Insight of our guests experiences

As visitors to Costa Rica on a tight schedule, we knew we wanted to focus on one area. I found Luna Nueva first, and it looked like such a great place that I planned our entire trip around it. We rented a car and drove ourselves from San Jose to Luna Nueva. (If you rent a car, make sure to put the Waze app on your phone, and a roaming plan or a local SIM card — GPS is fantastic for getting around and we almost always had signal! The roads in Costa Rica are more windy and narrow than we’re used to in the States, but you get accustomed to it!) It’s a charming, relaxed place. It’s tucked away on a quiet road, and it coexists with the environment in a way that is so different from traditional resorts. A brief walk in any direction might lead you to the Finca’s biodynamic farm, their lovely yoga pavilion, or a grove of cacao trees. Birds, insects, tree frogs and sloths can all be seen right outside your room! We are 2 adults and one 12-year-old kiddo. We stayed in a 2-bedroom family bungalow, which was pleasantly spacious (sleeps up to 6) and gave everyone a little privacy. I highly recommend those rooms, as they are only a little extra money and provide plenty of room for all your stuff! The only shortcomings I can think of are: the bedrooms didn’t really have enough flat surfaces/shelves for all our things (no nightstands or even a bedside shelf for a glass of water), and I would have killed for a clothesline to hang our wet stuff on. Those are very minor quibbles, though, and we made it work! We cannot recommend the onsite tours enough. The cacao tour was both interesting and delicious, and you walk away with your own handmade chocolates! It was a sad day when we finished those. The night tour was a fascinating journey with Alberto, an extremely knowledgeable biologist who lives on the farm — make sure you wear those rubber boots, as you might see a fer-de-lance! The farm tour was another great experience; Luna Nueva is an organic and biodynamic farm, and there are so many interesting practices in use! We especially loved rubbing achiote streaks on ourselves, tasting different local plants, and visiting a young calf at the dairy barn. The food is delightful. Much of it is grown right on the farm, and meals are served in a beautiful open-air poolside pavilion. One of the first crops to be grown at Luna Nueva was turmeric, and the cooks use it in lots of different dishes! The prices are a bit higher than what you might pay in town, but it’s totally worth it. There’s a rotating kids’ menu for younger, less adventurous travelers. We were especially fond of the delightfully cheap Imperial beers (something like $2.50 each after taxes). We took a daily dip in the ozonated pool, and enjoyed the warmth of the solar-heated hot tub. The birding tower provided lovely views, and almost every day we spotted one of the several sloths that lives on the farm! One had a baby — so cute. The staff are wonderful about helping coordinate offsite activities. It’s best to allow some flex-time, as tour operators may be running on “Tempo Tico”! We did ziplining at Ecoglide, a tour of the Hanging Bridges Park at Arenal, and a safari float down the Penas Blancas river (which included a stop at a riverside farm for traditional Costa Rican treats!). All three were fantastic. The shuttle buses departed from more generic resorts near La Fortuna, and looking around those places, you could have been anywhere. It made us even more grateful for Luna Nueva’s genuine charm. Pura vida!