My wife and I stayed at La Colina in March 2012. Our room was small and had two beds headboard to headboard crammed into it. We believe one of the beds was taken from the room next door which was being worked on. There is no wifi on the premises. The description said that a chef was on staff and that breakfast, lunch, and dinner were offered. There was no chef, no meals except breakfast, and breakfast was eggs, toast, and fruit. The ceiling paint was peeling badly, and there wasn't even a chair in the room. The lighting was poor. It wasn't a room that you would want to spend any time in. Downstairs in the dining area, there were several cats and dogs roaming about freely, even on the tables. If you're allergic to animals, stay away! The hot water in the shower was nice!

The location is pretty far from town and walking was difficult at night. It was close to the cheese factory, the Quaker school, a cafe, and a few other things.

Nanci, the owner, was friendly. She lives in another area on the premises and was generally unavailable. One night, a door somewhere nearby was banging open and shut loadly every 15 seconds or so on a windy night. I had to get up in the middle of the night to figure out where this door was and find a way to secure it.

We asked Nanci about whether it was safe to keep an ipad in the room. She said that she was "pretty sure" that the cleaning lady wouldn't steal from us. She offered to hide our valuables for us. This is not very reassuring.

We were not expecting an elaborate room for the price of our room at La Colina. However, we expected something that we would be somewhat comfortable in. We weren't. It is among the worst rooms that we have ever stayed in. We would not recommend it to others.

We stayed here in January 2012. We expected it to be basic and have been used to basic hostels on our travels around the world but La Colina was beyond basic. Here is a summary of our stay.
- The sheets were dirty and damp and smelled incredibly strongly of wet dog. It was disgusting to sleep in the bed for even one night
- the breakfast was horrible, I am not sure how they managed to make eggs taste as bad as they did
- the restaurant and rooms were dirty and the windows and doors were not secure.
- it was far away from the center of town and unless you had a car it would be very isolated
- the service was average and not very well organised

This hostel is cheaper than some others we found but for $45 a night the quality of room was not acceptable when we found one that was so much better just up the road for just $65 a night. The only positive was that the shower was hot - I needed it after sleeping in that bed.

So, if you are looking for all modern conveniences and a stuffy staff this is not your place. It is like visiting an eccentric favorite aunt in her old house full of fascinating stuff and interesting stories.

First of all, the rooms are small but clean, and decorated in a wild array of colors and patterns. You can stay in the rooms above the main hall or in the small lower building. We stayed in the 'yellow' room which, in addition to the yellow walls, had polka dots, zigzag patterns, a down-home wardrobe for clothes, and handmade furniture in fun zigzags and dowels and whatnot in the bathroom.

Nanci, the owner, is friendly and funny and makes you feel like part of the family. Her dogs (even more random breed mixes than the usual random breeds roaming Costa Rica) and kids (typical American teens) are around and everyone is helping out. There was a big community dinner when we were there, with a really nice Thai meal cooked by a friend of Nanci's, and we were invited. We also went to a meeting at the Quaker meeting house across the street which, again, gave us a real sense of the community. Monteverde's history is bound up in the local Quaker community, and La Colina is part of that history as it was built by one of the early founders of the community.

Nanci is a gem - over and over again she made things easy for us by calling taxis, giving inside tips on where to go, etc., and in fact she saved our bacon when we got to the bus station in Sta Elena to ride back to catch our flight home from San Jose - only to discover the last bus of the day was full. Nanci contacted a taxi friend who drove us the 4 hrs to the airport for well below the going cost and then refused a tip.

The place does need upkeep and Nanci seems to have that in hand. While we were there she was repainting rooms, rebuilding doors, replanting gardens and generally spiffing everything. I certainly will go back there if I return to Costa Rica. Especially after a really unpleasant stay at Tabacon resort in Arenal, I found La Colina a very grounding and restoring place.

This artful lodge has bright colors, beautiful mosaics, and a lovely porch to enjoy the birds and fireflies from. The wooden accents add to the overall cozy feel of the place. Since it is up the road a ways from town it is quieter especially at night. The downside of this is that it is far from internet and restaurants as well, so keep that in mind if you do not have a car. The rooms also don't have access to a kitchen or fridge so prepping you own food isn't an option. Some websites advertised the attached restaurant, but they unfortunately only serve breakfast (which was delicious).
This lodge is roughly mid way between St Elena and the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve. You can walk to either along the road, but it is quite a distance and the narrow road has many motorbikes cutting the corners close and large buses.
Most evenings were pleasant but the kids of the owner tended to use the common area as their personal living room, which was awkward and noisy. I felt like I was intruding if I entered or needed to ask a question of the owner.
All together this is a quaint lodge that is evolving into something special.