Playa Nicuesa Lodge, a boat-only lodge beside Piedras Blancas National Park

Playa Nicuesa has no road. The only way in is by boat, about 30 minutes from Golfito or Puerto Jiménez, and and that single fact shapes the stay.

The lodge has a resident naturalist and guided birdwatching, with Piedras Blancas National Park next door. Its own writing on the Golfo Dulce names trogons, a toucan and the Orange-collared Manakin among the birds guests are pointed to.

Of the Golfo Dulce lodges this is the one for a birder who wants to arrive somewhere that feels cut off, with a naturalist on staff rather than a guide booked by the day.

At a glance

Zone: Central and Southern Pacific Lowlands
Habitat: boat access on the Golfo Dulce, Piedras Blancas National Park next door
Nearest hotspot page: Golfito Wildlife Refuge · 3.0 km

Birding on the property

The lodge says it is boat access only, about 30 minutes from Golfito or Puerto Jiménez, with a resident naturalist and guided birdwatching. Piedras Blancas National Park lies beside it. Its birding blog names trogons, a toucan and the Orange-collared Manakin (post dated 27 March 2023).

Photo: Playa Nicuesa Lodge

Golfo Dulce

Playa Nicuesa Lodge

A Pastoral Oasis in the Wilds of the Osa Peninsula

★★★

Reached only by boat, about half an hour from Golfito or Puerto Jiménez, with a resident naturalist and Piedras Blancas National Park next door. Trogons, a toucan and Orange-collared Manakin are among the birds guests are pointed to.

Plan a trip with this lodge

The birds to look for

The Orange-collared Manakin, which the lodge names, a regional endemic of this stretch of the Pacific, and the Baird's Trogon, the one trogon our park pages carry for this coast, also a regional endemic. The Scarlet Macaw over the gulf, and the Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager in the forest.

From our Golfito and Piedras Blancas pages, a few kilometres away: the Turquoise Cotinga, the Riverside Wren, the Ornate Hawk-Eagle overhead and the King Vulture. The lodge names a toucan without saying which; our park pages do not place one here, so it is left out.

English	Scientific	Spanish	Status
Orange-collared Manakin	Manacus aurantiacus	Saltarín Cuellinaranja	Regional endemic
Baird's Trogon	Trogon bairdii	Trogón Vientribermejo	Regional endemic
Scarlet Macaw	Ara macao	Guacamayo Rojo
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
King Vulture	Sarcoramphus papa	Zopilote Rey

Staying at Playa Nicuesa Lodge

You fly to Golfito or Puerto Jiménez and finish by boat, so the lodge is quiet in the way only a place without a road can be. The cabins have hardwood floors, louvered windows, ceiling fans, hot water and open-air showers looking into the forest; the Two Bedroom Cabin is steps from the main lodge, while the Cabin Suite sits apart. The restaurant is open-air at treehouse height, cooking Costa Rican dishes with garden produce and seafood. There is daily yoga on a covered platform at the water's edge, massage on request, and the terrace bar for the evening. Arrival times are flexible, and the lodge provides a meal if your arrival needs one.

Rooms

One Bedroom Cabin: sleeps 2 or 3, queen or queen plus single; rainforest view, wrap-around terrace, open-air shower.
Mango Guest House room: sleeps 2 or 3; panoramic view, private terrace and entrance, open-air shower (4 rooms, can be taken as a whole for 6 to 12).
Two Bedroom Cabin: sleeps 4, one queen and two singles; jungle view, steps from the main lodge, garden open-air shower.

Meals. open-air restaurant, Costa Rican cooking with garden produce and seafood. Meal inclusion not stated on the pages read.

Good to know

Boat access only; the lodge recommends a last boat pick-up at 3 pm.
Minimum age 6.
Ceiling fans, no AC mentioned.
Wheelchair-accessible cabins with ramps, an accessible bathroom and ground-floor dining.

Perfect for: a couple who want rainforest at the door and yoga at the water's edge, with no road in sight.

Hotspot pages near the lodge

Golfito Wildlife Refuge
The Golfito Wildlife Refuge on the Golfo Dulce: a hard hike with monkeys, sloths and tropical birds, macaws over the gulf, and our lodge at La Gamba.
See the place
Piedras Blancas National Park and the Golfo Dulce
Piedras Blancas National Park on the Golfo Dulce: over 35,000 acres of lowland wet forest, our lodge bordering it at La Gamba, 30 minutes from Golfito.
See the place

Trips that stay here

No fixed trip stays here yet; we build it into a custom trip.

Want 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.

Which of these fit your list?

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.

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Or call us: 1 (800) 996-1139 from the US and Canada, +506 4052-2140 in Costa Rica.