Hotel Le Caméléon opens new beachfront club on Caribbean

New beginnings are old hat at upscale Hotel Le Caméléon in Costa Rica, where their motto is “Every day is a new day”.

The Costa Rica boutique hotel on the southern Caribbean Coast, that changes the color of its decor daily like a chameleon, is marking its fifth anniversary year with the opening of its new La Sula Sea Lounge on the beach at Playa Cocles.

A vivacious opening party will be held on Sunday, March 30, from 3:00 to 10:00 p.m. at the La Sula Sea Lounge, across the main road from Hotel Le Caméléon, just south of Puerto Viejo. The event is open to the public to enjoy a beach BBQ, special drinks and soft lounge music by a DJ.

Le Caméléon is the top luxury hotel in the Caribbean region. The hotel fronts Playa Cocles and the dazzling Caribbean Sea – one of the area’s most beautiful beaches, where golden sand lazes between wild rainforest vegetation and crystal clear waters. The main road connecting the vibrant, bohemian beach town of Puerto Viejo Costa Rica south to the Manzanillo wildlife refuge runs between the hotel and the beach.

The posh hotel opened five years ago with great fanfare, heralding a change in tourism on the sleepy backwater coast toward trendy and upscale. “In April 2009, the hotel was inaugurated by former president and Nobel Prize winner, Oscar Arias, while he was in office. Arias came to mark a new era in the region in the infrastructure and image of the province of Limon and the Caribbean,” said Frederic Spahr, general manager of Le Caméléon. “Le Caméléon was the first luxurious hotel to open in the region. Before, Puerto Viejo was mostly for backpackers.”

Over these five years, Spahr and Ben Abdelkader, president of Le Caméléon, have watched the Puerto Viejo region grow into a popular destination for international jetsetters and wealthy weekend travelers from the capital city of San Jose. “There are new high-level restaurants, lounge bars and shops open. There are also more security and a new main police station,” said Spahr.

Le Caméléon strikes an idyllic balance between relaxing seclusion and the area’s vibrant Caribbean culture. Keeping with their name’s theme, the hotel is decked out in stylish white with splashes of tropical colors that change hue every day. Ultra-chic rooms in four categories are tucked in the jungle and gardens or overlooking the pool. Le Numu Restaurant & Bar serves a fantastic fusion of French and Caribbean cuisine. Numu means chameleon in the language of the Bribri, the area’s indigenous people.

The Costa Rica hotel’s remake of its beach club also sticks to the local indigenous culture for its name, La Sula Sea Lounge. Sula is the Bribri good spirit guardian of souls who nurtures new life in the world and represents the feminine.

The new La Sula Sea Lounge facilities feature five shaded, thatched-roof ranchos/palapas, more day beds and lounge chairs, and a full bar and kitchen onsite serving light beach fare and drinks. Each palapa has a different seating experience ranging from lounge-like couches to more traditional dining – of course, all in white with touches of red.

Hotel Le Caméléon is located 3km south of Puerto Viejo on the road toward Manzanillo, across from Playa Cocles. For information and reservations, call 2750-0501 or visit www.lecameleonhotel.com.

Article by Shannon Farley

Best place to see frogs in Costa Rica: Veragua Rainforest

Walking through the Costa Rica rainforest in rainy season is the time to hear frogs: calling, croaking, barking, whistling, tinkling, trilling and making all manner of loud sounds.

Why are they so noisy? The quick answer is to attract a mate, and to defend a territory – especially in breeding season. In an evergreen rainforest, newly formed ponds, puddles and pools erupt into a cacophony of several species of frogs all calling and competing at the same time for mates.

The tropics hold many such natural wonders. Costa Rica is home to 133 species of frogs and toads, which are found on all of the planet’s continents except Antarctica. The greatest numbers of species are found in the regions with warm, humid tropical forest.

One of the most frog-diverse places in all of Costa Rica is Veragua Rainforest Eco-Adventure, with 54 recorded species. In the Caribbean mountains by the La Amistad International Park, Veragua hosts a unique Frog Habitat. Their fun interactive exhibits, created by resident biologists, will teach you a lot about the rainforest frogs and toads in Costa Rica.

In the fascinating Nocturnal Frog exhibit, day is artificially turned into night so you can see these nighttime frogs and toads going about their normal lives. You will be given a small flashlight to help you spot the intriguing amphibians. When visitors are gone, night becomes day to allow the frogs to sleep.

In the open-air Diurnal Frog area, you will see native frogs that are most active during the day, such as the colorful Strawberry poison-dart frog. This special group of frogs is so-named from the practice of indigenous hunters in South and Central America to coat the tips of their blow darts or arrows with the toxic secretions from the Dendrobates frogs’ skin.

Learn more about frogs in Costa Rica, along with birds, reptiles, insects and butterflies at Veragua Rainforest Eco-Adventure. The rainforest adventure park is a top attraction in the Caribbean region of Costa Rica, and an important national scientific research center. 

On a cruise to Costa Rica, Veragua Rainforest is one of the best shore excursions from the Caribbean port of Limón Costa Rica. For passengers who only have a few hours to experience Costa Rica’s wonders, Veragua Rainforest is located an hour away from the port of Limon and offers half-day and full-day shore excursions with minimal travel time.

Article by Shannon Farley

Discover the magic of Costa Rica’s South Caribbean Coast

Costa Rica's south Caribbean Coast is a magical place. South of Limon, the southern Caribbean beach towns of Cahuita, Puerto Viejo and Manzanillo are ideal destinations for a Costa Rica vacation. Puerto Viejo is the most developed area with a thriving multicultural community, international restaurants, and a diverse array of hotels.

Not as well traveled, simply because Costa Rica's larger Pacific Coast gets most of the attention, the southern Caribbean keeps a quieter, more peaceful tone. Surfers know about Cahuita, Puerto Viejo and Gandoca, renowned for their great waves. Scuba divers and snorkelers certainly know about the marvels of the crystal-clear Caribbean Sea and coral reefs at the Cahuita National Park and offshore from the Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge.

 Beach lovers delight in having the black and golden sands on the beaches almost to themselves.

Le Caméléon ("The Chameleon") is one of the finest hotels on Costa Rica's Caribbean Coast that caters to upscale travelers. The unique boutique hotel with a relaxed vibe is across the street from the beautiful golden sand Playa Cocles, where the hotel has a private beach club.

Le Caméléon blends steamy jungle with modern architectural design. The hotel's decor is pure white with lively splashes of color in cushions, wall paintings, and strategically-placed colored LED lights. Like a chameleon, these decorative elements change every day. Guest rooms follow the theme, being bright white with vividly hued wall hangings, bathmats, towels and bed pillows that rotate colors daily.

At Le Caméléon, an Enchanting Hotel Costa Rica, you will enjoy a serene and relaxing experience in the rainforest, while being pampered in sophisticated warmth with a sense of fun.

Article by Shannon Farley