El Silencio Lodge & Spa

Good but could be better. This is a “luxury” resort that is gorgeous but there is some room for improvement. Luxury (in hospitality) should be anticipatory and not reactive. As a guest, I should not have to ask what perks are included in my reservation. Upon check-in, all the details should be laid out and teams need to be more in sync. For example, if you have a scheduled activity at a certain time, you should be told that breakfast times may conflict. Also, there is a need for more staff! Guests are often waiting around to be served and the staff can only do so much to handle large volumes of guests. Overall good, but for the price, the execution of a seamless stay is just not there. Not to mention, if you send back an uncooked piece of steak, you should not be charged for it. It’s the little things! PS: Shoutout to Jose from the concierge team, he was a great guide!

I have stayed at El Silencio on several occasions with my wife and young son. Personally, I really enjoy the Bajos del Toro area, and I highly recommend both international and local visitors to explore this region, which offers many beautiful attractions close to the city. The resort has very refined, well-maintained, and pleasant facilities, making it a great place to visit alone, as a couple, or with family. The staff in general is very courteous and helpful. The food is very good. During our stay, we had lunch, dinner, and breakfast at the resort. The quality of the food was excellent, and the chef is very good. The only issue we had was with the doneness of the meat from the children’s menu, as it was served very undercooked twice. Since this was a children’s menu item, I believe extra care should be taken. One topic I have mentioned several times is the heated pool schedule. The pool opens at 10:00 a.m., while checkout is at 11:00 a.m. Although guests are given the option to use the showers and changing rooms after checkout, in reality this is not very practical. This is an area where it can rain at any time, and having to carry a bag with clothes and shower outside the room is not very convenient. My suggestion would be to open the pool at 8:00 a.m. On this occasion, we used the pool on the day we arrived and the in-room jacuzzi on the day of our departure. Another suggestion is to ensure better availability for resort activities for guests. For example, archery, which we have enjoyed during previous visits, is only offered at a specific time and has a maximum capacity of six people. Once those spots are taken, there are no additional options. If the activity is being offered, I believe the resort should make an effort to provide more availability. It does not take much time, around 30 minutes at most. The cabins are excellent in terms of comfort. Overall, this is a place I truly recommend.

The grounds at El Silencio are just gorgeous… Not overly manicured but clearly well designed and cared for. Everything is green and so lush! I don’t think I saw one piece of litter during our four nights there anywhere. The staff are very anxious to please, and the food is very very good. I’m a foodie so I don’t give that praise easily. The only food I would criticize would be their baked goods/pastries… These could definitely use a little help. The facilities are gorgeous… Our villa was perfect for our stay, quiet and calming. There is no A/C, and you can’t leave the windows open because there are insects… So it was stuffy at night. Other than that, the villa was very comfortable. The yoga studio was gorgeous. I think my favorite time was mornings… Coffee on our porch at the villa, then yoga at the yoga studio, followed by a fantastic breakfast! The spa itself is a beautiful facility… We had different experiences with the quality of the services. One of us said it was fantastic… They had a therapeutic deep tissue massage. Another said it was “good“… And another said it was a little subpar. We didn’t really expect great things from the spa… And they met expectations. Based on our experience, I would recommend the deep tissue massage. We hiked to the waterfall, taking the “easy“ path… And honestly, it was all I could do to get to the lower Falls. I’m 65, have had one knee replaced, and the other is not great, so I’m not in prime condition, but it was not an easy hike. Definitely wear hiking shoes because the trail has roots and rocks and water and wet leaves. They do have hiking sticks/poles, and that was critical for me. My adult daughters are all fit and they agreed that it was not an easy hike. Having said all that… It was a beautiful walk and I’m glad that I did it Finally, the drive in… this is definitely not a DYI project! Leave this to the professionals! Of the 90 minute drive, one hour is on a two-lane road that has hairpin after hairpin along steep mountain drops with no guard rails… And remember you’re in the cloud forest so wet, pavement, or rain, are very likely. In our case, we had a local Driver who drove far too fast for my comfort. We all arrived feeling a little queasy. I did share feedback with the hotel staff and asked that the driver drive slower on our return to the airport, and the return drive was much much better. The hot tub at our villa… We used it a great deal and really enjoyed it. So often hot tubs are barely lukewarm, but this was a nice hot robust tub! We appreciate that! We greatly enjoyed our stay at El Silencio, and I do highly recommend it. Thank you for a lovely, rejuvenative stay!

I had the pleasure of planning a wedding at Hotel El Silencio, and I can truly say the entire experience was exceptional from beginning to end. The planning process was incredibly smooth thanks to the outstanding support of Paola Bolaños, Victoria Campos, and Nicolas Cambronero. Their professionalism, attention to detail, and genuine passion for what they do made all the difference. They were always one step ahead, providing us with all the information we needed and making us feel completely supported throughout the journey. My clients from the U.S., as well as my entire team, fell in love with the hotel and its breathtaking atmosphere—but what truly makes this place special is its people. Every single staff member went above and beyond to create a memorable experience. Even on the wedding day, when it rained, the team handled everything with such grace and positivity that guests ended up embracing and enjoying the moment even more. The reception was simply unforgettable. The food was exquisite, and the service was impeccable. A very special thank you to Didier, Rudy, Randall, and Johans, who took such wonderful care of everyone, they are truly exceptional at what they do. I also want to highlight Nicolas’s incredible dedication—when we needed additional candles and they weren’t available on the property, he personally went into town to get them for us. That level of commitment is rare and meant so much to all of us. This wedding would not have been possible without the support and dedication of the entire Hotel El Silencio team. I wholeheartedly recommend this beautiful property as a wedding destination and truly hope to create many more events together in the future. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

As a R & C property, we were expecting exceptional standards across all aspects of hospitality and guiding and this was not delivered. Whilst the room was very good with plenty of space and a lovely hot tub, very little else impressed us. Overall from arrival to departure, with a few exceptions such as the coffee shop, we experienced a lack of warmth or engagement and this has to be levelled at the management. This Lodge came across as an events based space rather than a comfy hotel. Compared to other similar priced properties where we stayed, this was by far the only disappointing place. What a shame!