A Rainforest
Eco-Village
Preserve
about
Welcome to Las Cascadas!
Come feel the rush of the tallest waterfall in Central America, nestled in a mountainous valley in one of the most stunning places in Costa Rica. The flow of the water fills you with peace and tranquility and you feel renewed while gazing with appreciation for the immensity of this unspoiled paradise. Now imagine touring the jungle canopies on an epicurean expedition, getting to taste every type of tropical fruit known to humankind. You step out on your porch, hear the howler monkeys howl, see the butterflies flying wildly, feel the sun rays on your face and smell the fresh scent of Mother Earth. You walk out your door and enter a trail that is surrounded by lush vegetation, majestic hills and bustling wildlife. You hear nature calling you. This magical experience can be yours. Come visit Las Cascadas eco-village preserve where this dream will become a reality.
We are in the midst of creating an amazing eco-project that will allow you to connect with nature in a new way. The project is intended to support anything that’s good for the human spirit and soul. Las Cascadas is dedicated to creating a more sustainable, healthier and better tomorrow. The project will be home to a beautiful nature preserve, one of the Earth’s largest and most diverse tropical food forests, a world class botanical garden, recreational activities, a retreat center, various lodging options, educational opportunities, a village with environmentally friendly shops, galleries, boutiques and eateries and much more. We also have a raw-vegan intentional community for those of you interested in making Las Cascadas your home.
VISION
When you enter Las Cascadas, you feel an instant connection to nature. Everything is alive and vibrant and calls to your soul. Our eco-project’s mission is to help you realize that you’re an integral part of the natural system of life, not just a casual observer. This permaculture project brings you close to the earth, so you can feel it, smell it, taste it, hear it, see it and experience it. At Las Cascadas you will interact with the land, connect with nature and enjoy yourself in the process. You’ll learn how simple it is to live in harmony with nature while living as gently as possible on the land.
Click here to see a video clip of the land at Las Cascadas so you can get a feel of what it’s like to be here! (ADD VIDEO: TALLEST WATERFALLS IN COSTA RICA)
Las Cascadas has emerged from a vision to create a healthier, simpler and more heart centered life for the planet and ourselves. We strive for a life that nourishes our bodies and spirits and gives back to nature while sharing its resources with all species. At Las Cascadas, we’re creating a world that we actually want to live in, one that’s motivated by love and by taking care of ourselves, others and the planet. Our eco-village preserve is a truly sustainable project, which provides a place where everyone and every other species can actually thrive. We’re providing you with a natural haven where you will have an array of natural food choices, accomodations, recreational activities and learning possibilities to make your time here extra special.
Mother Earth is suffering. It’s evident that what we’re doing now to the planet isn’t working, so we’ve decided that we need to approach this from a different direction. We’re losing up to 200 species a day and we’re in the midst of the planet’s sixth mass extinction. If things continue at this rate, there are predictions that there won’t be any wildlife left in 40 years. Las Cascadas emerged from a feeling of love and respect for nature and the desire to leave the environment in a better condition than we found it. We are confident that anyone who pays us a visit will leave feeling empowered to take responsibility for the health of our planet.
Our eco-project is multifaceted and there are activities, accomodations and learning opportunities for every type of traveller. We offer various travel-pack options so that you can stay at Las Cascadas for as long as you'd like. We’re situated in a beautiful location in the mountains, about 20 kilometers from the coast so it’s easy to make beach day-trips.
A majority of the land acquired for this project was primarily used for animal agriculture, something that is completely unsustainable and results in significant environmental degradation. We want to protect the valley from further misuse. By repurposing this land into botanical gardens, biodiverse food forests, a sustainable eco-community and nature preserve, the carbon footprint of this area will be drastically improved. This in turn results in massive improvements in wildlife habitat, the reintroduction of native food-bearing plants and many more beautiful landscapes for people to enjoy, respect and feel compelled to protect. Forests support countless species, including our own; we need them to live.
Our multifold project will consist of various aspects and our resources will grow as the community grows. Although our project is still in the planning stages, we invite you to step with us for a moment into the future, as we describe how we envision each sector of the project.
