NORTHERN REGION– HOTELS

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The El Silencio del Campo Hotel is located 3 hours from San José (170km / 106miles) and 4km (2.5miles) from La Fortuna in San Carlos. It has 15 cottages spread out over the property. Each one has 2 queen size beds, air conditioning, cable TV, coffee maker, safety deposit, mini-fridge, private terrace and a wonderful view of the volcano. The facilities the hotel offers include: swimming pool, spacious gardens, safety deposit box on the reception and a restaurant.

Some of the activities this area offers are: walks, visit to the Arenal Volcano National Park, horseback riding, canopy and fishing. Some of the activities on offer include: Caño Negro Tour, Arenal Volcano hike tour, horseback riding to La Fortuna Waterfall, Arenal hanging bridges, canopy, boat rides on Arenal Lake, Sky Tram and Sky Trek.

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Natural Lodge Caño Negro is located in Caño Negro Village, close to the small village of Los Chiles, 90miles / 144 km from Muelle, about a four to 3 1/2 hour drive (217 km) from San Jose. The lodge is surrounded by exuberant tropical gardens and has direct access to the pristine canals of the Caño Negro refuge. Offers 22 deluxe rooms with elegant furniture, private bathroom with hot running water, air conditioning, ceiling fan, telephone and security box. Facilities offered by the lodge are: restaurant specializing in national and international meals, bar, swimming pool, wet bar, Jacuzzi, volleyball and badminton field, mini-golf, table-tennis, meeting room, a large entertainment area and laundry. It also offers a variety of activities such as sportfishing, birdwatching walks, horseback riding, cultural walks and tours to Rio Celeste or Caño Negro National Refuge and tours to Nicaragua.

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LOST IGUANA RESORT, ARENAL VOLCANO AREA & CAÑO NEGRO

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Prices based on double occupancy range from $215.32 to $535.40 (Until December 15, 2008)
Taxes & breakfast included

This cozy family-run hotel is located in the town of La Fortuna de San Carlos in the northern region of the country 170 Km / 106 miles from San José on a nice mountain road (about a 3 ½ hour drive).

It has 34 rooms, each with a private bathroom with hot water, cable TV, a/c and fan. Guests have access to a parking lot, private security, swimming pool, and Jacuzzi, wireless and fixed internet at no extra charge, tour desk, beautiful gardens, free coffee and tea. In addition, the hotel has three balconies and an observatory deck from which visitors may observe the majestic Arenal Volcano (the area's main attraction), many restaurants nearby, laundry service, safe deposit, mailbox, local calls and friendly staff. Activities include guided tours to the Tabacón thermal springs, the Arenal Volcano, horseback riding, and tours to Caño Negro Wildlife Reserve (excellent for birdwatchers).

The hotel is located in Monteverde, 168 km/ 105 miles or a 3½ - 4 hour drive from San Jose. The Hotel Belmar is owned and operated by the Belmar family. It is a typical mountain hotel, consisting of two Austrian Chalet-style buildings with wood paneling and French doors. They offer spectacular views and personalized service in a comfortable, rustic atmosphere coupled with the beauty of the surrounding landscape. The hotel has 28 rooms that include 2 queen beds; private bathroom and hot water, phone and most rooms have a private balcony with spectacular views of the Gulf of Nicoya or the rainforest.

The hotel features a bar and restaurant, Jacuzzi, a private trail to the forest, laundry service, beautiful gardens, private transportation to anywhere in the country, internet, pool table, a small bar and balcony with a view. In appreciation of Costa Rica's natural heritage, the meals from the restaurant are homemade (bread, granola, marmalade) with ingredients produced locally (dairy products, coffee, fruits, and vegetables). Its decor features works of Costa Rican artists, handcrafters, and photographers.

Some of the activities offered are: tours to Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, horseback tours, tours inside CASEM, coffee tours, cheese factory tours, amphibian and reptile tours, canopy tours, walkways, butterfly garden tour, hummingbird garden tours, and natural history walks.

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Cabañas Los Pinos & Jardines is located in the natural sanctuary of Monteverde, in a well-maintained, beautiful garden, about four hours (160 km / 99 miles) away from San José and 300 meters from the small town of Monteverde.

