claveygirl

First time travelers to C.R. Planning on starting at the Finca Rosa Blanca or Peace Lodge for one night.Want to be near La Paz Waterfalls, and Poaz to tour before heading to Arenal. Which one?
Then on to Arenal--Lost Iguana, or Tabacon? Next on to Monteverde--Mont. Lodge, or Fonda Vela? Last stop is Manuel Antonio--Si Como No, Costa Verde II, or Mariposa? Please help with decisions based upon proximity to sites, beauty of grounds, views and rooms. Thanks for your advice

Mixter603

Hubby and I stayed at Lost Iguana last February. The weather was fabulous and we were able to view the summit of the volcano each day. Tabacon seemed too large for my taste but you might feel differently. The rooms at Lost Iguana were nice and I enjoyed the terrace with rocking chairs that faced the active side of the volcano. I would go there again.

We stayed at a little place called La Colina when we went to Manuel Antonio three years ago. It was nice but really the bare minimum. Since we booked in late December for a trip in February there were not many choices left. Our room happened to be directly across from the road and the trucks going uphill at all hours of the night were noisy. The price was right though at only $50/night and that included breakfast.

catknoch

I stayed at la colina as well. I was happy to find that they had large safe deposit boxes. It's cute, intimate and I had a quiet room. I only wish that I was closer to the beach, because taxis got expensive.

coolbluewater

If you want to be near Poas, the Peace Lodge is probably better situated--and you can't get closer to the La Paz Waterfalls than staying on the property! So if that is your goal, stay there.

We loved FRB, though, for the record! Just if you want to be close to Poas and La Paz, Peace Lodge is better for you.

kskc

Peace lodge is beautiful and you are right there at La Paz waterfalls. We stayed there 2 nights with 2 rooms, one standard & one deluxe. Rooms are the same, only difference is the bathroom. The deluxe bathroom is huge with a waterfall, but both are lovely. We also stayed at Lost Iguana. The grounds, view & pool are nice. Again we had 2 rooms (deluxe & standard). Both had a very moldy smell that wouldn't go away. Also this hotel is far from activities & town (30 min to town center). I would recommend a car while you are. Tabacon is closer but seemed like a tour bus place. The hot springs are pretty but too hot for us & too crowded. We would not stay at LI again, would try something closer to town.

2CR

I would definitely recommend the Peace Lodge. We absolutely loved it. The room (we had a standard) was beautiful and it was great being able to go to the waterfall gardens whenever we wanted to. Poas is just a short drive from it.

We also stayed at Lost Iguana. You will find mixed reviews about it on here. We felt it was fine. We were there for 3 nights and saw the lava flow each night. One of the trails from the hotel leads to the hanging bridges. If you don't have a car, Lost Iguana might be too far away from other activities. I don't remember that it took 30 minutes to get to the town center, probably more like 15 minutes with a car, but I'm finding that our driving times are much shorter than others (we must drive fast). We just saw Tabacon when our tour van dropped some people off there and the lobby at least appeared to have an almost party atmosphere to it-Lost Iguana seemed much quieter.

We were diappointed with the Monteverde Lodge. It was our least favorite place we stayed. We felt misled by the pictures on the internet. There wasn't any view from our room besides a typical tree or two outside our window and there's no balcony. Sometimes the water pressure wasn't strong enough to have water come out of the shower head. It's an eco-friendly hotel, so it's pretty basic. Wished we had stayed at Hotel Belmar instead.