Wonderfully relaxing We had a wonderful couple of days here, the location next to the river was great for bird and wildlife... read more watching, and the accommodation was comfortable with plenty of outside space to relax. David and Meghan, the owners were friendly and helpful, as was William who was an excellent guide for the tour around the area. Their whole ethos and how they contributed to the community and wider projects was very interesting and something we admired very much. As well as a walk through their forest and bird watching, we went swimming in the river and also white water rafting (arranged by Meghan) using the company based opposite the retreat, so a five minute walk. This was well organised and great fun, it lasted a couple of hours with a stop half way for freshly prepared melon and pineapple - good value too. The food at the retreat was freshly prepared and very good All in all, a very relaxing, enjoyable stay in a unique environment. Definitely recommended! read less

loved this Eco lodge We spent two nights at Chialmate Rainforest Eco lodge, our first visit to Costa Rica.

the location was fantastic, rooms basic... read more but what you expect in an Eco lodge.

Very close to nature and loved the walks into the rain forest so easy to access.

we saw, 3 & 2 toed sloth, white faced capuchin monkeys, silky anteater sleeping, blue jean frogs,green black dart frogs, lots birds, insects, army ants, leaf cutter ants, Basilisk lizards. variegated squirrels , also lots of fire flies at night, and morning and evening the call of howler monkeys was great to hear.

any tour expects you to wear closed toe shoes, this is the same all over Costa Rica, so make sure you have walking shoes or trainer at least.

We enjoyed swimming in the Sarapiqui river next to the bridge.

make sure you use infect relent in the day as well as night

Staff we very pleasant and Wilhelm guided walk in the forest was fantastic.

make time to visit the Nature Pavilion to see a fantastic variety of birds, the chocolate tour did not impress us very much.

USA dollars are excepted everywhere, even in local supermarkets.

when travelling home via San Jose airport beware, everything is very expensive, do not wait to buy coffee most good at least twice the price, and cost us £12 for a burger. More read less

Stay at an Eco-Retreat in Real Costa Rica! My husband and I wanted to visit Chilamate Rainforest Retreat because we had heard good things about it from friends... read more at home in Canada. It is owned and operated by a young couple with three young children. We knew due to their efforts they had saved 20 acres of jungle and were helping bring jobs and tourism to the area and working with young students from across Costa Rica and North America! Chilamate is off the beaten tourist path in many ways but well worth the two hour bus trip from San Jose...we also visited La Selva Biological Research Station just down the road. What a wonderful experience to stay in a jungle, by a river, near a real Costa Rican village and be so comfortable and well treated. We learned so much from the Retreat's naturalist and main employee, William, who looked after our every need. He arranged drivers, trip to La Selva and a demonstration of the making of Chocolate. The two meals a day were Costa Rican dishes made with local produce and made by locals cooks...very delicious and nutrition! Our suite had all the conveniences of home with a full view of the river and sunrise. The deck was especially nice to hang out on when we took a break from the trails or touring. In the evenings we would enjoy a beverage in the bar and download our emails before joining everyone for dinner. Even... My husband and I wanted to visit Chilamate Rainforest Retreat because we had heard good things about it from friends at home in Canada. It is owned and operated by a young couple with three young children. We knew due to their efforts they had saved 20 acres of jungle and were helping bring jobs and tourism to the area and working with young students from across Costa Rica and North America! Chilamate is off the beaten tourist path in many ways but well worth the two hour bus trip from San Jose...we also visited La Selva Biological Research Station just down the road. What a wonderful experience to stay in a jungle, by a river, near a real Costa Rican village and be so comfortable and well treated. We learned so much from the Retreat's naturalist and main employee, William, who looked after our every need. He arranged drivers, trip to La Selva and a demonstration of the making of Chocolate. The two meals a day were Costa Rican dishes made with local produce and made by locals cooks...very delicious and nutrition! Our suite had all the conveniences of home with a full view of the river and sunrise. The deck was especially nice to hang out on when we took a break from the trails or touring. In the evenings we would enjoy a beverage in the bar and download our emails before joining everyone for dinner. Even with our limited Spanish we could easily communicate with the helpful local staff and owners. We may have even picked up a few words of Spanish words in the process. We would recommend anyone wanting an authentic eco-retreat in Costa Rica to reserve a few days at Chilamate Rainforest Retreat! iPura Vida! More read less

Jungle Hotel I really enjoyed this place! Its off the beaten path and actually in the jungle. Its mostly open-air, including the... read more reception, restaurant, and some bathrooms. The food was realy good, and all was served buffet style. The staff were really friendly. Megan and David, the owners, live on-site with their family. They are always checking in and making sure you are having a nice time. I stayed in the bunk rooms for 4 nights with a friend, and we had the entire room to ourselves. The mattresses seemed new and were very comfortable. They provided mosquito netting, which was nice. The room was small, but since there were just two of us we were fine. We were able to keep some of our wet things outside our door and hang things on a dry-line. The bathroom was interesting but was definetly acceptable. It had lots of stalls, but had a gravel floor and only cold water. There were plenty of hooks and shelves to put your things to change. There were some bugs in there, but its basically a covered outdoor shower. Think of it as a jungle adventure!

I was there to kayak, so the location was great! Right by the river so we used the hotel as a take-out for our class 3 day. theres a nice swimming hole at the river right by the hotel. Its a bit far from town but you can walk to a few places. Only downside was there was no wifi in the dorm rooms and no electrical outlets in the room that we could find. We just used wifi in the restaurant lounge area, which was fine, and they have plugs there.

We went on a nature hike with William, and we saw so many things! Monkeys, a sloth, lots of frogs, and other small bugs. He was very knowledgable. We also saw lots of birds and bugs just sitting in the dinning room. We recommend waking early to see the wildlife.

Overall great experience at this lodge. Just be aware that this is not a normal hotel, its more like a jungle lodge. I'm an outdoorsy person so I loved it. If you're a fancy person that's scared of bugs, you may not like it. You will meet lots of other travelers here and learn a lot about the wildlife and plants here. read less