Hotel Magic Mountain

For much of the year, the hotel is filled with Costa Rican tourists, but during the high season, the hotel draws mostly American couples and families staying briefly in the region before moving on to other destinations. Around 10 p.m. on Friday nights, the Magic Bar fills up with ticos and international tourists belting out American, Spanish, and Costa Rican pop songs. The hotel itself is a three-story block in an adobe-pink color and has open-air hallways, sometimes dim stairwells, and the general feeling of a generic, mid-range American hotel (like a La Quinta Inn). The white-on-white glossy spa is decked out with Roman and Catholic statuary; it looks like it was decorated after Caligula and Scarface (Al Pacino, not Paul Muni) made a joint shopping trip to Brighton Beach's "classiest" (read "gaudiest") furniture store.

The hotel sits off a bend on busy Route 142 leading north out of Fortuna, about a five-minute drive from the center of town. To the south are a series of local businesses, including a large Super Cristian supermarket and a construction-supply store. On the other side is a pasture for a local farmer, and past that is an unobstructed view of both volcanoes. Its spot on the northern outskirts of La Fortuna makes it convenient to get in and out of town without bumping elbows with too many backpackers or adventure-tour touts, while still letting guests quickly fill up on supplies, gasoline, and to make tour arrangements.

Rooms are clean, reasonably well-lit, and mostly spare, with white walls (except for the occasional framed close-up photos of flowers). They're modern, with white bedding, dark wood furniture, and tile floors. The highlight are the balconies with unobstructed views of both Cerro Chato and Arenal volcanoes. Amenities include AC, safes, and Wi-Fi, but Standard Rooms lack mini-fridges. Despite being on the main road, traffic noises aren't constantly audible, but definitely noticeable at intervals. (The thumping bass from the karaoke dance night at the Magic Bar on Fridays are more likely to keep you up.) Bathrooms are large but even sparer than the bedrooms -- our shower lacked even a soap dish. Junior Suites, at least, have big in-room hot tubs. 

The hotel is known all around the area for its Friday night karaoke night in the Magic Bar sports pub upstairs from the hotel restaurant (which touts its flambeed chicken, prepared at the table). Starting at 10 p.m., normally early-to-bed ticos swarm into the bar to belt out Spanish pop songs. The DJ cranks up the music high those nights -- loud enough that the bass comes through the guest-room windows -- and the bar parking lot fills up with young local men smoking, giggling, and generally hanging out on the hoods of their pickups and showing appreciation for the scantily clad women who prance inside to dance in the packed space. 

The outdoor pool has a swim-up bar, and there are a couple of hot tubs nearby.