Two surfers cycle past me clutching their boards as a local Rastafarian waves them a salute from his spot under a beach palm tree. Waves break on golden sand, backed by a snaking ribbon of slender palms and tropical green foliage — it’s a scene you could market as visual Prozac.
It’s not hard to see why Puerto Viejo de Talamanca is one of the most popular destinations on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. The world-class breaks, miles of unmanicured beaches, natural parks and laid-back welcome lure backpackers and surfers alike.
Now there is a new draw — the first five-star boutique eco-hotel on this coast has opened just outside Puerto Viejo, hoping to attract a different kind of clientele to the area. So how will designer chic sit in this sleepy enclave dominated by backpacker lodges and mid-range hotels that cater for a predominantly young European and American crowd? In the past 10 years this beach resort, three hours’ drive southeast of the capital, San José, has gained a reputation as a party town thanks to the handful of beach bars that play reggae and Latino music in the warm evenings.
The town’s unpaved beach road is lined with small-scale souvenir shops, market stalls and a good variety of restaurants offering fresh fish and local Creole cuisine as well as European menus.
But despite its increasing popularity it retains the feel of a local fishing village, with a distinctive Afro-Caribbean culture. I experience none of the hassle I’ve encountered in similar spots. Locals are friendly and helpful, no one tries to push a sale, beaches are uncrowded and I feel safe walking around town on my own.
At Playa Negra on the edge of town — home to the famous Salsa Brava surf break — I get chatting to an American surfer who first came here five years ago.
When I tell him I’m staying in Le Cameleon, a swanky new design hotel up the road, he tells me he fears that introducing a luxury element may destroy the simple charm that inspired the owners to build here in the first place. But I’m not so sure.
Le Cameleon lies 3km south of Puerto Viejo, just past the surfers’ beach of Cocles, on the dirt road to Manzanillo, and is so discreetly tucked away that we almost miss the small sign in a modest driveway. Across the road an abandoned shack sits among the trees that spread down to a secluded stretch of beach. It’s only when we round the stone wall at the entrance that we step into the cool reception and leafy grounds of a luxury resort.
Attractive low-rise lodges, housing the hotel’s 24 rooms, are set amid palms and jungle greenery. Tucked behind a line of foliage are the pool and Jacuzzi, with a stylish restaurant and bar couched amid the trees. The hotel has been designed to have minimal visual impact on the surrounding scenery and minimal environmental impact, too.
It has one of the area’s few waste-water treatment plants and materials are sourced from Costa Rica where possible. All but three of the hotel’s 23 staff are local, too.
My room is a dazzling contrast to the abundant nature outside.
Everything is bright white — floors, walls, furniture, flat-screen television and iPod dock — with splashes of red, green or blue on cushions and wall hangings. It’s ultramodern and comfortable. But I can’t help worrying about getting dirty footprints all over my pristine floor.
Next morning I leave my manicured nirvana to visit a very different kind of eco-lodge. It’s a bumpy hour’s drive to the Talamanca Bribri reserve.
First stop is Ditsowou Lodge in the settlement of Bambu, an ambitious project set up by Danilo Layan Gabb, an indigenous Bribri, to preserve and promote the traditions of his people. These original settlers of the Talamanca area speak Spanish and wear Western clothes but retain a strong link to their native language, traditional culture and farming practices.
Visitors can make day trips and overnight stops to gain an insight into Bribri culture or can choose to get involved in community life on longer voluntourism stays.
I am met warmly by Danilo’s cousin, Fulvia Gonzalez Layan, who will guide us around the Bambu reserve, and Rebecca Uncles, a Canadian intern staying at Ditsowou and working at the local school, who acts as my interpreter. A tour of the lodge takes us through the main room built in the customary circular shape ‘to bring energy in” and traditional kitchen with a large wood-burning stove. Everything is built entirely from natural materials and no nails are used in the construction. Sleeping quarters are rustic with tents and mattresses laid out in a palm-roofed room with open walls to let in a cool breeze — there’s no air conditioning here. Then we head out to explore the surrounding countryside.
We pick our way across farmland and organic banana plantations (eight different varieties grow here) down to the Yorkin river, where we board a canoe. Steered expertly through the rapids by Fulvia, the ride takes us past expanses of Bribri farmland and jungle into neighbouring Panama, where we cool down with a swim at an isolated waterfall.
As we walk Fulvia is constantly scanning the vegetation, stopping to harvest avocados, chillies and limes, even a wild orchid; we machete the top off a pipa (a small coconut) for a refreshing drink and try yuplon, an aromatic fruit. By the end of the day Fulvia’s bag looks as if she’s come back from the market.
Some of these ingredients go into our lunch of chicken, salsa, plantain and rice and there’s a chocolate-making demonstration to follow, which provides dessert. As we chat, merengue music plays in the village and kids of various ages arrive in the kitchen as school finishes. It’s a real taste of local life.
The locals’ enthusiasm for sharing their way of life is drawing tourists, as well as volunteers and visiting school groups, to Bambu. This same spirit has now led to an enterprising scheme to set up a farmers’ market in the village. Like Ditsowou, it will be all about restoring and reaffirming their culture with, Danilo hopes, workshops, music and dancing, as well as food and cooking stalls.
Later that evening, lying by the pool back at Puerto Viejo, I watch a humming bird busying a flame-red flower. The sounds of the jungle drift in from all around: the percussion of the cicadas, shrill high notes from songbirds and the deep squawk of parrots.
As the light fades stars appear through the canopy of trees and I am reminded of the philosophy at Le Cameleon, which aims to create a living space that works as part of the natural environment. The eco-projects, backpacker surf scene and the design hotel are all hoping to attract tourists to this part of Costa Rica in their own way, yet all realise that the area’s true draw is the wildlife and unspoilt scenery — be it jungle, world-class waves or hidden waterfalls — and the need to protect them.
Whether it’s served up with cocktails and a king-sized bed or cocoa and a hammock, I’ll gladly take some more of that visual Prozac. —