San Rafael Boutique

Costa Rica , Northern Mountain Zone / Arenal
LA TIGRA, La Tigra San Carlos
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43 reviews shown

10/10

Exceptional

13 Apr 2026

Caroline

The lodge may not look luxurious but the staff make sure you feel like it is. Insuring all your needs are met. The staff were amazing, first class!

All meals were a beautiful presentation and they got to know you and then catered to your tastes. He mad my husband a fresh picante sauce.

We loved the location. We were looking for some conveniences but preferred a non touristy place. It was perfect for the type of trip we wanted.

The sounds of the rainforest surrounds the lodge. We thought it was beautiful!

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

23 Mar 2026

Arun

Clean rooms and friendly staff. La Fortuna is about a 30 min drive. The friendly (Giovanni and Louis) make the drive worth it. We were able to spot sloth from the facility (guess we were lucky). I would definitely recommend it if you are on a budget.

10/10

Exceptional

19 Mar 2026

ABBY

Very warm and welcoming !

Family

10/10

Exceptional

02 Mar 2026

Benjamin

Beautiful Surroundings, saw many sloths on the property. Staff was excellent and we had dinner there 4 nights in a row.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

01 Mar 2026

Samuel

Warm courteous hosts and excellent sloth viewing!

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

27 Feb 2026

Scott

We had a wonderful stay with Giovanni and Luis and were truly impressed by their generosity, kindness, and welcoming spirit. Their hospitality is exceptional, and they were very attentive to guests throughout our visit. From the moment we arrived, we felt more like friends than customers. Giovanni and Luis took time to help us spot wildlife and even walked the grounds with us to look for animals, which made the experience especially memorable. The owners clearly care deeply about their guests and go out of their way to make everyone feel comfortable.

Despite our very full itinerary, which included several very early morning departures and late evening returns, they were completely flexible and accommodating. Nothing ever felt like an inconvenience, and we always felt welcomed whenever we came and went. The accommodations are cozy and set in a beautiful natural environment. The setting feels peaceful and authentic — it is non-commercial and much more tranquil than La Fortuna, which made it a perfect place to relax and enjoy the quieter side of Costa Rica.

One of the highlights of our stay was being surrounded by wildlife right on the property. We saw slots and red-eyed tree frogs during our visit, which made the experience feel truly special. Staying here felt like being immersed in nature while still enjoying comfortable accommodations. We would gladly stay here again and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a warm, attentive, and nature-filled experience.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

23 Feb 2026

Jon Pierce

My family & I (husband, 2 boys ages 11 & 15) stayed at the San Rafael Ecolodge for 7 nights in mid February. We had never stayed in such a place before & had an absolutely wonderful time! The dinning & common areas are all open-air yet very cozy. The food is freshly made to order & is so delicious! There is numerous wildlife to see right there at the ecolodge too! We saw a Sloth, Yellow-throated Toucan, Motmot Parrot, Red-eyed Tree Frogs, Plumed Basilisk Lizard & a House Gecko! The 3 people who run the ecolodge (Giovanni the owner, Luis & Elisabeth) are terrific! They are very accommodating & their hospitality is above & beyond! Giovanni had said to me \" Tara, this is now your home.\" And by the end of our stay, we most certainly felt that way! We highly recommend staying at the San Rafael Ecolodge & would definitely go back!

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

17 Feb 2026

gary

Courteous staff

Self

10/10

Exceptional

11 Feb 2026

Vaibhav

Giovanni and Luis are great hosts, very helpful, welcoming and accomodating throughout my stay. Excellent service, clean rooms and beautiful views all around. Would highly recommend and visit again!

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

11 Feb 2026

Paul

Everything was excellent, the hostess, room, food and the view. Will definitely come back when visiting San Jose,

10/10

Exceptional

14 Jan 2026

Darlene

Giovanni and Luis were most welcoming. Even Tor was wondering.
An oasis in the jungle. Even with a family of sloths.

Puts Vida

Self

10/10

Exceptional

09 Jan 2026

Evan

This is the best possible place to stay in Costa Rica! Not only because of the great location in the rainforest, all the sloths on the property, and great facilities, but mostly because the hosts Giovanni and Luis run the best lodge in the country. They will go the extra mile to make sure you are comfortable and treat you like family! They also cook the best food I’ve ever had in Costa Rica. 11/10!

