See all properties

Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails

3.0 star property
Family-friendly lodge with a full-service spa and free breakfast

Choose dates to view prices

your current months are January, 2025 and February, 2025.
January 2025
February 2025

Photo gallery for Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails

Terrace/patio
Outdoor pool, open 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM, sun loungers
Front of property
Superior Room, Mountain View
Breakfast, lunch, dinner served; international cuisine

Reviews

9.6 out of 10

Exceptional

Popular amenities

  • Hot tub
  • Bar
  • Spa
  • Pool
  • Breakfast included
  • Housekeeping

Explore the area

Map
22 km Oeste de la Fortuna de San Carlos, 1.7 km del Volcán Arenal, La Fortuna, Alajuela, 21007
  • Chato Volcano
    82 min walk
  • Costa Rica Sky Adventures
    13 min drive
  • La Fortuna Waterfall
    38 min drive
  • La Fortuna (FON-Arenal)
    50 min drive

Room options

View all photos for House Economy - Shared Bathroom - Private Room

House Economy - Shared Bathroom - Private Room

House Economy - Shared Bathroom - Private Room

  • Lake view
  • Sleeps 2
  • 4 Queen Beds

View all photos for Superior Room, Mountain View

Superior Room, Mountain View

Superior Room, Mountain View

  • 20 sq m
  • Mountain view
  • Sleeps 4
  • 2 Double Beds

View all photos for White Hawk Villa

White Hawk Villa

White Hawk Villa

  • 20 sq m
  • Mountain view
  • Sleeps 8
  • 2 King Beds, 2 Twin Beds and 2 Twin Trundle Beds

View all photos for Standard Room, 2 Queen Beds

Standard Room, 2 Queen Beds

Standard Room, 2 Queen Beds

  • 25 sq m
  • Sleeps 4
  • 2 Queen Beds

View all photos for Phil's Villa

Phil's Villa

Phil's Villa

  • Mountain view
  • Sleeps 10
  • 3 Queen Beds

Similar properties

Terrace/patio

Volcano Lodge Hotel & Thermal Experience

Pool
Breakfast included
Kids pool
Parking included
4.6 out of 5, Wonderful, (1005)
The price is CA $330
per night
CA $373 total
includes taxes & fees
14 Jan - 15 Jan
Volcano Lodge Hotel & Thermal Experience

About the area

La Fortuna

In La Fortuna .You'll be within 3 miles (5 km) of Lake Arenal and 6 miles (10 km) of Costa Rica Sky Adventures with a stay here. Butterfly Conservatory is within 6 miles (10 km) and Mistico Arenal Hanging Bridges Park is within 9 miles (15 km).
View more Lodges in La FortunaOpens in a new window

What's nearby

  • Costa Rica Sky Adventures - 13 min drive
  • Arenal Volcano National Park - 17 min drive
  • Arenal Volcano - 17 min drive
  • Ecotermales Fortuna - 29 min drive
  • La Fortuna Waterfall - 38 min drive

Getting around

  • La Fortuna (FON-Arenal) - 50 min drive

Restaurants

  • ‪Virgita Ristorante - ‬28 min drive
  • ‪Restaurante Río Lounge - ‬39 min drive
  • ‪Agua Ardiente Pool Bar - ‬21 min drive
  • ‪Red Frog Coffee Roaster - ‬31 min drive
  • ‪North Fields Café - ‬32 min drive

About this property

Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails

Family-friendly 3-star lodge near Butterfly Conservatory
Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails offers its guests a full-service spa, an outdoor pool, and a spa tub. There's a restaurant on site. You can enjoy a drink at the bar/lounge. Free breakfast is served daily. WiFi is free in public spaces.

There are 2 meeting rooms available. A children's pool, a library, and a terrace are also featured at the family-friendly Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails. An airport shuttle (available 24 hours) and an area shuttle are available for a fee. Self parking is free.

This Colonial La Fortuna lodge is smoke free.

  • 48 guestrooms or units
  • Built in 1992
  • Cooked-to-order breakfast (free)
  • Poolside lounge chairs
  • Self-service laundry
  • Front desk (limited hours)
  • Storage area for luggage
  • Front-desk safe
  • Tour and ticket information
  • Game room or arcade
  • Library
  • Terrace
  • Garden
  • Gift shop
  • Fireplace in lobby
  • Television in lobby
  • No smoking on site
  • Bar or lounge
  • Dining venue
Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails offers 48 accommodations with laptop-compatible safes and coffee/tea makers. Rooms open to balconies or patios. Bathrooms include showers and complimentary toiletries. Housekeeping is provided daily.
Guests can pamper themselves with a trip to the onsite spa, which has 1 treatment room. Services include deep-tissue massages, hot stone massages, Swedish massages, and facials. A variety of treatment therapies are provided, including aromatherapy and reflexology. The spa is open daily.

