Name: Cashew Hill Lodge
Address: Puerto Viejo, 200 mts sur de la cancha de futbol, Puerto Viejo, Puerto Viejo, Puerto Viejo, 70304, Costa Rica
Rating: 9

Location

Black Sand Beach

Limon International Airport

Cashew Hill Lodge

My friend and I were staying in town and each bought a 5 class pack for the duration of our stay. The classes were just sweaty enough, and instructors were clear and kind, offering aromatherapy, adjustments, and specific instructions as needed. What really sold me on Cashew Hill, though, was their willingness to help us out when my friend locked us out of our Airbnb just down the hill, with both of our phones inside. We went up to Cashew Hill, explained, and asked to use the wifi and computer. Cishel, who was working the desk, was SO kind and helpful. She let us fiddle around on the computer for as long as we needed to contact our Airbnb host, logged into her own Airbnb to help us find the listing, and then let us hang out while we waited for the new key. Really saved our asses.

If you’re looking for a relaxing, adventurous but also nature ambiance, this place is for you! Especially if you’re into yoga. They have this huge yoga studio overlooking the jungle. I’ve seen photos and reviews of this place and I needed to check it out. Our cottage had a sick view of the hills and on a clear day of the sea. Stayed at the sloth cottage and man it didn’t disappoint. From the second we checked in, Janet, I believe was her name from the Bay Area if I’m not mistaken was extremely kind and thoughtful. One of the nights was pouring and she was able to get a cab to pick us up to take out to downtown. Even in the pouring rain this place was awesome you got to feel like you were one with nature. It was honestly so soothing and such a good feeling. We had 3 bed downstairs, a full kitchen up stairs, fridge, sofas and chairs with a tree in the middle which gave it like a tree house vibe which made it so dope. I felt like I was a kid again. Our balcony was so cool and the hammock was a major plus. Enjoyed some mimosas in the morning. Whilst sleeping the outside noise from the jungle was quite the experience it was relaxing and made you feel like you were in the deep in jungle. I’m definitely coming back!

I had a 90 min deep tissue massage with Alberta and it was the best massage I've ever had. Alberta is a true healer and you can feel her transformative energy when she's working on you. I had a powerful vision of mental healing which lead me to weep during the massage. I left feeling a deeper connection with myself in addition to feeling a stronger sense of wellness within my body. 

The view from the table is breathtaking. The delightful front desk worker (a workaway employee) was incredibly helpful and pulled strings to arrange last minute massages for me and my friends. My friends also took yoga here and said it was incredible. 

This is a MUST DO in puerto viejo. My crew and I were here for 5 days and this was all of our's FAVORITE THING. We each had a meaningful experience at Cashew Hill. Do yourself a favor and go!!!

I attended a Vinyasa Flow session on a Saturday morning and loved the venue. The reception area and yoga studio have gorgeous views of greenery and the sea and it’s so beautiful listening to the wildlife before, during and after the practice. The staff were all very friendly and there was a lovely chilled vibe throughout the venue. The session itself was great, nice music, oils, clean equipment and good instructor. It’s not cheap but I was happy paying the approx £10 for the session, if I was staying in Puerto Viejo for longer I would’ve loved to do a longer course!

Puerto Viejo

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Fantastic Yoga, Awesome Instructors

Best cottage in all of Puerto Viejo!

Transformative Experience, a must do in Puerto Viejo 

Amazing venue and lovely staff 

We booked three nights to stay at the sloth cottage, but decided to checkout after the first night. While we thought we would enjoy the rustic nature of the grounds, it just wasn't for us.

My husband found it really hard to sleep with no AC, even with the large fan blowing directly on him at night. Poor guy was drenched in sweat and uncomfortable all night. I found it hard to sleep because I thought I would get bit by all the bugs in our room at night. To be fair, I read beforehand there was bugs in the room and that was fine. But I ended up tossing and turning all night thinking I will get bit if I had any limb exposed (bad past experiences). Having nets that were pictured probably would have helped with peace of mind in that regard. Only one bite the next morning, so not terrible.

Beds were really hard for my preference, but that varies for everyone.

It was hard to tell from the pictures, but the cottages are open air and pretty close together. I figured if I can hear someone else picking up a plate next door, then they can hear everything I do too. Felt like I couldn't speak at a normal volume, as anyone could hear what you say and I didn't want to disturb anyone's peace. Even felt bad playing a movie on the laptop at night, would be too loud. Again, this is my personal feeling, others may be fine with it. 

I really enjoyed the restaurant, the guys working were great and the breakfast was yummy!

