Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica

Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel

Price per night from$262.50

Price information

If you haven’t entered any dates, the rate shown is provided directly by the hotel and represents the cheapest double room (including tax) available in the next 60 days.

Prices have been converted from the hotel’s local currency (USD262.50), via openexchangerates.org, using today’s exchange rate.

Style

Mind, body, spirit(s)

Setting

Tico time

If ‘plant-based’ would head up your Hinge profile, then we reckon you’d swipe right for Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel – an eco-conscious, restorative yoga retreat tucked away in Tamarindo’s jungle. Travel shouldn’t cost the earth, which is why everything – wines in the bar, tacos in the restaurant, furnishings in the rooms – is vegan, sustainable and organic. The modern Miami-style main villa, rooftop yoga studio and azure pool are just the places for connecting with yourself and the environment. This sort of spirit (and the other, drinkable version) are in no short supply among the legendary post-swell nightlife of Tamarindo, a short stroll away. You’ll be close to the beach and its surf, snorkelling, paddle boarding and kayaking spots, and within day-trip distance of Guanacaste national park for hiking, zip-lining and wildlife spotting, before retiring to your private, plant-lined balcony (natch).   

Smith Extra

Get this when you book through us:

$50 hotel credit per room

Facilities

Photos Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel facilities

Need to know

Rooms

14 rooms housed in four stand-alone lodges.

Check–Out

11am. Earliest check-in, 3pm, but flexible, subject to availability.

Prices

Double rooms from £234.94 ($297), including tax at 13 per cent.

More details

Rates include an alfresco breakfast by the pool – choose from the local tico plate of gallo pinto, avocado, fried plantain and tortillas – or opt for smoothie bowls, pancakes and homemade granola.

Also

If the sugar-white sand and renowned surf didn’t already have you sold, Tamarindo beach is also blessed with hatchings of rare leatherback turtles. Visit in March, April and May for the ‘arribada’ (arrival), where thousands of turtles lay their eggs under the light of the full moon.

At the hotel

Vegan restaurant and bar, parking, saltwater pool, rooftop yoga studio, healing studio, treatment rooms, meditation and reiki sessions. In rooms: WiFi, TV, books, beach towels, Percale cotton sheets, desk and workspace, private balcony with seating, coffee from Costa Rican brand Britt, tea from Tea Forte, vegan minibar, Raw Botanical bath products.

Our favourite rooms

All rooms are decorated with neutral colours, rattan lamps and a unique energy painting created by the owners’ son during a two-year meditation journey. The floor-to-ceiling windows open to a secluded balcony, where light streams in between the palms that line the perimeter. The size and number of beds (queen-size, king-size or two doubles) vary, but little else does. That said, opt for the hummingbird lodge to be tucked away from the main villa, or the beetle lodge for hop, skip and jump access to the bar.

Poolside

The idyllic saltwater pool is cocooned by palms and loungers, but the most natural pool on earth is a short walk away – a 10-minute jaunt takes you to Tamarindo beach and the Pacific.

Spa

There’s a treatment room on the third floor of the main villa where you can try all manner of massages and therapies. The hot stone massage is for deep relaxation, using warmth to balance the body and mind; the after-sun hydration facial uses fresh aloe vera and refreshing cucumber to give your sun-kissed skin some TLC. Or try cupping – a traditional Chinese method of creating air vacuums to massage the body and release tension and toxins – or Japanese Reiki, which creates clarity, mental and emotional release and relaxation through energy healing. There’s a lot of ways to move your body in the open air (including trekking, swimming and surfing) but the hotel partners with nearby Tamarindo gym which you’re free to use as you wish. That said, the rooftop yoga and healing studio will get your body and mind flowing with vinyasa, Ashtanga and restorative meditation.

Packing tips

You needn’t worry about hunting down dairy free or gluten free snacks – the entirely vegan minibar and well-stocked snack basket will do just nicely.

Also

There’s an ADA compliant room with a wheelchair-width doorway, extra-large roll-in shower, tailored bathroom facilities and roll-on balcony access.

Children

Kids aged 12 and over are welcome at the hotel, and the ‘Friendly double’ rooms have enough space for a family of four.

Sustainability efforts

It should come as no surprise that a plant-based hideaway is eco-conscious. Ingredients for the restaurant are sourced exclusively from local farmers, and any unwanted food is turned into organic compost for the hotel garden. Renewable energy (including solar panels) is used throughout the main villa and lodges, and no single-use plastic is allowed. There’s a water conservation system on site that recycles grey water into safe irrigation for the plants, and the saltwater pool is natural, clean and kind to the skin. Speaking of – the Raw Botanical bathroom products are eco-friendly, made from locally sourced ingredients, organic and vegan.

Food and Drink

Photos Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel food and drink

Top Table

We love the alfresco tables close to the main villa with a view of the grounds.

Dress Code

Sustainably-made wares that fit the brief of pool-side dinners, tamarind margaritas and tequila shots.

Hotel restaurant

The entirely plant-based restaurant is suitably plant-adorned: there’s greenery in spades, rattan chairs, and views of the azure pool. During the day, it’s more informal than a restaurant – instead, more of a gathering place to tuck into spicy buffalo cauliflower wings and philly cheesesteak sandwiches (made with oyster and portobello mushrooms, natch). Come evening, white-clothed tables are dotted around the low-lit pool for alfresco dining, and dishes such as crab cakes (made from hearts of palm and coated in nori and panko breadcrumbs) and mushroom ceviche are paired with bottles of vegan wine and hunks of tiramisu, lava cake and lemon pie.  

