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Affordable or budget lodging options for birding in Costa Rica (1 Viewer)

Birdingcraft

Birdingcraft

Well-known member
This thread is a result of recent discussions in the Costa Rica sub forum about difficulties associated with birding Costa Rica on a budget.

Pease post any ideas for cheaper priced lodging in Costa Rica that you feel are suitable for birders and birding.

The first place I will mention is Posada Andrea Cristina. Located in Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui, this small B and B has nice gardens, conservation minded, local owners who have been involved with Great Green Macaw protection, and is priced at around $50 for a double.
 
A place I am starting to see on itineraries more frequently is La Ensanada

http://www.laensenada.net/

This is well situated lodge (ranch is more appropriate) north of Carara in southern Guanacaste that apparently is quite good for Guanacaste specialties and perhaps some marsh birds and rails. I have not been there myself, but I have seen a few Costa Rica tours make that a stop. It's very inexpensive and well located for people that would have to drive from the south into Guanacaste.
 
JJP said:
A place I am starting to see on itineraries more frequently is La Ensanada

http://www.laensenada.net/

This is well situated lodge (ranch is more appropriate) north of Carara in southern Guanacaste that apparently is quite good for Guanacaste specialties and perhaps some marsh birds and rails. I have not been there myself, but I have seen a few Costa Rica tours make that a stop. It's very inexpensive and well located for people that would have to drive from the south into Guanacaste.
Click to expand...

Yes, this place is a regular stop on many tours and our birding club hs gone there too. Seems to be a good, budget option!
 
Posada Andrea Christina is on our long list of places to stay near Sarapiqui, Patrick. I wondered about its proximity to town and whether it would have much habitat. I checked out the general location on Google Maps and it looks feasible to walk from their place on several secondary roads for exploring.

Thanks, JJP, for the link. Sooner or later, Guanacaste will be our target area. We've spent very little time on either coast. La Ensenada sounds nice.

Liz and I will be making it a point to get plenty of pictures and video of places we stay to enhance our sometimes brief descriptions.

Steve
 
This a great thread. I decided to go to a lodge in Panama, 5 days or parts thereof, airport transfer, room, board and guide and airfare for under $1,000 US. Love to do same in CR or elsewhere in Central America. Noticed a 2007 thread and will review.

Love Costa Rica, but the thought of driving there scares me- a lot.

Advantage of Central America is airfare cheap. Daughter lives in Italy and cousins live in Haddington. Visiting them in 2 weeks and airfare is a killer.
 
Hi, Mike - Big city driving in Central America can be intimidating. I think some of that is less familiar surroundings, including people and language. Clear of them, it's not so bad. It seems to me that the horn is used more frequently and with less road rage intent so you have to adjust your American reactions to the honks. Road signs are not as common as foreign visitors might like. Be prepared to be passed in non-passable areas.
My wife and I used a rental car our first time in CR but have chosen to use the bus recently. If budget is a high priority, there is no comparison in cost savings. If you do decide to use public transportation, learn a few choice words of Spanish first.

I have a brother in Lancaster. His name is Mike!

Where did you go in Panama?

Steve
 
Oops - Getting off topic, I think. I'm looking to include some higher elevation birding with our intended trip to the Sarapiqui area and came across this place on the east side of Juan Castro Blanco NP:
http://www.catarata-del-toro.com
Is there anyone out there familiar with the park, the road to the east park entrance or this lodge?
Thanks -

Steve
 
I've never heard of Catarata del toro.

It seems to me that the most difficult small lodges to be found are probably Caribbean foothill birding locations at around 500-1000 meters - which would be some of the most productive birding areas.

At least to me, those locations don't come to mind as frequently as lowland, highland, or Pacific locations.

Just thinking out loud.... if that's possible on a message board.
 
Three ideas for caribbean slope birding:

Rara Avis is a good choice for Caribbean foothills, not too expensive and excellent forest birding. The place is remote, with no electricity, but worth staying. The weather can be awful though (as in any caribbean foothills area).
http://www.rara-avis.com/

San Gerardo station on the caribbean slope of the Monteverde area offers fabulous birding but is also a bit remote.
http://www.acmcr.org/sangerardo_biological_station.htm

Pocosol station is another remote area offering excellent caribbean slope birding
http://www.1costaricalink.com/eng/web/parks/pv-ninos.htm

All these places offer basic lodging, they are for hardy birders wishing to get deep in CRica, really off the beaten track but with great great birding.

