La Fortuna, Costa Rica

Nayara Gardens

1 / 10

The takeaway

Choose Nayara Gardens for a private casita among Arenal’s rainforest gardens, with wildlife and volcano country close at hand.

About the hotel

Below Arenal Volcano, Nayara Gardens spreads freestanding casitas and villas through tropical gardens and rainforest, about ten minutes from La Fortuna de San Carlos. The scale is intimate rather than town-like: rooms are set apart among the greenery, with private terraces, plunge pools and outdoor showers. The defining experience is moving between that private, garden-facing accommodation and the surrounding rainforest, with wildlife, volcano views and outdoor activities shaping the stay.

Choose it if

You want a freestanding casita or villa with a private terrace, plunge pool and outdoor shower.
You’d rather stay among tropical gardens and rainforest than in La Fortuna’s center; the town is about ten minutes away.
You want your stay to include rainforest walks, birdwatching or the resort’s mineral hot-springs pools.

Skip it if

You want to stay within easy walking distance of La Fortuna’s shops and restaurants; Nayara Gardens is about ten minutes from town.

The property

In photographs.

Guest discussion

What real people are saying.

Reddit excerpts · separate from Rex’s editorial judgment

Guests praise the Gardens room’s volcano view, though one notes clouds often obscured the volcano during a March stay. Resort restaurants were generally good, with some dishes standing out, and one guest strongly preferred Nayara Gardens to another resort they had visited.

“After 3 nights at the springs and now in my first night at Nayara gardens, I cannot comprehend how these resorts are even compared in the same league.”

r/CostaRicaTravel ↗ · Jan 31, 2026

“All the restaurants in the resort are pretty good to good (probably wont blow you away, though certain things have been excellent)”

r/CostaRicaTravel ↗ · Sep 4, 2026

“March is supposed to be one of the driest months, but because of the tropical rainforest microclimate, the volcano was mostly covered in clouds during my stay.”

r/chubbytravel ↗ · Sep 28, 2026

“I actually preferred our Gardens room - it had an incredible view of the volcano! We ended up spending most of our time at the Tented pool because it was our fav”

r/FATTravel ↗ · Jan 25, 2026

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