Nayara Gardens & Nayara Springs Resorts (Arenal, Costa Rica)

August 24, 2022

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Wednesday newsletters all the time function a resort or flight assessment.

I just lately loved an incredible vacation in Miami & Costa Rica. You’ll be able to learn my journey stories right here:

Overview: Lufthansa Boeing 747-8 Enterprise Class from Frankfurt to Miami
Overview: Acqualina Resort on the Seaside, Miami, USA
Overview: Nayara Tented Camp, Arenal Nationwide Park, Costa Rica
Overview: Nayara Springs & Backyard, Arenal Nationwide Park, Costa Rica (immediately)
Overview: Lapa Rios Lodge, Corcovado Nationwide Park, Costa Rica
Overview: Los Altos Resort, Manuel Antonio Nationwide Park, Costa Rica
Overview: Andaz Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo
Overview: 4 Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo
Overview: Edeweiss Air Airbus A340 Enterprise Class from Liberia to Zurich

Right now: Overview of Nayara Gardens & Nayara Springs (Arenal, Costa Rica)

Sister properties Nayara Gardens and Nayara Springs supply luxurious lodging within the coronary heart of the 30,000-acre Arenal Volcano Nationwide Park. Every of the 50 rooms at household pleasant Nayara Gardens is a single-bedroom villa with a personal backyard & out of doors bathe. On the adults-only Nayara Springs, every of the 35 luxurious villas incorporates a scorching spring plunge pool. The properties, related by a footbridge, present entry to 4 eating places, three swimming pools, and two open-air spas. Each properties are additionally related to Nayara Tented Camp, essentially the most luxurious and latest resort of the three Nayara Resorts.

Nayara Gardens and Nayara Springs function in my high 10 listing of the greatest motels & resorts in Costa Rica.

Have you ever ever stayed at Nayara Gardens or Nayara Springs? If that’s the case, what was your expertise? Depart a remark.

On this assessment (extra data and pictures under my YouTube video):

PROS & THINGS I LIKE

Nayara Springs and Nayara Gardens are a part of Nayara Resorts, a group of three sister properties (the third one is Nayara Tented Camp). Every resort occupies a definite space on the bigger property (with its personal foyer pavilion) and provides a special sort of ambiance: Nayara Gardens is a tranquil family-friendly retreat; Nayara Springs is an expensive adults-only resort; and Nayara Tented Camp (which I reviewed right here) is the resort’s latest and most luxurious addition, consisting of 29 luxurious canvas tents dotted upon a hillside with beautiful volcano views. Surrounded by lush greenery and wildlife, all three properties inside Nayara Resorts are related to 1 one other by footbridges, permitting company to get pleasure from all of the eating places, spas, swimming pools, and actions every resort has to supply both by strolling from one place to a different or with the resorts golf carts.

Nayara Springs, Nayara Gardens, and Nayara Tented Camp are positioned on a 62 acres hillside within the Northern Lowlands of Costa Rica close to Arenal Volcano. Arenal is a presently inactive stratovolcano, a big, symmetrical volcano that’s constructed upon layers of ash, rock and lava. At 5,437 toes (1,657 meters), it stands excessive above the remainder of the countryside (though its high is commonly coated in a cloud layer). Arenal’s completely symmetrical form makes it a bucket listing merchandise for a lot of traveler, whereas the realm’s abundance of out of doors actions (e.g. white water rafting, ziplinig, mountaineering, trying to find wildlife, and so forth …) makes it a straightforward place to test issues off your “must-do in Costa Rica” listing. Arenal and Nayara Resorts are a tree hour drive from both the airports of the capital San Jose or town of Liberia, or alternatively, a 30 min flight on a small airplane.

Fantastically constructed into the Costa Rican jungle, Nayara Gardens is the oldest of the three Nayara Resorts. The property, which welcomes households with kids of all ages, options 44 free-standing villas, with sweeping views of both the volcano or the jungle cover. Visitors can select from two villa varieties. The “Casitas” are the entry-level rooms, providing a tropically impressed decor and a quiet backyard that includes an outside bathe; rooms have both a king mattress or two double beds. One degree above the casitas are the “Rain Forest Villas”, which function a singular octagonal design, making the room comfortably spacious and permitting pure mild to filter from each angle. The Rain Forest Villas have an outsized Jacuzzi on the terrace and a few include a personal plunge pool within the wrap-around balcony. An intimate backyard with out of doors rain showers provides these room a “Pura Vida” contact!

