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

JJP said:

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.

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Exactly my point. Around San Jose there's obviously plenty of choice. Like many before I've used the Hotel Bougainvillea before; last time the Rosa de America. And I'm sure there are cheaper places. Similarly Monteverde has a wide range of accommodation--we used the Hotel Belmar--not particularly cheap, but functional. In the northwest we stayed at the Monarch Resort because I had a discount coupon, and it was OK but clearly not well patronized at the moment. In the Arenal area again plenty of choice--we used La Pareda at a good rate.

As mentioned on the other thread, the issue was location in the Caribbean locations, and ended up at El Bambu in Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui which was excellent and provided a good vantage point for watching too. But there were problems of access at La Selva, even Selva Verde, and total non-access at Bosque de Paz. Some better ideas for accessing good habitat on the Caribbean side away from the famous places would be great...

Best,

Jon

Hamhed said:

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

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Took a look at your video, Steve--horrendous! We did pass by the Rara Avis office in Horquetas and I was thinking about it--glad we didn't...!

Yeah, that road up to Rara Avis is just the worse. If only they could improve it and turn the dance hall into something more educational. BTW, hadn't heard about the dance hall! I suppose it's related to the fact that Rara Avis has been getting much of their business from groups of students and "adventure" travelers.

Patrick and all -
There were two groups of visitors while we were there for four days. Both were from a tour group with a mixture of nationalities. We enjoyed their company for the most part, except for the night they partied until after midnight - the night before we were asked to get up and make our scheduled departure by 7am.

After experiencing the "road" to the lodge, I questioned what was driving their existence. Certainly, it was not to make money. Their rates of $50 per night, which included all meals (good food!) wouldn't seem to be highly profitable. The orchid and butterfly houses were barely functioning. There were no fruit feeders and it was said that the hummingbird feeders may go also. The reference books were kept in an open shelf and were very damp and moldy. The pathways across damp areas were chicken wire stapled to log ends. Of course, the staples rusted through and now the chicken wire sticks up, snagging every pair of pants legs and shoe laces that comes close. Garbage was dumped over the hillside, attracting groups of squabbling coatis in a highly unnatural scene. Trails are poorly marked, if at all. To me, all this paints a picture of a place going downhill and not caring.

The website for Rara Avis, (which means "rare bird" in Latin), has this line, I assmue as a mission statement:
Rara Avis was developed in 1983 to show that we can make rainforest economically productive and so save it from destruction
Nothing about that statement or anything else I found said that it would be saved through people who liked being deep in the forest to study nature. If it takes sales of alcohol and a party atmosphere to pay the bills, I suppose that is preferable to a pineapple plantation.
The erosion along the road corridor is not acceptable however. They'd be better off running a tram line, charging for the experience, saving on road maintenance and vehicle damage (the tractor-drawn trailer broke down twice on our return trip due to broken wheel bearings. The driver and I spent 45 minutes in the muddy road replacing one set.). Not to mention keeping the forest floor intact.

For that mid-elevation experience in the Sarapiqui area, we're looking to stay at Alberque del Socorro and Quebrada Gonzalez until things improve at Rara Avis.

Steve

Guanacaste

Hamhed said:

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

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Hi Steve:

If you ever do get down to Guanacaste, and Tamarindo in particular, I can help you with a discount at the Tamarindo Vista Villas.

Thanks for the invite EllenZoe. When it's time for our Guanacaste trip, we'll keep you in mind.

Steve

A subject dear to the heart of this frugal birder. I haven't stayed at Posada Andrea Cristina, but have birded with Kevin Martinez, a great local guide whose father owns Posada Andrea Cristina. Another worthy Sarapiqui lodging choice (at a slightly higher elevation) is Tirimbina Rainforest Center (the rooms even have AC). An excellent trail system!

During 2008 we found Bosque del Tolomuco near San Isidro del General to be a good place for a couple of nights, as was Cerro Lodge (not far from Carara NP). The rates at Hacienda Baru (near Dominical) were good, and it's worth noting that new rooms with AC have been subsequently added.

I'm returning in a few months, and I plan to add nights at La Boruca (near Braulio Carrillo NP), Gavilan Rio Sarapiqui (near La Selva) and Poas Lodge (not to be confused with the more expensive Poas Volcano Lodge). Hopefully those will prove satisfactory choices.

Osa budget options

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.