Hotel bar

The minimalist bar is part of the restaurant, and serves poolside cocktails, mocktails and juices all day long. Start your evening with a signature Mamaracuya – passion fruit pulp, lime, agave, triple sec and Don Julio silver.

Last orders

Breakfast is from 8–10.30am, and the all-day menu is available from 11am. Order your last cocktail before the clock strikes 10pm, then it’s out-out to Tamarindo town.

Room service

You can order room service from the all-day menu between 12 noon and 10pm.

Location

Photos Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel location
Address
Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel
100 meters west of AYA
Tamarindo
Costa Rica

Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel is in a quiet barrio of Tamarindo, a stretch of Costa Rica known for its pristine playa.

Planes

The nearest airport is Liberia, an hours’ drive to the hotel in Tamarindo. Contact the hotel to arrange a private transfer to and from the airport for $90 each way, for up to four people.

Automobiles

There’s a private car park at the hotel, just pull up street-side when you arrive and ask for the code at check-in.

Worth getting out of bed for

Start your day with a rooftop vinyasa flow, and or try something different – reiki sessions, guided meditation, sound baths and cupping all take place in the third-floor jungle-facing studio. The water calls many sun-seekers and surf-lovers to the Costa Rican shores, and for good reason. The country’s central location benefits from both south and north Pacific swells, affording year-round waves at multiple breaks along the coastline. The sandy bottom of the main beach in Tamarindo (and the mostly mellow waves) make it popular for beginners and long-boarders. Take to the water for paddle boarding, sunset catamaran trips and snorkelling with manta rays. Head inland to Parquet Nacional Marino Las Baulas de Guanacaste – you can zipline between the hills thanks to the cable that connects 11 platforms and boasts views of the beaches and forest. There are natural hot springs, mineral-rich mud baths and mangrove safaris to explore too (Sensoria rainforest, Llanos de Cortez and Rio Celeste are some favourites), plus plenty of hiking: Rincon de la vieja national park has trails with volcano views and an abundance of wildlife – spot monkeys, iguanas and armadillos.

Local restaurants

Go to breezy artisanal food market El Mercadito for a huge range of culinary options including vegan dishes (but plenty of meat and seafood too, if you’re craving some). There’s pizza, poke, tacos and arepas, and the large bar and tango dancing evoke a lively atmosphere. Sprout serves nutritious salad bowls, veggie wraps and fish tacos. Try the sprout salad: avocado, cherry tomatoes, sprouts, carrots, beetroot, cucumber and garbanzo beans. Ginger is a mid-way point between the Guanacaste national park and Tamarindo, so stop off before or after zip-lining for some arty, Asian-inspired tapas. Try the roasted beet hummus with hot pita, rainbow salad, tarka dal (a spicy red lentil stew) and crispy veggie spring rolls.

Local cafés

There’s all-day breakfast and coffee at Santa Rita, a rustic, high-ceilinged bohemian spot with green smoothies, banana bread, veggie bruschetta and homemade granola. La Bodega specialises in freshly brewed java coffee, and serves local and organic dishes including hearty salads, egg and avocado sandwiches and lemon scones.

Local bars

Order round-after-round of tamarind margaritas at Nogui’s sunset café, which dates back to 1974 and is Tamarindo’s oldest eatery. Sunbathe and sip mimosas at El Be Club; then move to Coco Loco for sundowners and watch as the sun explodes into shades of orange, pink and purple with a frozen Coco Loco cocktail (coconut water, coconut cream, guaro, rum, tequila) and your pick of fresh salads and ceviche.

Reviews

Photos Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel reviews

Anonymous review

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this eco-friendly hotel in Guanacaste and unpacked their yoga blocks and sound-healing gongs, a full account of their beach-side break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel in Costa Rica…

‘There’s definitely no dairy in this, right?’ said no one, ever, at Mother Earth Luxury Boutique Hotel – an entirely plant-based villa-style hotel that prides itself on delectable vegan dishes, dynamic yoga flows, meditation and a damn good time when the sun goes down. The bucolic boutique retreat is the first entirely vegan hotel in Costa Rica, meeting the growing appetite for plant-based stays in a country that’s already one of the most sustainable destinations on the planet. The idea is to connect with nature – through the food, the landscape and the design: rooms are light, airy and decorated with locally-sourced furnishings; and the open-air rooftop yoga studio brings the outdoors in as you flow. The garden is filled with plants, fruit trees and resident bees and hummingbirds, and walkways are lined with heliconia. But we know you’re not just here for the hotel: Costa Rica is a volcanic, tree-covered wonderland, packed with rainforest, wildlife and adventure. Tamarindo’s coastal location draws bikinied surfers and remote workers – the beaches are famous for breaks, barrels and swells that featured in the sequel to surf movie Endless Summer. Beyond the breaks, the town has peaceful streets with swimwear boutiques, bijou cafés and family-run restaurants – but there’s a deep-rooted party-town heritage here too, where tamarind margaritas are always the order of the day.

Book now

Price per night from $262.50