Hotel in Arenal w/ kids
 

Any suggestions on a hotel near Arenal volcano? Travelling w/ a 10 and 9 yr old. Are the Hot Springs ok with kids?

tabacon.com

my fav best free hot springs kids love them if you stay there

from $140/nt or so sidestep.com

royalcorin.com

more of a modern spanish vibe but very upscale.

hotellosloagos.com cheaper older for budget also

hotelmountainparadise.com

Happy Hunting,

Do be careful with commercial for profit

self appointed "expert" posters here.

thespringscostarica.com Los Perdidos is nice expensive

NO lava view at night like Tabacon NOT polluted at all

beautifully landscaped hot water comes right from

the volcano not artificial like the Springs.

they slaughtered an entire teak forest to build it

very disneyesque with plastic plants and caged animals

NOT my cup of tea WAY too touristy not a good local vibe.

Still if you like faky touristy Disney type stuff

the Springs may be for you.

Tabacon best local vibe for lava views price value

for me.

Happy Planning,

The hot springs are definitely okay with kids. Kids love them. Tabacon has a big water slide that they would love. Eco Termales is a very nice locally owned hot springs that's nice as well. Lots of good hotels for kids; Los Lagos is pretty popular. Check out their website and see if it's your style. There's a lot to do on the property, but rooms are more basic than some of the others. Silencio del Campo is popular too.

As I understand it there aren't any lava flows at the moment, so don't make a decision on that basis.

So, is it worth it to to even stay overnight? I'm driving in from Alajuela early morning and can easily return that late afernoon/evening?

It's worth staying a few nights. There's tons to do in that area - hike the Hanging Bridges, do the Cano Negro tour to see wildlife, hike the waterfall and swim at the base, do a volcano hike, as well as lots of adventure activities. Check out Sunset Tours and Desafio.

Yes, it's worth staying overnight - as volcanogirl says, there's tons to do! Los Lagos has their own hot springs on property so you don't have to pay extra to go there. They also have cool temperature pools with water slides. The rooms are basic, but the property is very nice. Kids LOVE it there. And as an adult, I found it to be a nice enough place. They also have their own zip line and horseback riding on property as well (an extra fee). Great volcano view.

Arenal Observatory Lodge is farther from town, but also has a lot to do on the property. Great hiking trails. A nice waterfall you can hike to. A nice pool. You are as close as you can get to the volcano. They have a lot of wildlife you'll see there as well. Monkeys, birds etc.

The Observatory Lodge is close to Sky Trek, which is a big zip line in the area.

We really liked the Hotel Montana del Fuego.

Kids LOVE Los Lagos. Our trip report gives more details about how our kids love it. It's on their short list to return to. http://www.markandmonica.com/Travel/...os%20Lagos.htm

If your kids will walk and hike there is tons to do there and it is gorgeous. Lots of wildlife.

If I did it over again, I would stay at a place with a kitchenette. Not that I want to cook every night.....but it is nice to get on the road EARLY and be hiking while it is cool (and that is before they serve breakfast at a lot of resorts). Also, after a lot of hiking, it is tiring to drag kids into town to eat and the resort food seemed pretty mediocre