Leisure Self

10/10

Exceptional

06 Jan 2026

Karl

The property was in the forest saw a sloth, frogs, toucan.
Giovani and Louis were just outstanding with everything helping with where to go great breakfast and lunch showing us all the critters at night it was one of the best experiences so far on our trip

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

03 Jan 2026

Paola

Little gem in the forest! The property is very clean and well maintained. Very relaxing. Our room had no space for clothes, but we managed.
We had dinner there and the food was great.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

03 Jan 2026

Matthew

Giovanni and Luis were fantastic, warm and welcoming hosts. Their attention to our needs was second to none, and the breakfasts were excellent! I recommend anyone traveling to the Fortuna area, looking to get a bit more into nature, consider their ecolodge the first choice. You won’t be disappointed!

10/10

Exceptional

03 Jan 2026

Nisha

Amazing experience

Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

30 Dec 2025

Peter

It was a true pleasure staying at San Rafael Ecolodge. We enjoyed the homemade food, natural environment (where we spotted a baby sloth), pool, and proximity to La Tigra and surrounding sights. Giovanni's hospitality, as well as all the hotel staff, including Luis and the talented chef, was above and beyond what we could have expected. We stayed for two nights as apart of our honeymoon—our only regret was not staying longer.

Partner

10/10

Exceptional

30 Dec 2025

Amy

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay at San Rafael Ecolodge. The 2 bedroom villa we stayed in was perfect for us and was accessible. We could park right by our door. We saw toucans, lots of birds, blue jeans dart frogs, a baby sloth, and more on the property. We felt comfortable and at home. It is a peaceful place. It was really perfect for us. The sofa on our back porch overlooking the jungle was a highlight of our trip. We sat there each morning looking and listening for birds. The food was good. The location is central to many activities/places. We look forward to returning!

8/10

Excellent

28 Dec 2025

Shankar

Nice quiet offbeat location, away from the hustle bustle of La Fortuna. The downside being, u r 40-45min away from most activities. Rooms we were nice & clean with each cilla/apartment having a nice private outdoor sitting space. The staff was extremely courteous treating you more like family than guest. There us a small strwam running through the property. So the sound of running water amidst the dense green canopy gives the full feel of rainforest.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

25 Dec 2025

Damodar

We had great time. Giovani and luise are very caring. We were lucky enough to see armadillo from our patio. It is an Ecolodge and is surrounded by woods. It is in La tiagra and is about 30 min drive to get in to La Fortuna.
In San Rafael the breakfast area is ery nice with pool and wood view. It itself looks like a bird and animal sanctuary.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

18 Dec 2025

Antony

This place is worth going to. It was absolutely beautiful and very clean. It deserves a 5 stars! The owners were very friendly and I’m glad I stayed there.

10/10

Exceptional

03 Dec 2025

Tracey

This is a charming resort. Luis and Giovanni were gracious, welcoming, and helpful! They pointed out several attractions. We very much enjoyed our stay and recommend this location.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

09 Apr 2025

Ines

Such a quiet place where you can really enjoy nature. Staff was wonderful, all of them were very friendly and kind. Delicious food. With no doubt I recommend this place.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

20 Jan 2025

rachel

Peaceful retreat in La Tigra. Giovanni and Luis are the nicest people you are likely to meet. Even when we had a middle of the night emergency, they handled it with such grace and care. Their lodge is clean, quiet and the restaurant serves fresh delicious local food. Each morning staff would take the time to show us where the local sloth was hanging out in the property trees. La Tigra is small and quiet, and a bit of a drive from La Fortuna, but the roads are good and we felt it worth it to stay in such a peaceful area. There are also several local sights very close by that are also worth visiting. We had a well appointed suite with twin beds for the children, double for us and a kitchen/lounge area. Very comfortable stay. We'd love to visit again.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

30 Dec 2024

Azalia M

Lindo hotel, buena gente

Tuve un buen tiempo con el hotel. Giovanni me ayudo escoger los mejores que visitar, y Elisabeth fue bien amable con lo que necesitaba. Fue un placer quedarme aqui.

