The highest-rated and most-reviewed Nayara in Costa Rica. Real families, real reviews, over a thousand of them.
Suites built for the whole family in one room, not connecting doors you hope to get at check-in.
The rise in multigenerational travel in 2026. Gardens was built, decades ago, for exactly this.
Costa Rica's Family Flagship
In short: Nayara Gardens is the family flagship of the Nayara collection, not a couples retreat. Suites sleep four, the rainforest is full of wild sloths and birds, kids have their own programming, and the adults-only romance address is the quieter sister property next door, Nayara Springs.
If you have read that Nayara Gardens is a romantic hideaway, you have read about the wrong property.
Nayara Gardens is the original Nayara, the resort the whole collection grew from, set in the rainforest at the foot of the Arenal Volcano near La Fortuna. It is the family flagship: suites that sleep four, kids' programming, wild sloths in the trees, and a sister property next door for the grown-up half of the day. Its quieter, adults-only neighbor, Nayara Springs, is the romance address. The two get conflated all the time, and Gardens ends up described as something it is not.
The families who actually stay here know the difference. Gardens holds a 4.9 rating across more than 1,070 reviews, the most-reviewed of the three Nayara resorts in Costa Rica. This guide is the version of Gardens those guests would recognize: what the rooms really hold, how a day works when everyone wants something different, the classes built just for children, how to get there, and how it compares to its siblings.
Suites Built for the Whole Family
The single biggest difference between a family resort that works and one that does not is the room. At Gardens, the casitas and suites are sized for four, so a family stays together rather than splitting across the hallway and hoping the connecting doors line up. For larger or multigenerational groups, the layout of the grounds keeps everyone close without anyone on top of each other.
Daily life is meant to feel effortless. Breakfast comes to your terrace, the paths between pools, restaurants, and rainforest trails are short and stroller-friendly, and some casitas have a private plunge pool for a swim before breakfast. Pools have shallow sections so younger children can swim safely alongside the adults.
Kids' programming runs during the day, which is the quiet engine of a real family holiday: it is what lets parents have an unhurried lunch and grandparents have a slow morning while the children are happily occupied and well looked after.
Wild Sloths Your Children Can Actually Find
The sloths here are wild. They are not in an enclosure, there are no feeding times, and there is no gift shop at the exit. Decades of replanting brought the rainforest back across the wider Arenal estate, much of it former cattle pasture, and the wildlife moved back in on its own. The animals are home. You are the guest.
For a child, that distinction changes everything. On a guided canopy walk, the bridges sway gently above the forest and a naturalist points out a sloth, motionless and moss-covered, invisible until you know where to look. The four-year-old usually sees it first. Toucans cross between the trees, howler monkeys wake the morning, agoutis move through the foliage, and a blue morpho in the garden becomes a lesson in why its wings are not really blue at all.
The naturalists turn the walk into something deeper. Children learn how the forest talks to itself: how roots and fungi form threads that connect trees into an exchange of water, nutrients, and signals, and how older trees help younger ones. It is the rainforest as a classroom, with the volcano for a backdrop.
Hands-On Classes Made for Children
Some of the best hours of a family stay happen when the children have something that is entirely their own. Gardens runs hands-on classes designed for our youngest guests, where Costa Rica's two tastiest exports, coffee and chocolate, and the simple joy of cooking, become an afternoon of discovery.
Little Pizza Chef. Designed for our youngest guests, this fun and interactive cooking masterclass invites children to create their own pizza while learning about fresh ingredients, dough preparation, and toppings. A memorable family experience where creativity and taste come together.
Chocolate Atelier for Kids. A playful chocolate experience for children. Young guests discover the journey from cacao bean to chocolate, create their own chocolate bar, and decorate delicious cookies to take home.
Where Every Generation Is Happy at the Same Time
The hardest problem in family travel is the four-year-old, the fourteen-year-old, and the seventy-four-year-old, all at once. Gardens solves it by being part of a single connected estate with its sister resorts, so the family can split for an afternoon and still meet for dinner.
Lunch is at Ayla, where the children build their own tacos from scratch while the adults order something quieter. Then the day opens up. The teenagers take the zip-line through the canopy, the volcano showing through the gaps in the trees. The younger ones head to the butterfly garden. The grandparents drift to the thermal hot springs at neighboring Nayara Springs, mineral water heated by Arenal itself. Everyone reconvenes at dinner, and the six-year-old explains refraction to his grandmother. That, more than any amenity, is what the place is for.
The Rainforest as a Playground
Arenal Volcano National Park is Costa Rica's ecotourism capital, and the landscape around Gardens hides waterfalls, canyons, rivers, and lava fields to explore at any pace you like. For families, the gentle end of that range is the point: easy waterfall walks, hanging bridges through the canopy, calm river floats that reveal wildlife without a hard hike, and short naturalist trails sized for small legs and shortened to match the day's energy.
For older children and teenagers chasing a thrill, the options open up: ziplines through the forest, horseback rides, and whitewater rafting on the rivers nearby. The resort's guides help match each day to the ages and energy in your group, and there is always a slower experience, like a coffee or chocolate tasting, to balance a big adventure.
Hanging bridges, waterfalls, and gentle trails, sized for every age in the family.
Arriving in Arenal with Children
Gardens sits just outside La Fortuna, in Costa Rica's Arenal region. Most families fly into San Jose's international airport (SJO) and reach the resort by road in roughly two and a half to three hours, an easy half-day with a stop or two. Liberia (LIR) is the other gateway and a longer drive. A private transfer is the simplest option with young children and car seats, and the resort can help arrange it.
The drive is part of the trip. The road climbs out of the Central Valley and into green that gets steadily wilder until the volcano comes into view. Break it up, keep snacks handy, and arrive in time to let the children find the rainforest before dark.
This is not a resort that tolerates children. It was built understanding that the best memories are made between generations.
Which Nayara Is Right for Your Family
The three Nayara resorts in Arenal share one rainforest estate, and each has a clear best fit. Gardens is the family choice: suites that sleep four, kids' programming, and wild sloths on the trails. Nayara Springs is adults-only, the romance and wellness address, with private plunge-pool villas and Costa Rica's only three-key Michelin dining. Nayara Tented Camp is the adventure choice, clifftop canvas suites with volcano views, best for couples and families with older children.
If you are traveling with the whole family across more than one destination, our family guide to every Nayara destination maps the rest, from the Atacama Desert to Easter Island. And to weigh Costa Rica's luxury family hotels more broadly, the Arenal rainforest against the Papagayo beaches, read which family hotel in Costa Rica is right for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
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- Forbes (2026): The Bucket List Family on Costa Rica for families
- Tripadvisor: Nayara Gardens guest reviews
- Wildlife of Costa Rica: the biodiversity around Arenal
- The World as a Classroom: a family guide to every Nayara destination
- Which Nayara resort is right for you: the three Arenal resorts compared
Bring the Whole Family to the Rainforest
Suites that sleep four, wild sloths on the trails, classes made for kids, and a day that works for every generation.
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