Cloud forest and high oak forest down the spine of the country. Resplendent Quetzal, Fiery-throated Hummingbird, Black Guan and Emerald Toucanet, and San Gerardo de Dota is where most of these lodges are.
These are the 13 we use, and six of them are in the San Gerardo de Dota valley, where we send people for the quetzal.
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Photo: Dantica Cloud Forest Lodge
San Gerardo de Dota
Cozy Bungalows with Fireplaces and Stunning Cloud Forest Views
★★★
Bungalows with fireplaces on a hillside above San Gerardo de Dota, close to Los Quetzales National Park, with trails through the lodge's own forest. Eleven of our birding reviews name it, one for "a hillside surrounded by serene forests and lots of birds".
Photo: Hotel Bougainvillea
Heredia
Surrounded by Lush Gardens, the Hotel Bougainvillea is a Hidden Jewel in the city!
★★★
A family hotel in ten acres of botanical garden at Santo Domingo de Heredia, where 53 bird species have been logged, hummingbirds, tanagers and Blue-crowned Motmot among them. A garden rather than a reserve, so it suits a first or last night.
Photo: Hotel Quelitales
Cachí
Take advantage of nature without affecting it - the next stop on your perfect Birding vacation to Costa Rica!
★★★
Gardens beside Tapantí National Park, in Cachí above Cartago, where oropendolas, euphonias and tanagers come to the suite balconies, and the Doña Ana waterfall on the property's own trail.
Photo: Hotel Suria
San Gerardo de Dota
Welcome to the San Gerardo de Dota Cloud Forest!
★★★
Twenty rooms on 10 acres of farm, creek and forest in the San Gerardo de Dota valley, owned and run by Hilda Araya and her family. The simplest of our highland lodges, and the valley's birds are the same ones.
Photo: Mirador de Quetzales
San Gerardo de Dota
Located in Cerro de la Muerte
★★★★
On land the family has farmed since 1948 on Cerro de la Muerte, run as a lodge for over 25 years, and the name says what you are there for: a quetzal lookout. It is cold at this altitude, so pack a jacket.
Photo: Monteverde Lodge & Gardens
Monteverde
A place perched in the mountains with infinite things to do for nature lovers and discerning travelers!
★★★
A cloud forest lodge with gardens at Santa Elena that sends guests to three reserves: the Cloud Forest Reserve, whose page names 400 bird species, Curi Cancha, with open ground for spotting birds and a limit of 40 visitors, and Santa Elena. Guided hikes and a night walk.
Photo: Paraíso Quetzal Lodge
San Gerardo de Dota
A family-run birding lodge in the cloud forest at km 70 of the Inter-American Highway South
★★★
At 2,600 metres on Cerro Buena Vista, km 70 of the highway south, with an 80-hectare reserve, five trails, four waterfalls and a hummingbird garden where a quetzal sometimes turns up. The Serrano Salazar family has run it since 2005.
Photo: Poas Volcano Lodge
Poás
An Intimate Mountain Lodge with Breath-taking Views of the Poas Volcano
★★★★
Eleven rooms of stone and wood on the edge of the cloud forest, beside a working dairy farm, with a walk-in fireplace in the living room for the cold evenings. La Paz Waterfall Gardens is within driving distance, and four of our recent birding itineraries stay here.
Photo: Savegre Lodge Natural Reserve & Spa
San Gerardo de Dota
A Cozy Mountain Retreat in the Cloudforest Offering Fantastic Nature Tours and Birdwatching
★★★
A 400-hectare private cloud forest reserve at 2,200 metres, with over 170 bird species recorded on it and the quetzal among them. Heated rooms and a spa with a sauna, which matters at that altitude.
Photo: Senda Monteverde Hotel
Monteverde
Visit the Senda Monteverde Hotel and experience nature like never before!
★★★
A boutique hotel at Monteverde with naturalist guides on staff, where the Three-wattled Bellbird and the Resplendent Quetzal are named on the lodge's own pages.
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.
Photo: Trogon Lodge
San Gerardo de Dota
Enjoy the Cozy Cabins at this Charming Family Lodge in the Cloud Forest
★★★
Wooden cabins on a family farm about 2½ hours from San José, with a clear river running through the property and the quetzal walks starting from the gate at first light. The lodge our birding reviews name more than any other, 29 times.
Photo: Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Hotel + Retreat
Bajos del Toro
Experience the Cloud Forest
★★★
A cloud forest hotel at Bajos del Toro that presents itself as a birding destination, with more than 400 species named on its pages and the El Silencio de los Ángeles cloud forest reserve beside it.
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