Central and Southern Pacific Lowlands
Of the lodges we use round Carara, this is the one on the ridge. The hotel looks across the Tárcoles valley to the sea and the mountains, and the Scarlet Macaws cross the valley in front of it, so the bird you came for can fly past while you are still on the bench outside your room with your coffee.
The hotel says it was built for nature lovers, and for birders and photographers above all. Each room has its own corridor with wooden benches facing the view, the furniture is made from wood rescued from the lodge's own farm, and the gardens round the rooms are part of the birding: about 150 species have been counted around the lodge.
Carara National Park and the Tárcoles River are minutes away, so the day splits in two: the park's forest at first light, the mangrove boat on the river later, and back to the ridge for the macaws in the evening.
The gardens round the rooms and the pool, and the view from every room's corridor, are the lodge's own birding, with hummingbird feeders our clients mention by name. Calle La Barca, a quiet road birders walk, starts a few steps from the hotel. The lodge publishes no bird list, trail or guide of its own; for the forest we take birders into Carara with a guide, 3.1 km away in a straight line.
Photo: Cerro Lodge
Tárcoles
A Birder's Haven near Jaco Will Have You Seeing Red: The Stunning Scarlet Macaw!
★★★★
Ten bungalows and ten rooms on a ridge about 10 minutes from Carara, where scarlet macaws cross the valley in front of the hotel and about 150 species have been counted around it. "Macaws and fascinating hummingbirds on the feeders", in one client's words.
From the ridge, the Scarlet Macaw: pairs crossing the valley at the edges of the day, loud before they are close. At Carara, a few minutes away, the Collared Aracari and, where the dry forest meets the wet, its Pacific cousin the Fiery-billed Aracari, a regional endemic. In the park's forest, the Graceful Black-throated Trogon, the Slaty-tailed Trogon and the Bay-headed Tanager, with the Great Tinamou calling from the forest edge and the King Vulture over the canopy.
On the Tárcoles boat, the Boat-billed Heron in the mangroves, the Great Egret along the banks and the Keel-billed Toucan crossing the river.
| English | Scientific | Spanish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scarlet Macaw | Ara macao | Guacamayo Rojo | |
| Collared Aracari | Pteroglossus torquatus | Tucancillo Collarejo | |
| Fiery-billed Aracari | Pteroglossus frantzii | Tucancillo Piquianaranjado | Regional endemic |
| Graceful Black-throated Trogon | Trogon tenellus | Trogón Cabeciverde | |
| Slaty-tailed Trogon | Trogon massena | Trogón Coliplomizo | |
| Bay-headed Tanager | Tangara gyrola | Tangara Cabecicastaña | |
| Great Tinamou | Tinamus major | Tinamú Grande | |
| King Vulture | Sarcoramphus papa | Zopilote Rey | |
| Boat-billed Heron | Cochlearius cochlearius | Pico Cuchara | |
| Great Egret | Ardea alba | Garceta Grande | |
| Keel-billed Toucan | Ramphastos sulfuratus | Tucán Pico Iris |
Cerro Lodge is simple and built for early starts. The 22 rooms are set in gardens on the hill, each with a covered corridor and rustic wooden benches outside, and the furniture is made locally from wood salvaged on the property. Because Carara and the river are minutes away, most guests are out at first light and back for the heat of the day, which is when the pool, open until evening, earns its place. The restaurant opens early and stays open until 10 pm, and breakfast is ordered there rather than built into the room. Evenings are quiet, with the valley below and the lights of the coast in the distance.
Meals. on-site restaurant, 6:30 am to 10 pm (unnamed on the site). Breakfast is served from 6:00 and is not included in the room (site).
Perfect for: a birder who wants Carara at first light and a cool room and a pool by noon.
The Tárcoles River and its mangroves by boat, below Carara: Boat-billed Heron, toucans and egrets, crocodiles under the bridge, our lodges and the trips.
See the placeWhere the dry Pacific forest meets the wet, and where we take birders for Scarlet Macaws: the birds, the lodges nearby and the trips that end here.
See the placeWant to add a luxury stay to your trip? See every hotel we represent on CostaRica.Org (opens in a new window). We plan birding lodges and beach resorts in one trip.
Tell us the birds you want, your dates and how you like to travel, and we will come back with a first itinerary: the lodges in the right order and how many nights each one really needs. That first version is just a place to start.
Or call us: 1 (800) 996-1139 from the US and Canada, +506 4052-2140 in Costa Rica.
Keep going: add more birds, lodges or tours, then turn your Wishlist into a trip.