Surely Pat can add a few more destinations.
 
Last edited:
michaelboustead said:
Is there a registry of lodges or just do google search?
Click to expand...


I don't know of one.

ACTUAR (alternative travel in Costa Rica) sponsors some smaller lodges.... (Click on "Lodges by Region")

http://www.actuarcostarica.com/app/cms/www/index.php

...but they are by no means extensive, and are not always near good birding habitat.

The Bird Route of Costa Rica web site also lists some ... http://www.costaricanbirdroute.com/sites.htm

but it is by no means extensive either (although the map is handy).
 
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By the way, I feel compelled to mention that the OSA Peninsula lodges always appears to be the most over-priced lodges in Costa Rica. I suspect some of the price hike was due to the lack of roads and infrastructure and the cost of it of bringing in food and services. Some of it was perhaps the exotic nature of the area since tourists frequently had to fly there. It was also a place that seemed to have more foreign investment. In essence, there is still a lack of competitive lodging in that area.

However, the road is now paved all the way to Puerto Jimenez as of 2010. There's less excuse for the lack of alternative lodging. Perhaps we'll see prices come down a bit there - or some competitive smaller lodges pop up.
 
Last edited:
Motmot said:
Three ideas for caribbean slope birding:

Rara Avis is a good choice for Caribbean foothills, not too expensive and excellent forest birding. The place is remote, with no electricity, but worth staying. The weather can be awful though (as in any caribbean foothills area).
http://www.rara-avis.com/

San Gerardo station on the caribbean slope of the Monteverde area offers fabulous birding but is also a bit remote.
http://www.acmcr.org/sangerardo_biological_station.htm

Pocosol station is another remote area offering excellent caribbean slope birding
http://www.1costaricalink.com/eng/web/parks/pv-ninos.htm

All these places offer basic lodging, they are for hardy birders wishing to get deep in CRica, really off the beaten track but with great great birding.

Surely Pat can add a few more destinations.
Click to expand...

Hi Eduardo!

Those are also the first that come to mind for Caribbean foothills.

Las Heliconias is another possibility (weird mix of foothills and Pacific slope).

El Copal also provides good foothill birding. Can only book through ACTUAR.

Or you could just stay in San Jose or Sarapiqui and do day trips to Quebrada Gonzalez.
 
JJP said:
By the way, I feel compelled to mention that the OSA Peninsula lodges always appears to be the most over-priced lodges in Costa Rica. I suspect some of the price hike was due to the lack of roads and infrastructure and the cost of it of bringing in food and services. Some of it was perhaps the exotic nature of the area since tourists frequently had to fly there. It was also a place that seemed to have more foreign investment. In essence, there is still a lack of competitive lodging in that area.

However, the road is now paved all the way to Puerto Jimenez as of 2010. There's less excuse for the lack of alternative lodging. Perhaps we'll see prices come down a bit there - or some competitive smaller lodges pop up.
Click to expand...

So true! I dont know of any budget lodging in good habitat offhand. Hope to investigate budget possiblities in the Osa sometime though.
 
I can't support Rara Avis until they do something about the condition of the road they use to get deep into the forest. The mud that washes off the many km of road is inexcusable. They seem to be trashing one area to save another. I uploaded a video to YouTube this morning under "Road to Rara Avis".

Now that they've built the "Party Hut/Dance Hall", sell liquor by the bottle and hold all night parties, I feel they've lost their original direction. It's a nice benefit for us birders to get access to deep forest but at what cost?

Steve
 
That said, there are some good suggestions in this thread that might be best kept in one place. As Delia Todd suggested, should they go on the Costa Rica page or is there another venue available?

Steve
 
I remember that road very well ... it was said that the access was "soon-to-be-improved" - in 1995!

Hamhed said:
Now that they've built the "Party Hut/Dance Hall", sell liquor by the bottle and hold all night parties, I feel they've lost their original direction. It's a nice benefit for us birders to get access to deep forest but at what cost?Steve
Click to expand...
Good lord, really? This isn't some sort of sick joke? Have the owners completely lost their minds!?!

Where the hell do they think they are, Cancun?

That's another place to cross off ever going again, then.
 
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