Travel bucket list idea:
Costa Rica
With dozens of active and dormant volcanoes oozing hot springs and even rivers, and well-developed tourist infrastructure, Costa Rica is one of the best places in the world for geothermal pampering.
There’s a big choice of things to do. In locations like Volcán Tenorio and Rincon de la Vieja, it is still possible to find natural hot rivers flowing in pristine rainforest. Others in locations like Arenal have been diverted through man-made pools – set in designated day spas.
At the highest end are luxury geothermal spa hotels (usually open to guests only), where volcanic spring water flows directly into the spa or even into your personal in-room bath or plunge pool.
La Fortuna, Alajuela Province, Costa Rica
Experience
Located 10 minutes from La Fortuna, this small but authentic hot spring facility has several pools, surrounded by thick rainforest, fed by mineral-rich underground hot springs. Water temperatures range from a warm 32°C to a hot 41°C. You can sip on cocktails as you soak.
Adult price: £8
Good for age: 8+
Duration: -
San Carlos, Alajuela Province, Costa Rica
Official star rating:
Luxurious four-poster beds sitting on polished hard-wood floors scattered with expensive kilims, huge marble bathrooms with walk-in al fresco showers and geothermal tubs, hummingbirds flitting through the resort’s extensive, orchid-filled rainforest gardens… no other Arenal 5-star resort offers such a sense of comfortable, intimate seclusion in nature. Or more spectacular volcano views.
Bedrooms with floor-to-ceiling glass walls open onto private plunge pool decks. These are open-air, yet completely shielded from view by extensive greenery – perfect for in-room dining or under-the-stars swimming for two.
The restaurant (sitting over a huge shared pool) is one of the best in the region and there’s a first-class spa (with geothermal treatments and outdoor Jacuzzi pools) set next to a beautiful clear-water mountain river. Adults only.
Average £700
Extra beds
Pool
2+ bedrooms
Beach
Kids menu
Fitness center
Kids club
La Fortuna, Alajuela Province, Costa Rica
Official star rating:
In the late 1980s, long before today’s wellness trend hit its stride, Costa Rican architect Jaime Mikowski recognised the healing powers of the Tabacón Thermal River and the Arenal Volcano and set about developing this 900-acre rainforest resort.
Channelling the country’s largest network of natural thermal springs, he constructed waterfalls and pools, planted lush gardens featuring more than 200 native plants and built sleek, fuss-free rooms with walls of glass to bring the outdoors indoors and offer a confidently pared-back refuge from the 21st century.
This is a spa for water babies: the action centres around the mineral-rich pools, which range from 25°C to 50°C, all heated by the now-dormant volcano. One has a swim-up bar and thermal waterslide, others are dotted through the gardens. To intensify that connection with nature, treatments are taken in open-sided thatched cabins and use lotions made from local plants, blending Costa Rican customs with ancient practices from around the world.
Average £280
Extra beds
Pool
2+ bedrooms
Beach
Kids menu
Fitness center
Kids club
It is almost impossible to find a hot spring or river which is not ticketed and with changing facilities or on private hotel land.
Arenal is the hotbed of geothermal activity – with a series of public spring water termales (with paid entrance, parking and lockers) – many of them set in rainforest, and a selection of upmarket geothermal spa hotels. Visits are straightforward to organise through hotels or using operators in the town.