Nayara Springs opened in 2013 with simply 16 villas as an adults-only addition to Nayara Springs and linked to the latter resort by an elevated footbridge that crosses a small ravine alive with monkeys and birds. Surrounded by the rainforest and tropical vegetation, the resort now has 35 luxurious villas manufactured from teak and stone. Throughout my vacation, I stayed in a one bed room villa, which featured a big bed room, adjoining siting space and an enormous rest room, geared up with double vainness and two totally different showers, indoor and out of doors. The resort’s nature theme prolonged to the villa’s interiors, with polished wood flooring, beamed, plantation-style ceilings and four-poster beds draped in cotton mosquito netting. The villa additionally got here with a lush personal backyard (shaded by the cover), which featured a plunge pool drawn from mineral-rich volcano water, a eating desk, a daybed, and a hammock constructed for 2.

Nayara Gardens and Nayara Springs supply a number of eating places and bars, serving native and worldwide meals:
- Mis Amores (positioned at Nayara Springs) serves delicacies from Northern Italy. Highlights embrace wood-fired pizzas and a live-cheese pasta dish that’s ready table-side. The semi-outdoor setting permits for views of the volcano from each desk.
- Amor Loco (positioned at Nayara Springs) is a component effective eating restaurant and half swanky lounge. Moody lighting, velvet chairs and an onyx-topped bar set the stage for such dishes as pumpkin puree soup or a wonderfully cooked steak.
- La Terraza Del Arenal (positioned at Nayara Gardens) is an open-air household restaurant, serving a-la-carte Latin American meals. Reside native musicians each evening add to the full of life ambiance. Every morning, the venue additionally serves breakfast (buffet system).
- Asia Luna (positioned at Nayara Gardens) is an intimate trendy spot with an outside terrace and inside sushi bar, serving conventional Asian delicacies in the course of the rainforest. Don’t miss the Chef’s signature Nayara Roll, made with candy plantains and cooked rooster or the grilled Yellow Fin Tuna with sautéed greens.
- Nostalgia (positioned at Nayara Gardens) is a classic themed wine bar, providing wines from all around the world by half or full glass with a nifty self-serve tab system.
- Mi Cafecito (positioned at Nayara Springs, one flooring above the primary foyer) is the spot the place espresso addicts can get their each day portion of Costa Rica’s delectable beans. It’s the proper place to get pleasure from a superb guide, a pleasant chat, or a sport of pool.

Sharing services implies that company staying at Nayara Resorts (whether or not that be Nayara Springs, Nayara Gardens, or Nayara Tented Camp) profit from a robust vary of choices, together with a number of pool areas (every one with its personal ambiance). The (small) swimming pool at household pleasant Nayara Gardens is hidden within the jungle and comes with a swim up bar that serves drinks for each children and adults. The 2 pool areas at Nayara Springs function a extra serene ambiance as they’re solely open to adults: one pool with swim up bar is positioned subsequent to Mis Amores Restaurant and overlooks a valley, whereas the opposite pool is a lap pool set within the jungle alongside Amor Loco Restaurant. Lastly, there are additionally the thermal swimming pools positioned within the jungle close to Nayara Tented Camp however obtainable to all company (at both Nayara Resort); these scorching spring swimming pools (seven in whole) are full of water of various temperatures.

Each Nayara Springs and Nayara Gardens function their very own small spa middle (so company can select to have their therapies at two totally different boutique wellness facilities). The spa at Nayara Gardens overlooks a formidable rainforest ravine and therapy rooms include a Jacuzzi and out of doors bathe. There’s additionally a small rest space with scorching tub positioned on the backside of the ravine. The spa at Nayara Springs is positioned on the middle of the adults-only resort, tucked into pockets of the rainforest, so each therapeutic massage, facial, and scrub comes with a pure soundtrack. Each spa facilities supply kind of the identical therapy menu; along with traditional massages and facials, therapies embrace scrubs and wraps with natural espresso, volcanic mud, and chocolate clay.

Upon arrival at Nayara Resorts (whether or not that’s Nayara Springs, Nayara Gardens, or Nayara Tented Camp), company are launched to a devoted naturalist, who will accompany them on thrilling, nature-focuses experiences all through their keep – à la safari rangers within the African bush. Onsite actions embrace sloth sanctuary excursions, early morning bird-watching walks and nighttime frog recognizing excursions. Intrepid vacationers can even discover the encircling Arenal area. A spotlight is a personal information hike by way of the Arenal Hanging Bridges Park, adopted by a picnic (with personalised lunch) atop a hillside with postcard views of the volcano for a noon break. Extra adventurous vacationers can select actions equivalent to trekking over the dried lava fields of the volcano, ziplining, or white water rafting.

