Soul of La Fortuna, Costa Rica: 4 Spots You’ll Fall in Love With

Rainforest Meanderings, Local Eateries, & Small-Business Stories

By the time you read this, I will be flying over the equator.

Arriving and departing Central Costa Rica from 40,000 feet.

I will be leaving the lush rainforests of northwest Costa Rica and journeying onwards to the diverse landscapes of Sacred Valley, Peru.

And, as a takeoff to the next adventure, I leave you with a few introductions to the people I met in La Fortuna — a small town 3 hours from the country’s capital, San José. La Fortuna is known for its thermal Tabacón River, Arenal Volcano National Park, and thriving wildlife. While it is undoubtedly a tourist hub, I had the delight of immersing in its slower side — long afternoons sipping coffee porch-side with residents and spending solitude hours wandering nature trails.

So, if you too seek presence, intuition, space, and story in your travels, keep reading.

Arenal Volcano through rainforest canopy.

First, a quick history lesson: La Fortuna was once a tight-knit agricultural community — growing primarily cocoa, coffee, and also cattle ranching. Only after surviving the nearby Arenal Volcano’s devastating eruption in 1968 (wiping out many of their neighboring towns) was the town named La Fortuna (“The Fortune”) for barely escaping the tragedy. Because of the volcano’s worldwide fame, visitors began flocking to the area. Today, while the economy has become increasingly capitalized and diverse (attracting workers from all across Central America), it maintains a community feel — especially when you leave your structured itinerary behind and give yourself space for serendipity and connection.

Here are my top recommendations for small-businesses to visit in La Fortuna —and why:

1. Papa’s Place

2. Bogarin Trail

3. Ceiba Hostel

4. Soda La Chozita

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Papa's Place entrance and the family's pup Casi.

Papa’s Place

This is a family project honoring the biodiversity and heritage of the region. More importantly, it is the home of Gerald and Priscilla — a warm and kind couple whose love story is silly and beautiful (and central to the founding of their business). Once upon a time, when Gerald was a bachelor (and focused solely on his career and passion as a wildlife guide), an older woman would come by his property everyday — in secret — to plant the seeds of beautiful trees (she thought the yard “just looked so bland”). Fast forward to today, that older woman is Gerald’s mother-in-law (the unbeknownst founder of a wildlife oasis that has attracted wildlife photographers and naturalists from far and wide); and, their family home has become a gathering place for the community (and hundreds of species of amphibians, birds, mammals, and flora & fauna). Founded in 2019, Papa’s Place has three core offerings: daytime sloth-watching and bird-watching tours, and night hikes to immerse in the rainforest after dusk. And, they will soon be offering owl-watching tours as well.

Serendipitously, I had the delight of spending an entire afternoon with Gerald and Pricilla’s family — swapping stories about life, running errands with them in town (picking up educational signage they had printed to teach visitors how to differentiate species of venomous snakes by their fangs), conversing with their grandchildren, and running around with their chihuahua mix Casi (meaning “almost” in Spanish) and mastiff Ara (named after the genus name for “macaw,” a bird that plays a vital in the area’s forest health).

Later, after nearly 4 hours of sipping coffee on their porch and watching multiple