I have been fortunate to travel a great deal in life so far, both for work as a travel and hospitality writer as well as to satiate my own oft-insatiable desire for new adventures and experiences, and in that time I have come to deeply appreciate the value of seeing new destinations through the eyes of the people who live there.
Whether your journeys bring you to Monteverde or Madrid, Copenhagen or Costa Rica, to truly embrace travel is an art of living new experiences, embracing new perspectives, stepping out of familiar shoes and comfortable rhythms to fully open yourself to other flavors of life. It takes courage and adaptability, and depending on where you stay and who you stay with it can be as immensely challenging as it is deeply rewarding.
The easiest solution, and in my opinion the best way to travel, is by visiting friends and family who live in those far-off places. With the familiar comforts of warm companionship, and the insight of someone who has spent years learning the area (with all the handy tricks and best-kept-secrets that come along with that), immersing yourself in another way of life goes from an immense challenge to an instinctive experience.
The paths have been tread for you, the problems solved, and you find yourself welcomed into a new world, a new way of life, and a new perspective that brings you immediately below the surface level to truly connect with the essence of another place, to truly travel, and leave having deepened your connection with the people and place around you, which is a connection that will never fade.
Valeria Fallas making a cup of coffee one morning at Nectandra
You may not know Karen and Valeria Fallas just yet, but when you step into the Ocotea Boutique Hotel, that will be remedied quickly by their warm and attentive hospitality, something that’s both disarming and incredibly welcoming.
And the resulting experience in their home of Monteverde offers — at least in this traveler’s opinion — nothing less than the feeling of being welcomed into the home of a trusted friend, one who truly loves where they live and wants to get to know you better, so they can share the absolute best that their home has to offer.
If you’ve felt drawn to the sense of peace, openness, and contentment of Tico life all wrapped up in the phrase pura vida, if you have dreamed of the misty forests of Costa Rica and the fascinating wildlife that lays hidden within it, if you’re searching for adventure in a place like no other on earth, or if you simply seek a place to rest and rejuvenate far from the stresses of daily life, you have already begun to understand the essence of Monteverde.
If you choose to stay at the Ocotea Boutique Hotel, you will find yourself hosted by a family whose passion and purpose is to share the essence of one of Costa Rica’s most unique, fascinating, and enriching destinations with you.
In our other articles, we’ve explored Monteverde through the story of Karen and Valeria, the emergence of Ocotea Tours, and the founding of the Ocotea Boutique Hotel.
We’ve taken journeys into the heart of Monteverde’s cloud forests and reserves on hanging bridges and ziplines and hiking trails, been guided to explore the orchids and hummingbirds, the fascinating birds and mammals, the trees, and the ways in which this glorious ecosystem is so delightfully interconnected.
We’ve discussed the design of the hotel from the outside to the artwork to the finest details, touched on the Monteverde Rooftop, and how Nectandra Restaurant brings you homemade meals three times a day elevated by local ingredients and passionate chefs.
We’ve talked extensively about the intangible spirit of this place, from the power of stillness to the uncapturable beauty of this place, from the power of living enmeshed with nature to the way the community looks after each other and the natural world that surrounds them.
All of those stories and lessons distill the essence of this place, and they come entirely from the family — those blood-related and those who are family of the heart — behind the Ocotea Boutique Hotel. Their knowledge, insight, experience, and passion are what brought to life a home-away-from-home unlike any hospitality experience in Monteverde, and one that stands among the most welcoming, fascinating, and worth-revisiting destinations I have ever been blessed to visit.
I only hope that you get a chance to come visit here yourself.