Arenal Volcano near La Fortuna, Costa Rica is your classic cone shaped volcano (stratovolcano). It looms over the town and has taken it out as recently as 1968 when it continued to erupt for about half a decade. It has been relatively calm the past few years but is by no means dormant.
Seeing the Volcano is not as easy as it seems. It often rains in the Costa Rican jungle. We went to Los Lagos Hotel and Resort to get the best possible views as they have roads that go right up to the base of the Volcano.
There are many Thermal Spas near the Volcano. Despite this being in the tropics the rain makes it cooler along with the altitude so soaking in the hot springs is quite relaxing. These photos are from Eco Thermales which is more upscale than Los Lagos. Some of these places have steep entrance fees to keep them exclusive but it is well worth a visit.
Soaking in a spa surrounded by lush gardens and jungle is a pleasure. They regularly clean the pools and there are spa jets along with varying temperatures. Looking at these photos makes me want to go right back in there for the next few hours.
Typically the Volcano is covered in clouds and mist. During the dry season we saw the peak on two out of seven days and not for the entire day. It comes out for a few hours now and again between the rain and the fog.
This sign made Gun's N' Roses stick in my mind. There are many accommodations with access to the jungle and perfect views. Airbnb's or boutique hotels are the way to go here to find those top accomodations. Costa Rica is mid priced so you can find excellent value if you book in advanced.
Have you ever seen rain like this? It was just constant almost all day every day. The rain forest is aptly named because 50mm of rain in a few hours is normal. 100% chance of rain most days is a safe bet here so again, plan accordingly.
Foot paths, even through gardens get taken over by the jungle quickly. Things grow fast here and leaves are always falling off the trees. Without well kept paths the jungle is almost impassable.
Streams pour down from the volcano everywhere. They can be a raging torrent or a trickle depending on how recently it rained. It won't take long for the landscape to be altered here because of lava, raging rivers and the vegetation breaking up the rocks.
We love greenery so this place is just perfect to walk around. The forest is incredibly humid which makes hiking more of a challenge than what we are used to. It is also slippery when wet and can get buggy so long pants and shirts are a good thing when walking here.
Natural Springs appear out of the forest floor. Many of the pictures are from the property of Cabanas Caeli one of the places we stayed during our time in Costa Rica.
Supporting the locals is the best way to experience a country so we prefer to stay at smaller properties with just a few rooms. Labour is inexpensive in Costa Rica so they can keep smaller resorts looking great and the jungle region of Costa Rica are not as wealthy as the coasts or the central valleys. It is nice to know our tourism dollars are not going to some foreign owned mega corps.
This place even had a natural pool one could take a dip in. One of the paths had recently collapsed in the torrential rains so the pool is not as blue as it could be but the water is as pure and clean as it gets.
Views from up on the sides of the volcano are just perfect. Toucans and birds fill the sky, you can find sloths in the trees and reptiles are everywhere. Costa Rica has the most diverse Fauna in the Americas.
A picture perfect view of this Central American paradise leaves us with the wanting to return, but it is time to enjoy the Summer weather in the North so this tropical paradise can wait.
Thank you for reading and have a nice weekend.
All photos were taken with an s24 or iphone 15 pro
