Olman Romero

The tour that was organized by KimKim turned out to be everything we hoped it would be. We took their suggestions on many of the tours and they turned out great-including the Arenal Hanging Bridge tour-Donny was a great guide for us; the EcoTermales Hot Springs Experience in LaFortuna was wonderful. The other highlight of the trip was the early birdwatching at the Curi-Cancha Reserve in Monteverde. Jose did an awesome job there and we got a private tour! All the hotel reservations went well and all the private and bus transportation went without any problems.

The Arenal Manoa hotel near at Arenal/ LaFortuna was a delightful hidden gem. The grounds and facilities were immaculate and we felt like we were in a tropical paradise. Nice breakfast selection with a variety of foods. The staff was very friendly and professional. We had a sloth in a tree behind our room, enjoyed toucans while soaking in the hot springs, enjoyed pizza at the pool, and our hike to Arenal in El Silencio was rewarding with numerous birds and a couple trees with white faced monkeys. Spotted 4 red Macaws as we were checking out of our room.

We also enjoyed the Sibu Boutique hotel in Monteverde. Great staff, conveniently located. Had access to the facilities at a sister hotel, Poco a Poco. Nice menu selection at the onsite restaurant. Cloud forest tour with Treetopia was great!

Favorite activity while in Tamarindo was the Panache Catamaran sunset cruise. Very friendly, personable and professional crew (especially Gabriel). Snacks and open bar drinks were an added bonus with a nice selection of foods.

Was pleased with all transfers and pickups at each location. Timely and professional!!

Hotel Reviews

Arenal Manoa & Hot Springs

Fortuna

A true tropical paradise with immaculate grounds, hot springs, pool and restaurants. Super staff, great ambiance at La Saca Restaurant. Pizza by the pool was excellent. Will stay there again if we return to Arenal/LaFortuna!

Authenticity & Character

The tropical plants, trees, flowers, entire grounds

Location

Quiet with a great view of the volcano. Tropical paradise!

Staff

Friendly, professional and accommodating!

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sibū Boutique Hotel

Puntarenas

Delightful room, conveniently located, super staff, nice setting with immaculately maintained grounds, and a very nice restaurant.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Access to everything in the area plus access to facilities at sister hotel Poco a Poco.

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wyndham

Tamarindo

Enjoyed the location, staff very accommodating but the rooms could stand some upgrades. Transfers to downtown were good.

Authenticity & Character

Rooms need to be updated

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hilton Garden Inn Guanacaste Airport

Liberia

We liked the convenience to the airport and nice selection on the restaurant menu.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Convenient to airport

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

El Silencio Hike & Visit to Ecotermales Hot Springs

Arenal/La Fortuna

Guide very knowledgeable and used his scope to zoom in on birds and monkeys. He took pictures through his scope with our cell phones. Hike to the volcano was a little bit taxing in stretches but the guide and fellow hikers let us catch our breath and take our time

Quality of Experience

The guide was very good!

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sloth Trail Watching Tour

Arenal/La Fortuna

Felt a big suburban and too commercial

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

TreeTram & Hanging Bridges Adventure

Monteverde

Great guide! Excellent English! Very knowledgeable!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Catamaran Sailing Excursion

Costa Rica

First rate! Great captain (Gabriel) and crew!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

We wanted a trip focusing on "birds in Costa Rica", and we were pleased at what a wonderful itinerary we had. First hotel: We loved Hotel Bougainvillea - it is clear that this is a birders paradise in San Jose. It is far from the city center, but the gardens were fantastic. The hotel is a bit old fashioned, but the service was great. Lovely restaurant with an excellent breakfast. We loved stopping at the La Paz waterfalls. Amazing hummingbirds, very educational, and the hikes were fantastic!!! Next we stayed at Lomas de Volcan. This might have been my favorite of the places we stayed in terms of the actual room and amenities. Comfortable individual "cabin" - very modern bathroom, fantastic restaurant and bar, and a great location. I would gladly stay there again. My husband really enjoyed the thermal pools, and the restaurant was "traditional" food and just fine. We loved visiting Arenal Observatory Lodge - and saw lots of birds. It was super rainy, but we got a nice hike in. We next stayed at Natural Lodge Cana Negro. We loved this place - the owner and family were awesome, the staff were very interactive and helpful, and it was a fantastic place to birdwatch. The guide who took us out on the river was very knowledgeable, which made it quite exciting. The restaurant at the lodge is quite good. I will recommend everyone visiting Costa Rica and interested in rain forest and flora and fauna should take the time to get up to this part of Costa Rica. We also loved the Cloud Forest Lodge. We were literally in a cloud the entire time. It was wet and windy, but being able to see Curi Cancha and Monteverde reserves was AWESOME. It gives one a great understanding of "rain forest"! Our guide, David, at Curi Cancha was absolutely one of the best. He was enthusiastic, and we saw a lot of birds because of his knowledge of the area. While we didn't see any birds in Monteverde reserve, we did get a real "rain forest" experience.

