Lavas del Arenal

It was 4 of us, young guys, looking for adventure and fun in Costa Rica! We were not looking for 5 star resort, so this hotel for the price and description was the best match and we did not get disappointed. Hotel located in a small quite place, away from the city center(but 5 minutes by car), has nice backyard with bbq aria, pool and little river coming […] running from the mountains, very peaceful! all you need after long day full of attractions. And sure this hotel would not much different from the others, if not the owner!!! Thank You a lot!! He made our stay amazing. He speaks good English, he recommended the best attraction to go, helped us to get discount prices, gave us the ride around the town just for little fuel charge, brought us to fresh market, so we could get the meet and veggies for BBQ, helped to rent a car, etc. If you are the first time visitor - I definitely will recommend this hotel for everyone. If I ever go to La Fortuna again, I'll stay there. Once again, if you are looking for the nice, warm atmosphere and not for 5star resort with 50'' flat screen TV - this is the place to go! Thank You, Mario! Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

We absolutely loved our stay at Lavas de Arenal!! Mario the owner is a truley wonderful host! Accomadations were great and Being fed a daily breakfast was awesome; fresh fruit, juice, and the rice and beans w/eggs was to die for! Mario and his people do their utmost to insure your comfort not just at the hotel, but for you ventures out and about in […] Fortuna. He is very knowledgeable and can get some great deals on area attractions. This was our first Trip to Costa Rica and of all the places we visited during our 14 days we enjoyed this place the most!! My wife and I are already planning our next trip to CR and we will stay here again, we feel not only comfortable here but also feel as though we made a dear friend in a matter of days. Thanks Mario!! Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Friendly people. A little out of the way, but it is affordable.

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Wonderful place to stay just outside of La Fortuna. Comfortable and clean. All the staff are very warm and welcoming! Mario, the owner/manager, gave us great advice on what sites to see and helped coordiate activities, even giving us better rates at some sites. He also recommended some great restaurants, including a tilapia farm down the road, which […] serves the best tilapia I've ever had. The breakfast and coffee in the morning are fresh and delicious. Highly recommend it! Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

Great little hideaway with even greater staff (Mario the owner is the best). We had an awesome time and I would definitely recommend this place to any couple who is planning a trip to Arenal.

Genuine Expedia guest review

Nice small hotel, with swimming pool. Outside dinning area, that is open to the surroundings on 2 sides. New rooms under constrution, but they weren't noisy while doing it. The owner was very friendly and helpful.

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

The hotel owner, Mario gave us so many great ideas we changed our plans and stayed 4 nights instead of 1. He taught us about the country, set up tours, and even helped us find a church in a neighboring city. He speaks perfect English, has lived in the US for years. The grounds are amazing with beautiful landscaping, frogs, and lots of birds. Couldn't […] have been happier with the service we received! Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

The owners are so helpful with locals places to go. They gave us the best palces to eat, and events to go to at the BEST prices.

Genuine Expedia guest review

This hotel was a bit out of the way from the other hotels, but was by no means far from the main attractions. If you are expecting something up to American standards, you will be disappointed, but this hotel was clean and had nice grounds and a good breakfast. Odd shower. All-in-all it was okay.

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

This is a 5-star hotel in my opinion. I went here with my boyfriend for a few days during the rainy season. The hotel has a picturesque setting, with the little creek running right through the back, numerous fruit trees and a very nice swimming pool. The rooms were very comfortable with private showers, TVs with cable, and AC. The complementary breakfast […] was delicious and filling. The grounds are really well kept and very nice, with a little garden, banana and other fruit trees. The best part of this hotel is the owner/manager. He speaks great English, had plenty of advice for activities and restaurants in the area, made reservations for us to do a nature walk/zipline tour, gave us directions, and chatted with us over breakfast every morning. He even picked fresh fruit for us off of the trees and would leave it on our car or by our hotel door so that we could take some with us for our day's adventures. We were sad to leave Lavas del Arenal, but we definitely want to return there some day! Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

The staff was informative, attentive, friendly. It was clean, green sks beautiful grounds.

