The owners of Hotel Las Colinas are the López Fernández family, whose history in La Fortuna began in 1968. That year, the patriarch, Aurelio López Calderón, was forced to flee the area due to the violent eruption of the Arenal Volcano.

More than 17 years passed before Aurelio returned to La Fortuna, in 1985, driven by another misfortune: a devastating fire that destroyed his store in Ciudad Quesada, ironically named “Tienda La Fortuna”, leaving the family in ruins.

With great determination, the family, consisting of Aurelio, his wife Flor Fernández Cubillo, and their three children, Ivette, Jocsan, and little Jetter, just three months old, decided to start over in La Fortuna. They opened a store that sold everything: bicycle parts, glassware, fabrics, and school supplies. Doña Flor ran the business while Aurelio toured the towns of San Carlos and Guatuso selling clothes, seeking to rebuild his life.

In 1988, with a vision of the future, they began building a hotel at a time when the hotel offering in the area was limited, with only three existing establishments: Hotel La Central, Cabinas San Bosco and Hotel La Fortuna. The name “Las Colinas” comes from the view from the third floor of the hotel, where you can see the hills of Cerro Chato and Arenal.

Although some neighbors considered the idea of ​​a three-story hotel in La Fortuna to be absurd, Don Aurelio insisted: “Someday, tourists will come.” And so it was. With the arrival of tourism, there were nights when visitors slept in the corridor of the Catholic temple, others when the family rented rooms in their house, and many when excursions were organized to see the lava of the Arenal Volcano, rivers of red rock descending the mountain.

The youngest son, Jicson, was born on the slopes of the Volcano in 1993, and both the family and the business grew together.

In 2006, after the death of Don Aurelio, the family decided to embark on a complete remodeling of the hotel, with a sustainable vision that has given rise to the Hotel Las Colinas that we know today. Currently, Doña Flor and Ivette are in charge of the administration, Jetter is the hotel chef, and Jocsan and Jicson take care of the maintenance. The family continues to grow, and we are very pleased that you are now part of our history.

Thank you for choosing us and for being part of our family!

Historical Review of the Maleku Indigenous Community Pre-Columbian Stage – 10,000 to 2000 years A C The CHIBCHA empire extended into everything that is now Central America, Panama and Colombia. Warrior tribes who used this entire region until they reached the domains of the Great Inca Empire. The MALEKUS, whose meaning is Our People, are direct descendants of this great indigenous race that located their territories from the Great Lake of Nicaragua, Solentiname Islands, San Juan River (border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica), the entire border area from Peñas Blancas , Los Chiles, San Rosa de Poco Sol, Guatuso, La Fortuna de San Carlos, La Fortuna de Bagaces, Tilarán.

With this great territory within which it covers a large part of the volcanic mountain range, Orosi volcano, Rincon de la Vieja, Miravalles, Tenorio and Cerro del Arenal (now Arenal Volcano). With the alignment of all these volcanoes, the Malekus traced what would be the trade and communication route between the 23 communities or palenques of that time.

We must keep in mind the great meaning that volcanoes represent for these tribes, since their power and majesty represented sacred sites and divine power because of their heights and magnetic power. This is how they traced the route that circled the skirts of the volcanoes. This route took them to the market center in Pataste, a communication center in what is now Aguas Zarcas and Pital, where the 23 different Malekus communities converged.

The Malekus maintained a scarce agriculture since their basic feeding was based on the hunting of mega fauna, mastodon, deer, tapirs etc. Its agriculture was the planting of cassava, wild potato, pejibaye, cocoa.

His government was represented by the shaman and there was no social class. They practiced a monotheistic religion, TOKOISM, developed at the height of the volcanoes.

Post-Columbian Stage – 1500 to 2000 The Spanish presence during the time of the colony affected very little the natives of the time, except that some aborigines were taken to cities where the Spaniards such as Granda and León of Nicaragua settled, as slaves. The time of rubber exploitation in Nicaragua by the Goodrich company in early 1820, caused an unequal battle between the rubber workers employed by the American company with firearms and the natives with arrows, in the place that was later called Rio de La Death, because its waters became red with the blood of the aborigines. That was one of the causes of being a decided race today.

Modern Stage of the Maleku – Race that refuses to die The 23 communities that encompassed the vast Maleku territory were reduced to today to 3 Palenques, located in the Canton of Guatuso with a population of 650 individuals. These palenques are: Palenque Margarita.
Palenque Tonjibe.
Palenque The Sun Despite being already immersed in the world of whites, the true Maleku makes efforts to preserve their customs, they have a school where their children speak the dialect of their race, a radio with special programs for their people, they struggle to recreate their ancient dances and customs etc. Within their ceremonies, the Costa Rican government allows them to bury their loved ones inside their homes.

As tourism is one of the main sources of income in the country, the Maleku community has gradually been integrated into this activity. In Palenque Tonjibe the tourist can visit them, take a tour through the forest where they can appreciate how the inhabitants of that region lived before the colony.

This information was provided by Mr. KOREN VELA VELA. Member of Palenque Tonjibe, fighter for the rescue of indigenous traditions, and cultural spokesperson.

La Fortuna before 1968 At the beginning of the 1900s, a citizen of Nicaraguan origin named Jarquín enters the mountain in what is now La Fortuna. Little by little, other Costa Ricans from Naranjo, Zarcero and Ciudad Quesada move to cut down mountains and exploit the rubber industry, which made manteados and capes for farmers in the northern region. This started dual-purpose livestock (meat and milk). With milk, they produced cheese, which they salted and dried and then taken to the market in Ciudad Quesada. With the cattle for slaughter they made great routes to take it harvested to the cattle square in Alajuela, for sale.

The people of La Fortuna, to obtain goods

Organic Law on the Environment (No. 7554):

Objective: To guarantee a healthy and ecologically balanced environment for all Costa Ricans.
Right to the Environment: Everyone has the right to a sustainable environment; the State must ensure its rational use.
Environmental Impact Assessment: All activities that alter the environment or generate hazardous waste must be subject to an evaluation by the National Environmental Technical Secretariat.
Protected Wild Areas: The territory is classified into categories such as forest reserves, national parks, and wetlands.
Prohibitions: Activities that interrupt the natural cycles of wetlands are prohibited.
Law on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (No. 7600):

Equal Opportunities: Guarantees that persons with disabilities have the same opportunities in all areas of life.
Right to Work: Ensures adequate employment in both rural and urban areas for persons with disabilities.
Accessibility: Health services must be available to all equally, and public buildings must comply with technical accessibility specifications.
Wildlife Conservation Law (No. 7317):

Definition: Protects fauna and flora in their natural state, declaring their management and conservation as of public interest.
Prohibitions: Hunting and fishing of endangered species are prohibited, except in cases of sustainable reproduction.
Fishing Classification: Fishing is classified as sport, scientific and subsistence, with a specific fee for each type.
Biodiversity Law (No. 7788):

Object: Conserves biodiversity and promotes its sustainable use, ensuring a fair distribution of benefits.
Scope of Application: Applies to all elements of biodiversity under State sovereignty.
Protected Wild Areas: Geographic areas are defined that are protected for their ecological, historical or cultural value.
This summary gathers the most important aspects of the laws to guarantee a clear and concise understanding of their purposes and regulations.