Casa Cayuco Eco-Adventure Lodge — Hotel in Bastimentos

You can see from the reviews that this is a special place. I want to add to that and give some more details about the activities you can do and some advice in this review.

Turtle Hatching: If you arrive at the right time, you can watch a nest of over 100 baby turtles make their way to the ocean for the first time and even snorkel with them afterwards. You can get as close as you want as long as you don't interfere with them. This was an amazing thing to see and they were so adorable.

Snorkeling the Islands: The first snorkeling place they take you to is good for seeing large schools of fish, but not anything too amazing. However, the second place they will take you is a stunning little stretch of beach where you can lay out, swim to little rock islands a short distance away, or snorkel and see octopus, nurse sharks, flounder, squid, and so many other fascinating creatures. Make sure to stick somewhat close to the snorkel guide - he is really good at spotting things most people overlook. I recommend bringing your phone for great island pictures and maybe a little bit of cash if you would like to buy a fresh coconut to drink from the island lady.

Mangrove Snorkeling: I had some idea that this would be like snorkeling through dirt. How very wrong I was. The group I went with compared the mangrove snorkeling to the Maldives in the amount of fascinating things we found and the colors of the coral we saw. Jose is a fantastic guide to go with here - he found us all sorts of things that even I, and a scuba instructor, have never seen. (example: crab with coral as it's shell). Don't miss this one!

Monkeys: Another winning adventure. You will be greeted with monkeys the minute the boat pulls up to the dock. You will be able to hold them, pet them, and feed them while you learn about how they came to be there. The whole experience was one of my favorite ones.

Salt Creek: This is a visit to the village that most of the people working at the lodge live in. It is incredibly interesting and you will be able to visit the adorable children of the village wearing their school uniforms. It is a completely different way to live than most in the world have experienced and fascinating to see.

Island Hike: Wear a lot of bug repellent for this and make sure your balance is good. This is a long walk through the jungle of the island you are staying on which later turns and returns along the beach. We did not have much luck spotting the birds and sloths, but we did see some crazy birds nests and found it to be a nice walk with lovely beaches.

Bat Cave: This was a wild experience. Don't discount this just because you have seen bats before- I would classify this as more of a caving adventure. I would not recommend the elderly or very young to attempt this one. You will be entering a dark cave partially covered in water with a helmet and light and some gloves, wetshoes, and a bathing suit. From there it is a caving experience, where you climb over rocks through passageways, go through chest-high water while bats fly around you (they don't touch you though, don't worry), and use your headlamps to light the way. At the end, there is a cave waterfall that you can dip under and a rock you can jump off of into a cave pool. This is also where you can find shark teeth that are thousands of years old from when the cave system used to be under an ocean. This is an experience that I would not have missed and is perfect for the adventurers and thrill-seekers.

Sloth Boat: This was a short, lazy experience and it is almost guaranteed that you will see sloths on it. I only recommend this if you have not already seen sloths on the other adventures. It is an open-top boat so the sun is beating down on you and there is no breeze in the mangroves. Wear a lot of sunscreen and prepare to sweat.

Dolphin Bay: Wonderful. Dolphins are always swimming in dolphin bay and the boat captains are great at finding them and staying with them. Sometimes the captain can even get them to jump in the boat's wake!

100 stars and one of the best places I have...

“Can we make this a tradition every year to come here?” is what my daughter asked as we were pulling away in the boat with Jose. My kids are well traveled, including multiple trips to Europe, Caribbean, Costa Rica, all over US, etc and this is at the very top of their list. This is a magical place that is just special and different. We have been in 5 star hotels all over and the service here is just top notch. They know what they are doing to make you feel at ease and just comfortable as can be. They have had the same hard working employees for years. After you take the tour to the village (which we took bags of toys and treats to the kids) you understand the culture better and what goes in to their daily lives. It was so moving and an eye opener for my children to be immersed in their lifestyle just for the short time we had there. It’s just amazing how happy they are and how little they have. |Besides the culture of the indigenous people, the sloth tour was fantastic. We got to see several sloths and even a mom and her baby interacting up so close( Better than any sloth or monkey in Costa Rica). Monkey Island was another fabulous adventure. The kids were amazed by the interactions they got to have with the monkeys. Francine,the owner, was so fun and made sure each visitor got some|one on one time with the different kinds of monkeys. Her story of how this monkey refuge began is so amazing. We also did a close by island adventure that was fun for the kids to snorkel and see lobster and tons of colorful fish.||We stayed three days and could have stayed more. Just relaxing at the resort and laying in the water hammocks/doc netting was just as perfect as the little adventures. My daughter got lucky and made a friend from France that was the same age as her and as soon as she left she begged to have some kids come from the village to play. Somehow someone made this happen and she had so much fun playing and trying to speak her very little Spanish to them.||This truly is a magical hidden place. What makes it the very best are the people working there and how awesome they make your stay. The food was super and we loved watching the guys bring in the daily catch and prepare it. We had a special dinner one night on the doc with another great family we met. ||We spent a little extra and rented the new house so we could have air in our rooms at night. The house is amazing! Lots of room and every room has a nice balcony with comfortable seating.||If you want a moving experience with relaxation and something out of the ordinary, do yourself a favor and take your family or significant other here. You will not be disappointed! ||The resort works with the village where their employees walk from everyday. I had the chance to walk part of the path they travel every day and night to get to work. I’m so thrilled they will be building them a new boardwalk/path to help their commute and make it safe. I can’t wait yo return to see the progress! ||Thank you Casa Cayuca and all your people|for giving us a life...

An absolute treasure!!! A million trillion stars this place is a true hidden gem!!!!

We travelled as a family of four with two boys (ages 1 & 5). It was everything we wanted in a vacation from the scenery, the adventures, the delicious food, and most notably, the people & culture. It was fabulous all around.

We stayed for nearly a week. Each morning at breakfast Alondra and Paola would help us determine the best plan depending on the weather and what we were in the mood for. Each outing was lovely. We especially loved our trip to the Zapatillas Islands to watch the turtle hatchings and snorkel, and also loved monkey island, the sloth tour, the visit to Salt Creek community, and the chocolate farm.

The culture on this island is so wonderfully evident through the people at the resort. Most staff members are from the local Salt Creek community, and when they take you on tours or outings are fantastic and easy local guides. If you have a chance to pack some items for the Salt Creek community (Pack for a Purpose) it's a wonderful opportunity to give back to a place which will provide you with such a deep experience.

The food is top notch. Martina and her team in the kitchen make everything locally from scratch and each meal was a treat. The smoothies, cocktails, and snacks they serve to you on the beach or wherever you are afternoon lounging are delicious. As an added bonus they were wonderful with our baby boy, even sometimes bringing him into the kitchen to socialize with the staff to give us a break at dinner time (he LOVED them so all parties were quite happy!).

The rooms are comfortable and clean and beautifully designed. There is truly no better way to sleep and wake than in a jungle with open windows from the safety of a mosquito net and a cozy bed. The water and beaches are stunning. The dock has lovely areas to lounge on multiple hammocks and lounges.

We had the most incredible time and truly cannot thank the team at Casa Cayuco enough. In particular Alondra made our stay absolutely amazing with her wonderful help and sweet attention with our boys, along with Paola, Jose, Martina, Joseu, Julian, and literally every single one of the staff members we met. Thank you, thank you, thank you for a dream trip with wonderful new friends! We will be back one day again....