El Silencio Lodge & Spa Costa Rica

We recently stayed here for 6 days and could not have been happier with the overall experience. This is this our second visit to CR and we definitely will be coming back for more. The property is located in the mountains northwest of San Jose airport and the ride takes a good hour or so, depending on the traffic. It is located in a secluded part next to nature preserve. The property is small (only 24 villas) and the grounds are very well maintained. The rooms are very comfortable and twice-daily housekeeping is impeccable. The closets are a bit on a small side, so do not overpack. Villas are well-spaced out throughout the property to ensure privacy. The most amazing part of this resort is not the beautiful surroundings but rather the outstanding quality of service that its staff provide day-in and day-out. Not once during our extended stay did we encounter poor or average service. Each and every employee goes out of their way to ensure that each and every guest is treated like the most important person of the moment. Such level of consistency is really amazing and very commendable. The restaurant provides a high quality menu with the focus on locally sourced and freshest ingredients, and the dishes are not only beautifully presented but also very tasty. The executive chef is of Italian-Peruvian descent and such heritage is clearly evident in the menu. The restaurant has a fairly good wine list, though I wish there was a slightly bigger selection of light reds. The resort offers a good selection of daily activities, both on- and off-site. We participated in a number of those, and truly enjoyed all of them, from zip-lining to bird watching to a trip to Arenal Volcano & Hot Springs. My only suggestion would be a more detailed prep information to the guests as to what to expect and to bring to those longer trips. Spa services were equally outstanding and we certainly indulged in those. Massages and body treatments were of high quality and we had nothing but praise for the therapists. Again, all therapists were equally good and equally consistent each and every time we used spa services. In summary, I would highly recommend this property for anyone who is looking for a relaxing stay in the cloud / rain-forest of Costa Rica (don’t forget to check the forecast, as it is slightly cooler than most of us envision Costa Rica to be and brief rainfall is common). The grounds are beautiful, nature is pristine, villas are comfortable, the staff is amazing and the management goes out of the way to ensure that each and every guest has an enjoyable visit.

Driving into the resort was an experience in itself. We were given a welcome drink on arrival. Our room was not ready but gave us opportunity to look around. Everywhere was so clean. Our villa was amazing. Double bedroom with jacuzzi overlooking the stream. We did the complementary hike around the property with a very knowledgeable guide. I did find the vegetarian/vegan dinner options a little limited, but that said I did find something that I could eat. Breakfast which was included in our package was lovely. It was just a shame that we was only there for two nights

We loved our stay. The resort was amazing. We loved the restaurants, the hiking, the bar, the gardens. Everything about it was amazing and we hope to return again soon. The waterfall hike was beautiful and worth the effort. Same with the other tails. Make sure to visit the hummingbird garden and the veggie garden.

What a wonderful find. We stayed here on a whim at the last minute and ended up extending our stay for the entire week. Nothing more relaxing than being right in it — in luxurious, eco-sustainable private bungalows — hidden away in your own little section of rainforest. Chickens are free ranged on site, food is sourced from on-site gardens, and the nature trails are fantastic. We will stay here again. True R&R.

Here's your cleaned-up version with improved flow, clarity, and readability: --- I stayed for two nights as part of a Backroads trip and found this hotel to be a wonderfully quiet and serene retreat. The property features beautiful grounds, and all accommodations are free-standing casitas. Each casita has a private outdoor hot tub and offers a reasonable level of privacy from neighboring rooms. The service was the best we experienced in Costa Rica—genuine and warm, with staff who genuinely seemed to enjoy their work. Since we were part of a group with a prix fixe menu, our dining experience may not reflect the standard offerings (and we didn’t see food prices), but everything we had was very good, especially by Costa Rican standards. However, as others have mentioned, the wine prices were quite high. The property offers plenty of activities, with highlights for us being the waterfall hikes and ziplining—both made even better by the fantastic guides. My one suggestion would be to add screens to at least a few windows in each casita. While there is no air conditioning, this wouldn’t have been an issue if we could have left the windows open at night. However, the number of mosquitoes made that unwise.

Bajos del Toro is a less visited gem in a cloud forest just 2 hours north of San Jose. The area has multiple spectacular waterfalls rivers and hiking trails. The El Silencio Lodge is the perfect place to stay to experience this wonderful part of Costa Rica. On the property are hiking trails leading to four beautiful waterfalls. There are multiple guided activities offered by the hotel. The private "cabins" are incredibly luxurious, with great beds, wonderful furnishings and a perfect private outdoor jacuzzi. The food is terrific. And last, but not least, the staff is amazing. Special shout outs to: Luis, for his perfect restaurant service, always so friendly and efficient; Estevie who is a wonderfully knowledgeable and super-friendly nature and cultural guide and also to Bryam who drove us to and from places on the property when needed. He was aways prompt and helpful. In short, El Silencio is just an outstanding, first class resort.