Sustainability is on the core of Nayara Resort’s coverage. The resort was rewarded the Costa Rican authorities’s coveted 4 Leaves Award for Sustainability for his or her steady efforts as one in all Costa Rica’s premier eco-resorts. From the start, Nayara has pledged to maintain a lightweight footprint on its pristine property. For instance, the property constructed two pedestrian bridges hanging over the forest cover to guard the timber and wildlife under. Making use of land topography, the villas are neatly oriented to maximise the results of daylight and air flow, minimizing the necessity for air con and heating. Additionally, the property makes use of energy-conserving mild bulbs & lighting methods, and water-conserving taps & towels. Lastly, a minimum of 90 per cent of the resort’s produce is natural and regionally sourced, and the property is working exhausting to develop into a single-use plastic free resort.

Nayara Springs is a member of Relais & Chateaux, which represents a world assortment of individually owned and operated luxurious motels and eating places. The variety of Relais & Chateaux members modifications as new members are added and others drop away; the group presently has over 500 members in 60 nations on 5 continents. The group is understood for its strict admission requirements. Along with luxurious services, members should have particular options distinguishing them from chain motels. Most of them are historic landmarks equivalent to castles, manor homes, or townhouses in idyllic settings and/or providing beautiful haute delicacies.

CONS & THINGS TO KNOW

The family-pool at Nayara Gardens is surprisingly small and it will probably get busy right here, particularly throughout the faculty holidays when the resort operates at full capability. Whereas the tiny pool is likely to be good for younger kids, it’s too small to maintain youngsters entertained. Sadly, youngsters can’t entry the significantly better and bigger swimming pools (in addition to different services equivalent to health club) at neighboring Nayara Springs, which enforces an adults-only coverage. In case you have teenage kids, the best choice is to remain on the Tented Camp which has its personal massive infinity pool and can be closest to the recent springs.

Most villas at Nayara Gardens and Nayara Springs lack volcano views, as they’re tucked away deep within the lust jungle vegetation. Some villas have a volcano view however it’s usually obstructed by timber, with solely the summit seen (when it’s not coated by a cloud layer). For a room with a splendid view of Arenal Volcano, you need to guide a keep at Nayara Tented Camp, which is positioned additional up the hill.

There’s not a ton to do when it comes to purchasing or nightlife close by the resort, however that’s precisely why most individuals keep at Nayara Resorts. Folks come to this a part of Costa Rica to get pleasure from the fantastic thing about the rainforest and to take part in enjoyable actions throughout the day (zip-lining, canyoning, white water rafting, and so forth …) whereas stress-free at evening.

Nayara Resorts is constructed right into a hillside with the villas positioned alongside steep, slim walkways which might be nearly solely enclosed by dense landscaping. That is lovely and feels correctly in the course of the jungle, however it might make strolling and wayfinding troublesome and difficult. Visitors can rely although on the resort’s environment friendly golf cart service (24/7), which connects the three Nayara Resorts and their services.

MY VERDICT

Location: 8/10
Design: 8/10
Pool: N/A
Rooms: 8/10
Meals: 8/10
Breakfast: 8/10
Spa: N/A
Service: 9/10
Worth for cash: 8/10
General expertise: superb 8/10

TIPS FOR FUTURE GUESTS & SAVE MONEY

Get monetary savings: get complimentary VIP perks when reserving by way of Virtuoso (e.g. improve, each day breakfast, early check-in, late check-out, and $100 USD meals & beverage credit score).

Get monetary savings: learn right here my suggestions for getting the very best deal at a luxurious resort like Nayara Springs or Nayara Gardens (and/or obtain many free perks).

Learn my suggestions for making ready your journey in time.

BEST TIME TO VISIT

The perfect time to go to Costa Rica is determined by the place you need to go because the nation’s local weather and seasons range by area. There are two main seasons in Costa Rica: the wet season and the dry season. The dry season (or excessive season) is from mid-December to mid-April and it’s the greatest time to go to as there’s a smaller likelihood of being drenched within the rain. The wet season (or inexperienced season) is from Might to November: it might rain for a number of days in a row (and torrential rains are frequent) however on a optimistic observe, resort charges and tour costs are considerably decrease and the nation turns an exquisite deep inexperienced.

HOW TO GET THERE

Nayara Resorts is positioned in La Fortuna, which is a 3 hour drive from both Jose Airport (SJO) or Liberia Airport (LIR). There may be additionally a small airstrip in La Fortuna and personal flights to/from San Jose or Liberia will be organized. Click on right here for an up to date listing of airways that provide direct flights to San Jose and right here for an up to date listing of airways that provide direct flights to Liberia.

PHOTOS

Beneath is a number of my pictures of Nayara Springs and Nayara Gardens. To view extra pictures (together with breakfast and dinner on the eating places) of Nayara Springs click on right here, and for extra pictures of Nayara Gardens, click on right here.