El Toucanet is a small, family-run mountain lodge at almost 2,000 meters in the Copey de Dota valley, in the heart of the Los Santos Forest Reserve. It has been hosting birders since 1996, and the reason to come is simple: a morning walk to look for the Resplendent Quetzal, then a hearty breakfast with hummingbirds at the window. It suits birders and anyone who wants a quiet, cool night or two in coffee country.
At a glance
| Location | Copey de Dota, 1 km east of the village school, in the Los Santos highlands |
|---|---|
| Style | Small family lodge: wooden rooms with balconies plus two junior suites |
| Setting | Cloud forest, pasture and fruit orchards at almost 2,000 m |
| Best for | Birders chasing quetzals, coffee lovers, travelers wanting cool mountain air |
| Getting there | About 97 minutes from San José airport by car, the lodge says; last stretch partly gravel |
| CST status | Not in the official CST directory on 2026-Oct-21 |
Where it is
Copey is a farming village of a little more than 800 people, according to the lodge’s About us page, ringed by the mountains of the Los Santos Forest Reserve, Los Quetzales National Park and the Cerro Las Vueltas Biological Reserve. People here grow high-altitude fruit, make cheese and harvest some of Costa Rica’s best-known coffee. The village takes its name from the copey shrub (Clusia), which grows thickly in the valley.
The lodge’s address is 1 km east of the Copey school. Its location page gives a drive of about 97 minutes from Juan Santamaría International Airport. A 2010 Tico Times profile described the route: south from San José on the Inter-American Highway, a right turn at El Empalme toward Santa María de Dota, then about 7 km east to Copey. Later coverage in the Tico Times said the side road is mostly unpaved but doesn’t need four-wheel drive. Santa María, about 15 minutes away, has the nearest gas station, shops and bank.
At this altitude nights are cold. Bring a fleece and a warm layer for the early-morning walks.
A long-running family lodge
The current website looks back 29 years to a family dream of sharing the Copey forest, its birds and its food with visitors, and closes with a line that reads like a reopening: “We are back and today our dream is still intact.” The 2010 Tico Times article tells the earlier story. Gary Roberts, a Californian, and Edna Ureña, from the Los Santos region, settled in Copey in 1988 on land her family owned. They opened El Toucanet in 1996 with four rooms, and named it after the Emerald Toucanets that flew into the cabins while they were being built. Roberts led the morning quetzal walks himself for years. The website no longer names the hosts, so ask when you book who is guiding now.
Rooms
The homepage lists 7 standard rooms built of local wood, each with a balcony and mountain view, plus 2 junior suites with a jacuzzi, refrigerator and coffee maker. (Another page on the site gives 6 standard rooms and adds a fireplace to the suites, so the count may have changed.) Earlier reviews describe the style as rustic, with plenty of cypress, no televisions, phones or air conditioning, hot water in the showers and in-room Wi-Fi. The 2010 article also mentions a sunken outdoor hot tub that staff fill on request.
Food
The restaurant is open to outside guests as well as lodge guests, and the lodge promises a long menu built on ingredients mostly produced in the area. The house specialty for years has been baked trout with garlic and lemon, using trout raised in local farms. Rainbow trout isn’t native here, but it’s been farmed in these mountains for decades. Breakfast is served with a view of the feeders and garden, and coffee comes from the Dota region itself.
The quetzal walk and other birding
The highlight of a stay is the early guided walk to look for the Resplendent Quetzal, which SINAC calls the flagship species of these mountains. The 2010 profile said quetzals are fairly reliable from mid-December to September, when the small wild avocado trees known as aguacatillo are fruiting, and a 2016 Tico Times visit reported sightings on most mornings. Sightings still depend on the season and the trees in fruit, so treat them as likely in season rather than certain.
Around the lodge, the Emerald Toucanet that gave the place its name is easy to spot. The lodge’s bird list runs to roughly 200 species, from Spotted Wood-Quail and Highland Tinamou to Barred Hawk, Sulphur-winged Parakeet, Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl and a long run of highland hummingbirds. Several, such as the Sulphur-winged Parakeet and Buffy-crowned Wood-Partridge, are regional specialties of the Talamanca highlands.
The property has a path through forest, mountain and pasture with views across the Copey valley. Past reviews have pointed out that there isn’t a big trail network on site, so longer hikes mean a short drive.
Nearby
- Los Quetzales National Park. Created in 2006 and covering 4,117 hectares from 1,240 to 3,190 meters, the park protects the headwaters of the Savegre River and its oak cloud forest, according to SINAC. It’s open daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (last entry at 2 p.m.). Check SINAC’s page for current ticketing before you go.
- Coffee tours. The lodge offers several micro-mill coffee visits, including the cooperative tour at Coopedota in Santa María de Dota.
- Mountain biking. The gravel roads around Copey are good riding, the lodge says, and a riverside road south of the village makes an easy country walk with a stone bridge over the Pirrís River.
- Trout fishing in local ponds and streams.
Sustainability
El Toucanet’s green credentials are those of a small family business: local wood, local food, local coffee and local guides. The website doesn’t publish details on energy, water or waste, and the lodge isn’t in the official CST directory. What it does offer is direct support for a small farming community that has turned to nature tourism, which the lodge describes as a recent complement to fruit, cheese and coffee.
Who it suits
Birders who want quetzals without the bigger crowds of San Gerardo de Dota will find this a comfortable, friendly base, and photographers will like the hummingbird action at breakfast. One or two nights is enough for most visitors. Families with young children and travelers who want a pool, nightlife or lots of on-site activities should look elsewhere.
Other highland options nearby include Savegre Mountain Hotel and Trogon Lodge in the San Gerardo valley, and Paraíso Quetzal Lodge right on the Inter-American Highway. See all our Central Valley and highlands eco-lodges, or read about quetzals and other highland species in our guide to the birds of Costa Rica.
Frequently asked questions
What's the best season for quetzals at El Toucanet?
Roughly mid-December to September, when the aguacatillo trees the birds feed on are fruiting, according to a long-standing description of the lodge's quetzal walk. Outside those months sightings get harder, so ask the lodge about recent activity before you go.
Do I need a 4x4 to reach Copey?
Not usually. The last part of the road is partly gravel, but reporters who visited said four-wheel drive wasn't necessary. Avoid arriving after dark if you're unfamiliar with mountain roads.
Can I eat at the restaurant without staying overnight?
Yes. The restaurant serves the public as well as lodge guests, and the baked trout is the dish people come for.
Is the old eltoucanet.com website still the lodge's?
No. The lodge's current website is eltoucanetcr.com. The old address now belongs to an unrelated site, so don't book or send personal details through it.
