Our recent trip to Costa Rica included a few days in the La Fortuna area. La Fortuna is a lush jungle paradise about 3 hours northwest of San Jose, Costa Rica. Top things to do in La Fortuna include the famous Arenal Volcano, relaxing hot springs, gorgeous waterfalls, and adventurous activities like ziplining and white water rafting. Since this was a celebration trip, we knew we wanted to stay somewhere a bit more luxurious than a typical hotel, and we wanted to try a jungle villa. After doing some research we ended up booking our stay at Amor Arenal in La Fortuna. Amor Arenal is an adults friendly boutique resort featuring jungle villas with views of Arenal Volcano, private plunge pools, and hot springs at the resort.
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Getting to Amor Arenal
We flew into San Jose Airport and then took a private shuttle from San Jose to Amor Arenal. You can drive there as well if you are in the area, but driving in Costa Rica can be a bit tricky and you’ll often need to rent a 4×4 due to the terrain.
Amor Arenal Welcome Experience
Upon arrival we were greeted by the resort’s friendly staff who helped us check in and provided us with snacks and refreshments. The resort is nestled in the jungle and is surrounded by lush greenery, so we were surrounded by beautiful views. After getting an overview of the resort and its amenities we were taken to our villa by golf cart!
Amor Arenal Jungle Villas
When we arrived at our private villa, what awaited was beyond our wildest dreams. The villas are absolutely massive, and have beautiful interiors with vaulted ceilings, hardwood floors, and panoramic floor to ceiling windows that provide a private jungle escape. The villas have the option of a king bed or 2 queen beds available to book. It was truly a tropical sanctuary!
Jungle Villa Private Pool
The icing on the cake is the private heated plunge pool fed by mineral springs on the deck. The pool is totally private, hidden from view of the surrounding villas and has lights so you can even take a dip in the dark. The plunge pool also has a direct view of the volcano on a clear day, making it the perfect place to relax. Even though we visited during the rainy season, we got lucky and were able to see the volcano most mornings since the rain mostly occurred in the late afternoon. When it did rain later in the day, we still took a dip since the pool is heated so it was a nice combination of refreshing cool rain and the heated water in the pool!
Note: not every villa has a direct view of the volcano, so be sure to check when booking!
How is the Service at Amor Arenal?
The service at the resort was spectacular. Chocolate dipped dried oranges and assorted chocolates were waiting in our villa when we arrived. Our stay also included one complimentary mini bar stock with kombucha, sangria, soda, and Costa Rican beer. We also received two free drinks at the pool bar as part of our stay. Wifi was complimentary and a smart TV was available in the room. Evening turn down service was also available in addition to regular housekeeping. The resort staff were also incredibly attentive, helpful, and friendly and overall helped make our stay a wonderful experience.
Amor Arenal Amenities
The amenities at Amor Arenal were also top notch. The resort includes several pools with lounging chairs and there were pretty much always chairs available since it’s a smaller resort. However, the chairs are not cushioned, so it isn’t super comfortable to lounge all day long. Since you are in the rainforest, you also won’t get a lot of sun, so if you are looking to work on your tan you likely won’t have much luck!
There is also hot spring pool with a swim up bar to relax in with a drink, the perfect way to end the day. Part of the wet bar is covered, so it’s fun to grab a drink there even if it’s raining! The drinks ranged from $15-$20, so they’re more on the expensive side, but the quality was good and the experience was great.
The resort also features multiple hiking trails ranging from relaxing to intense for those who want to explore the outdoors.
While we didn’t get a chance to take advantage of the spa, they offer several wellness experiences including massages, facials, body scrubs and wraps, and more. They also have an outdoor meditation room with views of the jungle.
The resort also has a gym with cardio and weight equipment (although we didn’t use it since we were exhausted from our hikes around La Fortuna and the volcano!)
The Food at Amor Arenal
The resort’s main restaurant is El Rancho, which infuses its international cuisine with a bold Latin American twist. It also features a direct view of the volcano and lush rainforest. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner and also have a bar.
Breakfast was complimentary during our stay, and you can have it delivered to your room or eat at El Rancho. The menu has quite a few options including both classic Costa Rican breakfast dishes as well as American style breakfast. We were served fresh juice and a plate of pastries before our orders were taken. We decided to get the classic Costa Rican breakfast. It included Gallo pinto (rice & beans), two eggs, ripe deep-fried plantain, sausage, and chorreada (Costa Rican pancake). As for lunch and dinner, we mostly ate off the resort. The other meal we got at El Rancho was just a burger, which was pretty good. Overall the food was standard for resorts, but decent.
The resort also has a coffee shop/bakery, wine cellar tasting room, and specialty executive chef restaurant.
Resort Grounds
The resort is fairly small, and surrounded by lush rainforests. You can call a golf cart to take you from your casita to the lobby area and there are no cars allowed on the property outside of the pickup and dropoff area. It also is fairly walkable and you can walk to all the main areas.
Pricing and Value
The resort is a bit pricey, with rooms starting at around $600/night so it is definitely more of a special occasion resort. However, you get a lot for your money and it was easy to see why it was pricier as we truly received five star treatment. This adult friendly resort would be great for a honeymoon, anniversary, or couples birthday trip!
Final Review of Amor Arenal
Overall our stay at Amor Arenal was an amazing experience. The service is top notch, the rooms are spacious and beautiful, and the amenities are fantastic. If you are looking for a jungle villa in Costa Rica, I would highly recommend staying here and I would definitely can’t wait to stay here again!
- Rooms: 10/10
- Amenities: 9/10
- Food: 7/10
- Drinks: 8/10
- Service: 10/10
Total Score: 9/10
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