Genuine Expedia guest review

good and clean rooms, friendly atmosphere and democratic price))))))

Genuine Expedia guest review

I personally loved staying here . The grounds are beautiful . Rooms clean . The pool was wonderful . Easy access to town and the attractions around the volcano . The owners are wonderful people speak fluent English . Told me best places to eat , hike , swim and more . I can't wait to come back to this place next year . Great comfortable atmosphere here […] . I highly reccomend staying here and will be telling all my travel friends about it . Pura vida !! Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Very nice stay all the fruit was straight off the tree in the first few minutes I was there I was drinking a coconut eating a papaya, mango, and banana. The river behind us was relaxing and when the night cleared up you can see the starry night very well, I almost forgot to mention a very great view of Arenal and only a few minutes drive to stores and […] tours. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

The service was excellent. The very friendly owner helped us in every way he could have, offering rides, a gorgeous view of nature, a clean pool and room, delicious breakfast, and some great advice. I would definitely stay there again and recommend it to anyone. It's a quick drive to the nearby hot springs, downtown, and the volcano. It's quiet, comfortable, […] and beautiful. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Rosa and Ever made our vacation a very memorable one. They went out of their way to make it special for our family and other guests to make sure they were comfortable and welcomed. Wonderful people and I was crying when we had to leave. Our kids still talk about them like we knew them for long time.

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Room was so dark (three lights) and they couldn't find a bulb to replace the third light. No ice machine, the air condition wasn't sufficient enough to cool the room, very hot at night and hotter during the day. No TV. Two inch gap under front door, used towel to keep out creatures. Breakfast were good and the personal were very helpful with bookin […] gs. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

We stayed in the hotel two nights and we enjoyed to be isolated in a very quite and pleasent place surrounded by nature of Costa Rica.

Genuine Expedia guest review

This is a very basic hotel, something like the old strip motels in the U.S. that are now booked by transients. There is no way to ventilate the room without opening the door. We rejected the first room offered in a dark cubbyhole. But there are 2 good restaurants in La Fortuna 7km away.

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Lavas del Arenal is an ok place to stay, but it's not close to anything. If you had a car, it would be ok. The main road has no shoulder for walking on. It costs about $8 each time you want to go into town. The room is decent and clean, but nothing special. The wifi worked good. The breakfast was fine, usually eggs and rice/beans. The grounds were decent, […] and the pool looked ok. When we first arrived, we looked around outside and found some smoldering embers out back from some garbage that was being burnt. The staff at the front desk were friendly and helpful. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Clean, no bugs The pool was out of order.... The breakfast was great. The staff was very friendly.

Genuine Expedia guest review

Its a basic hotel. But very quite location by a stream. You have to have a car to get here - only 4 km from Arenal downtown. Also if you do not speak Spanish you will have a tough time as the staff/ owner knows no English.

Genuine Expedia guest review

shower must be renovate, garden was well, the pool was a little bit dirty

Genuine Expedia guest review

First when I was getting there I thought oh my god, did I pick a wrong place? But after 3 days I did not want to leave Lavas del Arenal. I wish I owned this place :) My stay was great. Free and good breakfast. Very friendly service. I will stay here again. The road to Lavas del Arenal isnt paved but not a big worry for me as I went in summer. I liked […] the place and the family owning it. If you are interested in birds, you'll be surprised by the number of different birds you see in Lavas del Arenal. For the first time in my life I woke up to the sound of birds in the morning. I enjoyed staying here. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

