Arenas del Mar Beach and Nature Resort

Getting your hands dirty….

2010-03-07T12:03:00.000-08:00

… is part of the commitment to recycling, and this February, the restaurant staff at Arenas Del Mar in Manuel Antonio took part in the process of revision, sorting and weighing the materials for recycling. The hotel has separate waste dispensers in all departments and buildings for both staff and guests. Waste reduction and recycling are top priorities in our recycling program. All hotel employees will be part of this process in order to raise staff awareness and realize the importance of separating waste properly in each of the areas of the hotel where we work and to take this habit home and share with the family, neighbors and friends.

2010-02-20T11:55:00.000-08:00


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This month, our nature guide Ersel has taken his first group of guests on the sustainability tour. The tour takes the guests of Arenas Del Mar Beach & Nature Resort in Manuel Antonio through the back of the house and gives them an insight into the practices of sustainability at the hotel. We look at solar panels, the treatment plant and irrigation system, recycling and composting, tree nursery and much more. More details on the sustainability program are available here.

A similar tour is available at all of the Cayuga managed properties in Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Find out the location of the hotels here.

2010-02-17T15:51:00.000-08:00

The staff living area at Arenas Del Mar called “Petatillo” hosted the second edition of our ping pong tournament. It was a tough competition, due to the heat in the rainforest and a field of strong contenders. The final was disputed between Erick, who had won the last edition of the tournament and Jairo, our Guest Services Manager, who competed for the first time. Over 20 fans, most of them supporting the reigning champion enjoyed a tough 5 set game that was finally won by Jairo. Few times, Manuel Antonio has seen such a high level of ping pong and the third edition of the tournament is already in the planning!

Great Inspiration

2010-02-14T09:55:00.000-08:00


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This weekend, our staff at Arenas Del Mar had the chance to interact with 31 year old Lawrence Molina, who was a participant in the Sidney Paralympics. Lawrence was born without legs but has become a high level athlete and is currently training to participate in the London Paralympics. Our staff was highly impressed with his life story and determination to overcome his physical limitations. A great example for all of us and it makes us think again next time we complain about how hard life is for us…

Sharing the Knowledge!

2010-02-10T11:20:00.000-08:00


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On February 1st, one of our staff members (Jose Palomo) did a training on the Certificate of Sustainable Tourism to the rest of his team.

The Certificate for Sustainable Tourism is a program that seeks to categorize and certify each tourism company according to the degree to which its operations comply to a model of sustainability.

We at Arenas Del Mar feel very happy when one of our team members takes the initiative to share their knowledge with colleagues or people in the community. Great job Jose!

Do you remember?

2010-02-06T19:02:00.000-08:00


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Do you remember the two eggs found during one of the Nature Hikes at Arenas Del Mar Beach near Manuel Antonio National Park? After 40 days of incubation, we now have two little T urkey Vulture Chicks.

The two adults feed the chicks by regurgitating food for them, and care for them for 10 to 11 weeks. The young start to fledge at about nine to ten weeks. Family groups remain together until fall.

Help us to give them a name…!

Turkey Vulture Eggs!

2010-01-29T13:03:00.000-08:00

During one of our hikes in the rainforest surrounding Arenas Del Mar in Manuel Antonio, we found some Turkey Vulture eggs on the ground. Our Naturalist Guide, Ersel, explains that the Turkey Vulture is a bird that eats dead animals and has a better smell sense than another species of vultures. They have a very strong digestive system that allows them to eat dead animals with bacteria of anthrax and cholera without any problem.

Beware of Monkeys!

2010-01-21T10:02:00.000-08:00

All transportation within the Arenas Del Mar Nature Reserve (11 acres in total) is either by walking or golf carts. But our cart drivers need to be extremely careful and make sure there are no accidents with iguanas or monkeys crossing the road. So far all went well. No other luxury hotel in Manuel Antonio combines the rainforest location with direct access to two beaches and spectacular views of the National Park.

Green Short Nose Vine Snake in the Reserve!

2010-01-19T10:21:00.000-08:00


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This week, our Naturalist Guide at the hotel, Ersel, found a green short nose vine snake in the Arenas del Mar reserve. This is not a snake that attacks humans, but is beautiful to watch as it gracefully goes up and down the trees. Its preferred prey are lizards and frogs and it is quite active even during the day as it is very well camouflaged with its green color. There is an onsite guide available at Arenas Del Mar to explore the nearby Flora and Fauna or to take a private tour to the Manuel Antonio National Park, one of Costa Rica’s most famous national parks.

Turtles at Playitas Beach!