Languages

English, Spanish

Property amenities

Family friendly

  • Arcade/game room
  • Children's pool
  • Laundry facilities
  • Outdoor pool
  • Playground
  • Pool gate

Internet

  • Available in some public areas: Free WiFi

Parking and transportation

  • Free self parking on site
  • Wheelchair-accessible parking available
  • 24-hour roundtrip airport shuttle (surcharge)
  • Airport shuttle on request
  • Area shuttle (surcharge)

Food and drink

  • Free cooked-to-order breakfast available daily 6:30 AM–8:30 AM
  • 1 restaurant
  • 1 bar

Things to do

  • Arcade/game room
  • Children's pool
  • Ecotours
  • Foosball table
  • Full-service spa
  • Hiking/biking trails
  • Horse riding/rentals
  • Outdoor pool
  • Playground
  • Spa tub
  • Table tennis

Accessibility

  • If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please contact the property using the information on the reservation confirmation received after booking.
  • This property does not have elevators
  • Accessible airport shuttle
  • No elevator (single level property)
  • Pool access ramp on site
  • Well-lit path to entrance
  • Wheelchair-accessible concierge desk
  • Wheelchair-accessible lounge
  • Wheelchair-accessible parking
  • Wheelchair-accessible pool
  • Wheelchair-accessible registration desk
  • Wheelchair-accessible restaurant
  • Wheelchair accessible (may have limitations)

Room amenities

Bedroom

  • Bed sheets
  • Ceiling fan

Bathroom

  • Eco-friendly toiletries
  • Shampoo
  • Shower
  • Soap
  • Toilet paper
  • Towels

Food and drink

  • Coffee/tea maker

More

  • Eco-friendly cleaning products used
  • Laptop-compatible safe
  • LED light bulbs
  • Window screens

Policies

Check-in

Check-in start time: 3 PM; Check-in end time: 10 PM
Minimum check-in age: 18

Check-out

Check-out before noon

Special check-in instructions

The front desk is open daily from 7 AM - 10 PM
Front desk staffed during limited hours

Access methods

Front desk (limited hours)

Pets

  • Pets and service animals are not allowed at Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails

Children and extra beds

  • Children are welcome.
  • Kids stay free! Up to 2 children 8 years old and younger stay free, per registered adult, when using existing bedding.
  • Rollaway/extra beds are not available.
  • Cribs (infant beds) are not available.

Property payment types

Important information

Optional extras

The fees and deposits listed below will be charged at the time of service, check-in, or check-out.

  • Airport shuttle fee: USD 225 per vehicle (one-way, maximum occupancy 7)

This may not be a comprehensive list. Fees and deposits are subject to change and might not include tax.

You need to know

Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card, or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
This property accepts credit cards and cash
This property uses eco-friendly cleaning products
Safety features at this property include a fire extinguisher
Charges for extra guests may apply and vary according to property policy.
A cash deposit, credit card, or debit card for incidental charges and government-issued photo identification may be required upon check-in.
Special requests are subject to availability at the time of check-in. Special requests can't be guaranteed and may incur additional charges.
    This property is managed by a professional host. The provision of housing is linked to their trade, business, or profession. This property accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and cash. This property uses eco-friendly cleaning products. For guests' safety, the property includes a fire extinguisher and a smoke detector in each accommodation.

We should mention

  • Pool access available from 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM.
  • Up to 2 children 8 years old and younger stay free, per registered adult, in the same room as the parent or guardian when using existing bedding.
  • Registered guests are the only ones allowed to be in guestrooms.
  • Pets and service animals are not allowed on site.
  • This property welcomes guests of all sexual orientations and gender identities (LGBTQ+ friendly).

Property is also known as

Arenal Observatory Lodge La Fortuna
Arenal Observatory Lodge
Arenal Observatory La Fortuna
Arenal Observatory
Arenal Observatory Hotel La Fortuna De San Carlos
Arenal Observatory & Trails
Arenal Observatory Lodge Spa
Arenal Observatory Lodge Trails
Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails Lodge
Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails La Fortuna
Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails Lodge La Fortuna

Arenal Observatory Lodge & Trails Reviews

Reviews

9.6

Exceptional

Rating 10 - Excellent. 628 out of 793 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 132 out of 793 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 26 out of 793 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 4 out of 793 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 3 out of 793 reviews" "

