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La Cocotera

  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • Pool at La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • Beedrom at La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • Pool at La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • Pool at La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
  • La Cocotera in El Salvador
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A secluded getaway in Barra de Santiago, a remote peninsula on El Salvador’s western Pacific coast.

Barra de Santiago is a remote peninsula on El Salvador’s western Pacific coast. Bordered by an estuary on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other, it’s also home to one of the country’s most important protected areas: the Barra de Santiago Mangrove Reserve, a designated Ramsar Site.

Tucked among coconut palms and mango trees, La Cocotera is a small rustic chic property featuring palm thatched teak wood casitas inspired by traditional palapas. There are just six rooms, spread across three two-storey casitas, each with one room upstairs and one downstairs. Two casitas face the beach and Pacific, while the third overlooks the estuary with the mountains of El Imposible National Park beyond. All rooms are spacious and well appointed, featuring Salvadoran artwork, air conditioning, and either a balcony or terrace.

Dining in Barra de Santiago is limited, aside from a few beachside restaurants ideal for fresh seafood lunches, but the lodge has an open air restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The peninsula’s black sand beach is beautiful and expansive, though not suitable for swimming. Instead, the hotel offers a generous free form pool and a smaller pool beside the bar overlooking the beach, both with ample loungers for unwinding at the end of your trip. Guests can also rent kayaks or book boat trips through the estuary’s calm, wildlife rich mangroves. The lodge is deeply involved in conservation efforts, including a sea turtle release programme.

Bartolome, Galápagos

What our clients say

  • The highlight was the friendliness and openness of the people in El Salvador and being in a country not overrun by tourists.

    SB, Cambourne Feb 2019
  • Most Memorable Moment?: Meeting the civil war veteran guerrillas.

    PH, May 2017
  • The Golfe de Fonseca and the Perquin day were very memorable.We felt very spoilt as we never met other tourists

    PF, Shaftesbury Jan 2020
  • A highlight was watching the sunrise at Casa del Mar and my family loving surfing.

    JMM, London Jan 2020
  • It was all fascinating and was a trip of so many contrasts. If I had to pick out two experiences that have stayed most strongly in my memory - for…

    DM, Nottingham Feb 2020
  • I felt that our visit helped local people and economies, especially in El Salvador. I tried to buy local and go to local cafes wherever possible and was encouraged and…

    PC, London Apr 2011
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Our Expert's Opinion

Hannah
Hannah Donaldson - Travel Expert

Having spent part of her childhood in Colombia and worked in Brazil and Costa Rica, Hannah's ties to Latin America run deep. Hannah is a much valued Travel Expert in our Tailor-made Holidays and Group Tours sales team.

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Bartolome, Galápagos

Meet our team

Real Latin american experts

  • Juliet
    Juliet Ellwood - Travel Expert

    After graduating with a degree in Anthropology and History and having been fascinated by Latin America since childhood by the book featuring photos of Nazca, Juliet first visited the region in 2003. Since then, Juliet has visited the majority of countries in Latin America but has particularly extensive experience with Peru, a country she loves for many reasons but not least, its incredible archaeological richness and delicious food!

  • Heloise
    Heloise Buxton - Travel Expert

    Heloise started her Latin American journey as an exchange student in Santiago, Chile. With extended summer holidays this was the perfect opportunity to backpack through Bolivia, Peru, Argentina and Brazil.

  • Maggie
    Maggie Wilson - Travel Expert

    Maggie visited Latin America on her first backpacking trip when she was 19. Since then, she has taken every opportunity to travel, and has managed to explore a lot of the region in subsequent trips.

  • Ben
    Ben Line - Travel Expert

    Ben fell in love with Latin America on a six month backpacking trip from Colombia to Mexico in 1995. Since then he has explored most of South America, including living in Peru for a year. He is now Head of Sales.

  • Lina
    Lina Fuller - Travel Expert

    Lina's passion for the continent where she was born really took off when she moved to Córdoba (Argentina) to study, spending the holidays travelling between Argentina and her native Colombia.

  • Charlotte
    Charlotte Daubeney - Travel Expert

    Charlotte's fascination with Latin America began with a family holiday to Belize. She went on to study Spanish in school and at university before spending a year living in Santiago, Chile.

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