2010-01-05T05:31:00.000-08:00

In late December, we had a nest of turtles hatch at Arenas del Mar’s Playitas Beach. It is quite unusual for turtles to hatch in the Manuel Antonio area and there have not been sightings of turtles at Playitas in a few years. Hopefully the work of the hotel to keep the beach and its waters clean and undisturbed will help to make turtle hatchings more common again. A renas Del Mar Beach & Nature Resport borders the maritime protection zone of Manuel Antonio National Park and is the only upscale hotel in Manuel Antonio that has direct beach access to two beaches for its guests.

Can you find the hotel?

2009-12-30T16:33:00.001-08:00


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Arenas Del Mar was built in a way that it would blend it with the sourrounding nature. Colors and locations were chosen very careful by the architect. This picture is taken from a neighbouring property just a few meters from the hotel. If you look really really carefully, you will see the roofs and an antenna right in the center of the picture!

Arenas Del Mar at the Travel Mart Latin America in Chile

2009-09-27T08:15:00.000-07:00

In September, Arenas Del Mar (along with the Cayuga properties) takes part in the Latin American Travel Mart that is held in different locations in South and Central America each year. We consider this the only Trade show worth attending other than Expotur in Costa Rica. This year the event was held in Frutillar (south of Chile). Maria Jose Castro represents Cayuga Sustainable Hospitality and has been meeting with companies such as Kings & Cox, Pagona Travel, and more. Listing to the wholesalers attending Travel Mart Latin America, we expect next year to be a good year for tourism although, we will not get back to pre crisis levels of 2008. The Latin American Travel Mart 2010 will be held in Peru.

Supporting local communities with our Donation Program

2009-09-15T06:53:00.000-07:00

On Monday September 7th, the Donation Program of Arenas Del Mar made a great contribution for the local Paquita School, where there are 220 children studying primary school and eager to succeed.

In this first donation we have delivered school materials such as acrylic boards, permanent markers, whiteboard markers, dictionaries, coloring pencils and writing pencils, drawing books, plasticine, paper reams, ink cartridges, glue, scissors, among others, reaching a total contribution of over 1 million colones worth of supplies for the students and teachers.

This program is carried out thanks to great response from our guests who have made donations to the fund and also our staff that are responsible for explaining how the program works, contributing to
the sustainable development of the surrounding community.

Besides, and in an effort to promote environmental education, Arenas Del Mar has been doing workshops at the school. Last Thursday we had the recycling lecture and at the end the children (fourth and fifth grade) had to do a drawing about what they learned. They also received a special gift because of this.

Eternal Spring

2009-06-04T11:49:00.000-07:00

In Costa Rica, we like to brag about how we live in eternal spring and summer. Temperatures stay around 80 degrees all year round and flowers are constantly in bloom. Breeding takes place all through the year as well, but the most common time is at the beginning of the rainy season (now), because animals are expecting lots of fruits inthe months to come. Arenas del Mar is a place where animals can find peace and respect, and lately, we’ve noticed a few successful nests on the property grounds. Here we follow certain regulations, like the discouragement of feeding animals and the use of electric golf carts, which reduces noise on the property and gives the hotel grounds a comfortable habitat for the animals. Such efforts are not only a large part in the operation of the hotel itself and its guests, but also encourage a deep respect for wildlife among the staff who live and work at Arenas del Mar (www.arenasdelmar.com). While the hotel grounds have only developed only two acres, ten more acres of forest surrounding, lie pristine and untouched. Beyond that, our neightbor property of 150 acres sprawls uncorrupted and teeming with wildlife (we have planned trails throgh this, our hike Quepos Point Tour, is done here). Black Hooded Antshrikes, Yellow Headed Caracaras, Scarlet Rumped Tanagers and many other species of beautiful and exotic birds are
raising their young right here at Arenas del Mar. This proves that we are not just a paradisal vacation spot, but also an appropriated nursery for an abundance of incredible wildlife.

Black Hooded Antshrike

Baby Yellow headed Caracara by the pool

Proud Mother, Scarlet rumped Tanager

Healthy baby

By: José Pablo Fernández, naturalist guide.

Where Luxury in the the Rainforest Meets the Sand

2009-05-27T06:08:00.000-07:00

Arenas Del Mar, 12 acres of lush tropical flora that touches the beautiful sands of the Pacific Ocean, is the only hotel in Manuel Antonio whose landscape is 100% endemic species of plants and trees. It is an incomparable experience to walk just a few steps from the tropical rain forest onto one of the most beautiful and written about beaches in the world and then diving into the 80 degree turquoise water.

