Birding lodges · Region 5 of 5
From the Tárcoles River south to the Osa Peninsula. Scarlet Macaws at Carara, the mangrove boat on the Tárcoles, and around the Golfo Dulce the wildest forest we sell.
These are the 19 we use, the most of any region, and six of them are at Drake Bay or on the Golfo Dulce.
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Photo: Aguila de Osa Inn
Drake Bay
An Exclusive Boutique Hotel in the Wilds of the Osa
★★★★
On a cliff above Drake Bay, with rooms set well apart for privacy, high cathedral ceilings and furniture handcrafted from local hardwoods. Our four-star choice for Corcovado and Caño Island.
Photo: Bosque del Rio Tigre Lodge
Puerto Jiménez
Situated on the Tigre River
★★★
Four rooms and at most 12 guests on the Tigre river at Dos Brazos, in the forest reserve that rings Corcovado, where the river and the howler monkeys are the only sound at night. The smallest lodge on this page, and the one for the serious list.
Photo: Bosque del Tolomuco
San Isidro de El General
Forest of the Tayra and Birdwatching Haven in Costa Rica's Southern Zone!
★★★
Gardens in the Talamanca foothills above San Isidro where Black Guan, Silver-throated Tanager and Red-fronted Parrotlet come in, with Los Cusingos Bird Sanctuary close by. Named for the tayra, the tolomuco, that lives in the forest here.
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.
Photo: Corcovado Wilderness Lodge by SCP
Drake Bay
Rainforest villas and treehouses above a Drake Bay beach, next to Corcovado National Park
★★★★
On a 189-acre private reserve bordering Corcovado National Park, with early-morning forest-bird walks and canopy, shore and sea birds to look for.
Photo: Drake Bay Wilderness Resort
Drake Bay
Comfortable Accommodations near Corcovado & Cano Island at Drake Bay Resort!
★★★
The first hotel at Drake Bay, owner-run cabins at the water's edge with a dock instead of a wet beach landing, its own English-speaking guides and three meals a day, close to Corcovado National Park and Caño Island. Four of our recent birding itineraries stay here, and one client called it "our favorite" of the trip.
Photo: Esquinas Rainforest Lodge
Golfito
Immerse Youself in Nature!
★★★
Thirty minutes from the Golfito airstrip, on its own reserve bordering Piedras Blancas National Park, in the valley of La Gamba, with the Golfo Dulce forest at the door. The lodge we use to open the Osa and the Golfo Dulce without a long drive.
Photo: Hacienda Barú Lodge
Dominical
A Superb Lodge with Eco-Excellent Ethos in a Natural Reserve
★★★
A lodge inside the Barú National Wildlife Refuge just north of Dominical, 330 hectares of rainforest, mangrove and beach with 7 km of trails and a bird watching tower. "Lots of birds, butterflies, monkeys and sloths", as one reviewer put it, and the owner has written a book about the place.
Photo: Hotel Cristal Ballena
Uvita
Breath-taking Southern Pacific Ocean Seascapes in Your Paradise Oasis
★★★★
Nineteen suites on a hillside with a 180-degree view of Bahía Ballena, 30 acres of gardens round a 1,300 square foot pool, a spa, and Marino Ballena National Park within walking distance. The comfortable night in the south, between the forest lodges.
Photo: Hotel Punta Leona
Punta Leona
Private white sand beach
★★★
A beach resort in one of the country's last transition forests, where the wet Pacific forest meets the dry, just before Jacó and 45 minutes from the San José airport. A private white sand beach, three pools, and Carara and the Tárcoles river a short drive away: the lodge for a birder travelling with a family.
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.
Photo: Lapa Rios Ecolodge
Cabo Matapalo
A Luxury Model Ecolodge
★★★★
A 1,000-acre private reserve at the tip of the Osa Peninsula, with more than 300 bird species claimed and an early outing made for birders: about two hours with a bilingual naturalist, binoculars and a spotting scope.
Photo: Las Cruces Biological Station
San Vito
A 4.5 hours drive away from San Jose
★★★
The Organization for Tropical Studies' research station near San Vito, close to the Panama border and home to the Wilson Botanical Garden, where the guides are biologists or naturalists. Meals are at set times with the scientists and students, a private deck looks over the gardens, and it is four and a half hours' drive from San José.
Photo: Macaw Lodge
Tárcoles
Beauty and Sustainability not far from the Tarcoles River
★★★★
A lake in front of the lodge and forest on two sides, between Carara and the Tárcoles bridge, with over 300 species on the lodge list, Sunbittern and Northern Jacana among them. Opened in 2011, and our clients mention the owner, Pablo, by name.
Photo: Playa Cativo Eco-Lodge
Golfo Dulce
A great opportunity and experience
★★★
A lodge on the Golfo Dulce where birdwatching is, in its own words, one of the most popular things guests do, with self-guided trails and mangrove kayaking that suits birders.
Photo: Playa Nicuesa Lodge
Golfo Dulce
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.
Photo: Santa Lucía Jungle Hacienda, Autograph Collection
Carara
A hacienda and colonial village on the riverbanks at the edge of Carara National Park
★★★★★
The old Villa Lapas, reopened as Santa Lucía Jungle Hacienda, an Autograph Collection hotel, on the riverbank at the edge of Carara National Park near Tárcoles, where scarlet macaws cross over the grounds. The same birding ground we have used for years, with a five-star hotel on it now.
Photo: Talari Mountain Lodge
San Isidro de El General
Explore a Birdwatching Paradise Far Away from the Crowds!
★★★
Fourteen rooms on 5 hectares of gardens and fruit trees by the Chirripó river, 5 km from San Isidro, with over 200 species recorded on the land, Red-legged Honeycreeper and Slaty Spinetail among them. Two km of trails up from the river, and a pool for the afternoon.
Photo: Tiskita Jungle Lodge
Golfo Dulce
Escape the city
★★★
A family-run lodge on 800 acres above the Golfo Dulce, more than 90 percent forest, with over 15 kilometres of trails and about 200 bird species recorded at or near the lodge. Guided naturalist walks, including after dark.
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