Amor Arenal

Wander from the casita door and the jungle takes over: trails drop into the canyon below, threading streams and waterfalls that guests can reach without a shuttle. Amor Arenal sits at higher elevation on the foothills of Arenal Volcano, which keeps the air cooler and the breeze steadier than lower down. The property holds thirty-one casitas built from tropical hardwoods, split between twenty-one king rooms and ten queen rooms, each roughly 81 square metres. Every casita opens onto a deck with its own heated mineral-water plunge pool and a view straight across the canyon to the volcano. Cathedral ceilings and wide windows keep the forest close; screens and hardwood louvres do the work instead of solid walls. You can hear the canyon stream from the terrace after rain. Two natural spring ponds sit on the grounds alongside a spring-fed pool bar, and a spa built around massage, sound therapy, and water-based treatment rounds out the wellness side. Dining runs across several rooms: El Rancho for breakfast through dinner with volcano views, La Jaranita for a Tico grill and cocktail menu built on Guaro Cacique infusions, and La Cava, the wine cellar, for a chef's tasting menu with no fixed courses. Check-in runs from 3pm. A daily shuttle into La Fortuna town is included, along with a morning wellness class.