After sailing the tropical canals of Tortuguero and hiking Arenal, it was time for Monteverde. This is the mountainous part of Costa Rica and is home to the legendary cloud forest. Temperatures here are much cooler and the wildlife is quite different. The landscape almost look temperate rather than tropical. To make the most of this unique landscape, we stayed at the Hotel Belmar Monteverde. This European-inspired, eco-focussed lodge was exactly what we were looking for. Here is our review of this hotel, along with our legendary canopy room.
Hotel Belmar Monteverde – A Review
The Setting
Perched above the backpacker-paradise of Monteverde is Hotel Belmar. The extensive grounds have multiple chalet-looking buildings, all with their unique features. Around the hotel rooms are gardens, some of which are working, along with nature trails to explore. The gardens are home to some cloud forest wildlife too. We saw armadillos, pit vipers and a whole-host of different bird species just strolling around. There was even a friendly coati that enjoyed sleeping on our egg chair, but more on him later.
The main building has some of the larger rooms, but also has a restaurant. I loved the setting for this. You could choose to sit outside on the balcony, with views of the Pacific sunset each night. Across from the main reception is the original chalet building. This is where we stayed and it houses some of the best rooms in the hotel. There is also a cool juice bar that overlooks the gardens. Perfect for hummingbird watching.
All of the interiors were made up of a rich wood. This is because the owners spent some time living in Europe and wanted to bring this back to Costa Rica. I felt that the vibe was actually perfect for the cloud forest. Monteverde feels so different to the other parts we visited and the Hotel Belmar captures this really well. If you are looking for the best views, location and setting in Monteverde, this hotel has you covered.
The Canopy Room
The Canopy Room at Hotel Belmar Monteverde is, to this day, one of the nicest rooms we have ever seen. Firstly, the room is massive. You have so much space to walk about. The room features a large four-poster bed, a day bed, a sitting area and room to drop your luggage / minibar. There is also a beautiful ensuite with a couples walk-in shower, featuring panoramic views of the cloud forest.
It is outside though where this room’s trump card is played. Picture this. You have a large glass door in front of you. When you open it, you end up on a balcony where you have absolute privacy but can see cloud forest and mountains ahead. To your right is a large egg chair to relax in and to your left a massive bathtub. Around you are the sounds of the forest; birds, frogs, the occasional howler monkey in the distance. If that wasn’t quite enough, you could also take the stairs behind the bath. This takes you to a hidden balcony with sun loungers.
In all honesty, the canopy room was perfect place to relax. On the rare moments of sunshine, we could go outside and enjoy. If it was raining, then we could drink the hotel’s very own beer and watch the storm pass through on the day bed. It really was the milestone that every luxury hotel should strive for, Well done, Hotel Belmar.
Food and Drink
The grounds around the hotel are used to grow fresh fruit and vegetables, which can be enjoyed in the restaurant. This also includes honey and botanicals for drinks etc. There is a large focus on farm-to-plate eating, which I love. I really liked the idea of this in Costa Rica and was excited to try fresh, organic produce.
On site, there is only one restaurant, which is where a slight problem begins. The food here is excellent. One evening I had a mushroom risotto which was easily the best I’d ever had. No questions asked. The issue is though that there really is a limited, and expensive, menu. The hotel doesn’t do any ‘quick and easy’ food in the evening which, after exploring all day, is sometimes just what you need. There were some evenings were I just wanted to grab something before I went to sleep. Breakfast is A La Carte and, excitingly, you have the option of eating it in bed for FREE. I liked the selection here and the food was again, good.
The real star has to be the brewery. The setting for this, just by the swimming lake (there is no pool) is glorious. They brew multiple different beers that you can enjoy on the terrace and they are open until 5pm. Here, there are quick and tasty meals such as burgers, which paired perfectly with the beer (especially the Aurora). I really liked sitting here for lunch and wish that it was open later / was available for room service. It would be a game changer for Hotel Belmar.
Service, including Tours
As you would expect with a high-end, luxury hotel, the service was excellent. The staff were friendly and attentive and I genuinely could not knock them. I would say that I didn’t feel like I got to know any of the hotel staff though like I did at Lomas Del Volcan, which could just be me or the vibe of the place.
We also booked a night walk with Hotel Belmar. We were told that Monteverde was one of the best places to do this, so we couldn’t resist. You can read more about this on my blog, but I just want to shout out to our guide Daniel. He worked as a tour guide for the hotel (they have their own trails) and was amazing. He went above and beyond and I was seriously impressed by his knowledge. My husband, being a biologist, just had the best time with him.
Final Thoughts – Hotel Belmar Monteverde
The Hotel Belmar Monteverde is an incredible hotel and worthy of any traveller’s bucket list. Our Canopy Room really set the bar for what a hotel should be like and it will be difficult to top. I loved the hotel’s commitment to preservation and ecology, but felt that they could add a few more services / food options to really take the entire experience to the next level. Other than that small thought though, I really enjoyed my time there and it easily makes the top 10 hotels ever for me.
