baloney

We'll be travelling to Arenal with our son and are trying to choose between El Silencio Del Campo and Lost Iguana. Is anyone familiar with both properties and able to make a recommendation? I like the idea of being on the active side of the volcano (LI), but also like the idea of thermal springs on-site (El Silencio). On the other hand, we could always go to Eco Termales and enjoy the thermal springs there, and I have the sense that LI might be a little more fun for my son. Does the thermal spring-fed pool at El Silencio make it a better choice, or does the possibility that we would see lava flow at LI make that a better place to stay? I would appreciate any suggestions or thoughts you might have. Thanks.

volcanogirl

I think it's just really up to you. I love the Lost Iguana - great lush property with lots of trails and a river running through it, nice balconies, jacuzzi tubs, rocking chairs with a lava view. I love to go to the hot springs for a night, but for me personally, I don't care about sitting in them every night at my hotel. Silencio del Campo is a lot more basic property but still really popular, also closer to town than the Lost Iguana is. I would look at pics and reviews on tripadvisor to get a better feel for each property and then just go with whichever one is more appealing to you personally. LI does have a small heated pool area for what that's worth, but we've never used it. We spend most of our time out on the balcony and have seen the lava flow several times. No guarantees though; you can also go days without even seeing the volcano at all due to the foggy mist that rolls in. I think your son could have fun at either one.

ShellD

How old is your son? Have you looked at Los Lagos? They have hot springs on site as well and they have pools and a couple of water slides as well. Our kids loved it there. It was a great property for kids and adults. The rooms are fairly basic, but the grounds are really nice with a lot to do right on site. Not to add to the choices, but I'd check into them as well.

volcanogirl

That's a great suggestion, Shell - Los Lagos is hugely popular with families with young kids. AOL is popular too but far from town and off a long, bumpy road.

hipvirgochick

I've only stayed at Silencio del Campo but absolutely love it. It's a smaller lodge which offers an intimate and authentic feel and it's owned by a wonderful local family who are extremely hands on. The grounds are gorgeous and with springs on site you can't go wrong. The view and proximity to the volcano is amazing even if not on the lava side. I love the cabinas too. I've never come across a poster who has stayed at both so you may have trouble finding a comparison from one person. I think you would be extremely happy with either choice.

hipvirgochick

Los Lagos is a good choice too. A little more basic as far as rooms (at least ours was but I think we just had a standard), much more sprawled out (you have to catch a van around unless you want a VERY steep walk uphill depending on where your room is. The restaurant is huge to accommodate all the people but nice and open air. The activities available on site are nice, horseback, zip line, croc and butterflies. The pools are great! I think we've stayed up the latest here than other places swimming and sliding.

qwovadis

www.lostiguanaresort.com

best by far for lava view

not crammed in by other hotels like SDC

for similar money on www.costarica.bookit.com

has sales from $199/nt including free hot springs

at www.tabacon.com worth it for me...

baloney

Uh-oh, now I have another place to consider! We like things with an authentic, low-key feel. Does Los Lagos fit that description, or is it a little more hyped-up? The website makes it look a little disneyesque, but it's hard to tell. This will be our last stop before leaving Costa Rica (we will be in Osa for 4 nights, then Savegre, then Arenal), so it might be fun to have the multiple pools and water slide, especially for my son, who is 11. And it sounds like there are other fun things to do on the Los Lagos property. Are the grounds more extensive than Lost Iguana? Los Lagos says it has an active volcano view, but I believe that information is outdated, right?

I'm in vacation planning overload, so please help me decide, now that that the field is wider, and I have three places to choose from: Lost Iguana, Silencio del Campo, and Los Lagos. Thanks, everyone!

volcanogirl

The Lost Iguana is set on 120 acres; it's a pretty huge property. I'd be surprised if very many places have grounds that extensive, but Los Lagos has a lot more for children to do on the property. To me, LI has kind of a romantic vibe; we have seen children there, but I would think kids would feel pressured to be quiet and well behaved. They have signs on the baconies asking people to keep their voices down so others can enjoy the rainforest, etc. If your son is just into nature and hiking and things like that, LI would be great, but if he wants water slides, etc. I'd go with another property. Can't go wrong with any of the ones mentioned.

