4 Best Hotels in San Gerardo de Dota, The Osa Peninsula and the South Pacific

High style at high altitude, this avant-garde lodge clinging to the side of a mountain has unbeatable valley views, great bird-watching, luxury accommodations, a sophisticated restaurant, and the top ecological sustainability rating. All casitas and suites have living rooms with huge picture windows, private terraces, and ethanol-fueled fireplaces, as well as fluffy duvets for cold nights.

A paradise for resplendent quetzals, this rustic but comfortable lodge is amid cloud-enshrouded mountains and valleys with 16 km (10 miles) of hiking and birding trails through ancient oak forests dripping with moss and epiphytes. Cozy bungalows, each set in splendid isolation, have picture windows and modern bathrooms and some have hot tubs and king-size beds, dehumidifiers, and TVs. Nighttime temperatures drop into the 40s at this high altitude (about 8,700 feet) and you'll be happy for the electric heaters and hot-water showers. The main lodge has a large fireplace and an observation gallery abuzz with brilliant hummingbirds that aren't the least bit fazed by onlookers. Meals are simple but hearty, and an espresso machine guarantees excellent coffee. A bird-photography shelter is equipped with battery-charging stations and natural backdrops and feeders to attract photogenic birds ($10).

Famous for miles of bird-watching trails and expert guides, this lodge has comfortable, spacious rooms with two double beds and modern bathrooms, some with bathtubs, set in colorful, bird-attracting gardens. The main lodge has a huge fire pit, a spacious bar, and a gift shop with lots of useful bird-watching items, including rain ponchos. A hearty breakfast is included in the rate. Breakfast and lunch can be served on a large sunny terrace frequented by hummingbirds. Homegrown trout is the restaurant's specialty. Don Efrain Chacón first bushwhacked his way through these mountains in the 1950s, and the property is still run by his children and grandchildren.

If you want to avoid the twisting drive down the San Gerardo road, take a bus to Km 80 on the Pan-American Highway and arrange a lift to the hotel ($25 for up to 5 people).

Set in a riotous garden filled with fuchsias, hydrangeas, and hummingbirds, Trogón Lodge is more picturesque hideaway than hiking-heavy destination. It has comfortable wooden cabins with white-tile bathrooms with rain shower heads and beds topped with snow-white duvets, flannel sheets, and rafts of plumped-up pillows; electric heaters and extra blankets also guard against the chilly mountain nights. One superior suite perched in solitary splendor has a king-size bed and a whirlpool tub with a panoramic view. Excellent meals featuring fresh trout are served at tree-trunk tables in a cozy restaurant with a woodstove, and a bar and dining terrace gaze out over the trout ponds and the river. With advanced reservation, you can book out the video room that features nature documentaries and a book exchange. Quetzal-watching and waterfall hikes are some of the diversions.