If you want to save money in La Fortuna, stay in a hostel. Lavas del Aranal had 3 major flaws: 1) Location- it is a $10 taxi ride to La Fortuna. The owner did have an illegal taxi driver who would take you for $6. The taxi-boat-taxi driver didn't want to take us to the hotel because it was too far. It's located on a farm, and there aren't any sites […] our restaurants within walking distance. 2) Language barrier- the husband and wife owners do not speak any English. It's their country, so that's their prerogative. But if you do not speak Spanish, it is almost impossible to communicate. 3) It's DIRTY- our bedsheets were bloody and soiled. She did come and replace them (it was after 9). I enjoyed their April 2000 issue of Modern Home while she changed the sheets. There were large spider webs on the bathroom doors, and the mirror was not lined up over the sink. The window AC unit was very loud, and there were two blue cutout signs covering a window to prevent sunlight from entering. There is no tv, and the wifi didn't work. The grounds were pretty nice. There was a large garden with a banana tree, picnic tables and lots of wildlife. They also have a pool. And while I didn't understand a word they said, the owners were quite friendly and tried to be accommodating. That said, it was very spartan, and WAY overpriced. We reserved two nights, but decided to eat the cost and stay someplace clean our last night in Costa Rica. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Loved the hospitality of the owners, breakfast prepared and served alfresco, pool, garden setting and rope swing. They even brought me fresh cocoanut milk when I got sick. The location was perfect..just 5 km from Fortuna, so more serene but yet close to restaurants, etc. For the value, I would rate it 4+ stars. If there was a ceiling fan and cross ventilation […] in the room, I would give it 5*. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Thought I was in a Motel 6 without television. Then the DNS from the wifi site didn't respond, so we couldn't use the computer. Then we had to ask the manager to spray the ants who were coming in the front door. Then we had to obtain ice from the office in a dish. The ice melted before we could use it all because the refridgerator had no freezer. The […] pool looked inviting until we realized it was filthy. The breakfast was cold rice and beans with over cooked eggs.The butter for the toast arrived after the toast was half eaten. I could go on and on................. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Location is unfortunate, price is good though. Lighting is terrible. There is no place to sit or read or place anything in the room. Table and two seats outside though. Pool is nice, chaise lounges are nice. Nice creek. Good view of La Arenal from the back yard. Was sort of difficult without a car but we enjoyed the silence and the natural surrounding; […] preferred it to the town, and we had some nice times in town just sitting at a cafe. Convenient enough to everything. Mario fixed us up with a cable day but it was an hour out of town, so we cancelled it and found a perfectly good one right on the road to town, over the Cataractas, the big falls. Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

If you are coming to Costa Rica to enjoy a real adventure this is the place for sure. Next to a reserve you will have the opportunity to observe all kind of beautiful birds, including toucans which come to the hotel trees to eat as they are attracted by all of the different trees and beautiful gardens the owners maintain every day. The swimming pool […] is located next to trees and makes it the perfect place to relax. There is a small stream where you can swim. The breakfast is great, rice and beans, eggs, toasts, coffee, orange juice, fruits. This is a great value for the price and the best it is quit. The owner speak little English but they have Gabriela and Mario over the phone at any time who speak English and help with tours or anything else related to the hotel. The rooms are of a good size. About the hot water, you just need to learn how it works. The less pressure the hotter the water will come, but they do have hot water. According to Gabriel they are in the process of replacing their hot water system into a Solar Water Heater which will be a lot better. They offer free wireless internet. You have good space for parking also and it is free compared to some hotels in La Fortuna which will charge you to park in their property. Ligia and Gabriel will go the extra mile to make sure you feel home and I really appreciate the extra help and the great treatment I received from them. Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

It is not a luxury hotel, but for the price great deal. Outstanding service. Great with kids.

Genuine Expedia guest review

Very nice owner who is willing to go above and beyond to help us with our stay. There's a little stream running from the backyard of the area which is very pleasant. The location is a little bit far out from the town center, but close to all the water activities.

Genuine Expedia guest review

clean and adequate. Friendly staff, but communication is difficult if you don't speak Spanish. Somewhat out of the way and can be hard to find initially, especially if you arrive after dark. Generally, a good value for the price.

