Property Type :
House 
2 Bedrooms
1.5 Bathrooms 
4 Sleeps |
The lovely two-bedroom Casa Roja (Red House) on the 150 acre Finca Estrella is one of only four modern holiday homes in this area of outstanding natural beauty. Our neighbors are all wonderful local Ticos (Costa Ricans) so if you want to absorb the real Costa Rican culture, this is the place to stay. Plus we are only minutes from the beach and the local surf break!
Read 'A Friend Laughs' by Jo Freeman for the funny and true story of our beginnings. Essential reading for anyone who has dreamt of changing their life. Available from Amazon.
Casa Roja is best suited for a couple, a family with older children or two couples. This is because the second bedroom (blue bedroom which has a sink) is accessed from outside, down the spiral staircase, so the house isn't suitable for younger children. The laundry is also downstairs and has a toilet and sink.
On the balcony and roof terrace you are surrounded by verdant rainforest teeming with endangered squirrel monkeys, sloths, toucans, scarlet macaws, many different hummingbirds, armadillos, white-faced monkeys, and thousands of iridescent butterflies. The stars from the roof terrace at night are amazing and make sure you keep a look out whilst you are showering in the outdoor shower, a sloth is often spotted in a neighboring tree.
Inside the house are orthopedic mattresses, granite countertops in the kitchen, and stunning locally-carved wooden doors with rainforest designs. In the garden there is a huge mango tree and a variety of citrus trees. There are numerous walks for all abilites starting from the finca. You can also mountain bike and horse ride here.
The house includes use of the gorgeous 18m swimming pool with children’s pool and barbeque area, waterfall, separate washroom and amazing outdoor shower and our horse is at your disposal - others can be rented for $20 a day from our neighbours. The trek to the beautiful black sand beach at Pilon is a 'must do'. Watch the local surfers on the almost unknown left break, stand-up paddleboard or gawp at the kite-surfers on a breezy afternoon or you may be lucky enough to see the local fishermen in the water with their lines catching your dinner. Fish and jumbo shrimp are often available from them to buy and make a fantastic meal, look for the signs on the beach road or ask them.
Talking of food, there are two sodas (small restaurants) at nearby Pilon selling cheap Tico-style food and a bar which serves food and another new soda 10 minutes away in Conte. Pavones, with its world famous left-hand surf break 8km (20-25 minutes)away, has some nice restaurants which include an Israeli vegetarian (great power bars and broccoli quiche!), Italian and the Mediterranean La Manta that shows surf videos and new and old movies.
There are a couple of pulperias (small stores selling basic items) minutes away, a supermarket 10 minutes away and a man in a truck drives to your door every Monday with fresh fruit and vegetables. Pineapples, mangoes, watermelons, papayas, cashews, a wonderful type of lychee, coconuts, guavas, ice cream beans, oranges, lemons, and grapefruit can all be picked at the finca depending on the time of year. Come and see what you can find!
A 4x4 rental car is advisable and absolutely necessary in the height of the rainy season. Solid Car Rental are based near the airport in Golfito or 4x4rentacar are a good cheap option in San Jose if you want to drive down. Other companies will deliver a car to Golfito Airport for you.
See the beautiful photos of birds on the finca that one of guests took at https://ebird.org/media/catalog?yr=YPAST10®ion=Puntarenas,%20Costa%20Rica%20(CR)®ionCode=CR-P&userId=USER945385&user=John%20and%20Milena%20Beer |
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50% refundable if canceled in advance of at least 14 day (s) before date of arrival.
100% refundable if canceled in advance of at least 30 day (s) before date of arrival.
Full refund of Service Fee is offered when cancellation is eligible for a 100% refund.
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Upstairs in Casa Roja - note the hammock on the terrace
The well-equipped granite-topped kitchen area
The hammock awaits. Note the orange coconuts on the palm...
18m pool with waterfall from children's pool
Off to the beach on the horses
Watching Mum SUP
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Discounts available for longer stays. Rate information valid for up to 4 people
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Booked
Available10 minutes' drive from world-class surf breaks. Stunning views of the Golfo Dulce. Perched in the rainforest teeming with wildlife.
150 acre finca with four houses and a pool. Surrounded by rainforest. Amazing surf and beautiful wildlife.
Unspoilt tip of Costa Rica right at the end of the road where rainforest meets the beach.