The 11 Cabins feature private bath with hot water and are fully equipped with kitchen, refrigerator, microwave oven and coffee maker. The cabins are built apart from each other (at least 150 feet), guaranteeing maximum privacy. There are 2 "Standard" cabins for 2-3 guests, 5 "Family" cabins for 6 guests, and 4 "Junior" cabins for 2-4 guests. The hotel does not have a restaurant but within walking distance of the lodge, guests will find restaurants serving Costa Rican and international cuisine. Activities offered include horseback riding tours, hikes to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, the Santa Elena Rainforest Reserve, Canopy Tour, Sky Walk and Sky Trek, a Butterfly Garden, and an Orchid Garden, among others.

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Hotel Claro de Luna is located in the mountainous region of Monteverde, about a 3 ½ - 4 hour drive from San José. The last 1 ½ hours (37 km/22.99miles) will be a real mountain experience, as you travel along the narrow dirt mountain road. This hotel is a beautiful wooden house nicely finished with 9 comfortable beautiful rooms and large private bathrooms with hot water. All rooms offer hair dryer, fan and telephone. The 5 Standard rooms come with one queen size bed. The 4 Deluxe rooms are more spacious and offer a queen-size bed. The Bed and Breakfast includes lovely gardens, laundry service, maid service, safety deposit box, 24-hour security, private parking, restaurant, and delicious breakfast (exclusive service of an intimate "Bed & Breakfast"). Some of the attractions in Monteverde are: The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, the Cheese Factory, the Butterfly Farm, Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, and CASEM Craft Shop.

Monteverde Cloud Forest Lodge is located in the mountainous region of Monteverde, about a 3 ½ - 4 hour drive from San José. The last 1 ½ hours (37 km/22.9miles) will be a real mountain experience, as you travel along a narrow dirt mountain road. This lodge features a total of 20 rooms; all have one double and one single bed, as well as private bathroom with hot water. The rooms are surrounded by lush vegetation. Telephone service is available at the reception desk, and there is a TV lounge (the rooms do not have this facility since the aim is to provide a peaceful, relaxed atmosphere in which nature can be appreciated. Other facilities include bar and restaurant service, horseback riding tours, the Canopy Tour (sliding along wires that hang from one treetop to another), as well as the lodge's 5 Km/3.10 mile private trails, and 70 acres of primary and secondary forests. The restaurant has a good view of the Gulf of Nicoya.

The De Lucia Inn Hotel and Restaurant is located in Monteverde, 2.5 km (1.56 miles) from Santa Elena. This is a small, family-run establishment that prides itself on personal service, and is just a five-minute walk from the Ecological Farm and Monteverde Butterfly Garden. The warm and cozy hotel is full of rustic charm and has 19 beautiful rooms in a quiet convenient location; each features queen size and single beds, private hot water baths, natural cedar wood finish and telephone.

Services available at De Lucia are laundry, room service and they also organize activities such as hiking, including professionally-guided horseback rides or nature hikes, treetop canopy tours or Sky Trek adventures, even shopping for hand-crafted products from local artists. The De Lucia Restaurant, which is adjacent to the hotel, has earned a reputation in the Monteverde area for providing its own unique blend of good food in a comfortable, spacious, open-air setting. They serve local and international gourmet cuisine, including vegetarian dishes made with fresh, natural ingredients. All meals include complimentary tortilla appetizers.

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Hotel El Establo, approximately a 3½ - 4 hour drive from San Jose (160km/99miles), is situated in the heart of the tourist zone of Monteverde, 7km (4.37miles) from the Santa Elena Rain Forest and 4km/2.5miles from the Monteverde Cloud Forest. El Establo is a Quaker / Costa Rican family-owned Lodge with 150 comfortable rooms, including 134 Deluxe, 12 suites and 4 Honeymoon suites, divided between six separate buildings. All the rooms include private bathroom with hot water, coffee maker, alarm clock, balcony or patio, closet, orthopedic mattresses, telephone, safety box, wall to wall carpeting, small refrigerator hairdryer and TV.

The Standard rooms (original building) are 20-30 meters squared and have one queen size bed and single bed or two double beds. The Deluxe rooms are 40 meters squared and feature a balcony and one king size bed or two queen size beds. The Junior Suites are 60 meters squared and have, balcony or patio, wood furnishings, larger bathrooms, two queen size beds and a sitting area with rocking chairs. The Suites are 80 meters squared and have a loft with a king size bed, one queen bed and one twin bed, private balcony, lounge area with rocking chairs, wood furnishings and spacious bathrooms. The Honeymoon suites are 40 meters squared have a Jacuzzi, one king size bed, telephone, private balcony with the best views of the area, wood furnishings and rocking chairs.

