8 Best Hotels in The Osa Peninsula and the South Pacific, Costa Rica

A garden paradise that lives up to its name, this combination organic farm and sophisticated ecolodge is an otherworldly experience, meant to be slowly and thoughtfully absorbed with time. Beautifully designed, thatched-roof tiki cabins have private bathrooms and outdoor showers in cane-and-bamboo enclosures. There's a gorgeous, contemporary house with a spectacular ocean view for families or couples. Adventurous, budget-minded travelers can play castaways in seven airy, comfortable platform tents with garden showers and communal restrooms. Meals (included in the rate) are truly exotic, using organic produce from the garden and local fish and meat, prepared with spicy Asian accents and served in a stunning restaurant overlooking the sea. There are fresh juices and coffee and tea available all day. Two daily yoga classes are held on a serene yoga deck, and a masseuse is on call. One of the best activities is a tour of the garden. Carate Beach is steps away, and La Leona entrance to Corcovado National Park is a 40-minute walk along the beach.

If a long stretch of deserted beach with macaws flying overhead in the kapok trees is your idea of heaven, check out this idyllic lodge with casitas and upscale club rooms set in a botanical garden. Casitas are elegantly furnished in bamboo, with thoughtful touches like Egyptian-cotton sheets and a raft of candles for romantic evenings. Pebble-lined showers have plenty of hot water and excellent water pressure. Eight modern but smallish rooms above the lodge's separate restaurant, are more affordable than the casitas, and have detailing such as travertine showers and outdoor porches. The gentle Golfo Dulce waters are perfect for swimming, sea-kayaking, and boogie boarding, and there's a 65-foot lap pool and Jacuzzi surrounded by gardens and forest. A tennis court, yoga studio, and ceramic studio round out the amenities. Their spa with excellent massages can help melt away the stress. Extravagant dinners, with exotic foods reflecting the owners' worldwide travels, are served at the Pearl of the Osa Restaurant on the property. Breakfasts may include mango scones and homemade granola chock-full of walnuts and cranberries. Macaws and toucans, and mammals aplenty—such as monkeys, sloths, tayras, frogs, and tapers—often wander through the 11-acre property.

Hands down, this is the best ecolodge on the gulf, combining comfortable, upscale accommodations and great food with an emphasis on adventure on both land and sea. Out the front door of the lodge are beach, bay, and mangroves, with kayaks, snorkeling, fishing, sailing, and swimming; through the back door is a forested mountain with hiking trails, a waterfall, plenty of wildlife, and a resident naturalist to interpret the trails and lead bird-watching walks. The Edible Garden tour is a hit with visitors, especially when it includes turning raw cacao beans into chocolate cake. The night walks are filled with nocturnal natural wonders; you will often see more creatures than during daylight tours. For contemplative types, there is a beachfront yoga deck and a resident yoga instructor who does double duty as a massage therapist. The palatial two-story main lodge is a tree house, crafted from 15 kinds of wood. Scattered around the mature garden are luxurious, hexagonal wooden cabins with folding, shuttered doors and windows, gleaming hardwood floors, handmade wood furniture, and private verandas. Each secluded cabin's private bathroom has an open-air shower with its own exotic minigarden. For guests more comfortable in rooms and showers with walls, there's a stucco guesthouse with four large, comfortable rooms, shaded by mango trees. The upper-story rooms have terraces that are great bird-watching perches. Breakfast and lunch are served at the large wooden table in the second-story dining room–cum–lounge, with an unbeatable treetop view. Dinner, featuring imaginative meals made with local ingredients, is served in one communal sitting, after the cocktail hour, which always includes a plate of tasty bocas (appetizers).

High on a hillside with spectacular ocean views framed by giant traveler's palm trees, this Austrian-owned hotel is a good base for exploring the area. The elegant Mediterranean-style buildings, painted blue and white, have spacious rooms, and there's plenty of open space for kids to play in, plus fitness trails for grown-ups and a spa to relax in. There's also a 4,300-square-foot swimming pool that commands both mountain and sea views. The birding here is excellent. If you tire of the view (not likely), there are large flat-screen televisions on swivel bases. Breakfast buffets are hearty at the pleasant poolside restaurant, which also serves lunch and candlelit dinners, featuring excellent fish along with some tasty Austrian specialties, including Wiener schnitzel. Service is friendly and polished. There's always a breeze and a feast for the eyes from the restaurant terrace. For budget-minded guests, there are two "adventure cabins" at the edge of the jungle, with ceiling fans but no air-conditioning.

With one of the most spectacular ocean views on the Costa Ballena, this modern "castle" is a luxury boutique hotel with nine ultrachic guest quarters with private terraces. Along with a million-dollar view of a shimmering infinity pool melding into the ocean from the lounge terrace, there are exquisite design touches everywhere in this modern, honey-colored castle. Three palatial suites have huge contemporary bathrooms, king-size poster beds, and a tasteful smattering of one-of-a-kind side tables, chairs, bibelots, and art. Smaller double rooms sport the same design touches, three with ocean views and one tucked away in the hotel garden. "Spa Suites" 8 and 9 have ocean views, Jacuzzi tubs, and more privacy than the other suites. The restaurant is breezy by day and romantic at night. Keep binoculars handy since the birding in and around the hotel is excellent. Early in the morning and at sunset, pairs of scarlet macaws perform a fly-past.

With an excellent restaurant, a lush garden, a pretty infinity pool, and exceptional service, this elegant hotel is a heavenly spot for those who like to indulge themselves. The original 16 rooms have elegant, dark-wood furniture, comfortable beds topped with plush linens, and subtle angelic touches. Other luxuries include coffeemakers, soaking tubs, and spectacular stained-glass windows. Six Jungle Rooms are smaller and darker, but cheaper and very comfortable, with pickled-wood walls, antiqued armoires, and balconies facing the forest or garden. The romantic, high-ceilinged terrace restaurant, aglow in shades of royal blue and gold, has a very sophisticated menu; the tender osso buco is cooked to perfection, and the menu is completely gluten-free. The breakfast is also excellent.

Along with one of the best sunset views along the coast, this comfortable ecolodge on a high cliff bordering Ballena Marine National Park has spacious, airy cabins and a forest trail to a pristine beach. Wood-and-stone cabins, spaced out along a garden path that descends from the open-air main lodge, have huge bathrooms with spacious showers. Trails wend through dense primary forest down to the wide sweep of almost-deserted Playa Arco and to a private, natural swimming pond. Electric car owners can charge up for the night at the hotel's electric charging stations. Breakfasts are hearty, served in the hotel's contemporary restaurant Aracari, which is also open to nonguests. Along with contemplating nature, you can nurture your inner self at the huge, otherworldly yoga platform or pamper your outer self with a massage. For more space with a view, request a suite or deluxe room.

One of the best lodging deals on this coast, these seven, no-frills villas are in a sublime, lofty setting, with a large swimming pool and a huge terrace overlooking a million-dollar view of the Pacific. Sleeping up to five guests, the villas have either one or two bedrooms, equipped kitchens, a private terrace with hammocks and rocking chairs, and large bathrooms. Ceiling fans augment the cool ocean breezes, and there are air-conditioners in each of the bedrooms. Light lunches are available by the pool, along with à la carte dinners. A nonprofit animal sanctuary on the property houses rescued wildlife; guided tours of the refuge ($33) are given by 24-hour advance reservation at 9 and 11 am, and 1 pm daily except Monday.