Osa Penninsula
 

I will be spending my honeymoon in CR and will be splitting my time between the central pacific coast and the Osa Penn. Does anyne have any recommendations on where to stay in the Osa? Since it so hard to get around down there, we need to pick only one place and I don't know whether to go to the north side of Corcovado or the South. On the north we are considering the La Paloma Lodge or the Aguila De Osa (which one?) and in the south either the Lapa Rios or the Bosque Del Cabo (again, which one?) All of the hotels seem like great choices, but if anyone has any advice on which would be the best for a romantic/adventurous honeymoon, I would appreciate it! Thanks in advance!

Stay at the La Paloma Lodge! What a fantastic place. My family and I stayed there in a sunset cabin for three nights (not nearly long enough) in Feb 2003. The lodge is set on a bluff with stunning views of the Pacific. We saw macaws and spider monkeys from the shower! The cabins are beautifully decorated and the food was wonderful, really really wonderful. Banana pancakes and fresh pineapple for breakfast every day - yum! Our guides were also great - both on the hike through Corcovado and the trip to Cano Island. If I remember correctly, Aguila de Osa was right next to La Paloma (separated by a small bay) but did not look nearly as nice. We were supposed to stay at Bosque del Cabo but they failed to make our reservation - I was so happy with La Paloma, I could not imagine staying anywhere else.

We stayed at Aguila de Osa a couple years ago. It was very nice. Food was great. We met lots of wonderful people. Food is served 'family style' however, so not much opportunity for quiet romantic dinners. I suspect this may be true all over the Osa. I don't think you could go wrong with either La Paloma or Aguila de Osa.

Jean

Hi, I'm not weighing in on the where to stay, because I haven't stayed at any of the 4 places mentioned. But I thought you would enjoy seeing more of the "what to do", side of things in the Osa. Starting with the Sansa flight, the amazing Corcovado hiking tour, Cano Island snorkeling & hiking tour, and my highlight - spending the day with over 500 dolphins!!! We loved our 4 night stay this past Feb. so much, I made a few webpages with info. & photos. Enjoy!

http://www.fluffytails.ca/costarica.asp

You'll have a fabulous Honeymoon!

Thank you so much to all who answered, especially to fluffytails for the great website! I am still having trouble deciding on whether to stay at the Lapa Rios or the La Paloma lodge. Also, should we stay 4 nights in the Osa and 3 in MA or vice versa? In MA we are going to stay at either the Makanda or Costa Verde - any thoughts on which would be better for the price? Thank you in advance and I will be posting a full honeymoon trip report when I get back!

I've not been to Osa, but you may want to take a look at the current (June) issue of Travel and Leisure magazine. Thay have an article on Costa Rica and some amazing photos of Lapa Rios. Good luck planning!

thanks for the magazine tip! I actually have a subscription, but it hasn't gotten to me yet - can't wait to take a look!

I'll put in a vote for Casa Corcovado down in the Osa. We spent 3 nights there a few Februarys ago and were really happy with it. Beautiful grounds set back road from beach. Nice private beach in front those. Nice cabanas. Nice people. Good guides into Park (trail leads right into Park from Casa's property). Food so-so, but we don't go to CR for food. I expect you'll hear some strong NO votes to Lapa Rios and strong YES votes for Bosque del Cabo from Suzy who's been all over CR and posts frequently.

We stayed in Osa last year, first week of Sept. Had the same dilemna. After reading all the posts on this site, decided to go with Bosque del Cabo. It was amazing! We really loved it. The cabins were gorgeous and had outdoor showers. King size beds (Lapa Rios has queen size beds and that made a difference to us when it was warm and sticky) with walls that open completely to your view of the ocean. Mosquito netting was necessary and there was a little fan inside to keep you cool. Just shower/cool down before getting into bed. Monkeys and birds wake you in the morning. There were only two other couples staying while we were there. The tours were a high point as well. I liked the idea of having great food at Lapa Rios, but the food and the chef/staff at Bosque was wonderful. It was a fine combination of luxury and seclusion and adventure at a much better price than Lapa or La Paloma. We also chose the Cabo Matapalo side because of the surfing. Don't worry. You'll have a great time, whichever lodge you choose. The area is spectacular. I want to go back in July to CR and am thinking of spending time in Malpais, but am afraid to give up an oppty to go to Osa, maybe Drake Bay this time.

We stayed at three of these places and La Paloma wins hands down, then comes lapa Rios, finally Bosque Del Cabo.
They all are really nice but for honeymoon I think La Paloma is the most romantic

We have only stayed at La Paloma as well - but I cannot imagine any place better. I think about it almost everyday since last year at this time when we were there. Maybe it is just me - but I do think part of great travel memories is the food - and the food was fabulous at La Poloma. Everything was, including the staff. Be sure and take a night hike too.