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I'm hoping to visit the Osa (and other southwest Costa Rica sites) during late 2011 or early 2012. Of course, the term "budget" is relative. Bosque Rio Tigre seems to be the gold standard for Osa birding, but it IS expensive. Two lodges that are not too far away from BRT sound interesting, but I have no direct knowledge. One is Suital Lodge (apparently between Mogos and Rincon). The other is Danta Corcovado Lodge, not far from Palma. Both offer rates that are considerably less than BRT. Both are making some effort to cater to birders, and Danta Corcovado even offers guided birding.

gdhunter said:

I'm hoping to visit the Osa (and other southwest Costa Rica sites) during late 2011 or early 2012. Of course, the term "budget" is relative. Bosque Rio Tigre seems to be the gold standard for Osa birding, but it IS expensive. Two lodges that are not too far away from BRT sound interesting, but I have no direct knowledge. One is Suital Lodge (apparently between Mogos and Rincon). The other is Danta Corcovado Lodge, not far from Palma. Both offer rates that are considerably less than BRT. Both are making some effort to cater to birders, and Danta Corcovado even offers guided birding.

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Thanks for posting those. Those prices are much more modest that I'm used to seeing.

The thing about Bosque Rio Tigre is that they have a legacy of interest in birds. The ownership appears to show a marked interest... and I suspect that translates into real activity and a better checklist. It's hard not to notice that when you visit the website.

For birders there's always a risk when you see a lodge that offers birdwatching tours. What kind of guide will you get? That's the all-important question. Do you get one with a pair of $40 binos who knows where Chestnut-mandible Toucan is nesting or do you get one with a scope and an Ipod who takes you off trail after hearing a Blue-capped Manakin?

If I'm a birder and I have only one shot at southern Costa Rica, I'm probably shelling out the extra money for Bosque.

JJP said:

The thing about Bosque Rio Tigre is that they have a legacy of interest in birds. The ownership appears to show a marked interest... and I suspect that translates into real activity and a better checklist. It's hard not to notice that when you visit the website.

For birders there's always a risk when you see a lodge that offers birdwatching tours. What kind of guide will you get? That's the all-important question. Do you get one with a pair of $40 binos who knows where Chestnut-mandible Toucan is nesting or do you get one with a scope and an Ipod who takes you off trail after hearing a Blue-capped Manakin?

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First, let me state clearly that I'm a relative newcomer to CR travel & birding, and I certainly am NOT an expert. You are absolutely correct about BRT's "legacy of birds". I wouldn't even consider being in that area and not at least reserving a spot on one of their three-hour morning bird walks ($45 per person, with breakfast): http://www.osaadventures.com/birding.htm.

But I also hope that by patronizing other lodges we encourage those owners to build a similar legacy. Note that the birding tour description for Danta Corcovado Lodge suggests tours customized to the needs of individuals and mentions access to varied habitats and the opportunity to see endemics like Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager and Yellow-billed Cotinga: http://www.dantalodge.com/lodging/tours_dantalodge.html .

I hope that frugal birders continue to post their observations in this thread and the related thread about budget birding in CR. Thanks again.

I like Gavilan in Sarapiqui. Where is La Boruca?

Ok, just found La Boruca. B and B in a San Jose suburb. It sounds kind of nice.

gdhunter said:

A subject dear to the heart of this frugal birder. I haven't stayed at Posada Andrea Cristina, but have birded with Kevin Martinez, a great local guide whose father owns Posada Andrea Cristina. Another worthy Sarapiqui lodging choice (at a slightly higher elevation) is Tirimbina Rainforest Center (the rooms even have AC). An excellent trail system!

During 2008 we found Bosque del Tolomuco near San Isidro del General to be a good place for a couple of nights, as was Cerro Lodge (not far from Carara NP). The rates at Hacienda Baru (near Dominical) were good, and it's worth noting that new rooms with AC have been subsequently added.

I'm returning in a few months, and I plan to add nights at La Boruca (near Braulio Carrillo NP), Gavilan Rio Sarapiqui (near La Selva) and Poas Lodge (not to be confused with the more expensive Poas Volcano Lodge). Hopefully those will prove satisfactory choices.

