How To Indulge in Some Earth-Friendly
Pampering in Costa Rica
By The Lost Girl, Juanted.com
Ever wonder where this whole sustainable
travel, eco-tourism trend got its legs in
the first place? As I learned during my
family vacation, it was the formerly
impoverished banana republic of that Costa
Rica almost single-handedly spawned the
concept back in the 70s.
After the price of “yellow gold” crashed
back a few decades ago, the nation fell into
a devastating depression. Sensing that CR
needed to identify an alternative
industry—and fast—a few government smarties
kicked off the nation’s Green Revolution,
reforesting huge tracts of jungle that had
once been clear-cut for farming and turning
them into protected wilderness areas and
national parks. By successfully marketing
itself as a nature-lovers paradise, Costa
Rica no longer needed to export bananas to
survive. They started importing tourists.
And with those tourists came the birth of
another trend: Eco-Spas.
It’s no coincidence that nearly every hotel,
resort and treehouse lodge has been built
with its own in-house pampering zone. As my
family and I discovered, twittering birds,
trickling tropical waters and verdant green
canopy provide a pretty kick-ass backdrop
for massages, and there’s nothing better
than a rubdown after days spent zip-lining,
hiking and white water rafting. With so many
top-notch spas to choose from, it’s tempting
to get a treatment every day, so rather than
fight the feeling, that’s pretty much what
we did. The fam and I personally checked out
these four spas across the Northwest portion
of Costa Rica—but we highly suggest that you
do a follow up yourself.
The Golden Gecko Spa (Lost Iguana Resort,
Arenal) This boutique spa consists of just
two treatment suites set within a landscaped
tropical forest (pictured above), but don’t
let the diminutive size fool you. From the
pre-treatment foot scrubs offered on a
private terrace to the freshly picked
flowers floating in a water bowl under your
massage bed to the soundtrack provided by
nature, pampering is still the name of the
game here.
. After the treatments themselves (a word:
outstanding) the best part about visiting
the GG is that you’ll never feel rushed
here—you can bliss out in the his and hers
soaking pools or remain on the table for as
long as you’d like after your massage.
The Grand Spa (Tabacon Grand Spa Thermal
Resort, Arenal) You may have dipped in a
mineral hot spring before, but until you’ve
soaked in the acres of thermal pools,
waterfalls and steaming black rivers at
Tabacon, we dare say you’ve never truly
experienced them. This is a family friendly
place, but quiet corners of the resort were
practically built for couples, as was the
award winning full-service spa. My sister
Jennifer and her fiancé raved about the
side-by-side massages done in one of the
outdoor bungalows, and loved that they got
to wash the therapist-applied mud off of one
another once they were finished.
Spa at the Four Seasons Costa Rica You might
expect that this is the best spa game in the
country, and the Four Seasons doesn’t
disappoint. Spa Director Todd Hewitt keeps
introducing new treatments (recent
additions: a bamboo massage, ear candling
and a holistic full-body rebalancing
retreat) in order to keep the experience
fresh for spa guests and mixes
international-style treatments with local
products and ingredients.
Since you’re not likely to be in a rush on
Peninsula Papagayo, take an extra half hour
to chill out on the balcony relaxation area
and take a dip in the the outdoor soaking
pool overlooking the gulf.
Spa at the Occidental Grand Papagayo While
massages are one of the few options not
included in the price of the all-inclusive
resort, it’s worth booking at least one
treatment in one of the private open-air
huts. In addition to massages, the resort
offers facials, mani/pedis and salon
services, along with steam and sauna
services.
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