Our family visited this lodge in October of 2006. Our stay was very memorable from the people we met, the wonderful local cuisine, the wildlife, the sun, to the friendly staff and tour guides. We couldn't have asked for a better experience at the lodge. The Jungle Lodge is the best way to get the full experience, and out of all of the ten or so lodge/resorts, the Jungle Lodge was found to be the best al around.

Our family strongly reccommends the Jungle Lodge to be part of your Costa Rican experience. If you are looking for a spa, 5 star restaurant/bar and a filet mignon, then this could possibly not be the place for you, but if you're looking for a clean facilities, happy staff, good pina coladas and local cusine, then this is the place to go.

We had no problems with anything except losing our luggage (due to a mishap by US Airways in Texas, and the only help we got was from the airport staff in Limon!!!!) or the food, water or anything, only the howling of the monkies at 7am if you call that a problem

... pura vida!
(ask the locals!)

Have a wonderful trip!

We spent three days and two nights in the jungle just across the river from the village of Tortuguero . We took a bus from San Jose to the drop off point by the river where a boat picked us up for the 2 hour trip to the Jungle Lodge. The last part of the road was all rocks and holes so it was great to finally arrive and take a boat . However our boat was over an hour late in arriving to pick us up so we were beginning to wonder if we were ever going to get underway.
Along the way, we stopped whenever there were any wildlife to view ( e.g. crocodiles, caymen, various birds,etc). We were also lucky that it had stopped raining during this part of the journey.
The accommodation is quite plan and simple. They are one storey buildings and you have a bedroom and a bathroom with simple furnishings. There are screened windows and wooden louvers . Noise is a bit of an issue as you can hear anyone next door and outside as there are no windows. There is a dining room and a bar which provide ample food and socializing. The pool is small but suitable for the location.
The best part of the stay was experiencing the jungle. Right next to us was a family of howler monkeys and in a small stream was a cayman. The lodge also took us on a walk through the jungle and provided us with rubber boots as the trail is quite muddy. However we all enjoyed it immensely.They also took us on an open boat trip into the National Park and again this was wonderful as we saw many species of birds and many caymen. One of the highlights was that it started to rain while we were in the open boats.( rather, it really poured). The driver had to bail water and we all got wet inspite of wearing the yellow rain coats provided by the lodge. It was so intense, we could only laugh as we couldn't see in front of us for about 30 minutes.( By the way, it rains every day in this part of Costa Rica). The lodge also took us to Tortuguero just across the river so we could visit a small jungle community and also get a chance to walk on the beach on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica.
We didn't drink the water at the Lodge as we weren't certain it had been tested. This is the only place in Costa Rica where we didn't drink the water from the tap.The other suggestion we made about our stay was to provide life jackets for people in the boats as we were in the open boats with no life jackets. Our boat did have motor problems and we drifted for a while until another boat came by to offer assistance.
Earlier I mentioned noise could be an issue at the Lodge but it is also a benefit as you can hear the sounds of the jungle as you lay in bed. All in all , with the wildlife, the rain, the sounds and sites, we did expereince the jungle even if it was only for a couple of days.

Our welcome to the Jungle Lodge was our tour guide telling us of previous groups catching a very severe dose of Montezuma's revenge and to not drink the water, not even the ice. We stopped to buy bottled water at a grocery store. We were also told to ask about the Butterfly Farm as it was a part of our package and other tours had not received it. The answer from our guide, Fransisco was that it was in the back of the Lodge. He did not mention that it was only accessible by boat, and when we did force him to take us, it was the lamest butterfly farm we'd ever seen.

All four of our party developed the trots by the next day. Two of us have had symptoms ever since and it is five days since our stay. We have missed many wonderful meals at other hotels and have had much stress worrying about the locality of washrooms. We sense that the water supply as well as the food are contaminated.

If you do decide to go bring your own food and water. You need enough water to fill the toilet at night when they shut-off the pump.

Bon Voyage... and good luck!

We just returned from a wonderful two week stay at Jungle Lodge. The staff was friendly and helpful, the food was good and the location was incredible. The rooms are basic with a bathroom, but clean. We took guided tours on the canals, lagoon and rainforest with knowledgeable guides and followed it up with self guided canoe tours. All costs and equipment were included with the room charge except for the $7 park fee and tips. We paddled to Tortuguero Town for internet, the beach, and a touch of civilization. This is not a location for the shop-till-you-drop or the-more-amenities-the-better traveler. But if you're looking for monkeys, toucans, parrots, caiman and more then this is the place. We wanted a relaxing vacation and found it!

jim
ukiah, ca