April 25, 2019

LODGING AT THE ARENAL OBSERVATORY



Even though Costa Rica doesn't have the blue water of the Caribbean or the history of European countries, it is still an amazing place to visit.  

When you have an amazing place to visit,  you need an amazing place to stay.  We stayed in places that ranged from  a $30 Airbnb to a $250 a night room at Baldi Resort but my favorite place was the Observatory.

The Arenal Observatory offers a variety of options for lodging.  There are villas, rooms, a junior suite, and La Casona which is where we stayed.  We chose this location because it was only $108 a night and I am so glad we did. 



Here is a description of La Casona from their website:

Budget travelers will find five comfortable rooms in La Casona, our original family farmhouse and an ideal place for groups or individual travelers. Four of the rooms have one queen-sized bed with partial views of the Arenal Volcano; the fifth room has two queen beds and a bunk bed, with views of Lake Arenal. La Casona is located about 500 meters (0.3 miles) from the main hotel building down a moderate slope. The five rooms share two full bathrooms and a large common sitting room, as well as a spacious front porch overlooking the Arenal Volcano and Lake Arenal.    





This is the entrance and gathering area though we never saw anyone outside of their room except for a few minutes one evening.  We never saw anyone around the restroom area so it was like we had the place to ourselves.



The were tissue flowers in the bathroom and tissue towels on the beds.

The view alone is reason enough to stay at LaCasona.  


This was my view from the front porch.


I spent a little time in this chair watching the toucan flying by.





Here is the beautiful view of Lake Arenal.



This is your view from the right side of the porch.



And this is to your left.  
I love the sunlight hitting the mist over the trees.


One second it would rain and less than five minutes later the sun would be out leaving this lovely mist covering the trees below.


It is downhill to our room which means it was uphill back to the lodge.  No worries though, you simply pick up a phone and call the front desk for a shuttle.  The wait was no more than 3 minutes at any given time.

The photo above and below is the road leading to La Casona.  As you can see, it was beautifully landscaped.


The landscaping around the entire lodge was beautiful but it was especially beautiful around our room.  I spent a lot of time walking around taking photos of the flowers and plants.









And the sunsets....


They were stunning. 


Especially setting over the lake.





If you are on a tight budget and want to stay at the Observatory, I would recommend staying at La Casona.


Room rates include:

  • Full buffet breakfast
  • Costa Rican taxes
  • Free Wi-Fi (common areas)
  • Safe boxes in all rooms
  • Free guided morning hike along property trails
  • 11 km (7 miles) of well-maintained trails for walking, horseback riding & mountain biking
  • Property Map and Birds’ List
  • Access to viewpoints of Arenal Volcano, Arenal Lake, Cerro Chato, and the Tilarán Mountain Range
  • Swimming pool & Jacuzzi
  • Children ages 0-8 years receive free lodging (sharing room with parents) 
  • Children 9 years and older pay as an adult 

Hotel Rules:

  • For security reasons our main gate closes at 11:00 p.m.
  • Check in: From 3:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
  • Check out: 12:00 p.m.
  • No pets allowed
  • The use of drones in the property is prohibited without prior permission from management.
  • No smoking in rooms or public areas (Law No. 9028)
  • Credit or debit cards used by guests at Arenal Observatory Lodge & Spa will be charged in local currency (colones at the official exchange rate) payments in euros or Canadian dollars are not accepted.




HOTEL INFO

Phones: -2479–1070-lodge | -2290–7011-in San José | 877-804–7732-in U.S. and Canada



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