Finca Amistad Cacao Lodge

A lovely place to stay. The chalets are all wooden and spacious and the beds have mosquito nets. Food is super, they even have a decent go at vegetarian meals. We particularly liked the breakfast. We wanted to be at the park when it opened so they prepared a quick cold breakfast for us one morning. We did the cocoa tour which was really interesting.I have been to many chocolate factories so it was fascinating to see the cocoa beans on the trees and how they are farmed. The chocolate they make is really nice. The welcome chocolate drink we were given was incredible. The road to the farm from the Bijagua to the National Park road is really rough and is really only suitable for a 4x4 vehicle. If you foolishly hire a normal car like we did there is a more suitable route which is a bit longer but way less stressful.

Wonderful stay - so relaxed in this gorgeous working chocolate farm. Amazing cooking from the lovely ladies in the kitchen, chocolate tour and cooking course brilliant with Julian, tours round Tenorio and fabulous horse riding nearby with David's riding tours done effortlessly. Relaxing in the beautiful hot and cold tubs on the edge of the forest with cocktails from the bar was a great memory. Lovely people in a lovely setting , comfortable authentic feeling rooms. Highly recommended

This was the most enthralling, informative, peaceful and relaxing break you could ever imagine. Home built chalets set amidst the cacao plantation and combine simplicity of design with elegance of function. The people of the farm are totally committed to making you visit memorable providing homemade food, showing you how the cacao is produced and explaining how their little oasis came into being. Breakfast is included in the price but the dinner is inexpensive and satisfying. Be sure to take the cacao workshop where you get to roast, grind, mix and pour your own chocolate bars - which they will ship home to you for a fee. Also included is one hour of exclusive use of a hot tub area which is perfect for recovering from any hikes. For the money, this is an outstanding experience meeting real people and seeing sustainability in action.

We loved our 4 days here. It's an unusual place-a working cacao farm but with great staff and rustic but comfortable accommodations. The food was plentiful and quite good. The grounds are fun to explore - a three-toed sloth was living in a tree right next to our cabin. Overall, a great spot and a fun stay!

This was definitely one of the top 3 of our trip to Costa Rica. The place is amazing, you stay in a working cacao farm with all the workers and the everything being made here. Raquel and Julian were so great, we had a great time making our own chocolate (1kg made it back home) and we learn so much. Thank you for all the staff for their kindness 😀

Every day at Finca La Amistad Cocoa Farm was the best day of my life. Just when it seemed like things couldn't get better, they got better. The location is ideal for visiting Tenorio National Park, including tubing, visiting Rio Celeste, Tapir Valley Nature Reserve, Cano *****, and the Tamaku tribe. It is easier to find if you arrive before dark. The staff are all kind and laid back. Some folks speak better English than others, far more of their visitors speak Spanish and French than English so that makes sense. The first thing when you arrive and check in, you are offered a taste of chocolate treats, and an unsweetened hot or cold chocolate beverage along with agave to sweeten to taste. Say yes! It's delicious! We had a very confusing reservation of 11 family members, divided among 2 couples, one adult traveling solo, and a combination of 3 boys and 3 girls ages 18 and older for a big cousins get together. The boys shared one cabin of a twin bed and a double bed, the girls shared an identical cabin. These little cabins back up to a creek which provides a soothing backdrop to your sleep, along with dramatic wind and rain. Two adults shared a cabin with a joint bathroom which was fine. One adult had a single bedroom. The triple bedrooms are much larger and more commodious. As different families departed on different days, the staff just moved us around and accommodated our needs graciously. The cabins are spread far enough apart that your human neighbors just cannot annoy you, which was a nice break after Tamarindo. Mosquito nets were a big bonus. The food was just wonderful, filling, and too much of it. All ingredients are sourced locally, many from a few steps from the kitchen. It's all Costa Rican local food, nothing fancy at all, but nutritious and hearty. We loved it. They were accommodating of the kids who were slightly more picky eaters than the others. We loved the cocoa tour but we're feeling a little salty that the cousins took all the dark chocolate and left us with the milk, since they left before us. Our family of four stayed for a whole week. In hindsight, we wished we had moved to other parts of the country, staying at Finca La Amistad for maybe 4 nights total. But we loved all of it. Bring bug spray, a rain poncho (our fancy REI rain gear which is great in Seattle rain did not withstand torrential drenching rainforest downpour), sturdy hiking sandals, flip flops, something warm since the nights get cool, and, oddly enough, multiple pairs of socks so you can comfortably borrow random boots at all the sites you visit, and all your anti-itch stuff. Do NOT trust the bumblebees, they sting hard (ask me how I know). If you're into birds, it's paradise, bring binoculars. I was enraptured. Bring a bathing suit for the hot tub and cold pool. Bring lots and lots of ziploc bags and some garbage bags, you will leave with stinking wet clothing. Nothing dries there unless you have the staff do your laundry. And flashlights or headlamps