Genuine Expedia guest review

Lavas Del Arenal is a very pleasant hotel we stayed at. It was a bit far from town but the hostess would call you a cab whenever needed. It costs roughly about $10 us dollars or about 4,000 colones. The room was spacious although there was no television but I didn't mind that at all. Free wifi made up for that. Breakfast in the morning was also very […] good. Everyone was nice and I would stay here again. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Owners are nice, rooms are clean, but they have problem with the wires in the shower. Wire insulations for water heater made so sloppy, so when I took a shower it started to burn. Safety wise to be in the shower is quite risky

Genuine Expedia guest review

The staff were pleasant enough, and helpful when it came to transportation. But, the room had a dingy and depressing feeling due to the bad lighting. It's the kind of room you only want to sleep in and then leave as quickly as possible in the morning. The location is pretty far from the city center, which is ok if you have a car, or don't mind taking […] a taxi. I recommend spending a bit more money to stay in the center or in a nicer place. Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

Thanks to our host we had an amazing stay in Costa Rica. Lekia runs the place and does so with warmth, easy and a real spirit of graceful hospitality. She welcomed us in every way possible and really makes you feel like you are her guest at her home, from cooking breakfast to us, part of the hotel package, to calling us outside to see the toucan eating […] from a papaya tree on the property. On two evenings we used her kitchen and BBQ facilities to cook dinner. She cooked us rice and she and her sister even joined us to talk story and enjoy the evening. She booked us all of our activities, offering great advice on what we should do and which tours to go on to get the best experience. The location of the hotel may not be directly in the center of the city but it is well worth it to stay slightly outside. It is a short ride and most of the tour companies will pick you up and take you to sites. The property is large, with very few rooms, so you really get the run of the place. We saw several toucans and humingbirds while we were there and got to study many of the local plants and flowers. Last but not least, she even let us use her poncho when we went on a hike to rio celeste, and it was raining. Thank you Lekia for a wonderful stay at Lavas del Arenal! Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

My wife, daughter and I stayed here for three nights starting Feb. 18th and loved it. Mario is the best and will help you with anything you need, make a point of meeting his father in law he is a very nice man who loves Canadian's!

Genuine Expedia guest review

The hotel is hard to find and way to far from the centre of town or anything else if you are on foot

Genuine Expedia guest review

We arrived to find the room neat and tidy with the towels made into a heart shape adorned by a flower. The room was well equiped with a fridge, microwave and coffee maker. The rooms are in a lovely garden that are frequented by lots of birds and butterflies. The breakfasts are great and if you just sit outside you can see lots of wildlife (keel billed […] toucan and chestnut mandibled toucan amongst others). We took a stroll up the road in the morning and saw lots of wildlife. There is a small shop a short distance away. If I have one comment it would be that it is a little awkward if you don't have a car we paid about 4,000 Colon ($8 approx) for a taxi from town, however in our case that slight inconvenience was outweighed by the owners helpfulness and it's lovely position. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

My husband, adult daughter and I stayed here together. We absolutely loved everything, especially the beautiful yard and wildlife that showed up there. Lots and lots of toucans, unusual frogs and many other beautiful birds and butterflies. A gardeners paradise, thats for sure. The owners were helpful in organizing tours and the breakfast they provided […] was not only delicious, but had a personal touch too. We would go back in a heartbeat. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

This is a good bed and breakfast hotel. The care taker or lady that runs the hotel does not speak english but will try her best to help you with whatever you need. They can call taxis and also sell tours around the La Fortuna area. The taxi ride to La Fortuna is around 4000 Colognes but ask her to call you a taxi and negotiate the price and it will […] be lower. The taxi drivers give tourists much higher prices than they do to locals. What I did not like about the hotel was the water pressure in the shower, the shower head has a heater in it so you have to keep the water running at very low pressure to make sure it gets warm, I did not know how to use the shower and noone told me so until I figured this out I took cold showers for the first two days staying there and got sick. The room is great, nice layout, nice and clean and excellent mattress which you will not find around in Costa Rica places to sleep. The owner also woke up earlier than usual to make me breakfast as my tour bus was picking me up before the regular time and also cooked me dinner one night for $10, kind of pricey but she has to make money too. All in all a good place to stay would definitely stay again. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

The owners of the motel are kind and willing to assist where they can. The location is just outside of la Fortuna with quite and relaxing surroundings, near a running stream in a well maintained garden

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Dingy room, uncomfortable bed, plastic sheet on the mattress, towels like sandpaper, AC sounded like it had a motor attached so could not have it on while in the room, didn't sleep very much for 2 nights because the room was hot and the plastic sheet "scrunched" everytime I turned, wires coming from the shower, water not hot, curtain rail fell on my […] head when I tried to draw the curtains, very sorry I pre-booked 2 nights, could not wait to leave! Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

Un hotel para descansar silencioso y de clima agradable. La pasamos excelente. Lo recomiendo a las personas que quieren disfrutar de las bellezas de San Carlos y pagar un hotel a precios nacionales.

