Monteverde Mirador Lodge
A truly rustic mountain lodge with amazing views of the Arenal Volcano and private cloud forest trails.
Views from the Mirador Mountain Lodge; the lava flow (as of February 1, 2006) is visible from the porch of your cabin, restaurant, etc. Top photo taken @ 6h30 am, Sep. 21, 2005. The night photo below was taken on August 28, 2005 @ 7h pm. The bright light on the left side is the dam of Lake Arenal. More Arenal Volcano night photos taken from the Mirador.
More Arenal Volcano night photos taken from the Mirador.
Amidst this fantastic Monteverde Cloud Forest sits a full service restaurant and bar with huge panoramic windows, 12 brand new rustic mountain cabins, our own stables and 2 private cloud forest trails for the exclusive use of our guests (an average of 10 people a day instead of hundreds for the public reserves).
You may choose from one of our quaint all wood Costa Rica Cloud Forest Mountain Cabins offering various sleeping options, a wood stove, private bath, hot water, a porch and of course... incredible views!
Sometimes clear, sometimes misty, always magic...
How about a world class view from your bed?
About Us
"El Mirador" in San Gerardo, is the name given to the finca owned by Juanita, Leonel and Marvin Quesada Mata. It takes it's name from the area which it's famous for..."El Gran Mirador" or "The Grand View".
The finca (farm) was purchased in 1982 by Juanita's late husband. It consists of almost 700 acres, half of which is cloud forest and should be noted that the finca lies entirely within the boundaries of the Arenal / Monteverde protected area.
El Gran Mirador, long known for it's panoramic vistas of primary forest, rich farmlands, a big green mountain that had not yet awakened that was much smaller than it is today: the Arenal Volcano. Now active since the big eruption of 1968, with steady eruptions everyday! You can often hear the distant rumble of the volcano from the Mirador. Hear the Arenal Volcano erupting.
In those days, several families were scattered throughout the region. Mostly farmers that tended their cows and produced quality dairy products.
Primitive trails to the lake Arenal existed for most of the century that was used by these farmers to bring their goods to market in the towns of Castillo, Rio Chiquito, and the Arenal Volcano surroundings. These same trails still exists today, thanks in great part to the efforts by the Quesada family, and is featured as an unforgettable horseback adventure ride between the town of La Fortuna and Monteverde. horseback adventure photo gallery
Although the finca continued to operate as a "working farm", construction of El Mirador Lodge began in 1990. By early 1991, the Quesadas had completed the lodge, cabins, and adjacent trails through the forest and to the waterfalls.
Our first guests arrived in July of 1991.
In January of 1999, a new look to the interior and entryway of the Mirador Lodge Restaurant was completed with a wood stove in order to be more comfortable and inviting to our guests.
The Quesada family and El Mirador, have maintained a tradition of keeping San Gerardo close to the roots from which it came.
In addition, the responsible way in which the Quesadas balance tourism, conservation, and ecology, has earned them a "Practices Sustainable Ecotourism" rating in the New Guide to Costa Rica by Beatrice Blake and Ann Becher. A study that involved over 90 hotels, lodges and hostels in Costa Rica.
Partake in the activities offered, take a walk on the trails in the Cloud Forest, see our beautiful private waterfalls, learn about the natural environment, ride horses to the Arenal Volcano, or for a few hours on our farm, or just come by for a taste of our home cooking.
Important info:
It's important to know that the Mirador is located 10 kilometers (6.6 miles, 1 km = 2/3 of a mile) North of the village of Santa Elena. We are just 3 km away (a 45 minutes walk, excellent for bird watching) from the quiet cloud forest reserve of Santa Elena, 5 km from Sky Trek & Sky Walk, and 20 km from the reserve of Monteverde (a 40 minutes drive). See this map for location.
You can come to the Mirador with our horseback adventure from the Arenal Volcano (5 hours), or by 4x4 from the village of Santa Elena (30 minutes), or if you come (or leave) by public bus, shuttle or taxi/boat/taxi to Monteverde, we will pick you up or drop you off free of charge at the office of monteverdeinfo.com in the Tree House Tourist Center in front of the church in the village of Santa Elena.
Mirador Lodge offers an affordable transportation service for people without a vehicle: beside 1 free pickup (or drop-off) in the area included with your stay, we offer these rates (one way, per group up to 4 people, add $2 per extra person): Reserve Santa Elena or Selvatura Park: $4.5, Sky Trek, Sky Walk or the village of Santa Elena: $6, Monteverde Reserve, Cheese Factory, Butterfly Garden, Orchid Garden or Frog Pound: $7.5.
An unforgettable adventure option is to stay one night near the village, then spend a day & night in the mountain with us and go to the Arenal Volcano the next day with our extraordinary Monteverde Horseback Adventure. It can also be done the other way around: from Arenal to Monteverde. It's a one way trip, then you go to your next destination.
Also important to know is that we are a true Cloud Forest Mountain Lodge, at an altitude of 1,550 meters (4,500 feet), so you must have warm clothing, rain gear & good walking shoes (we can lend you some rubber boots if you wish but our trails are well maintained). Our cabins are equipped with a wood stove to warm you up on chilly nights, but don't expect a night life, except the one you can safely discover on our private trails. Don't forget to bring a flashlight, with spare batteries for night walks or power failures. We will gladly furnish the candles and our natural gas hot showers runs all the time.
Our fine restaurant, with panoramic windows on the Arenal Volcano & Lake, serves generous portions of tasty traditional Costa Rican food at a reasonable price*; $6 to $14 for a main dish, is open from 7h am till 9h pm (*add 13% sales tax and 10% service in accordance with Costa Rican law).
Our Monteverde Lodge is for nature lovers, you are more than welcome to join us.
| High Season 2007-2008 Dec 15, 2007 through Apr 30, 2008 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 adult(s) | 2 adult(s) | 3 adult(s) | 4 adult(s) | 5 adult(s) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Private Cabin - Two Double Beds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| $60.14 | $77.33 | $111.69 | $128.88 | $159.81 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Low Season 2008 Jan 5, 2008 through Dec 14, 2008 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Private Cabin - Two Double Beds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| $51.55 | $68.73 | $103.1 | $120.29 | $151.22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Check In time: 14:00, Check Out time: 12:00 local time.
Adult rate applies to ages 12 and up, child rate applies to ages 6 - 11, children under age 6 sleep free.
Link to Online Reservations - or e-mail mirador@monteverdeinfo.com with questions.
Room rates above exclude taxes, click here for rates including the 16.39% tax.
For more info and reservations: mirador@monteverdeinfo.com
Monteverde info Activities Monteverde
Reserve Santa Elena Reserve Monteverde
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