Hotel facilities feature an International restaurant "Las Riendas" with seating for 250 people, first hotel with an "eco-friendly" sewage deposit plant, private water system, with natural spring water exclusive to the hotel, auxiliary power plant and computer-assisted underground electrical system. Services and facilities the hotel offers include: private canopy tour, tennis court, basketball court, one lake, hiking trails, parking, transportation services within the facilities, 24-hour security, ice machine, 2 heated indoor pools, spa with Jacuzzi, restaurant and mailing service.

The hotel is located in a 35-acre/14 hectare farm in Monteverde, a 3 ½ - 4 hour drive (105 miles) from San José. Fonda Vela is one of the closest hotels to the entrance of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve (only about 3 Km/1.8 miles away). It has 38 spacious wooden-built rooms with private bathroom, hot water, hair dryer, balcony, safety deposit, TV and telephone. There are 20 standard rooms and 18 junior suites (equipped with either two double beds or one king and one queen size bed) that come with living room, sofa and small refrigerator. The Junior Suites are more spacious than the Standard rooms and have been built recently.

Facilities include a bar (capacity for 15 people); 2 restaurants: one accommodating up to 100 people and serving excellent home cooking and international cuisine, and another that is smaller (open only for dinners), with a more romantic atmosphere, a fireplace, candle-lit tables, and capacity for 60 people; panoramic lounge; TV room, conference room with capacity for 50 people; and guided horseback rides. Some of the attractions in Monteverde are: the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, the Cheese Factory, Butterfly Farm, Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, CASEM Craft Shop, Hanging bridges, canopy, and horseback riding.

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Hotel Montaña Monteverde is located in the mountainous region of Monteverde, 1400 meters/4592 feet above sea level, and a 3 ½ - 4-hour drive (105 miles/168 km) from San José. The last 1-hour (27 km/15 miles) are along a dirt road. The more adventurous traveler is sure to enjoy this "untamed" road and its amazing landscape. Four wheel drive cars are highly recommended, especially during the rainy season (from April to the end of November).

The hotel offers a total of 42 comfortable rooms, 12 of which are standard rooms and 30 Superior rooms. All the rooms have a private bathroom with hot water. Standard rooms have either one single and one double bed, or one double and two single beds. Superior rooms feature, in addition to the above-mentioned facilities a King size bed, a private balcony, cable TV, mini bar hair dryer and bathtub. Other hotel services include a common Jacuzzi and sauna, conference room (accommodating up to 50 people), bar, restaurant, reading area, laundry service, safety deposit box at the reception, trails and a small pond along the lodge's 15 hectare/ 37 acre private reserve.

Further activities offered include horseback riding tours, hikes to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, the Santa Elena Rainforest Reserve, Canopy Tour, Sky Walk and Sky Trek, a Butterfly Garden, and an Orchid Garden, among others. Due to its geographical conditions, temperatures can drop to 12º C/53.6 ºF, therefore, we recommend you bring at least a jacket, and a raincoat (after all, it is the rainforest!).

Trapp Family Lodge is located in the mountainous region of Monteverde, about a 3½ - 4 hour drive from San José (160 Km/99 miles). This is the nearest hotel to the beautiful Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. The Trapp Family Lodge boasts a comfortable rustic atmosphere where guests can enjoy a wonderful and peaceful stay.

The hotel offers 18 Superior rooms each with panoramic views of the forest, private bathroom with hot water, telephone and two queen size beds. They also offer family rooms with 1 double and 3 single beds., and 8 Mountain Suites: each with a spectacular view of the Monteverde Reserve, private bathroom with bathtub and hot water, mini bar, TV, hairdryer and phone. Two queen size beds or 1 king size bed available.

The hotel features also a restaurant and a bar, safety deposit box, laundry service, guided tours, parking lot, Internet access, pleasant living room and smoking room. Some of the attractions in Monteverde are the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, the Cheese Factory, the Butterfly Farm, Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, and CASEM Craft Shop.

Hotel El Bambú is a small friendly hotel operated by a Costa Rican family located in the heart of Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí, at 82 km / 51 miles (1,5 to 2 hours by car) from the capital city San José. It offers 30 comfortable rooms that include 13 Standard rooms with air conditioning, ceiling fan, security box, telephone, cable TV and private bathroom with hot water, 17 Superior rooms with air conditioning type Mini-split, wide terrace, queen size beds, security box, telephone, cable TV and private bathroom with hot water.

