I own a travel agency and visited El Remanso for 4 nights during a two week stay in Costa Rica. I was amazed with this property. We stayed in the La Vanilla Cabin, which is closest to the water and completely open on the top level. The cabin was beautiful, every little thing in there was done well. I have traveled to many jungle lodges and fully expected that in the open air cabin, we would have a problem with insects. We did not.

I was delighted to see that the ambiance in the restaurant was the same as the cabin, very romantic, very peaceful. The lighting is great, with candles and some white tree lights. The food was above average and the service was outstanding. They had a few decent wines on their wine list and for the remote location, seemed very reasonable. I thought the sodas were a little high at $3 a drink and the mixed cocktails at $7 also seemed a bit steep by Costa Rican standards. Again, this could be the location of this place.

We made some changes in our trip while we were at the lodge. I thought the managers and the staff went beyond the call of duty to assist us in making these changes.

We drove into El Remanso from Quepos (An area I do not recommend) and arrived around 8:00 in the evening. I would strongly suggest to anyone driving into El Remanso for the first time to do it during daylight hours. The roads are pretty rough and some streams seemed high. We had no problems returning during the day, it probably took us 30% less time.

The grounds around El Remanso are beautiful. We hiked many of their trails and found interesting things on all of them. I enjoyed a trail that involved mostly walking in the stream the most. We brought our own rubber boots which I would suggest.
We used the boots everyday, may be different in the dry season. I thought the guided excursions were a little pricey in comparison to other places we stayed. I believe the zip-line only had 2 platforms, which if you have done this before, would probably be disappointed. I am sure some of the tours are great but we found plenty to do on our own. The ocean was a little too rough to swim when we were there and think it would be for kids anytime.

We had planned on using El Remanso as our base for exploring Corcovado. I think La Paloma in Drake Bay is better for this. The trail to get to one of the main ranger stations in the park to camp is long and a little boring. Unless you just like to hike long distances, I would take a boat in fro Drake Bay and then camp and hike from the station. However, we thought the drive from El Remanso to Carate(last town before Corcovado) was great. We saw a number of monkeys, macaws, etc... just on the drive.

I think this property is the best in the area for people looking for a little privacy, great service, beautiful rainforest and absolutely amazing accommodations

In July, my wife and I visited El Remanso with another couple. While I had visited Costa Rica several times before, my wife had not. We booked our trip online direct with the resort and although the website looked incredible, we where still a little skeptical as to what we would find. What we found at El Remanso was above and beyond.

The rooms, although not air-conditioned, where extremely comfortable to sleep in at night with all the windows open. Every evening it would rain and a breeze would flow through the room cooling us off. Unlike what we are used to in Florida, there was never an issue with bugs or mosquitos. Not one night.

The staff and owners made us feel like we were staying with family. They were friendly, accomodating and knowledgable. Even though this resort is extremely remote, we still were able to check emails. In our experience no request was too much for these folks.

The food, amazing. Every night we were treated to a new and incredible dish that the staff prepared. Each meal was fresh and delicious. The dinners ranged from Red Snapper with gnocci to a BBQ Pork dish. Breakfast was made to order with our favorite being the fresh cut fruit plate and lunches were even available to go for anyone venturing out during the day.

We passed on many of the resorts additional added-fee services including zip-line, nature hikes and rappeling. While Adrianna and Daniel offer shuttle service to and from the airport in Jimenez, we chose to rent a car and drive so that we had a car available to go surfing in Matapalo or any other excursions.

While this resort may not be for every traveler, it certainly exceeded the expectations we had of a relaxing rain-forest vacation.