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Eine sehr schöne Bungalowanlage in einem tropischem Garten mit einem Pool und einem schönem Restaurantbereich. Außerdem gibt es eine Grillhütte und direkt dahinter einen kleinen Fluß. Unser Zimmer war ausgestattet mit einer Kaffemaschine, einer Mikrowelle und einem Kühlschrank. Die ganze Anlage war sehr sauber. Der Eigentümer war sehr freundlich und […] immer hilfsbereit, genauso auch sein Personal. Wir haben fast jeden Abend gegrillt und haben dazu alles Notwendige erhalten. Außerdem gab es das Beste Frühstück auf unserer ganzen Reise mit Gallo Pinto und Toast mit selbstgemachter Marmelade. Wir haben über den Besitzer zwei Ausflüge gebucht, einmal zum "Baldi´s Hot Springs" und eine Bootstour zum Cano Negro. Beide waren wunderschön und wurden uns empfohlen. Wir werden den nächsten Urlaub nochmals hier verbringen. Read more

Genuine Expedia guest review

The hotel is a bit far away from Fortuna and the activities. We did not have a car so that was a bit of a problem although you could always use a taxi. In fact, it might anyway be best to rent a car anyway when you are in Arenal because the activities may be quite a distance away from each other. The room was fairly basic although we had a superior […] room. The superior here means that you have an extra bed for a third person. The room did not feel good for us. It was a bit run-down, smelled of cleaning liquids (which is good I suppose) and the shower was a bit dodgy (water+electrical wiring gives me creeps). However, the host took extra efforts to please the guests and make them feel welcome. Whatever you needed, he tried to provide it. He was always available. So, a bit mixed feelings: at best an average hotel but the host provided an exceptional service. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

If you have a car, this is the place to stay. We did not and still stayed for four days, booking one day at a time. The hotel is about 6-8 kilometers outside of la fortuna. It has a nice pool, beautiful nature, all kinds of fruit trees in the garden, birds of all kinds just next to where you have breakfast, wifi all around the property and nice clean […] rooms with bathroom and shower. A brekfast is included that is good and sufficient for the average guest. A good typical costa rican dinner is prepared if you ask for it, but there is no menu. Mario and Ever, the main guys working here, were exceptionally friendly and helpful. They helped us mostly with all kinds of information, and of course tourbooking etc. But other than that we had conversations about anything and we really felt at home when we came back from our tours. And one of the best parts was the nature experience, I think we saw as much smaller wildlife in the picturesque hotel garden as we did on any tour we were on around arenal. And almost no traffic on the tiny road outside the hotel, witch means no noise except from the birds. ONE DOWNSIDE: The distance from la Fortuna makes restaurant visits a bit tricky. With a car there is no problem, but otherwise a taxi is needed wich is pretty expensive, around 10 dollars in each direction when we write this. Read more

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

Disfrutamos mucho nuestra estancia en Lavas del Arenal en La Fortuna. Las instalaciones son muy agradables, los jardines estan muy bien cuidados, el servicio es magnifico, el desayuno es riquisimo y abundante, la atencion al cliente es excelente y la calidad en el servicio es superior. Definitivamente recomendado!

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

EXCELENTE , LOS PROPIETARIOS MUY ATENTOS , EL TRATO EXCELENTE, TODO MUY BIEN

Genuine Hotels.com guest review

el hotel es lindo, acogedor, un problema es el aire acondicionado que suena fuertísimo, tuvimos que apagarlo durante las noches. Pero en general recomendadísimo. Importante ir en carro, pues no queda a walking distance de ningún lugar...

Genuine Hotels.com guest review