Costa Rica - Arenal Observatory and Lodge

Christmas Day 2025 in Costa Rica, and business as usual? About 70% of Costa Ricans identify as Catholic, but we are also visiting during tourist high season. That means you can still zipline, get wet and muddy on ATVs, do some horseback riding, or see how coffee and chocolate are made. All these tours were doing great business today, but the most popular destination by far were the hot springs in and around La Fortuna. In fact, they were so busy we had to sit through several traffic jams to and from our own destination today: Arenal Observatory and Lodge.

The lodge was originally founded in 1978 as a macadamiam farm but the soil proved too wet for that crop. But the lodge sits at the base of Arenal Volcano, active from 1968 to 2010. Over those 42 years, volcanologists needed a space to camp, and thus the 870-acre farm slowly became a nature lovers retreat.

Now it is a little off the beaten path (we recommend a four wheel drive), but has plenty of trails, not to mention a spa, coffee and smoothie bar and a restaurant with views of both the volcano and Lake Arenal. The latter was partially formed after the volcano came to life in 1968, killing 78 and obliterating two villages. Now the lake provides hydroelectricity for the area.

The lodge has rain shelters throughout the grounds. And even though it's the dryer season, that doesn't mean you won't get caught in a downpour, as we were. We weren't near any of those rain shelters so we elected to step into that coffee bar I mentioned earlier (which also doubles as a museum) to pick up a rain poncho. But as tends to happen when you purchase rain gear, the rain stopped and we took ourselves down to the frog pond and hormiga (ant) trail via the lodge's own hanging bridge (no jumping! no running!) and took in the beautifully planted gardens. The trees here are covered in moss and epiphytes and bromeliads (air plants), and surrounded by orchids and heliconia. And everything is drip, drip, dripping with moisture.

We then circled back to that restaurant with the great views where I had a typical casada lunch. I kept stepping outside to the balcony to get the best picture of the volcano, but nature did not cooperate. Just know that the volcano is almost perfectly conical, except for the crater lake at the top.

But while dining, I noticed a pandemonium of parrots and other colorful birds in the treetops. Why? A bird feeding station was just around the corner, with papayas and watermelon. After our coconut flan dessert, we had a seat on the deck and took out the binoculars. My photos do not do these birds justice. You don't have to stay are Arenal Observatory and Lodge to enjoy the grounds. Get a day pass for $20, plus $20 for lunch, and enjoy.