My review of our stay at El Remanso (from 7/15/07 - 7/19/07)
First of all, let me just say that our experience at El Remanso was by far THE BEST experience ever. My husband and I booked a trip to Cuba from June 28th until July 14th, we decided to extend our vacation and go somewhere else. I began doing research months in advance, it was our first big trip, (almost 1 month) and so we wanted to make sure we would enjoy it to the fullest. After reading tons of reviews and doing extensive home work on tourism in Costa Rica and the different things it has to offer, we decided we wanted to stay away from the usual busy tourist spots; we wanted something more secluded and more in touch with nature. I had never heard of Eco Lodges but the idea of staying in the middle of the rainforest, was very appealing to me. I read reviews on El Remanso; I researched the area and exactly what was around it. I knew it was in the middle of the rain forest and that the closest town was 45 minutes away. I knew all the activities they had to offer and the prices of each because it's all on their website. Once my husband and I decided we would be staying here I contacted the Lodge and had the pleasure of dealing with Adriana (her and her husband Daniel manage El Remanso) what an awesome couple! We corresponded mainly through emails and once or twice by phone. She went above and beyond to make sure our stay was as pleasant as possible. After I told her exactly what I wanted she made sure I got just that. We would be staying at El Remanso from July 15th until July 19th. After that we would head back north to Arenal and stay at Volcano Lodge for the last two days of our trip before heading home on July 21st. We arrived late Sunday afternoon (weather delays at the airport.) By the way, Adriana arranged all of the details of our trip to Costa Rica, from the flight transfers, to the car rental we booked for our visit to Arenal, even suggesting other places in Costa Rica that we could visit. We were greeted by Gerardo (our nature guide) whom arranged to have our bags delivered to our cabin and walked us down to our room. We stayed at La Vainilla and frankly we fell in love with it from the moment we laid eyes on it. Its the most secluded lodge, at the very end facing the ocean. Our view was right at the tree line and during our stay we had the opportunity to see Howler monkeys, white faced monkeys, toucans, macaws, a sloth and many other animals. Just like you see in the pictures on their website, except it was better in person. Adriana and her husband were waiting to greet us at the main building where all the guest gather for dinner. We went during low-season, (rainy season) we did this on purpose because we wanted to avoid the crowds. Besides us there were only two other couples there. The food was amazing; we were pleasantly surprised with the quality of the food and the exceptional service that we received from the staff. After dinner we headed back to our cabin. I do have to say that the walk down to the lodge was a bit intimidating, there were no lights down the path, (remember you are surrounded by jungle and its pitch black at night.) By the way, dont leave the lights on when it starts to get dark and dont leave the canopy over you bed open! When I got back to our cabin I was welcomed by all the insects of the forest, INSIDE OUR CANOPY! Thats when reality sank in it took a little adjusting on my part but I was good to go the next morning, ready for the insects and everything else the forest had to offer. My husband got a good laugh from that one. We slept great. Obviously you are in the rainforest so the bed feels a little damp but nothing you can't live with. We had the whole cabin to ourselves and decided we would rough it out on the second floor where it was all wide open. No walls or mosquito nets to keep anything out. Downstairs there was a room that was enclosed that we could have used, but we decided against it. I knew what I was getting in to when I made the reservations, and I wanted to make the most of our stay. I forgot my flash light and Adriana lend us two head lamps that we could use to get around. That is the one thing I will not forget next time around, a good flash light. We did three activities while we were there, the zip line, the waterfall rappelling and the horse back riding tour. Unfortunately for me, I confused the zip line with the canopy and so we asked for the zip line thinking it was the canopy. The zip line was nice, we had a great breakfast at the top of the tree, we learned a lot about our surroundings and then we headed back. The truth is I would have much rather done the canopy but like I said, we confused the one with the other and by the time we realized we werent going to another tree, we were already on the plat form having breakfast. Its very clear on the website; we just made a mistake and asked for the wrong thing. We never said anything to Adriana, I knew she would probably try to do something to make up for it but it was not their fault and they had already done so much for us, so we left it alone. The next activity was the waterfall rappelling. LOVED IT LOVED IT LOVED IT!!!! It's a hike, you don't just go to the waterfall right around the corner, you have to get to it. It's a total of 4 waterfalls, from smallest to the largest. We got it all on video, it was amazing. We also took a horse back riding tour through the forest out on to the beach. Breathtaking is all I can really say. We were the only ones on the beach; it was like a scene from a movie. We had the beach all to ourselves. The peace we felt was overwhelming, definitely nature at it's best. One of the things I requested when I arrived was a massage in the forest. Well, it turns out that the masseuse was on vacation. At El Remanso, they have very high expectations of their staff, they don't just use anyone, and they are always looking out for your best interest. For this reason Adriana was hesitant about bringing someone else in she did't know or had not worked with in the past. She was sincerely concerned and wanted everything about our stay to be as perfect as possible. Well, it seems she didn't want me to leave without that massage and on the third day of our stay she surprised me with the news, she had found a masseuse that came highly recommended by Elyer, one of the staff members of El Remanso. Adriana was confident that I would be happy with my massage. She was right. He was super professional and gave me a great massage. The only thing I can honestly say I regret from this whole experience was LEAVING EL REMANSO! We should have never left on the forth day to Arenal. Turns out the volcano never showed through the clouds and the Volcano lodge was just ok compared to our experience at El Remanso. Honestly, I could not enjoy the two days in Arenal because I was thinking about the howler monkeys that would wake us up in the mornings, and the first class view I had every morning when I opened my eyes, I even missed the dark path I had to take every night to my cabin after dinner. I missed everything about El Remanso and still do. We had not left the lodge and we were already planning our next visit. We came back and recommended El Remanso to all our friends and family. El Remanso became our second home in just 4 days. It was a rejuvenating experience, one I will never forget and will always cherish.

