Ara Ambigua Lodge

A beautiful hotel with really good food, a beautiful property and very friendly staff. There are pools and some small ponds and lots of birds everywhere! There is a feeding station at the restaurant so you can watch the birds while eating dinner.

Restaurant quality is disappointing. Ordered a main dish vegetarian pasta pesto. The portion was very small and the pasta very dry. The view from the restaurant (the frog garden) is nice though. I would not recommend to come here only for the food. We did not stay in the hotel/lodge, so cannot comment on that part of the establishment.

Surely the location is good for visitors willing to discover the beauties of Sarapiqui / Puerto Viejo, but neither the food nor the room (ours was terribly dark, humid with dirty curtains and mildew one the wall). Again a nice and smiling team, but surely not enough to consider it as an experience to positively remember.

The grounds for this hotel are absolutely beautiful. We saw a lot of birds that we hadn't seen yet on our trip! The pool was nice and big for the large group of students that we had. Food was good, service was good. There was a bar attached to the restaurant.

This lodge was wonderful! The rooms were spacious and comfortable. The grounds were very well taken care of and had lots of paths to explore. The buffet was also delicious. If I were to visit again then this lodge would definitely be added to our trip.

The lodge is situated a 5/10 minute drive outside town. In its own gardens set back from the road . It’s set out in bungalows around the grounds with a central admin area which contains a large dining area and bar overlooking a frog pond and short trail. It is open to the elements. The rooms are ok , perfectly adequate for overnight stays - we were there three nights. They are not super comfortable and quite a few people we spoke to described it as a backpackers lodge. It’s a matter of opinion. The bathrooms are small and cramped and are quite old, the rooms do not have modern facilities - electrical wiring is slightly suspect and they tend to be a little dark. So not for spending much time in. The good we found was adequate - reasonable breakfast with everything we needed. Lunches and dinners were actually very good. A good variety and nicely presented . Also well priced by comparison. If you are moving with your then they will come and collect you - if not and you have to get from A to B you need to allow $5 or local equivalent to get into town and the same back - they do not provide local drop offs. Wi Fi seemed to work well in reception and dining area and we did have some sporadic coverage in the room. What makes this place work and work quite well is the family that own and run it, so very helpful, happy to book things for you such as restaurants, taxis and activities . I also had a medical issue on arrival and without their help would have been on difficulty, they directed me to a facility which assisted and resolved the issue. They asked every day how we were doing and liaised with the clinic as we don’t speak English and we’re just so helpful. So overall if it’s somewhere to lay your head, have a decent breakfast and dinner after a trail walk is great. But don’t expect a spa. Excellent value for money.