ALBERGUE RARA AVIS

Rara Avis is Costa Rica’s oldest purpose-built nature lodge for experiencing the rainforest. It is designed to maintain the feeling of being deep and isolated in the forest, while offering comfortable rooms and excellent traditional food. We maintain the sense of the real Costa Rica of many years ago, while offering daily guided walks in which our resident guides explain how the rainforest works. In good weather it is possible to swim at the base of our pristine waterfalls. Other guests simply relax in hammocks on the private balconies of their rooms.

Available activities:

Adventure, sports
Bird watching
Eco/nature/wildlife
Educational, research, volunteering
Horseback riding
Tours
Visits to conservation projects
Walking/hiking

Making a difference:

Rara Avis hires and trains its staff from the local community of Las Horquetas. Our guides and cooks started as field hands and have moved into positions of responsibility and growth. We buy most of our supplies and materials in the local area. We support the school in Horquetas with materials and occasional guided visits to the rainforest for both students and teachers. Rara Avis introduced the concept of ecotourism as a conservation tool to the region, in which nature-based tourism is now the second largest industry after bananas. As a result, the rate of deforestation has greatly diminished over the last 20 years since we began operating.