How does it sound to sleep in a wooden house where the howler monkeys and many tropical birds wake you up in the morning when it is time for a delicious breakfast? Where can you find everything around you being pure natural from a wild yet comfortable jungle pool to fabulous meals with ingredients from the garden? How does it feel to lay in a colorful hammock and watch the sun go down behind the deep blue sea?

I found all the answers to my questions at La Cusinga Eco Lodge in Costa Rica.

The wonderful view…

I just love being surrounded by the jungle. After a five minute walk starting from the reception through the jungle you encounter a natural pool, named Posa, with refreshingly cold water that makes up for the hot temperatures of Costa Rica. There is another trail that takes about fifteen minutes to get to the beach. A beach that is almost exclusively for you since you might just encounter only a few local fishermen and that is about it.

La Posa, the natural jungle pool

Enjoy nature. Leave Wi-Fi at work

Are you the kind of person that checks the feed of Instagram or Facebook continuously? Are you always “tweeting” a good night to your followers? Then you probably don’t want to have to check your mobile phone all the time during your holidays. La Cusinga thought about that. There is no Wi-Fi in the rooms, just to make sure the guest won’t sit in their room all day long. “There is so much to see and explore” says Geinier, the manager of La Cusinga Eco Lodge. Guests can hang out at the communal area though where they can enjoy the sound of nature and find Wi-Fi if pleased. It is a good place to literally disconnect.

The hammock at the relaxed communal area

The reception

So how are the rooms?

There are twelve rooms, some with sea view, some with forest view.

I stayed in a room (I’d rather call it a house) which was perfect for the real Tarzan or Jane experience in the Costa Rica jungle with a touch of luxury.

My jungle house had two beds. One big bed for two persons and one bed for just one person. As you can guess, I had the big bed entirely to myself, whoo-hoo!

There was a fan attached to the ceiling, which did not work to make the room extremely cold, but it was enough to sleep comfortably without getting a cold.

The bathroom… what can I tell you about that. Well, I kind of wished my bathroom back home would look like the one at La Cusinga. I mean, it is a jungle bathroom! The shower is decorated with natural stones and looks beautiful, but does also function perfectly. Hot and cold water, it all works just fine. This bathroom is the way I wish it would be in any hotel.

There was even a kind of kitchen in my “room” that actually could be found in another room, but without a door in between. It was not likely for me to use this area since the restaurant of the lodge was amazing, but it was nice to have the option out there.

Something very important too: all the windows were finished off with a net against the many bugs Costa Rica has.

Hiking trails

The lodge is not just a place where you can sleep, eat and relax. It has a lot more to offer than just that. Do you love nature? I most certainly do! There is a bunch of hiking trails, waiting for you to be explored, where you can find lots of animals. The famous “la cusinga”, which is a kind of toucan, can be spotted there too! Another option is heading to the beach as said before, but you could also consider doing a yoga class at the lodge with a professional yoga teacher. I tried it out and since I had never ever done any yoga before in my life I have to say it was quite the experience. Honestly, I loved it and I wish I could do this more frequently. What is also possible at the lodge is to arrange tours in and around Uvita. I went surfing with Uvita360 and on a dolphin boat tour with Bahia Aventuras, of which both are worth spending some time on during your holiday.

Huge grasshoppers at a palm tree at La Cusinga

The nearby beach

A fantastic spot to watch the sunset

Meals prepared with lots of love

The chefs, Dennis and Olga, prepare fantastic dinners every evening at the restaurant of La Cusinga and I should not forget to mention the marvelous lunch and the great breakfast they also prepared. It all looks beautiful and tastes the way it should taste. Good. Really, really good. It might just be the best restaurant in town if you ask me.

The restaurant with sea view

Breakfast

Breakfast is usually served in a buffet style. You can find eggs, ham, bread, pancakes, tropical fruits, and the tradional Costa Ricueño breakfast rice. Of course they also serve coffee and tea, but even freshly squeezed juice! Yummy!

Sometimes there is no buffet. Then you can order the breakfast you want and they will serve you a breakfast plate at the restaurant. I love the way the staff from the restaurant places a plate at your table. The are truly proud of their “creation” from the kitchen and happy to serve you.

Breakfast buffet

Lunch

In the morning I had to tell the people working in the restaurant if I would be there for lunch today. Lunch for me, in the Dutch style, is a sandwich, but over here it means an entire hot meal. I might have gained some kilos from enjoying all the fantastic hot meals during the afternoon at La Cusinga.

A traditional lunch with freshly squeezed pineapple juice

Dinner

Then the sun said her goodbyes for today and hided herself behind the horizon while everybody at the lodge took a shower after such a warm day. At about six or seven in the evening it was dinner time. A new surprise on the La Cusinga table was awaiting. The chefs had been busy the entire day preparing some kind of cake and many other things of which I would taste the result in the evening.

You can’t imagine how surprised I was every single evening with the variety of things the chef had cooked. If I were an official food critic, I would give this restaurant three Michelin stars immediately.

Perfectly prepared shrimps for diner

Pura vida

So yes, as you can tell, I fell in love with this place and I really think that whenever you wish to visit Costa Rica you should bring La Cusinga a visit. Taste the fantastic food, walk the jungle trails, try a yoga class, visit the beach, bathe in the natural pool, watch the sunset, enjoy the sounds of nature and of course spend the night in one of those lovely jungle houses. Pura vida.

About Renate Rigters

Ever since I left my home country I felt at home at any other place I went to. I enjoy getting to know more cultures by talking to strangers and hearing their philosophy about life. Speaking with gestures when you can not find a shared language, finding places only the locals go to and learn about their customs and values. Hanging out with local people makes me happy. The experience of every new place is a step out of your comfort zone where I like to wander around until it feels like a second home.

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