veggievirgo

Ok, Who can provide input on the nicest Arenal hotel? The TOP 3 criteria are:

1. Cleanliness and atmosphere
2. Updated facilites and bathrooms (Incl A/C)
2. View of the volcano

Thanks!!

magsagogo

Hi. I just got back from three days at Tabacon Resort. It was a little bit different than I had imagined, but all in all, it was a good hotel. It is certainly clean, AC/tv and it has great views of the volcano (of course, we didn't even see the volcano until the day we left because of fog/rain!). The best part about it for me was that it was right down the road from the hot springs and you get free admission to them if you are staying in the hotel. I know not everyone has great things to say about the hot springs, but I thought that they were a great ending to all the activities we did during the day, everday. Hope this helps!

danmin

We are going to CR in Nov. for our "weddingmoon" and our travel agent recommened The Lost Iguana Resort for the time that we are in Arenal. It is a new resort that opened this year.
www.lostiguanaresort.com

tully

danmin- please be sure to post a report when you get back! The place looks really nice, but love to have some firsthand knowledge of it.

out of curiosity - are there any hotels that have a view of the volcano but are walking distance to a restaurant or two?

toucan

we recently tried to stay at the Lost Iguana but we found the hotel to have too much construction, very little infrastructure yet and overrun with bugs. They are currently clearing a lot more of the rainforest off to build more and there is constant sound of bull dozers during the day. We recommend waiting until next year or so to try the Lost Iguana.

sclubb

The owners of Peace Lodge are building between Arenal Paraiso & Montana del Fuego (you can see the building starting). It will be very exclusive to the guests only - no tours like at Peace Lodge & I think 50 guests max. Rooms will be built the same sort of way they are at Peace Lodge - which I think will be the best place in Arenal - but thats my opinion! Due to open in about 18 months or so.

kdistler77

I don't think you can beat the Tabacon for view of the volcano and access to the hot springs. We spent two nights there and visited the hot springs three separate times. It is nice to just run over there for an hour or two in the evening or in between tours. If you pay the $29 admission you feel like you have to stay all day to get your money's worth. We were able to see the lava flowing down the side of the volcano from our patio at night. Ask for building #3. The breakfast is delicious. They make smoothies out of all kinds of fresh fruit, and omelettes made to order. Building 3 is right by breakfast hut. The rooms aren't anything to write home about, but are clean and updated.

veggievirgo

Thanks to everyone for responding!

I think will see if the Tabacon has rooms....since we are only in the area for 1 night, the "included" hot springs fee may be our best bet!

jackandcarolyn

The Los Lagos is exellent. They have a butterfly farm and croc exhibit on site. 2 pools, and closest to Volcano.
Also a good resturant and clean rooms.
You will not be disappointed.

april0404

If Tabacon doesn't have rooms available, I would recommend Arenal Paraiso. www.arenalparaiso.com We enjoyed our stay there. The rooms were very clean, we had great views of the volcano, and they have bungalows both with and without A/C.

Stacey

LA_FadeAway

We really enjoyed our stay at Arenal Paraiso. Clean rooms, with A.C., t.v., etc. Be sure to get the deluxe room for the a.c. The view of the volcano seemed to be the best around. We could see lava from our room one afternoon, but then drove over to Tabacon and could not see it from there due to the angle of their "view".

ScottGauvin

The Tabacon is considered to be the "best" hotel in the Arenal Volcano area but this description can sometimes changed depending on the dates of your intended visit. Sometimes is can be very crowded - especially the hot springs and that can dampen spirits.

Arenal Paraiso is a nice alternative but is also susceptible to crowds. The nice thing about this property and others like it (Montana del Fuego) is that the rooms comprise of individual cabins which can add to the feeling of privacy. I say feeling because the cabins are somewhat close to each other and with the windows open you can pretty much hear what goes on outside.

Just my two cents. As for this Lost Iguana place - looks nice enough but note that it is a bit out of the area of Fortuna.

shillmac

This is off the subject (imagine that!), but there is another hotel that never gets Fodor mention and it is a wonderful place to stay if one doesn't mind being "off the Arenal loop" a short distance. It is the Tilajari Resort in Muelle. North and east of La Fortuna. On the banks of the Rio San Carlos (I think), it has nice rooms, a lovely restaurant, and an excellent tour desk. Great service, good prices. We stayed there the first time we went to view Arenal. It was July, we doubted we'd see much of the volcano anyway, so we chose Tilajari because it was a off-the-beaten. . .loved it! We drove about 30 minutes to reach Tabacon Hot Springs. I realize this wouldn't appeal to several of you, but it was a very nice experience for us.

LA_FadeAway

We met a couple who stayed at Tilajari Resort recently and they loved it. We also saw the Lost Iguana. It's on the road up to the Hanging Bridges. It's at least 20 to 30 minutes from Fortuna and I don't think it had much of a volcano view. It also appeared to be under heavy construction.

RufusTFirefly

We liked Arenal Paraiso a lot. Perfect view of the volcano from our bed. Bungalows are simple, but not primitive. Nice, big modern bath, air conditioning, tile floors, protected front patio, clean. Pool area has a regular pool and a natural hot spring pool. Nice restaurant on the property.

veggievirgo

So, if I stay at Arenal Paraiso... would you say that a visit to the Tabacon Hot Springs would not be required???? ... since Arenal Paraiso has one too??

Thanks!

shillmac

By all means, go to Tabacon Hot Springs. Arenal Paraiso has a thermal pool. Tabacon has beautifully sloping landscaped property with a many springs to wander around through. It is truly a beautiful place. Touristy, yes, but not overrun with them. Most people stay in the areas closest to the pool/bar, but you can walk round and find areas without a single person nearby usually. And don't discount that wonderful spa built into all of that beautiful landscape! I can't imagine visiting the Arenal area without some time at Tabacon!

RufusTFirefly

veggie--the pool at Arenal Pariso is a swimming pool with the water piped in. Tabacon is more natural. Mrs. Fly and I aren't much for sitting around in hot mineral water, so I can't give much advice on Tabacon.

veggievirgo

OH! lt

Ok.. thanks to all for the advice! Since (at this point) we are only in that area for 1 night, we are booked at the Tabacon, which includes the entry fee into the hot springs. I am not sure how we will like it... (.... we DID like the Blue Lagoon in Iceland, but that is the closest thing we have to campare to...)

I was less than thrilled with the reservation process at the Tabacon though... so we may consider switching to Arenal Paraiso especially if we end up adding a night in the Arenal area.

LA_FadeAway

I personally would stay at Arenal Paraiso for the better view of the volcano and then just visit Tobacon after 7:00 to get the reduced admission price. The view of the volcano from Tabacon isn't nearly as good. We were watching lava from our room at Arenal Paraiso and then drove over to Tabacon and you couldn't see it from that side.