Other facilities and services the hotel offers include laundry service, internet, WIFI, fax service, room service, private parking, large swimming pool, bar, "a la carte" restaurant, meeting facilities, game room. Some of the activities include safari tour on the Sarapiquí River, canopy, biking tours, tours to La Selva and to Tortuguero National Park.

La Quinta is located in La Virgen de Sarapiquí, approximately 92 km/57 miles from San José (a 2 hour drive on paved roads). This family-run lodge has 28 rooms with either two or three beds, ceiling fan or air conditioning, and private bathroom with hot water. They are all surrounded by tropical gardens, which attract a diverse range of birds. La Quinta offers a quiet and friendly atmosphere. All rooms are connected to the main house through sidewalks. The main building offers an air-conditioned dining room, swimming pool, souvenir shop, a game room, and a bar. Laundry service is also offered at this lodge. La Quinta de Sarapiquí Lodge is a great base for excursions to nearby attractions. Some of the activities offered at the lodge are: ¨La Galería¨, a spectacular insect museum where visitors can admire different local species, a butterfly house, a frog garden, a vegetable garden. Some of the activities offered at the lodge are mountain biking, boat trips, horseback riding, hiking on the nearby trails, bird watching, tubing in the river and rafting.

Its environmental conditions (rainy and humid) make this an ideal location for the development of a wide range of animal and plant species. Thus the region boasts of some of the richest biodiversity in the country. In addition, clients may choose from a variety of tours such as the Aerial Tram, Braulio Carrillo National Park, La Paz waterfall, banana, pineapple and heart of palm plantations.

The Lodge is located in la Virgen of Sarapiquí, 1.5 hr 85 km (55 miles) form San José. Tucked away in the middle of a tropical rainforest, and surrounded only by the magic of nature is the Sarapiqui’s Neotropical Centre, a new and revolutionary concept in ecotourism. Here the barrier between nature and man-made construction has been broken down allowing for the harmonious interplay of exterior and interior decoration and architecture.

The lodge has 40 deluxe rooms, 32 of which have been recently renovated and feature thatched-roofs, modelled on the pre-Columbian style houses known as “palenques”. Each “palenque” comes with 1 double bed or 2 singles, a fan (A/C in 8 of the rooms), private bathroom, hot water (heated by a natural solar heating system) and a balcony. Other Facilities include safety-deposit boxes at reception, bilingual staff, room service, laundry service, rent-a-car service and Wi-Fi Internet (new). In addition, the centre has got a new waterfall-style swimming pool featuring tanning beds all around it.

It also offers a bar with a TV lounge and 2 restaurants: a buffet one, the “Zeledón”, a thatched ranch with capacity for 88 people –ideal for group activities. In addition to this, there is a second restaurant called “El Sereno”, offering “a la carte” gourmet style food and seating for 52 people. There is also a Museum of Indigenous Cultures with a 72-person theatre where guests may enjoy the film Man and Nature in Pre-Columbian Costa Rica, as well as admire the museum’s anthropological collection. Guests can also visit the new “Rancho Maleku”, a 60-people conference / seminar room that shows the “Kapi Kapi Tour”, an indigenous cultural presentation about the Archaeological Park “Alma Ata”, which features 850 year old tombs.

There are many activities to choose from during your stay, such as a visit to the Tirimbina Biological Reserve, where by means of well-kept trails, you can reach the heart of a 300-he rainforest.

If you wish to experience the rain forest firsthand then Sueño Azul Resort in the Sarapiqui region, located only 70 km / 44 miles from San José, is the perfect spot for you. Two lakes and a river cross the property, providing the perfect setting for the 60 beautifully decorated rooms; 11 of which come equipped with ac, and 2 of which are Junior Suites. Each room offer 1 king size bed and a sofa bed or 2 queen size beds, a terrace, private bath with hot water, safety deposit box, hair dryer and a fan. The Junior Suites are additionally equipped with air conditioning and Jacuzzi. The rustic decoration combines wood with other organic materials. There is a restaurant specializing in Costa Rican and International cuisine, 2 bars, a pool, Jacuzzi, spa, yoga studio, meeting room and an open thatched ranch. Additional services such as laundry, a souvenir shop and parking lot are available. You will find plenty of opportunity to enjoy bird watching, the landscape, the butterfly farm, nature trails and fishing.

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