As for the hotel itself, one guest recently wrote in TripAdvisor, "I cannot say enough good things about this place! Everything at Arenas Del Mar was absolutely wonderful! We stayed in an Ocean Breeze Superior Room and it was so very nice. The staff was second to none. I mean they did anything and everything to make sure that we were happy at all times and we were!!! The food at both restaurants was excellent. It was so good that we ate there 6 of the 7 nights we were there. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. The beaches were gorgeous and it was so cool to see monkeys outside our balcony! The massage and facial that I had at the spa was incredible! I almost cried when we had to leave. I cannot wait to go back!"

Culture for the children

2009-05-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

Costa Rica is a country with an abundance of art and culture. The national government sponsors a number of art schools and conservatories and dance, theater and music performances, take place daily in the capitol city of San Jose. It is rare, however, to find cultural and artistic exhibitions in rural and/or coastal areas of the country. Luckily, the nearby town of Quepos was chosen as a site to host the Campañia Nacional de Danza (National Dance Company). This particular show, part of Dance Company´s national tour, was an abstract, freestyle dance piece portraying the atrocity of child prostitution (an issue with which the Costa Rican government has been battling for the past decade and our law severely punishes). relaying on theatrical elements this performence told the story of an executive white collard man with an obscure secret .Through images was shown to us, his marriage, later his promiscuous adventures with this secretaries, and later this pedophylic tendencies. A puppet of a child comes into the scene with a character that represents its "pimp". Not a happy ending on this story. While the content of this show was rather dark and brooding, its theme touched on an important topic that, unfortunately, affects many of the smaller coastal towns in Costa Rica where uncontrolled tourism development has spawned a number of social problems, including drugs, prostitution and sexual exploitation of minors. Those in attendance not only learned an important lesson about how to confront and deal with this issue, but were also left dazzled by the dance performance’s use of nontraditional elements. At the end of the play an open forum allowed the audience to express its firm conviction to protect our children.Costa Rica raices high art and culture as weapons of peace and once again they prove to be the best tools for transformation and to raise conciousness about this problems. It is these types of artistic expressions that positions Costa Rica not only as an ecological destination, but as the “Central American Capitol of the Arts” as well. VIVA LA CULTURA!

By: Jose Pablo Fdez, naturalist guide

Art Exhibits

2009-05-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

Over the past year and a half of operation, Arenas del Mar has been working hard to promote national culture and art in the surrounding community by allowing local artists to present their work to our guests. On May 23, 2009, we hosted Cantarella Mara, who (along with her husband) presented various pieces created from silver and fused glass.

Hungry Boa

2009-05-26T14:48:00.000-07:00

We just ended a terrible drout in Quepos (the dry season hit us hard this year). We had no rain for the months of February, March and April, and in the typically rainy months of August, September and October, we received very little rain. As a result, we noticed very few boa constrictors on our property grounds recently, as they (along with some amphibians and fresh water turtles) tend to hide in moist, cool burrows. Boa constrictors have been reported to reach up to 18 feet in length and can spend up to a whole year without food. The first boa constrictor that we were able to witness this season in the Manuel Antonio National Park was caught feasting on a green iguana after its long long dry season's nap.

By: Jose Pablo Fernandez,naturalist guide

Delfines y ballenas en la costa!!

2009-05-26T14:28:00.000-07:00

Sailing is fun! On the rugged coast line of Quepos you can enjoy cruising next to rocky cliffs carpeted with moss and trees anchored on them. Also travel through rocky isles conquered by avian life like fregates and boobys. But besides all this scenic treasure the most exciting thing would by the encounter with some of the smartest creatures of this planet, the dolphins! On the Quepos coast and through out the waters of the Manuel Antonios National Park 55 ooo hectares of marine reserve, many species of cetaceos could be found. Common Dolphin Delphinus delphis, would be the most exciting to find because it can roam on groups of up to 60 individuals. Also the Long-snouted Spinner Dolphin Stenella longirostris centroamericana could amaze you with his acrobatic jumps. Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus and Pacific Spotted Dolphin Stenella atrenuata are the other 2 most common kinds. But this is not all Rough-toothed Dolphin, Steno bredanensis, Striped (or Blue-white) Dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba and Fraser's Dolphin Lagenodelphis hosei complete the list of the 7 different types of dolphins. Theres many types of small whales around that are confused with dolphins at the distance like the Pygmy Killer Whale Feresa attenuata, Pygmy Sperm Whale Kogia brevicops, Dwarf Sperm Whale Kogia simus, and the Short-finned Pilot Whale Globicephala Macrorhynchus.

And if you visit us (www.arenasdelmar.com) on the right time, meaning from july to december, you have big chances to see many whale species that travel through here. The most common the Humpback Whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, that come around to give birth to its babys. Also False Killer Whale Pseudorca crassidens, Great Sperm Whale Physeter catodon, Killer Whale (or Orca) Orcinus orca, and the giant Blue Whale Balaenoptera musculus.

