Riu Guanacaste: Amazing Resort!!!

1st time for us at a Riu establishment. Def a top choice for all future related holidays now!! Absolutely beautiful resort with all the amenities. Very clean, super friendly staff, large pools and ample sitting space around the pool area. The layout of the resort is so well planned, everything close by (restaurants, pools, conceirge) and yet it felt like a large complex. The excursions offered at the resort cater to every style - from short 4hr ones to full day 12hrs! 1st time for us at Cost [... read more]a Rica - def. not the last! Booking through Tripcentral was a breeze too. I made a tiny error with my booking and was quickly able to resolve it with friendly staff at Trip Central. Thanks guys - a very memorable vacation for the family. Already recommended this spot to a few people :)

Riu Guanacaste: It was a great resort

The resort us a bit older in its decor but it is kept very fresh and very clean. The setting was beautiful, beach was amazing and pools beautiful. The people, the food and the services were excellent. Everyone was so helpful and kind. I had a couple of issues with the room and they were addressed right away. As far a covid measures, there was nothing at all put into place to encourage covid public health measures.

Fiesta Resort: Amazing Resort!

The resort was spotless throughout. There were staff continuously sweeping and mopping floors around general areas. To my surprise I was booked into a premium suite which gave me access to an up market restaurant for breakfast and lunch daily, a local concierge and a Nespresso machine in my room. I have limited mobility and can only walk short distances with my Nordic Poles. The hotel provided me with a wheel chair, and I only had to ask the concierge to get a bell boy to push me further afi [... read more]eld. The staff were INCREDIBLE! They treated me like a queen and feted me on my 79th birthday with a cake and balloons! Would I recommend this resort? You bet I would!

Riu Guanacaste: Great Vacation

My family and I have just returned from our trip. We have been to CR several times and almost always stay at this hotel. We love the location and the staff. The food is great, the beach and pools are gorgeous and my kids LOVED the wildlife and the waterpark. Highly recommend it to anyone!

Riu Guanacaste: Expérience agréable

Première visite à cet hôtel. Wow! Nous avons passé une belle semaine au Riu Guanacaste!! Très grand hôtel avec bonne nourriture, les lits sont confortables, le personnel très agréable, les restos super bien, et les spectacles très bons. La vue de la plage avec les montagnes et les volcans au loin est à couper le souffle. Bémol: le sable n'est pas blanc. Il est brun avec un peu de noir car roches volcaniques. L'eau n'est pas claire comme à Cuba mais très désaltérante et pro [... read more]pre. Juste à coté, il y a le monkey bar où l'on peut voir plein de petits singes et on peut les nourrir. Ceci est gratuit. Bcp de belles attractions et excursions à faire. C'est moins commercial que le Mexique et Cuba, donc moins de touristes et meilleur service!! J'ai juste le goût de retourner mais plus longtemps la prochaine fois....

Riu Guanacaste: Great location, great service, all around good value

This is a five-star hotel that's well organized, with well-trained staff who are numerous and try to make everyone's life more pleasant. The food is plentiful and tasty. The location is a little remote, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, and there's no real incentive to leave the resort grounds. There are activities and a nightly show, and there are plentiful beach chairs on the clean, beautiful beach.

Riu Guanacaste: Riu Guanacaste Playa Matapalo

The hotel is older but in good condition. The lobby and restaurants have all been updated but the rooms leave a bit to be desired. However, if you only spend time in your to sleep it isn't a problem. The hotel is huge with over 700 rooms so expect 1,400 people in the pool each day. The restaurants do not open until 6:00 PM so if you want to eat early you must line up at 5:30 PM pm even earlier. The food was quite good with a huge selection each day. The staff are friendly. Overall Hotel rat [... read more]ed 6 out of 10; Food 7 out of 10. We don't drink much so maybe we are subsidizing those who do drink. The shows a night are less than spectacular 4 out of 10. The showers are darn right dangerous with the sloped tub/shower combination. I fell in the shower the second day. Make sure you request a rubber tub mat as the tubs are dangerous to stand in while showering. Cannot see the beach/ocean from any of the rooms, but how much time do you spend in the room. The beach is public, not private so expect to be approached by numerous vendors selling trinkets and trash. It was a very relaxing vacation and the weather was perfect. Overall a relaxing vacation but a large hotel with lots of guests.

Riu Guanacaste: Very nice hotel

We thought the hotel was very nice, workers kept it very clean. The Steakhouse was fantastic and the service was great. Wasn’t too impressed with the Italian restaurant. Waited a long time for our food,like we were forgotten. Can’t really judge the pool as we spent our time at the ocean and the water was beautiful. Drinks at the bar were good. My only complaint was that we asked for a 530am wake-up call on our last day and never got it.

Beach Break Resort: Great resort, however.....

