffee industry as well about coffee history growing and production . We learned about cacao and sugar cane as well. Making empanadas and tasting the different juices, cacao drinks , cacao tasting and sugar cane press was more than informative and fun for all of us ages 13-64. The coffee from a true coffee snob is delicious, rich and smooth. Grinding the cacao beans was also a fun and educational experience. The farm tour was full of so many plants and trees we learned so much that it’s more than we can list here. We need the recipe tho for the pepper sauce!!! Gracias por una dia especial! And not to forget the cocoa scrub!!!

Tio Leo is such a knowledgeable and friendly man, and the tour he took us on was once in a lifetime. We learned so much about Costa Rican history and culture; about all the different plants and fruit trees in his garden; about coffee, it's history, preparation, and the roasting process; about cacao and it's growing, history, and preparation; and even sugar cane and it's history and processing. We made empanadas from scratch (and he was kind enough to share the recipe because they were fantastic), we got to try samples of all the ripe fruits in the garden, roast shell and grind cacao beans for hot chocolate, and so much more! I would highly recommend scheduling a tour if you're in the area, you won't regret it!

Tio was a wonderful story teller, immersing all on the tour in the rich Costa Rican coffee history. The experience was delightful, allowing us to sample fresh brewed open flame coffee and chocolate beans. The empanada cooking class was fun! The tour through the orchards was very educational. I highly recommend this tour for a taste of authentic Costa Rican cultural experience.

Tio Leo is a great ambassador for Costa Rican coffee growers and for the Costa Rican people. Very informative and fun tour with hands on opportunities. ‘Mama Leo’ was a star of the empanadas!

Such a fun tour from start to finish! My wife and I went after spending 3 nights on peninsula papagayo as we were hoping for some cultural emersion, and that is exactly what Tio Leo and his team gave us! We learned about the Costa Rican arabica beans and the history of coffee, saw the coffee bean roasting process, ate roasted cocao, had a tour of his farm/garden, pressed sugar cane, made a delicious homemade empanada, and learned a ton. The best part… the coffee was soo good! Thank You Tio Leo!!

This is a no miss tour for anyone traveling to Costa Rica. Teo gives a very educational history of coffee and cocoa. Their instruction on making home made empanadas is great and it’s always educational taking the walking tour through the fruit trees. Great experience

The tour was so much more than we were expecting! Highly recommend!!! Tío Leo had a natural skill for educating and entertaining at the same time. Compliments to Mirna! Her humor and cooking were excellent. Everything was delicious!

when you’re here you’re family!! such an educational, interactive, and fun experience for a great price! we had so much fun, we didn’t want to leave. this tour hands down made the entire trip. i thought about visiting San Jose for our next trip to CR but we will absolutely go out of our way to visit Tío Leo and his wonderful staff again.

Terrific experience! Local family run business. Very informative. Highly recommended for a local special experience.

Tio Leo Coffee tour was amazing. He's very authentic and knowledgeable about his craft.. I would definitely do his tour again.

Tio Leo, Cindy and Mirna are fabulous. You feel as if you are visiting old friends. You walk away, tasting everything from coffee, cacao, all the fruits that are there in season. If there is one problem there is so much Rich incredible information that you feel you need to come back again and again to absorb it all. Tio Leo is a national Costa Rican treasure. He is like a botany professor

This was a blast from start to finish! Tio Leo and his crew made us feel like family. We learned a ton and enjoyed the whole experience! We left with our bellies and hearts full.

Absolutely one of the best tours I’ve taken in Costa Rica! Tio Leo is so passionate about his farm and all that he produces. He has a great sense of humor, is so knowledgeable and truly wants everyone to learn and have an enjoyable time on his tour. The coffee is amazing, the empanada that we each made was delicious, the sugar cane drink was interesting and the chocolate was incredible! At the end of the tour we even got an exfoliating experience with the ground coffee followed by a soothing body lotion. I highly recommend this tour….I am bringing my family when they visit and will do the tour again!