We missed the entrance door at the bottom of the road (it was blocked from view by a shuttle at the time). So we ended up walking up the road with our luggage. We passed a gate for Cashew Cottage, but it looked like a private vehicle entrance so we continued on. Made it far up the hill before a local directed us back down. We tried ringing the bell at the gate, but nobody came. Eventually just pulled the gate open ourselves and tried to locate reception. We walked around for 15 minutes trying to find the reception. At the time a yoga class was in process, so we didn't go near there as we didn't want to disturb their practice. Turns out reception is directly below the yoga platform. Who knew. Be advised there is a door at the bottom of the hill on the left side of the road for you to enter and walk up stairs. From there you can directly see the reception area.

In the end, I would recommend you be realistic about what you need to be comfortable, especially at night time. We thought we could handle no AC and the bugs, but it just made for a restless uncomfortable night. A good night's sleep was important to us, so we ended up relocating somewhere else. The receptionist seemed to be understanding. It stung to know we couldn't get a refund on the two other nights, but in the end I was glad we relocated. Nothing against anybody there, just not for us.

Nice, but not for us

-The beds at this place are incredibly uncomfortable. We had two groups stay here, and both groups complained about their backs hurting. The set-up here is mostly bunk beds. Bunk beds are never a good idea or a fun time, no matter the situation. Having adults sleep on bunk beds for multiple days isn’t good. In addition, this is supposed to be a “yoga” space. When you are practicing, the last thing you want to have to do is go to bed on a bunk bed and wake up to a bad back. In total, we were there for approximately 16 days, and broken up into two different groups. I can’t imagine someone staying there any shorter or longer while sleeping on bunk beds every single day. The Pain!

- On another note, the yoga classes here are pretty below mediocre. A lot of the teachers use music that can sometimes be offensive to other cultures and in general due to the area of where this place is located the music is like another heightened distraction in the classes. In addition the classes have really poor sequencing , on too many occasions did Kristen( Avani) the owner give classes where she started the students off doing Halasana” plow pose” without even having the students warm up almost at all. Most of the teachers practice with you during class instead of teaching, but in yoga the teacher should just be talking, they shouldn’t be doing basically every asana with you, this distracts the student from focusing on their own practice, which is why in true yoga the teachers don’t do almost any of the asanas with you. Most of the classes here are made up sequencing , instead of actual Hatha, ashtanga or any traditional yoga so it’s a huge hit or miss, because teachers are just making up all kinds of sequence that aren’t thought out or can sometimes be dangerous for the physical body. There’s a lot of places in Costa Rica that have great yoga classes and this just isn’t one of them. I remember once in a workshop Kristen (Avani) told people they should be breathing out of their mouth during yoga, this was shocking because that’s a huge NO! Breathing out of your mouth can cause lung damage, which is why you should always breathe out your nostrils. I learned here that it does not matter how long a person has been practicing or teaching , they still may not know what they are doing at all. Kristen (Avani)  , the owner has such a huge ego that she wasn’t even receptive to the needs of her students, she was more concerned about herself instead of what would make students more comfortable. This place is luke warm for yogis that really honor the practice. 

-This place is so loud. Either the location wasn’t thought out, or maybe the owner didn’t know it would be such a loud location, but this is one of the loudest yoga studios/retreat centers out there. There is a baby living on-site, so many times, right in the middle of yoga or meditation, the baby screamed and it threw the entire class off. Even when they take the baby into a lodge away from the “Maha Shala” (yoga platform), you can still hear the baby screaming during class. There are 2 really big dogs, and one smaller dog, living on the property. Sometimes, they bark throughout classes, or while you’re simply trying to rest. No one can really control the dogs or how loud the baby is, which makes sense, but it’s not good for a yoga/retreat center. This place is also located right by a cemetery and a soccer field. Sometimes, there are events in the soccer field with music, and you can hear the music during your entire meditation/yoga class.  Can you imagine going all the way to Costa Rica to be in a tranquil environment to do your YTT or just getaway from every day stress, only to be met with constant noise? The road is right next to the Studio as well, so while you’re in class, you can hear cars going up and down the hill. It’s really just a loud place, not a good place to host retreats/groups, or a place to really be in tune with your practice. This is on a daily basis with this place because I used to attend often , its a really loud location for something that should be relaxing. 

-It’s Puerto Viejo, so in general it’s a loud “party town.”So, if you’re able to reconsider hosting your event or group in a town more suitable for something like yoga and meditation, I highly recommend doing that. Loud locations and bunk beds are such a deal-breaker for vacations, retreats and ytt’s. Also, save yourself the unneeded back pain. Costa Rica is a beautiful country, so I am confident you will find another place to stay or host your group/stay/retreat.

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