The Belmar Family

As co-founder of the Hotel Belmar, Vera has imbued the establishment with her exquisite taste and charm. Coming from a family of hoteliers, she possesses a profound understanding of hospitality.  It is this understanding, combined with her long-standing love for nature and philanthropy that have guided her personal life and has enabled her to form and sustain a very special hotel.

In addition to founding one of the most elegant and ecologically responsible hotels in Costa Rica, Vera’s accomplishments include the founding of the first kindergarten in the region, becoming an honored Spanish teacher at the Monteverde Friends School, and co-founding the Cloud Forest School (an internationally renowned school with an environmentally based curriculum)

Vera’s love and caring have truly left their mark on the people, wildlife and land of Monteverde, making it an even better place. Don’t be surprised if you hear young men and women refer to Vera as “the teacher”. Today Vera is retired and fulfilling her dream of going back to the land, providing fresh and organic free range eggs, cheese, beans, corn, bananas and many other wonderful goods for the hotel.

Pedro Belmar, co- founder of the Hotel Belmar, came to Costa Rica from Chile via Austria in the 1980s.  It was he, with his passion for architecture and design, who envisioned the beautiful balconies and Alpine style verandas that have become iconic features of the Hotel Belmar.  He was also responsible for the South American flair that you will find in small details throughout the hotel.

Bringing in new ideas and projects to Monteverde, Pedro quickly became a leader in town. He was responsible for bringing the first doctor to the area and contributed to much of the infrastructure that still exists today.

The eldest of the Belmar children, Sole honored the family tradition and went to study hotel management at Glion Hospitality Management School in Switzerland. She later spent a year in Barcelona where she had the privilege of working at the Princesa Sofia Gran Hotel, one of Barcelona’s finest.  She returned to Costa Rica to take over the family business in 2007, and is now going on her fifth year as the general manager of the Hotel Belmar.

Pedro came to work in the family hotel after a ten-year education period in Psychology, Literature, Philosophy, and languages that took him to San Jose, Vienna, Paris, Florence and Montreal. Pedro is fluent in French, English and Spanish and has extensive knowledge of German.

In 2010 Pedro moved to New York to work at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and expanded his knowledge of art, curatorial practices and editing.  Co-curating his first photography exhibition in 2011 at the hotel, and planning many more in the following months, his experience is taking the hotel and the community to new heights of artistic experimentation.

Vera followed her sister’s footsteps and went on to study Hospitality Management at Glion, in Switzerland.  She then  moved to Paris to work at Maison Blanche, one of France’s top restaurants on Avenue Montaigne.  Later on, her career path took her to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, working at the prestigious Burj Al Arab Hotel, the only seven star in the world!

Vera currently resides in Monteverde, and is enriching the Belmar with the knowledge gained  in some of the top restaurant and hospitality companies in the world.