We've only seen places that send your laundry out. Haven't ever encountered somewhere where you do it yourself, but sending it out is usually pretty affordable. I'd just e-mail your hotels and ask.

Selva Verde will do your laundry. I turned mine in very early and got back late afternoon. It was pretty cheap.

I guess I've mistook laundry services for laundromats.

Red-faced sorry Writing it off to the learning process - will be our first time in Costa Rica.

How could you know? Aren't you excited that you don't have to find room in your luggage for detergent and dryer sheets?

It will be fine Most hotels will do your laundry for you, just ask for pricing beforehand. Selva Verde is a great place. Sitting out in the back watching the river rushing by is lovely. Lots of birds and frogs. There are actually 2 places to stay there - the river side (where most people stay) and across the street where the bungalows are. It's usually very deserted over on the bungalow side, so it's really nice to walk up there in the mornings, even if you're not staying over there. I saw a lot of monkeys back there.

Have had my laundry done several times in CR, very inexpensive, well worth the money not to waste your time.

I love Selva Verde and always try to stay as close to the river as possible. The trucks on the road can be a bit noisy, traffic has increased since the major earthquake in '09 closed another route.

I didn't care for the looks of the bungalows, no one was staying there when we walked up to them, but there were lots of howlers in the trees by the botanical garden and guide cabins.

You can do a free birding tour early AM and late PM - loads of birds, iguanas, frogs on site. You can also arrange a guide to take you across the river to the private reserve. We saw 12 great green macaws and our guide was estatic!

Enjoy your trip, makes me wish I was there right now.

Thank you all, we'll be with a group, I guess they've blocked out the rooms already, so no choice for us. Our tour is on waitlist already!

We're looking forward to the trip, and I'll come back with more questions - but of course will do the search first.

It's extremely cheap to have your laundry sent out there. I think it was $6 or $7 for a trash bag full of laundry (2 adults and 3 kids) to be washed, dried and folded with admirable folding skills!

D, which type of room did you end up staying in? Do some of the rooms have actual views of the river? Do they have outdoor seating areas? Which area is best for avoiding road noise?

Oh... I posted a report, let me see if I can find it. And ended up doing a quick wash in the sink and hanging to dry.

I was on a tour. Selva Verde doesn't not have "views" - it's in the middle of a rainforest.

Found it.

http://www.fodors.com/community/mexico-central-america/osama-bin-laden-is-alive-and-well-in-costa-rica-.cfm

So it sounds like you stayed in a river room at the lodge and not a separate bungalow. I poked around some other sites and found some reviews that said a couple of the rooms do have a view of the river so I'm just trying to figure out which ones. I'll e-mail and ask. Were you a little bored at Selva Verde? It sounds like you thought you spent too much time there.

Yes, I thought the tour was not designed properly. We traveled with Holbrook who owns Selva Verde. I think it would be better if we'd spend one less night there, one more on the Pacific side.

Overall, it's a great country to visit.

On the other hand, I spent 3 nights there and could have easily spent another night. vg here is a map so you know which ones to request to be right by the river - http://www.selvaverde.com/lang/en/campusMap.php

Awesome, tully - that map gives me all the info. I need. You rock!

There are tons of tours we want to do including birding at La Selva and Selva Verde, the night tours, the bat tour, a cooking class. I've heard the chocolate tour is cool too, but we've already done something similar at Finca Luna Nueva. Then again, I'm always up for chocolate!

I supposed how much you like this area might depend a little on how mobile you are. If you don't want to hike around a lot or go up and down steps, I can see other areas having more appeal.
Thank you again, D.

You're welcome vg, hope that'll get you right where you want to be.

Yes, it absolutely does. You're always such a great help to me. I just follow in all your foot steps! I was going to ask you who Holbrook is - is that the travel agency/reservation system for Selva Verde?

Holbrook owns Selva Verde.