La Anita Rain Forest

This family-run cacao farm is a stunning place to stay. The property features 10 beautifully appointed cabins nestled among trails, rivers, rainforest, and ponds. Each cabin is positioned privately from the others, giving you a true sense of escape. My cabin was custom built with local wood and materials. The woodwork is gorgeous. Inside, you'll find built-in storage, a fridge, and a spacious bathroom. Each cabin has a large veranda with handmade leather and wood chairs, a bench, and a cozy hammock, perfect for relaxing and writing this review! Mine didn't have air conditioning, but I didn't need it. Screened windows, a ceiling fan, and smart design keep things naturally cool. Evenings are the perfect temperature. I was never hot. I had the best sleep I've ever had. At night, look up. There are a trillion stars. While you're here, take the Chocolate Tour. Pablo, the owner, is passionate about every step of cacao production, growing, harvesting, roasting, and crafting what I believe is some of the finest chocolate in the world. You'll realize how little you knew about chocolate before this tour. Expect plenty of tastings, real hot chocolate, and maybe a few surprises. The location is ideal, close to several volcanoes and surrounded by natural beauty. Roads suck, but that's the way it is...Highly recommend La Anita Rainforest Lodge. You'll remember this place forever.

This was a great place to truly experience the beauty of this part of Costa Rica. It is a long drive and one must be careful to take the right roads but we had a great experience and wish we could have stayed longer.

I want to join the chorus of amazing reviews of this wonderful place. We loved everything about the lodge: the hiking trail in the forest, the hammocks for reading, the delicious meals, and of course the chocolate tour. We stayed in a family cabin which worked for our 2 family, 6 person crew of 3 adults, and kids 13,14,19. It's a rustic experience and you see hear and feel like you are off the beaten path which was what we wanted for our first few days. The owners have partnered with a number of local businesses and through them we were able to schedule a cooking class in a local home a few minutes away and horseback riding about 20 minutes drive. My daughter proclaimed it the best part of our visit to Costa Rica! Mileage wise it's pretty close to Liberia airport but it did take us almost 3 hours on very bumpy terrain to get there using Waze. It was definitely part of the fun for the kids:)

Food was incredible and fresh. Entire experience was great - wish we could have stayed longer. Lots of bird and wildlife activity,

We spent three night at La Anita Rainforest Lodge and enjoyed our stay immensely. The cabin was spacious and comfortable. It had no air conditioning but the open windows with mosquito netting allowed a refreshing flow of air through. The sounds of the rainforest at night were amazing. Unfortunately for us the low rainfall season had forgotten to make an appearance so we did not get the views of the night sky that we we had been looking forward to seeing. Breakfast was included and was very tasty, The juice in particular was very good. You had no choice of the hot dish but on all three days it was delicious so no complaints there. For some very complicated reason we had no car on this part of our trip so we ate dinner here every night for a reasonable price. Again there was only one set menu but it was all locally sourced produce that was very well cooked. Wine and beer were available for those who wanted it. Not having a car we spent our days just walking around the paths in the ranch. The walk up to the viewpoint by the Research Centre was very good, about 2k each way. Some of the other smaller paths were a little difficult due to the rainfall and resulting mud but perfectly usable with a little care. On balance we would suggest having a car to visit some of the sites in the area although be prepared for some bumpy roads. That said if you need to just chill out then the wildlife, ambience and views will enable you to do just that. Pablo, the owner, was very attentive. He also ran the Cacao tour where we learnt an awful lot about Cacao and Chocolate, The tour lasted over three hours and included lunch for a good price. Pablo's passion for the Rainforest and Cacao shine through. Just be warned that having been on the tour you might just turn your back on the 'chocolate' that you eat back at home. Finally a big thank you to both Stephany & Raquel for their assistance during the booking process and for organising out taxi from and to Liberia at short notice when we were et down by ur driver who was supposed to take us from Puerto Carillo.

Our stay at La Anita was the highlight of our two week trip traveling throughout Costa Rica. Pablo, the owner, is a superb and gracious host who pays the utmost attention to every minute detail. We were shown impeccable hospitality and made to feel welcomed and extremely comfortable. The chocolate tour was over the top!

Literally like arriving into paradise ! In the heart of a rain forest . The cabins are beautiful with everything you need ( fridge , hairdryer , coffee machine ) So peaceful , the bird watching listening is out of this world . Pablo and Anna are the best hosts , so helpful and knowledgeable. Nothing is too much trouble for them . A very personal touch from as soon as you arrive. Evening meals and breakfast are excellent, and sociable without having to mix if don’t want to. The breakfast is 7.30 a.m which put us off as we aren’t early risers, but the way of life, ambiance here is early to bed , early to rise ( which is great for bird watching ) so 7.30 breakfast works well . Lovely walks around the ranch . It’s hard to sum up this place in words , you’ll be amazed and definitely not disappointed . It’s a long drive to it but so definitely worth it. ( Download the Merlin bird recognition app as you’ll never believe the amount of different birds , it’s great for identifying. ) We did 4 nights here in January . 4 nights is perfect . Though we had heavy rain at times , sitting on your sheltered veranda watching is heavenly. The chocolate tour on site is a must Pablo is so knowledgeable , it’s very interesting and fun .

Staff was great. Dinner was amazing, sea bass with homemade pesto. Room was nice with comfortable bed. It was just late by the time we got our car rental. The road getting there is tough. Be prepared for a bumpy ride. Owner is kind and told us about the chocolate production on premises.

This place was amazing. The food was incredible. I highly recommend the chocolate tour. This is a very quiet spot. I will return.