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GD - Our first five nights of our upcoming end-of-the-year trip, we are staying at Posada Christina and El Gavilan. We then hope to move to Tirimbina for three nights (we're having difficulty with the reservations; they are a little slow to communicate). Maybe we'll have some updated info before you leave on your own visit.
Last year, we stayed at Cerro Lodge and Bosque del Tolomuco as well. Saw the entrance to H. Baru as we bumped by in the bus.
We're currently trying to find a place for the one night before we fly out of Alajuela. Vista Linda Montana (http://vistalindamontana.com) and Margarita's B&B (http://www.bed-and-breakfast.cr/) are looking good so far.

Please post about your stay at La Boruca.

Steve

We chose http://www.orquideasinn.com/rooms.html#rates due to their proximity to the airport, and even if they are not extremely cheap, they are not really bad either.

Steve, try contacting Tirimbina again through the form on their website, they answered me very quickly. Your mention of them was what got me onto their site!

Niels

gdhunter said:

But I also hope that by patronizing other lodges we encourage those owners to build a similar legacy. Note that the birding tour description for Danta Corcovado Lodge suggests tours customized to the needs of individuals and mentions access to varied habitats and the opportunity to see endemics like Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager and Yellow-billed Cotinga: http://www.dantalodge.com/lodging/tours_dantalodge.html .

I hope that frugal birders continue to post their observations in this thread and the related thread about budget birding in CR. Thanks again.

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I sure hope so too.

There might be a very good birder who rents himself out between several lodges. Sometimes birders set themselves up and sub-contract their services.

njlarsen said:

We chose http://www.orquideasinn.com/rooms.html#rates due to their proximity to the airport, and even if they are not extremely cheap, they are not really bad either.

Steve, try contacting Tirimbina again through the form on their website, they answered me very quickly. Your mention of them was what got me onto their site!

Niels

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We looked at Orquideas, Niels, but their cheapest room for two is $92 plus "ICT" tax, whatever that amounts to. For less than 24 hours, we are trying to do better.

We did use the Tirimbina form but they got the amount of nights wrong and only reserved us for 2 vs 3 nights. Attempts to straighten that out have been a little frustrating but we'll keep trying because it sounds like a excellent place to stay.
The Costa Rican Bird Route site (up and running tonight) lists the Royal Flycatcher, a bird I'd like to see, as one of the species "emblematic" of Tirimbina. However, the Garrigues and Dean guide describes them as "rare" in the Caribbean lowlands. You'll be there just before us, Niels, hopefully tying one to a branch for me.

Steve

Steve,
Standard Rooms
( 1 full, 1 twin beds)
$79.00

is what we reserved at Orquideas for both of us (it became 89.27 including tax)

I will see what I can do about the flycatcher (I don't think I have seen that one since 2000 in Mexico). I believe they often are near a stream and show a hammerhead appearance.

cheers
Niels

Hamhed said:

We looked at Orquideas, Niels, but their cheapest room for two is $92 plus "ICT" tax, whatever that amounts to. For less than 24 hours, we are trying to do better.

We did use the Tirimbina form but they got the amount of nights wrong and only reserved us for 2 vs 3 nights. Attempts to straighten that out have been a little frustrating but we'll keep trying because it sounds like a excellent place to stay.
The Costa Rican Bird Route site (up and running tonight) lists the Royal Flycatcher, a bird I'd like to see, as one of the species "emblematic" of Tirimbina. However, the Garrigues and Dean guide describes them as "rare" in the Caribbean lowlands. You'll be there just before us, Niels, hopefully tying one to a branch for me.

Steve

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I thought that was interesting that they have that bird as emblematic for Tirimbina. It surely occurs but no, it isnt common anywhere in the Caribbean lowlands. Yes, they do prefer the edges of streams and rivers- might get it hanging out long enough near the river at Tirimbina.

I've been to Belize 3 times and seen Royal Flycatcher maybe a dozen times.

I've seen it only once in Costa Rica... at Carara

Our final destination is three nights at Cerro Chato Eco Lodge (http://www.cerrochatoecolodge.com/) at 200-300 meters on the Caribbean slope near La Fortuna. Though we'll be a good bit further west, I'm assuming these will be similar birds to what we'll see at Tirimbina including the scarcity of Royal Flycatcher. When we hike up Cerro Chato to 1200m, we should find some birds similar to what has been listed for Arenal Observatory Lodge. Patrick, your bird list for Pocosol is probably a hint about what we might see. Orange-bellied Trogon would be another bird high on our list.