Fiery-billed AracariPhoto: Brandy McKnight
Central and Southern Pacific Lowlands
La Cusinga is the ridge. The lodge sits high over Bahía Ballena inside its own forest reserve, 242 hectares of primary and secondary rainforest, and takes its name from the cusinga, the local name for the Fiery-billed Aracari, a regional endemic of this side of the country.
Of our two lodges at Uvita, this is the one for a birder who wants to spend the morning in forest rather than gardens. The trails wind through the reserve to viewpoints over the Pacific and Marino Ballena National Park, and a guide comes with you if you ask for one.
Replanting here started in 1990, before the lodge opened, and the reserve now works as a biological corridor. It is also run on hydro and solar power with no air conditioning, on purpose, and from December to March the humpbacks are in the bay below.
A network of private nature trails runs through the reserve from the rooms, with hidden waterfalls and viewpoints over the ocean and the national park. Guided hikes are available on request. The lodge's site names no bird species, no feeders and no resident bird guide, so the birds below come from our own pages for this coast; the lodge also arranges kayak and boat trips into the Térraba-Sierpe mangroves.
Photo: La Cusinga Lodge
Uvita
★★★
High on a ridge over the Pacific inside a 250-hectare private reserve, named for the Fiery-billed Aracari, the cusinga, which lives in it. No air conditioning on purpose, hydro and solar power, and humpback whales in the bay below from December to March.
The Fiery-billed Aracari first, the bird on the lodge's name. In the lowland forest round the bay, look for the other regional endemics of this stretch of the Pacific: Baird's Trogon, Golden-naped Woodpecker and Orange-collared Manakin.
Further into the south Pacific forest, the guides look for the Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager and the Turquoise Cotinga, both found only on this coast, the Riverside Wren in the thickets by the water, and the Ornate Hawk-Eagle overhead.
| English | Scientific | Spanish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiery-billed Aracari | Pteroglossus frantzii | Tucancillo Piquianaranjado | Regional endemic |
| Baird's Trogon | Trogon bairdii | Trogón Vientribermejo | Regional endemic |
| Golden-naped Woodpecker | Melanerpes chrysauchen | Capintero Nuquidorado | Regional endemic |
| Orange-collared Manakin | Manacus aurantiacus | Saltarín Cuellinaranja | Regional endemic |
| Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager | Driophlox atrimaxillaris | Tangara Hormiguera Carinegra | Regional endemic |
| Turquoise Cotinga | Cotinga ridgwayi | Cotinga Turquesa | Regional endemic |
| Riverside Wren | Cantorchilus semibadius | Soterré Pechibarreteado | Regional endemic |
| Ornate Hawk-Eagle | Spizaetus ornatus | Aguilillo Penachudo |
La Cusinga sits on a forested hillside above the sea, so most rooms open onto a balcony with the ocean in front and the jungle on either side. The rooms are built from reforested wood and kept simple, and several types add a small living room, useful for a family or a long stay. Breakfast is part of every room. Mornings start on the trails through the reserve, one of which leads to a lagoon in the tall trees, and later there is yoga on a platform facing the sea. The pace is slow and outdoors: a walk down to the coast, a long lunch, an afternoon on the balcony watching the weather come in over the marine park.
Meals. breakfast is included in every room type (site). Restaurant details were not on the pages read.
Perfect for: a couple who want sea views from the balcony and forest trails before breakfast.
Bahía Ballena and the Marino Ballena park at Uvita: over 200 species on our lodge's hill, the Fiery-billed Aracari, whales from December to March.
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