WOW. What a fantastic place to stay. We absolutely LOVED it. We were supposed to stay only two nights but kept on booking another day until we stayed 6 days... The dogs were just lovely and Meg was incredibly helpful, thank you! The location was fabulous and the views were breathtaking. Would definitely recommend staying here!!
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I stayed on the pitanga treehouse for about 5 days, fell in love with the scenery and how involved it was with nature. Great opportunity to visualize the importance of permaculture and sustainable living, especially focused on tourism. Loved the kitchen, they take the farm to fork seriously:) Staff was mostly local and really kind!
Megan was super involved and helpful too! Definitely coming back to learn more and enjoy Ometepes nature.
A beautiful experience all around
If you are planning to go to Ometepe- this is THEEE place to stay at! Megan is SO helpful, you can pick fruits off the trees to eat, there are thousands of butterflies- the place is truly a magical experience. Breakfasts were amazing, and it is close by to many activities. I would HIGHLY recommend staying here, and also doing the petroglyph tour with Junior. Thank you thank you thank you for the incredible experience!!!
Thanks for taking the time to leave us a review! We're happy you experienced the best tye island has to offer. Happy travels and hope to see you again soon
Stayed in the Chilamate Canopy Cabin for 3 nights and loved it. Beautiful wrap around balcony with jungle views and a hammock to enjoy it. Woken up each morning to the sound of the jungle waking up which was amazing.
Incredibly comfortable bed, reasonable fan for the time of year I was there and good shower, cold water very welcome as it gets warm. Host was incredibly helpful, as were all the staff. Included breakfast was really good and there were daily changes to the cooked option.
It was an easy walk to town and restaurants but as you are warned on the website, you do need a torch on phone as it is very dark in parts.
Was blown away by this place. The owners are super responsive on WhatsApp with all the questions I had. They set up an ATV for me right at the ferry which really made my trip. And they have thought of everything in the rooms. A bottle of wine in case you’d like to buy one, a bar where you can buy soda or beer, and two order in food menus where you can get delivery in case you’d like to stay predominantly in your cabin.
Additionally the place is just so special. Right in the jungle and surrounded by nature, with screens so you can hear the jungle all the time. Will be staying here every time I come to ometepe! 10/10
It’s easy to be fooled by the ’supermodel’ photos but once you get to Selvista, the make up comes off and this place is a glorified hostel. The tagline ‘barefoot luxury’ gives the place artistic license but in reality it’s down right tacky and service is shocking. This may have been a different review if they charged hostel prices (because that’s what it really is) since the ‘luxury’ pricing is a highway robbery.
The WORST hotel manager I have ever come across in my life. Personification of expat-fatigue and 0 concern for guests. Refused to listen to anything that didn’t fit her idea of what the place was. Argued with me in front of other guests when I tried to logically explain my concerns… because you know, nothing can go wrong on her watch and really the problem is the dumb traveller who knows nothing. Just call me Jon Snow.
The original design of the place may have had style but it isn’t maintained and in some parts are dangerous. There were empty sections in the railings on the third floor platform. Near a steep ladder and swings. Death wish much? We thought we were staying at an intimate permaculture farm. The extent of which was - see jackfruit on tree, be happy. I asked for a tour and it felt like asking an estranged relative for a kidney...didn't get. There was no information/direction, nothing to help orient us when we checked in. The driver who picked us up at the ferry showed us to the room and said - go to kitchen and pay. We went to kitchen and the person said (nicely) ‘please pay’ no information about the farm, no welcome, nothing… they just wanted the payment. The manager doesn’t show up until breakfast the next day and preferred long-winded/gas lighting WhatsApp messages to actually showing up for a minute to solve problems. Or, picking up the phone and having a conversation. So there’s really no one to help with anything. I don’t know how many ways I can say this - she simply doesn’t care. Also, at $100 price tag the local staff isn’t being paid in line… again, would be a very different review if the staff was taken care of in accordance to charges.
Spend your hard earned money elsewhere. After a night here we moved up the mountain to Tocoto. The air was fresh and the ALL-LOCAL staff was happy to have us and took so much pride in their lodge. Also, their transportation charges were fair. They charged us $25 for a drop-off to the ferry. Selvista charges $45 for the same… why!?! O, same kind of vehicle.
Lessons learned - I’m thinking of starting my own permaculture farm and building treehouse rentals. I was on a due diligence mission. Big lesson learned - pay people well, hire those who care about the property and the people who visit it. So simple… but so hard.
We've taken on board some of your points about extra balcony covers and lampshades. The balconies have been filled with extra rails for those that bring young children.
We recommend all guests reserving to check housing descriptions and photos before booking to assure that they're suitable for their needs. Each booking channel has many images and descriptions.
If any of your concerns had been raised when you arrived early afternoon we would have been able to assist personally. We have local staff attending on the farm 24/7. The english speaking manager is also available for assistance for queries throughout the day, but at 8.30pm when your complaints began it was a little late for us to come and visit you in person. Your original complaints were also regarding services you had received by drivers on the mainland, so outside of our range of control. (It appears you had offered the driver a tip and then later decided he should have given you change but only decided to communicate that to us, not him, many hours later). It was only once we let you know we couldn't assist further with that that you began to make us aware that you weren't happy with anything about the place. Regardless we paid you the difference you said was due from him.
In case anyone is looking for more info about the farm, the island or tips for their stay we have info books in the kitchen, in each guesthouse, in the welcoming messages when you reserve and on our website. We can also attend any needs or queries personally during daytime hours. There is certainly not lack of info around the place for anyone who cares to look!
Apologies that the tour times didn't fit with your availability. Future guests are advised to book in advance if their schedules are tight. This guest was on a two night stay and requested a tour. We suggested a time that didn't didn't work for them, we were trying to rearrange our commitments for the next day to fit the guest's needs but the guest decided to leave the next morning instead. We are more than happy to show off the farm and explain the workings and philosophy to our visitors. Especially to those who have no clue about permaculture- it would have been especially useful in this case to point out the range of edible and medicinal plants just around the Jungle house aside from the one recognized jackfruit tree (from the balcony alone you can see coconuts, bananas, mangos, bamboo, Pitanga, cacao, coffee, galangal).
Our permaculture farm consists of 22 acres - including hundreds of edible plants alongside herbs, natural construction materials and medicinals, a plant nursery, several animals, guesthouses, a bi-lingual education center for children and salad gardens... so requires more than just a cursory glance to get to know. For those that don't understand permaculture myself and our staff are happy to explain the basics.
To clarify our pricing and accommodation style: we are not a hostel. We have no shared dorms nor shared bathrooms. All guesthouses are private. The house in question here was $100 for three people in Easter week with two floors, volcano views, hot water and fiber optic wifi with breakfast and taxes included. If this seems above your budget a hostel may indeed be better for your needs.
The assertions about our staff pay are well off the mark. We have some of the highest paid staff in the area. We also fund community projects and donate time, materials and funds to local education projects, health projects and sports projects. We ensure our products are conscious and quality. We assure sustainable employment in times of economic instability and make sure our guests are all well looked after in terms of health and training. This is how we justify our prices.
For reference: our taxi to the port is $40 for up to 4 people including cold drinks, english speaking drivers and door to door service. There are no other vehicles such as the one we offer on the island. It's a comfortable Nissan Frontera, less than 4 years old with ample luggage space. We do not claim to offer the cheapest services; we offer the highest quality.
We understand travelling during the busiest (and hottest) week of the year with children can be stressful. Saying that, we would ask our guests to be reasonable and respectful. We see our services as reciprocal. None of our staff need to take abuse from visitors, it will not be tolerated here
