08/05/2023
We recently had the privledge to visit Hotel Aguas Claras on Costa Rica's Caribbean coast and WOW, was it spectacular! The hotels is a soul quenching, gorgeous retreat surrounded by lush, tropical jungle rich with wildlife.
Every room/suite has its own unique style, inspired by local Caribbean design and decorated with local artisan pieces. There are individual rooms and bungalow suites along with the option to stay in a 2-bedroom, 3 -bedroom, or 5-bedroom set-up. The service is extremely warm and friendly. From the pool-side drinks, to the beachfront dining - everyone was very efficient, kind, and knowledgable. Aguas Claras offers varying dining options using all locally sourced and organic ingredients. There's a great mix of dishes with both local and international flavors. Being able to dine down at DaLime Beach Club is a refreshing experience with warm ocean breezes, trees that provide a canopy of shade along with wildlife entertainment, and tasty dishes with refreshing cocktails.
There is SO MUCH TO DO in the area. During our short 3-night stay we were able to 1) visit the Ara Manzanillo Great Green Macaw project (highly recommend), 2) kayak nearby mangroves where we saw an abundance of wildlife while enjoying shady, calm waters, 3) bike ride into town, 4) shop, 5) enjoy local chocolate, 6) snorkel directly in front of the hotel, and 7) yoga. You can easily stay a week (or longer) and enjoy national park hikes, waterfall trails, whitewater rafting, canopy zip-lining, birding, chocolate tours, indigenous medicinal tours, night walks, and much more! Alternatively, you can relax at the hotel and splurge on a spa treatment, sign-up for a yoga session, and walk the beach for miles while taking a swim in shallow tide pools along the way!
CONSERVATION & SUSTAINABILITY
Aguas Claras is part of the iconic Cayuga Collection of hotels. Cayuga properties are eco-luxury boutique hotels located throughout Central America with a mission to change the way tourism impacts our world and local communities. Cayuga hotels offer guests a uniquely curated experience with all the finer details but keeping conservation and sustainability at the forefront of everything they do, from organic and locally sourced food ingredients, solar energy, recycled water, local gardens, no plastic policy, community & educational support and projects (beach clean-ups, school fundraisers, wildlife conservations, etc) and hiring and maintaining local staff, even through low seasons! Their vision and mission are incredible and the hotels are unmatched!