ShellD

Los Lagos isn't disneyesque at all. It's very nicely landscaped. It is a large property, but as hip mentions the rooms are basic. There's nothing fancy about them. But if you get the superior room it is pretty large. There is no lava view, but there is a great volcano view. The pools are great and yes, your 11 year old will love them. My husband loved the slides as well! They include breakfast and the buffet was very nice. We had lunch there once and it was fine. Nothing great, but it was good enough. There is a small butterfly area and a crocodile area that the kids enjoyed, but it's not fancy or hyped. It's actually fairly hidden! There's an ant farm as well. We did the horseback riding there and their zip lines. Both are extra fees, but being right on the property was very convenient. Both were excellent. The horseback riding was great - neither of my kids had been on horses before and the guides were great. The trail wasn't easy, and actually we went in the rain. But the kids loved it and especially loved when the horses galloped. Had it been a clear day, the horseback ride would have taken us up to a wonderful lookout point of the volcano, but when we got there is was all fogged in. Their zip lines were great and again the guides were terrific. I have nothing to compare them to, but they seemed very safe, and there were about 13 lines I believe. Their hot springs aren't as extensive as Tabacon, but they're nice - several pools with different temperatures and views of the volcano.

Our room was close to the pool and restaurant so we didn't have to walk as far as many people might and we never needed the a van for transportation, but I could see where some of the rooms might.

This year we decided to stay at Arenal Observatory Lodge, but I would definitely go back to Los Lagos in the future. My kids are actually pretty disappointed we're not staying there this time!

hipvirgochick

For an authentic feel I'd definitely go with SDC over LL. You just can't beat the personal attention to detail and hands on touch from a local family at SDC.

volcanogirl

http://www.arenal.net/arenal-costa-rica-map.htm shows a good hotel map in case you want to check it out.

kencolian

My son was 11 when we stayed at Los Lagos. It was perfect for us. The staff (other than the front desk) was wonderful. They clearly liked children and animals. I heard howler monkeys every morning. We saw hummingbirds daily. We enjoyed the frog house, the ant exhibit and the butterfly house on site.

I would not call it low key and authentic, but neither is LI. Interestingly there were more Europeans and South Americans staying there than North Americans. (The Euro was really high then) If you speak any spanish you can have interesting interactions with the staff.

The included breakfast was good, other meals so so. It is close enough to La Fortuna to go out for meals, and there was a minifrig in our room. Also no extra fees for tours to pick you up. We relied on taxi's as we did not have a car. (I would not want to stay at LI without a car)

We stayed in a superior cabin. It was kind of sterile, but roomy and comfortable. Because the resort is built on the side of the volcano we had a great volcano view (Not lava, but some days we saw puffs of smoke from the eruptions.) Out the back door there was a view of the valley. I would stay there again, it was the one place my son asked to go back to when we made a second trip to CR.

joshb5

We're also considering LI and SDC. We've never been to CR before, so it would be really helpful if someone could give us a sense for how far apart they are. If we stay at SDC, is it likely that we'll still find ourselves on the other side of the volcano often (for hanging bridges, etc)? How far is it to go into La Fortuna if we stay at SDC? A quick walk or is it still a drive? I want us to see lava flow if possible -- I know it's totally a random thing but is it possible to see if we stay at SDC and just do activities on the other side of the volcano? Sorry if these are silly questions but we're total beginners and want to make sure we have an awesome experience. As always, any insights appreciated!

volcanogirl

You pretty much will drive or take a cab to get into town from most of the hotels. LI to town is about 20 minutes, but it's an easy drive or 20-minute cab ride. If you look at the map I posted above it will give you a good idea. There's really just one main road that runs through all the hotels and it's in excellent shape, better than a lot of roads back home. You won't see lava flow from SDC; it's flowing on the Lost Iguana/Arenal Observatory Lodge side. It's easy to get around the area, and for most tours, they'll pick you up and drop you back off at your hotel. We rode the Lost Iguana employee shuttle a few times to go into town for dinners and took taxis back. Cab fare ranged anywhere from $12-17 if that gives you an idea.