Lagunillas del Poas

Even “Chamber of Horrors” feels too mild for this ramshackle shack, built from rotten wood with a rusty corrugated iron roof and broken windows. I knew to expect basic accommodation, but the roughly two-kilometer-long, one-meter-deep dirt track already looked like a bad sign. After finally getting our rental car down it, with a lot of effort and courage, the family running the place greeted us. They seemed friendly at first, but that changed when we saw the shack they wanted $48.00 for. By 6 p.m. it was pitch black. The owners said goodbye and apparently didn’t want to stay there overnight themselves, though they considered it suitable for tourists. It was around 5°C outside, and not much warmer inside the drafty shack with its broken windows. The old blankets smelled bad and were damp, so using the beds was unpleasant. The toilet and shower were unbelievable too. Then I saw the first mice scurrying across the table through gaps in the boards, and the power suddenly went out. We knew the night would be a nightmare. After a lot of debate, we felt we had no choice but to stay. The cabin was in the middle of nowhere, and getting back to a paved road in the rain seemed nearly impossible. A car stuck in the mud would have made an already hopeless situation worse. So we spent the night with howling wolves and countless insects until daylight, when we could escape this mouse hole. Anyone who can’t tolerate mice in bed, sleepless nights, freezing cold, and no electricity should avoid this horrific hovel. Costa Rica is a beautiful country, though, and with decent accommodation it’s certainly worth visiting.