9.6/10

Cleanliness

9.6/10

Staff & service

9.4/10

Amenities

9.6/10

Property conditions & facilities

9.8/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

EDWARD

Travelled with partner
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful Gardens and trails
Stayed 2 nights in Sep 2024

10/10 Excellent

Sidney

Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Beautiful property! They need to advertise more as we would have stayed an additional night. We weren't aware of free guided hikes, spa (with great prices!), etc. Views are amazing!
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2024

10/10 Excellent

Pankaj M

Stayed 3 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Samuel

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
The place is magical. No A/C but it wasn’t too hot. The restaurant is decent and the views of the volcano are to die for. It’s a bud watcher’s paradise and the trails are beautiful. I would stay at this resort again.
Stayed 4 nights in Sep 2024

10/10 Excellent

Gary

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Fabulous!
Exceptional service and comfort. Amazing birding throught the property.
Stayed 3 nights in Sep 2024

8/10 Good

Neil

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Stayed 6 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Carlos

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Amazing view to Arenal Volcano, literally you have the volcano in front of you. Perfect choice to go relax maybe on a weekend and forget about stress and just connect with nature
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2024

10/10 Excellent

Subhodeep

Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
The property has an excellent location surrounded by trails and and trails at the base of the volcano. The free guided hike was informative and a good way to learn to spot wildlife if not doing guide tours elsewhere (although be aware that advance reservations are recommended). The only downside of the location is that you are limited to onsite dining even if self-driving, and the food options are not great value for the price.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Theresa

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Tremendous vistas, birding, nature trails fantastic staff and a very cool welcome.
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

gary

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Marghrit, Worcester

Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Our stay was very pleasant, the hotel is on beautiful grounds, we arrived late at night , a portion the road leading to the hotel is not paved, breakfast was superb, you can have both the open buffet and a choice to order from their menu. We ended up having dinner 2 nights at the hotel and those were excellent as well. Very helpful staff that go above and beyond, Sergio was very helpful with his recommendations and directions. Lots of hummingbirds and wildlife that you can experience from your room. No AC but the ceiling fan was sufficient to keep up feeling comfortable. Would love to go again.
Stayed 3 nights in Aug 2024

6/10 Okay

Husong

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Room comfort
Nice Experience of Nature and Birds
Great experience but room key constantly gave me problem. Room key has to be replaced 4 times. Restaurant food and drinks are great!
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Alexander

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Wildlife galore
Amazing location inside the NP. Road most unpaved getting there. Great balcony where you can see the birds and monkey. Very chilled out vibe with plenty of easy trials around. Shame that the pool wasn’t open and we were not notified, the kids were very disappointed. Also we left very early on the last day and missed out on breakfast as they didn’t tell us we could have a takeaway breakfast box. Overall a stunning place, beaming with wildlife.
Stayed 3 nights in Aug 2024

6/10 Okay

Husong

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Room comfort
Great experience but room key constantly gave me problem. Key has to be replaced 4 times Restaurant food and drink are great!
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Liang

Travelled with family, Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
My 7 yr old complained about no AC in the room but I am completely fine with it. It is high up in the mountain so felt a little cool even in the summer. View is beautiful because it is super close to the volcano. The lodge staff is very welcome and kind. Of course you’d be expecting bugs and flies in the washroom next day in the morning. But I call this nature, we would also be seeing monkeys within the hotel range. Driving up to the hotel is also fun as some roads are un-paved. My husband joked as we got a free ATV experience.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Ivona

Stayed 1 night in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Katarzyna

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
One of my favorite places in the world. We have been here three times in the last 14 years. Love the lodge, its proximity to raw nature, the thoughtful and kind people that work here, and the views. I would highly recommend staying here.
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2024

10/10 Excellent

Luis

Stayed 1 night in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Mandy

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Gary

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great eco friendly hotel
Wonderful hotel with great views of the volcano. Could use some upgrades for the bed. Great service from the staff
Stayed 3 nights in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Jennifer

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
You can not beat the location and beauty of this property. The staff went above and beyond. The restaurant was great. Wildlife all around. Loved this stay.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2024

10/10 Excellent

Suhanya

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Suhanya

Travelled with family and small children
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Fantastic lodge and trails. Amazing staff. Great views of the Arenal Volcano. Peaceful. We saw snakes, frogs, toucans, hummingbirds and tropical birds. Food is good and fairly priced - considering the nearest outside restaurant is > 30 mins away.
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Casey

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
This was an amazing property. Trails were beautiful. Waterfall was amazing. Breakfast buffet has everything you would want on your plate and dinner was very tasty
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2024

10/10 Excellent

Yvette

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 2 nights in Jul 2024