Location is beautiful and we took full advantage of the grounds and hikes, including a night tour. They have a little cafe and museum. Even when it rained the entire day on our 2nd day we still got out and enjoyed the beauty. Do the waterfall hike! Night tour with Cristian was fantastic. Free breakfast was tasty and generous. Lodge was perfect distance from town. We liked popping into town for snacks, hanging out in the plaza and then retreating to our quiet paradise. We didn't use it, but they had a little recreation room in our building with a ping pong table and foosball table. The dining hall had a chess table, and the lobby has a tv room with checkers. Highly recommend you book your free guided tour as soon as you check in. The 8am and 10 am were all booked by the time we decided to do it.

Dinners were expensive for the quality. But, we knew that from reading other reviews. We decided to eat on grounds anyway because its just super convenient. Rooms could use some updating but were clean and comfortable. Wifi was very unreliable and kicked us off frequently. But, I wanted my kids to unplug anyway.

There is so much history attached to the Observation Lodge that it makes for a fascinating place to stay. It's the first and only hotel located within the national park due to it being an observation location for volcanologists, so the trails, wildlife and landscaping around the hotel is incredible. There are endless walking routes with tropical birds, hanging bridges, waterfalls and crossfit challenges waiting to be found. There's an onsite spa, pool, restaurant, bar, museum and shop, and reception offers additional information around tours and practical things like laundry services. The hotel offers a complimentary nature walk, plus a tractor ride around the grounds to get the most from your stay plus paid for activities such as a night walk. The room includes complimentary breakfast each morning overlooking the Arenal lake and volcano - I'll never get bored of that view! So many birdwatchers come to the hotel, as the grounds attract over 500 species of bird.

Once you discover the history of the lodges (available in the onsite museum) the hotels aesthetics makes more sense, but nonetheless rhe rooms are a little dated and could do with a freshen up. We were located in lodges away from the main building and it was a 10 minute walk uphill to get to the reception. More information on how to order the shuttle would have been great. The hotel is quite a distance from the town of La Fortuna so you definitely need a car to get to the hotel and the road is bumpy in parts. There is an online restaurant and bar so you don't have to head out in the evenings, however I personally wasn't a huge fan of the evening food on offer so it became a little repetitive.

The arenal observatory lodge is an amazing location. We stayed at a room with shared bathroom which was perfectly fine. Bathrooms were clean and always available. Room had amazing view on the garden and Arenal vulcano. The lodge had in our opinion the best and closest view on the Arenal of all the tours that you can book! The trails on the 400 acre property of the hotel are wonderful to hike through. Pool and jacuzzi was a very nice way to relax after a long day. Breakfast was amazing. The Observatory deck was so beautiful. You could sit there and just watch the arenal and all kinds of beautiful birds. Pictures ar all taken on hotel property!

The restaurant is really expensive. $30 to $40 for a main course is bizarre. Considering that the lodge is pretty remote and the nearest restaurants are a minimum of 20 min away by car and you don’t have another option nearby. The hotel takes advantage of that in our opinion. The roads to the lodge are very bumpy and without lighting. We still went to different restaurants in the area but when it was raining at night, coming back to the lodge was a challenge. This is also the charme of the area but just something to keep in mind.

The views were fantastic, Arenal volcano is intimidating ( as it is very close to the resort) but mesmerising. The bird life is abundant and the Coatis walk around ignoring people just doing their own things (which is as it should be) The breakfast was fantastic. The road to the resort is a dirt road and could be rough. there are no lights at night ,hence be careful when venturing out at night.However if you have a good car and consider the road conditions it can be easily done with an SUV or a constant 4WD. I will recommend a big car but not necessarily 4x4. As the resort is very isolated the only place to have dinner is the restaurant which was expensive. However with a good car you can venture into the small local towns an have a multitude of choices.( alway ask the staff about eating choices you will get good information from them ).Hence that is one of the reasons I will recommend an SUV. As the resort is so vast you could stay there without going anywhere else and honestly say you know Cost Rica. The waterfall within the property was breathtaking, you get to it via a beautiful walk via the forest. There are 2 suspending bridges, lots of well marked walks and the births are. amazing.

The restaurant was very expensive.

spectacular views in and incredibly special place. loads to do and see at the property and very helpful staff

there was nothing i didnt like

This is an amazing place for wildlife and in particular birdwatching. The restaurant views over the bird feeder was incredible and like no where else I have stayed before. The horse riding around the property where you could also hike was fantastic. The location of the accommodation had amazing views and transport to the main main part of the property. The hummingbirds were a favourite and the very helpful staff in the restaurant.

The only downside was the birdwatching private tour - the hotel took full payment for a trip which was actually only half the time I paid for and the worse value tour I have done in Costa Rica. Very few additional birds seen with the guide and I feel like if the weather was an issue an alternative trip should have been offered or a partial refund - hotel were not helpful about this point.

This hotel gives off the fancy resort type of atmosphere with very beautiful nature and a lot of living species. They have very big territory with plenty of trails to explore all the flora and fauna around. We saw a lot of cool birds, animals and plants. The rooms are nice even the ones without bathrooms, but the bathrooms are very comfortable and big. They have pretty much anything you would need: restaurant, transportation services, museum, smoothie bar and souvenir shop, swimming pools, spas, hiking trails and much more! They offered us 2 free tours around the property but we only had time to take one. I would recommend staying here for at least 3 days without leaving the premises! We had booked full day tours and had to leave almost every day but there was so much to do there that we didn’t get the time to do. Only thing is that it’s hard to get there. Not a lot of drivers want to go up the mountain with the rocky road. But good thing is that they have their own drivers that can take you around the hotel and wherever you need in the city. This was by far the most beautiful place we stayed in Costa Rica! Definitely recommend!!

Everything about our stay was exceptional. All of the staff was incredibly friendly and took great care of us and our room. The grounds were kept beautifully, the complimentary tours offered by the hotel were fascinating, and we enjoyed them so much we booked other tours also. The night tour was delightful and a bit terrifying, there is so much life in the forest at night! We watched monkeys each morning and evening, there were birds and butterflies everywhere, the views were breathtaking. We would go back!

As travelers from a colder climate it was challenging to sleep without AC sometimes, but it was worth it for everything else we got to enjoy!

The best place we’ve stayed in 20 years of staying in some outstanding places. From Carlos at the front gate expecting our arrival, to the most thorough and welcome check in we’ve ever had (warm towel, welcome drink), to the beautiful property and amazing staff. The place is so wonderful, our 4 nights flew past leaving us wishing for more. There are so many walks, the views of the volcano are unmatched, it’s quiet, clean, I could go on and on about how every thing is perfectly presented and managed for a wonderful stay. Special thanks to Sergai and Christian in the restaurant for the friendly chats and making it extra special. You will love this place! Be sure to visit the frog ponds at dusk for the most surreal sights and sounds.

Nothing- we are pretty nit picky and can’t fault it!

Tours of the property by Christian were excellent. Staff at the desk were always helpful (Juan, Jack, and everyone else) for making arrangements for tours, answering questions. Beautiful grounds. Great bird watching everywhere. Saw monkeys in their natural habitat. I liked that it was within a nature preserve so really felt like we were "getting away from it all".

Our room was about 1/4 mile from the main lodge, and we didn't have a car, but it was a lovely walk we could always call the front deck for a ride when it was raining hard (we were there in rainy season) or we had our luggage. If you drive there it would not be an issue. Actually it wasn't an issue for us either, just mentioning it.