PURA VIDA!
Joel and Jennifer Gonzalez

P.S.

FYI: There is a FAQ on their website in which all the most common questions are answered such as; is there electricity? is there air conditioning? what if we have an emergency at home, how can they reach us? is there hot water? what about bugs? The information is out there but it’s up to you to decide what he or she wants or doesn’t want. Do your homework, speak with the owners yourself. After all, that’s what a smart traveler does. Ask questions, read about the area, ask about the activities, ask for a break down of the total cost of your trip prior to your arrival, everything you need to know is on their website, prices and all, but if that is not enough, just drop them an email or give them a call and I’m sure they will go above and beyond to make sure your stay at El Remanso is unforgettable.

I can provide pictures of our stay upon request but you can see the same and/or better pictures by visiting their website:
http://elremanso.com/index.php

The experiences depends on ourselves, what a place or a person wakes in us depends on our attitude, our point of view and character. I will try to summarize my experience in El Remanso, although is difficult to explain such a great experience in little space and for some feelings they are no words. You will have to go there and experience it yourself.

But in my opinion El Remanso is the closest to Paradise in earth I have ever been.
El Remanso is an idyllic place on earth for those who love nature, peace and adventure.

The Nature
Exuberant, in pure state, it is everywhere you look, you feell yourelf direcly in it. Part of it

The Beach
Beautiful, peaceful... it’s difficult to find a long beach with no one. You only will see animals, the hermit crabs who will run as soon as they see you, a white-nosed coati... and that’s it. And of course your company in case you have. Wonderful!!

The Team
Professional, generous, helpful, friendly, passionate about nature and about what they do. This little earthly paradise is managed by a charming young couple who fighted for the ownership of this piece of land to prevent its deforestation by a company. They are conservationist of nature and work hard hand by hand with a nice team of approximately 15 people to offer guests a good service, enjoying it. They are familiar. You will have there intimacy in case you want or you will share with them nice moments, some drinks before dinner for example.

The Food
Here we have to congratulate the cook who is shy of coming out of the kithen to receive congratulations. His food is indeed the best we had in Costa Rica. The restaurant is an beautiful open area

The Cabins
Comfortable, beautiful, clean, with a lot of space. Every night you will have concert of all the spices leaving in the rain forest of Costa Rica. Probably you will have a dreamingful siesta in the hammock of your terrace with nice views and you will wake up discovering a nice animal close to it. In my case I woke up with a streaked-headed wood creeper in the closest tree. The best siesta ever

The activities
Waterfall Rappelling
Great fun, secure, beautiful, experienced and helpful guides. Let yourself get wet by the waterfall, the best shower you can get

Dolphins Tour
What for a such great experience. Dolphins are the best. We had them so close, and you could see in their eyes that they are friendly. Just wanted to jump and hug them. But these people also do this well, no swimming into the water when they are around. It has been proved they get stressed. We don’t want to annoy nature. Perfect. We also saw turtles sunbathing in the sea.

Walking Tour
We did an inspiriting trip by the surroundings with Gerardo, the guide who is a passionate and knows a lot about nature. It will increase your curiosity and fascination of nature for sure.

Attitude
If you love nature, peace, adventure I strongly recommend you to stay there at least four nights in paradise. El Remanso is worth it. They will make your stay as being in the paradise.

I wish that they would be more people doing that job and loving nature so much. With people like them nature will be preserved. Hope that my grand sons see and feel the same as I did, nature in pure state. Spectacular!

Long life to nature, long life to el Remanso and its team. Pura Vida