Lesson's MotmotPhoto: ondrejprosicky
Monteverde has plenty of hotels. Trapp Family Lodge is the one closest to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, with trails from the property that lead straight into it.
For a birder that changes the morning. The reserve is a walk, so you are in the cloud forest at first light without waiting for a van, and back for breakfast with the views of the forest from your room.
It is also our most used lodge in Monteverde: five of our birding trips sleep here, the classic Arenal and Monteverde routes among them.
Our catalogue says the lodge's trails lead straight into the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, and that the rooms look out on the cloud forest. We could not open the lodge's own website on 4 November 2026, so we have no trail names, feeders or guide service of its own to report, and this section stays short until we do.
Photo: Trapp Family Lodge
Monteverde
An Intimate, Welcoming Chalet in the Heart of Monteverde
★★★
The closest hotel to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, with trails from the property that lead straight into it, so the reserve is a walk and not a drive. Six of our 45 recent birding itineraries sleep here, level with Arenal Observatory for the most.
In the reserve and at Curi-Cancha nearby, the two birds people ask us about in Monteverde: the Three-wattled Bellbird, a regional endemic, and the Resplendent Quetzal, with a guide, all year.
On the same cloud forest walks, Lesson's Motmot, Collared Trogon and Keel-billed Toucan, and two more regional endemics, the Prong-billed Barbet and the Spangle-cheeked Tanager.
| English | Scientific | Spanish | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three-wattled Bellbird | Procnias tricarunculatus | Campanero Tricarunculado | Regional endemic |
| Resplendent Quetzal | Pharomachrus mocinno | Quetzal | |
| Lesson’s Motmot | Momotus lessonii | Momoto Coroniazul | |
| Collared Trogon | Trogon collaris | Trogón Collarejo | |
| Keel-billed Toucan | Ramphastos sulfuratus | Tucán Pico Iris | |
| Prong-billed Barbet | Semnornis frantzii | Barbudo Cocora | Regional endemic |
| Spangle-cheeked Tanager | Tangara dowii | Tangara Vientricastaña | Regional endemic |
The lodge sits on the last stretch of road to the reserve, so the town's traffic stays behind you and the forest is the neighbour. The original building holds the Superior Rooms, finished in wood like a mountain chalet and looking onto the garden. Higher up the slope are the Mountain Suites, added in 2003 and 2010, each with a balcony facing the Monteverde hills. Rooms are simple and warm, with hot water and Wi-Fi. There is a restaurant and bar on site for breakfast and dinner, though breakfast is not part of the room. The rhythm suits an early start: coffee, a short drive or walk up to the reserve gate, and a quiet evening back at the lodge.
Meals. On-site restaurant and bar (no name given), breakfast and dinner menus posted on the site. Breakfast is not included.
Perfect for: a birder who wants to be at the reserve gate at opening without staying in town.
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, founded in 1972: the bellbird and the quetzal with a guide, the lodge whose trails walk into it, and our trips there.
See the placeCuri-Cancha, the private farm beside the Monteverde reserve where our birding mornings climb from pasture into primary forest: the birds, lodge and trips.
See the placeSanta Elena, the quieter reserve at Monteverde, run by the public high school board since 1992: a guided quetzal morning, the lodge we use and the trips.
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.
