Blue Flag Celebration

On April 4, 2009, Arenas del Mar Beach & Nature Resort’s hosted a small ceremony to celebrate its efforts to obtain the prestigious Blue Flag certification for the third consecutive year in a row.
The event was held at Playitas Beach, and included the participation of special guests such as Kids Saving the Rainforest (who participated in the hotel´s onsite sustainability tour and later gave a small talk explaining the importance of refraining from feeding monkeys). Juan Pablo Aguero of ASCOMOTI, Dallas Boyd of the Chamber of Commerce of Aguirre, members of the security forces, Fabian Palma (General Manager), Jorge Arrieta (Operations Manager Cayuga), José Pablo Fernández (naturalist guide) and Kalinga Rodriguez (Sustainability Director).

For more information about Costa Rica’s Blue Flag Certification, please visit http://www.arenasdelmar.com/comunity_development.html.

Green Drinks

On Monday, March 30, 2009, Arenas del Mar held its first Green Drinks event of the year. Every month, we will be organizing this activity in order to promote the concept of sustainability both among local community groups, businesses and community members in Manuel Antonio, as well as to encourage our guests to learn about, and appreciate, sustainability efforts in Manuel Antonio during their vacation. Participants are encouraged to enjoy a green-colored drink, as well as share ideas, experiences and stories about all things “green”. For more information about Green Drinks, visit http://www.arenasdelmar.com/comunity_development.html.

We invite you to participate in the Green Drinks event held each month at Arenas del Mar Beach & Nature Resort. For more information please contact Kalinga Rodriguez (ADM Sustainability Director) at 2777 2777 ext. 8217 or by email at sostenibilidad@arenasdelmar.com.

Crab Invasion

Halloween Crabs, or Cardisomas, are very colorful land-crabs that borrow in the ground. It is common to spot this species of crab on the forest trails of Arenas del Mar (www.ArenasdelMar.com) and Manuel Antonio National Park. Once a year these crawly creatures must migrate from their hills to the beach to lay their eggs. One night during the full moon our hotel guests were able to witness a massive amount of cardisomas taking over the reception, the restaurant and pathways onto the beach. Some crabs were found in the hotel’s pool, and even inside guest rooms as well. Over all, however, this is a great sign that this dry season's drought is about to end; the year’s first rains will spur an abundance of baby crabs to leave their eggs, climb up from the beach sands and return to their homes in the hillsides. This pic shows a mother crab with its big cluster of eggs underneath.

By: Jose Pablo Fdez, naturalist guide

CST Training

On March 26, 2009, we attended a training lead by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) to train hotels and tourism operators on how they can work to obtain Costa Rica´s prestigious Certificate for the Sustainable Tourism (CST).

This activity was carried out in the ICT building, where were discussed major issues, including the structure of the evaluation process, the types of documentation that needs to be presented, and more.

At Arenas del Mar, we are currently in the process of preparing for our evaluation. We have completed a number of important steps and are expecting to receive five leaves (the highest level of certification). To learn more about our sustainability program at Arenas del Mar, click here:http://www.arenasdelmar.com/sustainability.html

1. Arenas del Mar Hotel is Awarded the Prestigious Blue Flag

On Tuesday March 24, 2009, Arenas del Mar Beach and Nature Resort was awarded the prestigious Blue Flag award, receiving a flag and a star for its efforts to keep the beaches surrounding its property clean and pristine. The event was held at the in the offices of the Ministery of Water and Acueducts in San Jose. Attendees of the event included the President of the Republic of Costa Rica, the Minister of Health, the Minister of Tourism, and other important government officials.

A special thanks to the Arenas del Mar team, who has coveted this award for three consecutive years in a row (2006 to 2008) and has maintained a strong commitment to be a role model in the community of Manuel Antonio. To learn more about Blue Flag Certification at Arenas del Mar, click here:http://www.arenasdelmar.com/sustainability.html