The nearly three-hour ride from San Jose, Costa Rica's capital city, to the lodge takes you through the cloud forest and opens to the Caribbean Sea. The journey is breathtaking, and affords the opportunity to observe the change of ecosystems. Selva Bananito Lodge is situated on 3,000 acres of primary rainforest preserve, about thirty minutes from the village of Bananito. The Bananito River winds her way through the property along with other small creeks and waterfalls.
The cabanas at Selva Bananito Lodge are simple but charming. The self-contained units are constructed of beautifully finished second-class wood (?scrap? wood thrown away by loggers) and naturally felled trees. Some have ceramic tile flooring while others have hardwood--all have huge archways that open onto private porches, overlooking bird-filled pastures or the gently flowing river. There is no electricity, but rooms are stocked with candles, a flashlight with extra batteries, and an oil lamp. The roofs on the newer units are made from recycled plastic banana bags. Each room has a private bathroom tiled in white with hints of blue and green. The spacious solar-heated showers have one-way glass overlooking the property that promises lush scenery as you bathe--a feature that we found very peaceful.
We feel one of the most pleasant advantages to a stay at Selva Bananito is the freedom to be as active or as passive as you please. Spend the day reading in your hammock or explore the rainforest on horseback or hiking. Attempt to rappel a gushing waterfall or climb 130 feet into the rainforest canopy
- hiking trails
- horseback riding
- mountain biking
- waterfall rappelling
- bird watching
- canopy tree climbing
- jungle camping in rainforest
-swimming in rivers
- trip to the beach
Meals at Selva Bananito are savory, delicious prepared with love. Buffet breakfasts of cereal, beautiful fresh fruit, cheese platters, toast, and gallo pinto (a Costa Rican specialty)are available each morning. Lunch is served in El Rancho, the communal open-air dining area, or packed for your excursions. Dinner is a three-course sit-down meal including a salad, main-course, and desert. Expect a wonderful variety of local foods--plantains, papaya, pineapples, fresh fish--each prepared in its own special way. Each meal is served with quality Costa Rican coffee or tea and local juices. Vegetarian options are also available upon request. Almost as good as the food itself is the sweet nature and wonderful energy of Selva Bananito?s two local cooks, Anita and Carmen.
Jurgen and Sophia Stein are a brother-and-sister team. Both are very warm and personable people, with an innate ability to make you feel as though you?ve known them all your life. They are each extremely dedicated to their land and focused on their mission of preserving the rainforest. Both go out of their way for their guests, making the lodge feel less like a hotel and more like a home. They both adore the beauty of the property, and it shows in every detail from the fresh tropical flowers placed in each room to the peaceful energy the preserve exudes.
Selva Bananito?s staff is another asset. As the lodge is rather small, only a few employees gathered from the local villages are needed. All are wonderfully helpful and friendly, helping to ensure a most pleasant stay.
- All the buildings at Selva Bananito Lodge are constructed from second-class wood (scrap wood which logging companies normally discard) and naturally felled trees.
- ?Living fences? surround the property in order to keep the horses in their pastures. These fences use live, growing trees as the posts, rather than cut logs, thereby reducing deforestation. Additionally, they don?t rot like a conventional fence and they are far more attractive!
- The roof tiles on the newer cabanas are made of recycled blue plastic banana bags.
- Over 350 species of birds call this area home.
- A caiman named Trumpitas lives in the little pond near El Rancho. Danilo, a Selva Bananito employee, rescued him from a hunter, wrapped him in garbage bags, tied him to the back of his moped, and transported him to the lodge, where Trumpitas now lives happily.
-- How do I get there?
Flights to Costa Rica arrive in San Jose, the capital city. From there, you can either arrange a ride with the lodge (for a small fee), rent a car, or take the bus, which departs San Jose for Limon every half hour. The bus is very comfortable and inexpensive (the equivalent of about US $3 per person each way). For the final leg of your journey, Jurgen or Sophia meet and escort you to the lodge.
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