An Insider's Guide to Visiting the Santa Juana Lodge in Costa Rica

Santa Juana Lodge is one of four Greenitque Hotels in Costa Rica. Greenitque Hotels are not only highly committed to providing exceptional hospitality, accommodations, locally-inspired meals, adventure, and nature and cultural tours, they are also dedicated to the environment and local communities of Costa Rica. Each one of their hotels employs people from the surrounding communities and the net proceeds of their signature adventure tours goes directly to community and environmental based programs.

The Santa Juana Lodge Adventure Tour proceeds and a portion of your initial deposit supports a number of programs in the Canton de Aguirre through the hotel Si Como No. Greenitque Hotels are also part of the Corcovado Foundation, Mono Titi Alliance, and are backed by the Global Giving Foundation. There is no better feeling than booking a trip to an outrageously beautiful country where nature, adventure, and relaxation await you and knowing that you are staying in a place that is truly taking care of the environment and the local community.

The Santa Juana Lodge is situated in the central Pacific mountains to the east of Quepos and the Manuel Antonio National Park. From its elevated location, guests can enjoy spectacular wet forest and Pacific Ocean views, which is especially ideal for sunset. There are three accommodation choices, all of which are free standing structures: casitas; the village casa; and the suegras’s cabina (the ‘mother-in-law’s cabin’). The casitas and village casa have luxury linen, ceiling fans, a kitchenette, coffee maker, balcony with a hammock, plasma screen tv with a DVD library, and a security box. The suegras’s cabin is a bit more simple and rustic, but models an authentic cabin from the town of Santa Juana.

All of the meals are included and feature locally sourced and locally inspired dishes; you will eat like a Costa Rican! Typical Costa Rican cuisine features rice, beans, fish, chicken, pork, beef, plantains, pico de Gallo, and tortillas. If you are interested, you can also sign up for a cooking class where you can learn to cook some traditional Costa Rican dishes.

While staying at the Santa Juana Lodge, you will have multiple tour and adventure options available to you. All guides are Greentique certified and experts in their fields. The signature Santa Juana Rural Mountain Adventure Tour is a combination of nature and culture. It is an all day tour that will surely be one of the highlights of your trip to Costa Rica. This tour includes a guided jungle hike to a magnificent waterfall and swimming hole; a visit to an authentic sugar mill that is operated by massive oxen; an authentic Campesino-style lunch; and a chance to participate in the Carbon Offset/Native Tree Reforestation Program where you can adopt your very own tree within Greentique’s Cloudmaker Nature Reserve.

If that isn’t quite enough adventure for you, you can add on a canopy zip line tour. Santa Juana Lodge also offers guests a garden and waterfall tour, birding tour, and Los Santos coffee tour. You will have ample opportunities to spot unique wildlife during your nature and adventure tours.

The Greentique Wildlife Refuge protects 12.5 acres of secondary Pacific coastal wet forest. This is a unique opportunity to witness an abundance of amazing creatures that are native to the Manuel Antonio area. 50% of the native species are represented in this small wildlife refuge. There are both two and three-toed sloths, howler monkeys, squirrel (Titi) monkeys, white faced capuchin monkeys, snakes, butterflies (including the blue morpho), caimans, crocodiles, and turtles. The wildlife refuge has its own butterfly atrium, reptile and amphibian water garden, and crocodile lagoon.

Santa Juan Lodge has the resources, the location, and a highly skilled and creative wedding team to put together a magical Santa Juana rural mountain waterfall wedding. They have a beautiful open air gazebo that is the perfect stage for saying your vows. And a platform that you can both jump on to official “take the plunge” into your happily ever after married life.

Santa Juan Lodge also partners with Perillo’s Learning Journey, which hosts yoga and wellness retreats. There are two retreats offered at the lodge at different times of the year – the Good Vibrations Costa Rica Central Pacific Beach and Mountain Retreat and Costa Rica Women’s Focused Wellness Journey.

Camino Quepos – Tarrazú, Provincia de Puntarenas, Naranjito, Costa Rica +506 2777 0777