Experience the real Costa Rica in the comfort of a house just for you. Stay in the hills where you catch the cooling sea breeze and enjoy the tranquility away from the bustle of the beach.
Warm all year round (shorts and T-shirts). Dry season is January to March. Green season is September to November.
Fly to San Jose international. Either drive down and see the country of take an internal flight to Golfito and rent a car for the last hour.
A car is recommended . Buses are infrequent. We are remote.
We recommend a 4x4 for the high clearance as the roads aren't all paved. Bring plenty of sunscreen and be prepared to relax.
Laid back campesino way of life.
Spanish, English
Costa Rica is not cheap, but in our houses you will be self-catering, so can budget accordingly. Eat out at local sodas (Tico food) or restaurants (western tastes).
I spent 6 fabulous years with my wife Jo raising our three kids and building our holiday rental houses in the beautiful and peaceful hills of Cuervito de Pavones. Every day we marveled at the stunning views and were thrilled by the variety of wildlife. I hope you are able to visit Finca Estrella and experience the wonders on offer.
When we planned our trip to CR my first question to my girlfriend was "where do most of the tourists go"? She showed me on a map and I pointed to the other end of the country and said that is where I wanted to go. We searched and finally settled on Casa Roja and we weren't disappointed. The beauty of the area was breathtaking. Sitting on the balcony in the morning and watching the jungle wake up was so very relaxing. Since I work with wildlife the number of birds, butterflies and mammals in the area was nothing less than spectacular. We explored the entire property and found fresh mandarin limes and banana's which were relished everyday.Our excursions along the beach from Zancudo down to Punta Banco were awesome and the food in the area was delicious. I would be remiss if I didn't mention what an awesome host Freddy is. He was incredibly kind,helpful and a pretty funny guy. He is the epitome of what life is all about in the Pavones area. We even had the company of some of the sweetest dogs.
This was our third trip to Casa Amarilla and I always leave hoping there will be many more to come. This time we only stayed for a week. In the past we'd stayed for a month. I wish we could stay for a year! We absolutely love it here. Pavones is an amazing area that is still sort of a best kept secret. On the drive from SJO to Finca Estrella you pass through the bustling touristy towns of Jaco, Hermosa, and Manuel Antonio where you sometimes see more American's than Ticos. As you drive further south everything becomes a little calmer. The beaches are beautiful. We love Pilon because we are almost always the only people there and it is a short drive down the hill. My husband even made the journey by foot two years ago. I definitely recommend a 4WD vehicle for getting around. Each year that we've stayed we've seen monkeys, toucans, and macaws all from the deck. Nature is all around you here. You see from your bedroom windows what others pay for tour guides to see. And if you don't notice it on your own Freddy is always there to help point things out. I could go on and on about the incredible kindness of the people who work on Finca Estrella for pages and pages. Freddy is the most easy going and helpful person. My children talk about Grace all the time. We were happy to go on an excursion to a waterfall with her husband Enrique who is a phenomenal tour guide. The minute we get home from this place I start looking for flights back.
When we came up the little dirt road leading to casa roja, we did anything else than expect such an splended, neat and well built finca. We felt comfortable from the first second. The pool area just toped that impression Freddy was super cool, dropped by every now and then to chat and look if we need anything. Very good guy!!!
I stayed with my two daughters (1 and 3) for a month at Finca Estrella. Jo and Crispin have built beautiful houses with amazing views! On our previous trip to Costa Rica we had stayed by Arenal and Playa Flamingo. Both of these areas were heavily populated with tourists and this time we wanted something more authentic. We definitely got it! There was no need to drive to a national park when we had the beautiful grounds to walk around. We saw monkeys, macaws, and toucans while eating on the porch of Casa Madera. We enjoyed the beaches of Pilon, Zancuda, and Pavones, which were all a short drive from the Finca. When we didn't want to drive the pool was practically right outside our door. Most of all we enjoyed the INCREDIBLE hospitality of Jo and Crispin and their staff Freddy, Enrique, and Grace. Freddy was there to greet us and promptly answer any question we had. Enrique took us on amazing adventures. We hiked to the most beautiful waterfall and were able to ride horses to the beach. Grace somehow managed to keep the place spotless despite my two children. I have never felt so welcome someplace and never been so sad to leave. Staying here was an experience that I won't soon forget. My daughters had a wonderful time. I don't think they will ever look at a zoo the same after all the animals we saw right outside our door! I hope we will be returning soon.
