Rio Sarapiqui?
 

Anyone been? We are starting our trip in Limon/Manzanillo, then heading to Arenal. I was wondering if it would be worth it to stop here a day or two or just go straight through to Arenal? We will have a 12 year old and 4 year old with us. I was looking at Selva Verde Lodge.

I have not been, but others here have. Hopefully, someone will chime in.

If you type Selva Verde into the search box, lots of links come up.

We stayed at Selva Verde for two nights and liked it a lot. We saw some nice wildlife there including howler monkeys, toucans, and tons of poison dart frogs. They have good guides on site, and I like the setting right on the river. They have a good outdoor restaurant that serves tasty wood fired pizzas.

Selva Verde looks nice. Is there much to do in the larger area?

We also did a day trip to La Selva biological station to go hiking and see more wildlife. Saw lots there, including peccaries and toucans.

http://www.selvaverde.com/lang/en/activities.php is a list of some of the other activities available.

I've heard nice things about the chocolate tour, but we didn't get a chance to do it while we were there. If you stay at Selva Verde, I'd recommend asking for a room towards the back of the property near the river.

The kids might like a night or two at the Peace Lodge at the La Paz Waterfall Gardens. Lots to see and do, but $$$

http://www.waterfallgardens.com