8/10

Excellent

05 Aug 2024

Sean

Hosts were super nice and helpful, the area was beautiful and very clean. They have the cutest dog who is super friendly well trained and loves to play. The pool was very clean. House was nice, but the bathroom door in the house we stayed at was very hard to close. There was also a hole where a lizard crawled through. Didn’t both us much though because besides that the place and hosts were lovely and we had a great stay!

Leisure Family

8/10

Excellent

21 Feb 2024

Kerry

Wonderful staff, extremely hospitable and helpful. Great food; we ate breakfast and dinner there. So nice to hear the river and the wildlife at night, just outside the hotel. A little far removed from the main town of La Fortuna (took about half an hour to get there) but that suited us fine.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

19 Feb 2024

Martin

Giovanni and his staff were terrific.

10/10

Exceptional

15 Nov 2023

Victor

Great stay about 30 min drive from busy and touristy La Fortuna town. The hosts were phenomenal: accommodating, friendly, everything was taken care of. Great homemade food! What a wonderful stay, will return in the future for sure.

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

21 Aug 2023

Daniel

Hospitality is a top priority here. All our wishes were immediately fulfilled by Giovanni and his staff, whether it was about eating or laundry. The apartment had everything it needed, everything was very clean and the beds were comfortable. The location is quiet, the garden beautiful and supermarkets are nearby. Me and my daughters would come back any time.

Leisure Family

6/10

Pleasant

25 Mar 2022

Michael

Just be aware it is not air conditioned, which is not needed but some Americans might feel they need that. It was comfortable, people were so kind and the place was super clean. it is in the rain forest area, the beauty is beyond belief. Great food was served. Overall I would give a high score but with how most rate it would be a 3 because of everything they want. If you want to get away, and relax and not deal, well come here, lay back and let go.

Business_and_leisure Family_with_children

10/10

Exceptional

07 Mar 2022

Gary

I'm not one to overpraise and, frankly, I'm wary of overly-positive reviews. But SR Ecolodge exceeded all expectations. Splendid location, superb family-type service, away from the crowd. Couldn't be happier. Thank you Giovani and Louis!

Leisure Partner

10/10

Exceptional

28 Dec 2019

Verified traveler

What a delightful experience and stay at Villas San Rafael. The love of being a host exudes from Giovanni. Both he and Luis are so hospitable and are on site 24/7 to make sure you have the most pleasant experience possible. Giovanni loves cooking and his meals are prepared with joy. No need to worry about eating, they can do it all here. Our family loved staying there and enjoying the pool, nature & warm showers....yes, they have hot showers! This place is perfect for families and groups, and designed so well that you can stay outdoors & still enjoy nature while it’s raining. Villas San Rafael is also close enough to enjoy all the activities around Arenal. Luis can book excursions for you. My nine year-old gives them 5 Stars!

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

13 Apr 2019

Verified traveler

Crickets and cicadas and frogs! The most beautiful jungle symphony every day around happy hour!

Business_and_leisure

4/10

Poor

31 May 2018

Verified traveler

The villas are located about

8/10

Excellent

08 May 2026

Alba

El menú bastante bueno, el personal excelente, espacio social muy agradable.Habitación limpia; sugiero ventilación para evitar humedad.

10/10

Exceptional

16 Apr 2024

Gwendal

Excellent place, super services

Giovanni and Luis are super welcoming, helpful and flexible. Their place is really unique in the region, quiet and confortable. We truly enjoyed our stay at San Rafael.

Friends_and_family Family

8/10

Excellent

14 Mar 2023

Martins

Un petit détour en allant vers la Fortuna…
Un endroit paisible et reposant avec un accueil très attentionné et chaleureux de la part de Giovanni et Luiz.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

27 Jul 2022

Juan Manuel

a mi familia y a mi nos gusto mucho el hotel en todos los aspectos, el señor Giovanny es un gran anfitrión.

Friends_and_family Family

10/10

Exceptional

21 Feb 2022

Yaritza

Excelente lugar para pasar en familia un servicio muy limpio y amables recomendado .