So, theres lots to see!!!

By: Jose Pablo Fdez, naturalist guide.

Cayuga Trainings

2009-05-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

These past few days, members of hotels managed by Cayuga Sustainable Hospitality (including Arenas del Mar) have been enjoying continuous and useful trainings as part of the formation of high-performance teams. These trainings have included: motivational training, first aid, revenue management and time management. Thanks to Cayuga for continuing to invest in us (especially during these difficult economic times).

Traveling to Harmony Hotel

Blue Flag Celebration

2009-04-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

On April 4, 2009, Arenas del Mar Beach & Nature Resort’s hosted a small ceremony to celebrate its efforts to obtain the prestigious Blue Flag certification for the third consecutive year in a row.
The event was held at Playitas Beach, and included the participation of special guests such as Kids Saving the Rainforest (who participated in the hotel´s onsite sustainability tour and later gave a small talk explaining the importance of refraining from feeding monkeys). Juan Pablo Aguero of ASCOMOTI, Dallas Boyd of the Chamber of Commerce of Aguirre, members of the security forces, Fabian Palma (General Manager), Jorge Arrieta (Operations Manager Cayuga), José Pablo Fernández (naturalist guide) and Kalinga Rodriguez (Sustainability Director).

For more information about Costa Rica’s Blue Flag Certification, please visit http://www.arenasdelmar.com/comunity_development.html.

Green Drinks

2009-04-18T19:17:00.000-07:00

On Monday, March 30, 2009, Arenas del Mar held its first Green Drinks event of the year. Every month, we will be organizing this activity in order to promote the concept of sustainability both among local community groups, businesses and community members in Manuel Antonio, as well as to encourage our guests to learn about, and appreciate, sustainability efforts in Manuel Antonio during their vacation. Participants are encouraged to enjoy a green-colored drink, as well as share ideas, experiences and stories about all things “green”. For more information about Green Drinks, visit http://www.arenasdelmar.com/comunity_development.html.

We invite you to participate in the Green Drinks event held each month at Arenas del Mar Beach & Nature Resort. For more information please contact Kalinga Rodriguez (ADM Sustainability Director) at 2777 2777 ext. 8217 or by email at sostenibilidad@arenasdelmar.com.

Crab Invasion

2009-04-04T10:51:00.000-07:00

Halloween Crabs, or Cardisomas, are very colorful land-crabs that borrow in the ground. It is common to spot this species of crab on the forest trails of Arenas del Mar (www.ArenasdelMar.com) and Manuel Antonio National Park. Once a year these crawly creatures must migrate from their hills to the beach to lay their eggs. One night during the full moon our hotel guests were able to witness a massive amount of cardisomas taking over the reception, the restaurant and pathways onto the beach. Some crabs were found in the hotel’s pool, and even inside guest rooms as well. Over all, however, this is a great sign that this dry season's drought is about to end; the year’s first rains will spur an abundance of baby crabs to leave their eggs, climb up from the beach sands and return to their homes in the hillsides. This pic shows a mother crab with its big cluster of eggs underneath.

By: Jose Pablo Fdez, naturalist guide

CST Training

2009-04-03T18:00:00.000-07:00

On March 26, 2009, we attended a training lead by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) to train hotels and tourism operators on how they can work to obtain Costa Rica´s prestigious Certificate for the Sustainable Tourism (CST).

This activity was carried out in the ICT building, where were discussed major issues, including the structure of the evaluation process, the types of documentation that needs to be presented, and more.

At Arenas del Mar, we are currently in the process of preparing for our evaluation. We have completed a number of important steps and are expecting to receive five leaves (the highest level of certification). To learn more about our sustainability program at Arenas del Mar, click here:http://www.arenasdelmar.com/sustainability.html

1. Arenas del Mar Hotel is Awarded the Prestigious Blue Flag

2009-04-03T17:41:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday March 24, 2009, Arenas del Mar Beach and Nature Resort was awarded the prestigious Blue Flag award, receiving a flag and a star for its efforts to keep the beaches surrounding its property clean and pristine. The event was held at the in the offices of the Ministery of Water and Acueducts in San Jose. Attendees of the event included the President of the Republic of Costa Rica, the Minister of Health, the Minister of Tourism, and other important government officials.

A special thanks to the Arenas del Mar team, who has coveted this award for three consecutive years in a row (2006 to 2008) and has maintained a strong commitment to be a role model in the community of Manuel Antonio. To learn more about Blue Flag Certification at Arenas del Mar, click here:http://www.arenasdelmar.com/sustainability.html