Hotels & accommodation

Nayara Springs

Relais & Châteaux · Adults-only villa resort in the Arenal rainforest, sister property to Nayara Gardens

Nayara Springs stands in rainforest gardens at the foot of Arenal Volcano, outside La Fortuna in Costa Rica's northern lowlands. It is the adults-only half of the Nayara resort collection — Nayara Gardens sits next door — and a member of Relais & Châteaux, built around a natural hot-springs setting where the volcano is the constant backdrop.

Accommodation is in Springs Villas, each with its own private plunge pool fed by natural hot-spring water, an outdoor shower and a terrace facing the forest or the volcano. A personal host looks after each villa, and golf carts move guests quietly around the grounds and across to the restaurants and facilities shared with Nayara Gardens.

Dining centres on Amor Latino, the resort's Latin American restaurant, and Mis Amores, which serves Italian and Mediterranean food beside the main pool; the Nostalgia wine bar pours by the glass in the evenings. The spa works in open-air treatment rooms in the forest, and the grounds include a frog pond and sloth habitat that make the wildlife part of the stay rather than a tour add-on.

As a scouting base for the Arenal area it is well placed: La Fortuna town, with its supermarkets, clinics and expat services, is a short drive away, and the hanging bridges, La Fortuna waterfall and the lake are all easy day trips while you test whether northern Costa Rica fits.

• Relais & Châteaux member; adults-only sister resort to Nayara Gardens
• La Fortuna, at the foot of Arenal Volcano, Alajuela province
• Springs Villas, each with a private hot-spring plunge pool
• Amor Latino and Mis Amores restaurants, plus the Nostalgia wine bar
• Open-air spa, frog pond and sloth habitat in rainforest gardens

Visit the property — Nayara Springs nayara.com

This featured showcase is an editorial selection by our editors. We have not stayed at this property and it is not a paid placement; no rating is implied. Paid placements never influence the Costa Rica liveability score, safety rating or warnings.