Our Eco-Project
Nature
Preserve
You step foot into the nature preserve and your senses come alive. You are suddenly absorbed with the sounds of the tropical forest. In every direction you look, you see immense beauty and you feel abundance. In the distance you see rolling green mountains covered with trees and plants, giant birds of prey soaring effortlessly over the valley and waterfalls dropping into giant pools below. You feel reconnected, a healing sensation rushes through your body, you take a deep breath and continue on the trail down to the valley floor to cool off in one of the swimming holes.
Our nature preserve is an eco-tourism destination for all types of travellers. There are countless opportunities for wildlife viewing in their natural habitat. You’ll find howler monkeys, beautiful birds, colorful butterflies, interesting insects, giant trees and lush flora. The preserve currently comprises nearly 2,000 acres (800 hectares), several mountain peaks with elevations as high as 750 meters (2,500 feet), a densely forested valley full of tropical plants, stunning views of the Pacific Ocean and the Nicoya Peninsula and as many as 16 waterfalls (including the tallest in Central America). The preserve is home to an estimated 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) of well-maintained hiking trails with various access points, ramps for wheelchair access and walkways with handrails to get to the waterfalls. There are restrooms and refreshment stands as well.
Our preserve protects and conserves wild native flora and fauna and geological features that play a part in our ecosystem and Earth’s biodiversity. With this project, we intend to preserve the entire valley, which consists of 8.5 kilometers (5.3 miles) and around 3,500 hectares (9,000 acres) of lush forest, as well as pasture which we will re-forest. Before purchasing the lots, most of the land was clear cut for pasture so the old-growth primary forest had disappeared. Since this land is now being preserved, we’re allowing nature to take its natural course so that the forest can grow again.
Imagine a place with hundreds of varieties of mangos, avocados, bananas, papayas, pineapples, and many more species of fruit. Welcome to our organic fruit forest where you can come and visit one of the largest collections of tropical fruit varieties on the planet. Here at Las Cascadas, we love and celebrate fruit! Come and taste the delicious fruits that are in season, participate in an immersion program to learn about permaculture, green building or organic farming, or just take a tour of the grounds to learn more about fruit trees.
The fruit forest is above the head of the valley on 125 acres (50 hectares) of land. It provides us with the optimal food for our bodies, a reliable and sustainable food source that provides food self-sufficiency and food security, and a way to connect with the growing process and our food source. By permaculture techniques we make sure not to harm the environment. Planting fruit trees has many beneficial environmental benefits, from cleaner air and green jobs to reduced CO2 emissions and energy costs.
Organic
fruit
forest
The Village
at
Las Cascadas
While you’re here, come visit The Village at Las Cascadas. The Village has something for every taste, all organic and raw vegan. You’ll find restaurants, a juice bar, smoothie stands, a chocolate shop, a raw vegan ice cream parlor and artisan markets. There are galleries, small shops and a section for local artisans to sell their art. You’ll find fountains, benches and beautiful landscaping so you can take a stroll around or just relax. Here you’ll also find a visitor center to help you with anything you may need and tour operators where you can book a variety of different activities and reserve accommodations.
If you have an eco-friendly, conscious business and are interested in having a presence in The Village, send us an email: info@lascascadas.org.
Las Cascadas offers one of the widest ranges of recreational opportunities in Costa Rica. In addition to a plethora of hiking trails, visitors and residents can ride mountain bikes through tropical forests, ride a BMX bike, and spend lazy days bathing in the natural swimming pools. We plan on building the largest mountain bike park in Central America, with exciting trails, water holes nearby to cool-off and shuttles to bring riders to the trailheads. We have special trails along the valley floor for our electric quads. Visitors and residents have access to rock climbing, repelling and bouldering on the valley cliffs close to the falls and climbing and bouldering walls for beginners and practice. There’s a state of the art skate park with awesome views and some very cool natural obstacles for all kinds of tricks. We also have a high adventure park, ropes course and a canopy tour with over 450 meters of vertical drop from the top of the botanical gardens to the bottom of the waterfalls. If you have a passion for a particular recreational activity and would like to bring that to the community, please let us know!