While Hotel Villa Caletas was fine, an Italianate hotel in Costa Rica seemed a bit odd. It also had a million steps, and we had to ask to have our room changed. There was no way the two of could manage all those stairs multiple times/day. It has a great view and the restaurant is fine. Our guide into Carara National Park was our only real disappointment. She really knew nothing about birds, although she did know her plants. The only birds we identified was through interacting the guides helping other people. I suggest you not use her again for a birding trip.

Esquinas Rainforest Lodge was an experience! The cabins are rustic, just screens, and it was rather hot and rainy, but nevertheless we loved visiting this part of Costa Rica. The staff here was great. I think we also appreciated the variety in the places we stayed, which on top of the amazing diversity of flora and fauna in Costa Rica made this trip amazing!!

Our final stay was at Savegre National Reserve Hotel. This is a great place. We loved our room, and we had another amazing guide - absolutely the best. We went out twice with him! He has so much local knowledge. It was inspiring.

Altogether, we had an amazing trip - and we ended up seeing 190 new species of birds, including scarlet macaws and the resplendent quetzal. I would recommend this trip to anyone who is interested in wildlife, birds, and getting to see different aspects of Costa Rica. Olman did a great job of putting this together, although I wouldn't go back to Hotel Villa Caletas and Carara National Park.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Bougainvillea San José

Heredia

This is a lovely hotel away from the center of San Jose. There gardens are fantastic. If you are a birdwatcher, this is the place to stay, as the gardens attract many local birds. The rooms are comfortable, and the restaurant and bar were good. The owner must love rocks, because the lobby has many cases of rocks collected from all over Costa Rica. It was quite interesting.

Authenticity & Character

This is a slightly older hotel, but full of charm. The gardens are wonderful, and the beds comfortable, and the bathrooms are modern.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lomas del Volcán

Fortuna

The location of this hotel near Arenal Volcano is fantastic. We had our own little "house", and it was well furnished. The bathrooms were modern, and the property beautifully landscaped and maintained. The restaurant here is excellent, but they have a nice bar with original cocktails. Their breakfast is first-rate. They had many hot and cold options, including an omelet station and waffle maker. The location is great if you are interested in the area around Arenal National Park. We had a flat tire, and the staff was amazingly helpful in putting in enough air and then recommending a great place to get the tire fixed in the nearby town. I highly recommend this lovely hotel. There is a great view of Arenal Volano when it is not socked in by clouds!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Natural Caño Negro Lodge

I think people don't often head up this way on a visit to Costa Rica, but it is a mistake. This area is fantastic, and the National Cano Nego Lodge is great!! The staff was sensational, and the food at their restaurant quite good. Great bartenders too!! The owners are quite gracious. They arranged our birding trip down the river, and it was excellent. They have a bird feeding station that you can look out on while eating breakfast or other meal, and it makes it all the more fun! The Refugio de Vida Silvestre Cano Negro is amazing, and it is definitely worth heading up to this region. The beds are very comfortable, and the bathroom was modern! I highly recommend this lodge as well as visiting this part of Costa Rica. The roads in are a bit rough, so be prepared to bounce around a bit.

Authenticity & Character

The owners are amazing, and the staff very helpful and knowledgeable.

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cloud Forest Lodge

Monteverde

This may be the most famous rain forest area of Costa Rica. It is well known because it is amazing. We drove up through the clouds to get here. While it was windy and rainy while we were there, it did not keep us from heading to Curi Cancha and Monteverde Reserves. The guide the hotel arranged was fantastic. I don't think you can understand a rain forest until you hiked through one! This lodge is perfectly positioned to visit both these reserves. Our room was quite spacious, the bed very comfortable, and the bathroom modern. The restaurant is good, and they do a very nice breakfast.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Villa Caletas

Tárcoles

This is a fine hotel in an Italianate style. The staff were excellent and very helpful. Our room was comfortable, and the place has a lot of old-fashioned charm. My only complaint is that there are a lot of stairs. If you have any mobility issues, this is NOT the place for you. They were kind enough to change our room, because to get to our original room was quite a trek up and down multiple stair cases. From the restaurant area, you have a great view looking out over the Pacific Ocean, and watching the sunset from there was amazing.