recreational
activities
botanical
garden
While you’re here, don’t miss our world-class botanical garden, sitting about 400 feet above the falls on 17 acres of gently rolling land. Come let the butterflies be your guides as you take a serene walk through the quaint, pebbled paths, surrounded by an array of tropical plant species and beautiful flora and fauna from all over the world. There are water fountains and benches so that you can stay and relax for a while, enjoying the beauty and presence of Mother Nature. It’s a perfect spot for bird, insect and butterfly watching as it attracts many diverse species.
From the garden, looking through the mountain peaks, you have spectacular views of the ocean and Nicoya Peninsula in three directions. Sitting in the middle of the garden you will find a state of the art boutique hotel, with second floor rooms that provide you with excellent views of the gardens, the mountain range, the surrounding valley and the ocean. Have an amazing raw vegan lunch at the restaurant in the garden. We also offer the possibility of getting married underneath an arch of flowers and vines in the heart of the garden.
Education is a big part of our mission. We want to help teach the world how we can live in harmony with the planet, in ways that are not harmful. We offer numerous opportunities such as a permaculture school, a massage school, a school for doulas, yoga teacher training, a green-building school and a raw vegan culinary institute. We can teach you how to build your own house that doesn’t damage the environment, how to generate power for yourself, how to process the grey and black water from your home and how to use land in ways that are regenerative rather than destructive. We also offer spaces for lectures with open lawns for outdoor teaching options. Of course, we are open to many more ideas so if you have any, please share them with us! To learn more about what we are offering now, contact info@lascascadas.com
education
an alternative
school
Our eco-project is multifaceted and there are activities, accomodations and learning opportunities for every type of traveller. We offer various travel-pack options so that you can stay at Las Cascadas for as long as you'd like. We’re situated in a beautiful location in the mountains, about 20 kilometers from the coast so it’s easy to make beach day-trips.
A majority of the land acquired for this project was primarily used for animal agriculture, something that is completely unsustainable and results in significant environmental degradation. We want to protect the valley from further misuse. By repurposing this land into botanical gardens, biodiverse food forests, a sustainable eco-community and nature preserve, the carbon footprint of this area will be drastically improved. This in turn results in massive improvements in wildlife habitat, the reintroduction of native food-bearing plants and many more beautiful landscapes for people to enjoy, respect and feel compelled to protect. Forests support countless species, including our own; we need them to live.
Our multifold project will consist of various aspects and our resources will grow as the community grows. Although our project is still in the planning stages, we invite you to step with us for a moment into the future, as we describe how we envision each sector of the project.
Las Cascadas offers accommodations for visitors in a range of different budgets. There are cabins, villas, hotels, a camp ground and a hostel. All accommodations are within walking distance from the eco-village and eateries. Our boutique hotel consists of a raw vegan restaurant, a pool, an event center, a wedding venue and it’s in the midst of the botanical garden. We offer team-building programs to help your employees work better together.
accomodations
for
visitors
fractional
ownership
If you are someone who loves our project and really wants to be involved, but can’t manage to live in Costa Rica full time, we are offering fractional ownership of homes in the community. These homes are fully furnished so you won’t have to worry about a thing. All you will have to do is reserve the amount of time you want to stay during the year, and show up! If you are interested, please contact us at info@lascascadas.org.
Las Cascadas has a state of the art retreat center where you can offer various types of retreats. Our retreat center is spacious, beautiful and surrounded by nature and includes various teaching spaces. It has amazing views and is a relaxing and inviting place for folks who want to reconnect with themselves. The attendees can stay within the project walls and enjoy what we have to offer. If you'd like to offer a retreat at Las Cascadas, please email us at info@lascascadas.org
retreat
center
permaculture
principles
While you’re at Las Cascadas, you can learn about an important part of our project, permaculture. We choose to use permaculture techniques because it’s regenerative, restoring the site’s ecosystem back to a level of true health, it’s not detrimental to the environment and it serves as an example for others to follow. It’s the best way to create something sustainable for future generations. Much of the sustainability is achieved by imitating what we see in the perfection of nature. Permaculture allows us to observe and learn from our environment. By seeing how nature replenishes its soil, how it protects and conserves its water resources and how it adapts to the climate of an area, we can learn how to mimic these natural processes in our daily living. By taking land that was once pasture and converting it to forest, you give thousands of species with diminishing habitat the opportunity to recreate a healthy ecosystem.