Esquinas Rainforest Lodge

Golfito

This part of Costa Rica is hot and humid. You are in essentially a cabin with only screens. The showerhead actually heats the water for your shower. The place lost power during a torrential rainstorm - so no shower that day. However, the beds were comfortable, and the meals (you really have to eat here) were very good. They used local fruits to make pitchers of juice they served at the meals. I found this quite fun. The staff is great, and our bird-watching guide was excellent.

Gran Hotel Costa Rica, Curio Collection by Hilton

San José

This is a Hilton, and Hiltons have a certain level of dependability. It is located downtown, so it nicely placed if you want to go to the gold museum or the central market. Our room was on the small side. The bed was very comfortable, and the bathroom fixtures modern. You have to valet park your car, which was $27. This quite a hefty charge. You are also a bit of drive from the San Jose airport, so give yourself plenty of time to get there.

Savegre Hotel Natural Reserve & Spa

Páramo

This is the place to go if you are interested in seeing a resplendent quetzal. The guide the hotel arranged was stellar!! The room was spacious, and including a porch where you could look out over the gardens or the stream that runs nearby. The bathrooms were very modern, and the place was modern and comfortable. The breakfast here was excellent, but we did not have the best of luck with having supper there.

Activity Reviews

Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge Bird Watching Tour

Caño Negro

This is a fantastic area to bird. Our lodge provided us with a great guide, and we went down the river seeing iguanas in trees, caiman, and a fantastic assortment of birds. FANTASTIC!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide was quite excellent.

Transport

Early Birdwatching Tour at Curi-Cancha Reserve

Monteverde

By far, the best birding experience in Costa Rica. It is a beautiful place, with a number of different habitats. Our guide David was fantastic! We were even lucky enough to see a resplendent quetzal! This is a "DON"T MISS THIS" type of place!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Carara National Park Guided Tour

Costa Rica

The park is not worth the visit. It is a transitional forest, and we saw very few birds or wildlife. Plus the cicadas were so loud and there were so many of them it was kind of gross.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Quetzal Safari Quest

San Gerardo de Dota

Our quetzal quest was successful, plus there are so many other places to birdwatcher. We went out with our sensational guide twice - amazing!! What a beautiful place.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Early Birdwatching Walk

La Gamba

We had a great guide, and the area is really diverse biologically. It is quite worth visiting this part of Costa Rica!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Please thank your whole team, US and Costa Rica, for taking such good care of our group of four when we had car trouble. Everything about the trip was FANTASTIC. Our favorites by far were the Manuel Antonio National Park tour and the Selvatura Hanging Bridges. The hotels were fabulous, esp. Issimo Suites, in the treetops! We plan to use KimKim for every trip out of the country! Thank you again!

We appreciated the careful planning and arrangements for our trip to Costa Rica in January 2026. Arriving in Liberia - Guanacaste airport late because of flight delays, we found our driver after leaving the chaos of the airport and inefficient customs. Our driver brought us to Lomas Volcuna Hotel over twisty, bumpy roads late in the evening. Of all the arrangements, the only thing I would change was perhaps staying closer to the airport and taking the arduous trip the next morning. The hotel in Arenal surpassed all expectations. It was quiet, luxurious, and clean with the individual cottages. The landscaping lifted the senses and there was a trail in the woods for enjoyment. The North Fields chocolate and coffee experience informed us of all the complexity of these crops; the guide used excellent teaching methods to keep us engaged. The next day, our boat ride on the river found more wild life than any other adventure of the week. The guides spotted monkeys, sloths, caiman, iguana and several bird species. All week the guides had telescopes to see the animals and they outfitted our phone cameras for pictures. Our last day, we hiked up the side of Arenal; the climb was aduous for some of our party but the guide supported the members who needed help. The trip to Manuel Antonio was another long bumpy trip but the Mariposa Hotel destination was worth the drive. Great views, wonderful restaurant, infinity pool and capochin monkeys everywhere. Manuel Antonio park did not handle the crowds well, wildlife was distant, but the coast was beautiful. Back up the mountain to the cloud forest and Monteverde. The hotel, Fonda Vela, had a great pool, the best cooking of the trip and beautiful natural wood rooms. We traveled the hanging bridges which were very manageable even for our members who had difficulty hiking. Our night hike in the forest revealed the creature that come out after dark. Guides showed us toucans, other birds, a viper, and a frog. Seeing a frog made me realize that all the ecology and conservation in Costa Rica has at least saved this one little reptile. We just don't see frogs in the US like I did as a child. Kenny our driver brought us back down the mountain to Tamarindo bay. The resort had a gorgeous ocean front that we walks every morning at dawn to our extreme delight. The town and vendors could be overwhelming at times, but the evening shows with traveling Mariachi bands, jugglers and circus acts were entertaining. Photos of the week will be dear to us; a video of stills and video clips helps to recall the good times!