The land at Las Cascadas is extremely rich in natural resources and intrinsic beauty. It would be a disservice to withhold this treasure from others, but it would also be detrimental to allow for misuse or disruption. With this in mind, we have established a model of sustainable tourism that allows guests to enjoy the land while ensuring minimal environmental impact.
For every aspect of the project we strive to optimize energy expenditure. We use renewable energy sources, environmentally sound building practices and we feature extensive education about the impact of development and animal agriculture on the native species. We are as environmentally-sound as possible, from composting to conscious water usage and recycling. We can help you understand how to live in a more environmentally friendly way.
sustainable tourism
local
economic
development
Las Cascadas serves as a model to promote economic development for the region, our intentional community and like-minded entrepreneurs. The construction of the project generates significant revenue for the local surveyors, architects, engineers, contractors, laborers, transporters, inspectors and vendors providing food, products, and services to those involved. Each business creates several new jobs for local residents, allowing for true economic expansion in an area that currently has very little opportunity. The combination of the development-related revenue, small businesses, employment opportunities and future expansion of the project, lay the groundwork for an economic boom, while maintaining the integrity of the local culture and the natural environment.
Does this sound like a place you might want to live? Our raw vegan, intentional community is a place where like-minded people can come together and manifest their highest potential while impacting the world and creating something that allows them to make a living doing what they love. Here we’re creating a haven where the norm is making excellent choices and taking care of yourself. Our fruit-loving, conscious community celebrates health, wholeness and connection to nature. For those of you who are searching to find a place to call home where you can live in a natural environment and surround yourself with people that speak a common language, living in Las Cascadas intentional community could be a perfect fit. If you are interested in learning more about our community, click here!
intentional
communities
LOCATION
We chose to build our eco-village preserve in the tropical, natural wonderland of Costa Rica because it’s a land bounding with biodiverse flora and fauna, spectacular natural resources and friendly people. This small country is well known for its national parks, nature preserves and stunning beaches. There are still many undiscovered paradises left here but if these lands aren’t managed sustainably, they will likely wind-up being developed as so much other land has been- in ways that degrade and pollute the environment. For this reason, our aim is to protect the land as much as possible.
The site boasts as many as 16 waterfalls, including El Salto Del Calvo, the highest in Central America. Las Cascadas is located in the south-central region of the Nicoya Peninsula along the northwest coast of Costa Rica. The area is predominantly defined by jungle-covered mountains and valleys, cattle ranches, fruit orchards and the stunning beaches of the country's “Gold Coast.” Las Cascadas is situated in one of the Earth’s Blue Zones. Blue Zones are the five regions of the world where people live much longer than average.
The founder of Las Cascadas has ample experience creating and operating sustainable real estate projects, and is currently located in close proximity to the development site with an existing team of skilled individuals who are passionate about seeing this project come to fruition. The nearby town of Hojancha is home to approximately 7,000 residents, and the general area includes the nearby smaller villages of Monte Romo, Huacas, and Zapotal. The site is approximately 3.5 hours from the capital city of San José and under 2 hours from Liberia, both of which are home to international airports. In addition to rental cars and private transportation companies, guests can access the area by public bus and local taxi.
Costa Rica is a world-famous country known for its vibrant beauty and natural resources, and since the 1990s has been known as the poster-child of ecotourism. More than 25% of the country is dedicated to conservation, with over 20 national parks, 8 biological reserves and animal refuges. Costa Rica is home to over 4% of the world’s biodiversity.