The Beach Break Resort is in a good location, right on the beach and the grounds and facilities are very nice. The staff overall is attentive and helpful. The problem arises on the weekends when a large number of Costa Ricans come and for many, their interest is with heavy drinking and loud music. We were there for two weekends and both times the area around the pool was a party lasting well past midnight. There are signs posted with 'Rules' but these were totally ignored. The Management  [... read more]seems to have no control over this, and even at about 2pm the pool area close to Reception had a massive sound system going. On one night the 'partying' ran to past 3am. The management needs to decide whether this lovely resort is for wild partying or for long stay guests who wish the posted Rules are observed and controlled. I spoke with several Costa Ricans who said they would not return with their families to this resort.

Riu Guanacaste: GREAT RESORT

AS WE WERE ALREADY IN RIU IN DIFFERENT COUNTRY, WE CAN TELL THAT WE DID LIKE IT ALL OF IT. ROOM FOR OUR 46 WEDDING ANNIVERSARY WAS GREAT, SERVICE IN THE ROOM, GROUNDS - "GARDENS" ARE SUPER NICE RESTAURANTS - FOOD - DRINKS - DESERTS.......................ALL SUPER POOLS AND SWIM UP BAR - SPECIAL WE ARE PLANNING TO VISIT "RIU" AGAIN AND AGAIN....?! WE DID RECOMMEND THIS "RIU" ALREADY TO OUR FRIENDS.....?! SEE YOU ALL SOON ....!

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Totally amazing resort

The grounds are extremely well kept and beautiful. The food was 10/10…we were there for 2 weeks and never got tired of the choices..the chefs making omelettes in the morning were top notch. ALL the staff were fantastic…well trained, super friendly. Loved Jordan at the Daiquiri bar, Bariliuo and Ivannia at the Coconut and pool server Steven. That is just a few…oh and Freddy. If I had one fault is that the washrooms are too far from the pool area. I would be making the Riu Fit and Riu Ar [... read more]t into washrooms.

Riu Guanacaste: Book by yourself not with an agent

This is my first time booking with a travel agent. Never again. My travel agent was Cindy Callaghan, and she either provided poor advice, or didn't respond at all. Before I left for my trip, I asked her about excursions. I had seen a place 1 hour away that I wanted to visit and asked her advice on renting a car The only thing she said was to wait until I arrived on my first day and book through the resort. Very poor advice. I got way better advice from the Facebook group of Riu Guanacaste. I [... read more] did my research and I found many options for local tour companies. I ended up booking my excursions through "Frank the Tank" (a local tour company who lives in Costa Rica) and the guides were incredible, especially with my kids. They also provide full transportation. The resort was offering excursions for double the price as what local guides offer. Plus your paying into a big company instead of supporting the people living there. The resort also has very limited options for excursions. One of the excursions I did it through a local guide was La Leona water...an adventure of a lifetime! I bet my Trip Central travel agent hasn't heard of it. I definitely recommend looking at the Facebook group and viewing people's pictures and recommendations for excursions and local tour companies. Frank the Tank tours is the way to go though! There was a massive snowstorm that hit Toronto the night before I was supposed to arrive home. I emailed Cindy, my travel agent 2 days prior to the storm to ask about potential scenarios of what might happen. I'm a single mom travelling with my two kids, I wanted to be prepared. She never responded to my email. I will definitely be back to Costa Rica, doing the booking and planning myself. I will probably stay at the Riu Guanacaste again since there are very few all inclusives for families in Costa Rica. Do your own research, save money, support the locals who live there, and book things yourself.

Riu Palace Costa Rica: GOOD RESORT

VERY NICE AND CLEAN RESORT - JUST A BIT BIG FOR OUR LIKING 3 POOLS - IT SAYS ONE IS ADULTS ONLY BUT CHILDREN WERE IN ALL - HOWEVER, NOT ALOT OF CHILDREN HAD TO GET UP EARLY TO GET A CHAIR IN SHADE, EVERYONE PUTS TOWELS DOWN OTHER THAN THAT, FOOD IS EXCELLENT EVEN AT BUFFET, STAFF VERY FRIENDLY AND ALWAYS HELPFUL SERVICE VERY GOOD BEACH NOT GREAT - COULD BE UTILIZED BETTER BY RESORT

Punta Leona Beach Club and Nature Resort: Terrible at first, then terrific

Review of Hotel y Club Punta Leona Terrible at reception. We had travelled for almost 12 hours and checked in at night in the dark. The receptionist initially could not understand from our documents that we were all-inclusive, as she asked for how we were going to pay. We were then told to go to our assigned room, which we knew from past experience was 700 meters away, uphill, and in the dark. We asked for a shuttle, which we knew had existed during our past visit 7 years ago. We were told that [... read more] none was available. When we protested, we were offered a shuttle for $US4 EACH. When we further protested, a shuttle was called for. We were given no introductory brochures about hours of operation for the various restaurants. No instructions about how to obtain bottled water (upon request at the Carabelas restaurant, we found out later). We asked about nature tours and the bound book that we were given had prices that did not include a tax that was 20%. On the internet, VAT in Costa Rica is only 13% and another tour company charged only 8%. In summary, at Reception, we felt that attempts were made to take advantage of us. The only other plausible explanation might be a woefully inexperienced receptionist. We will not divulge her name. From other guests, we heard similar stories about Reception problems. One other Terrible, on our third trip to pick up balls and putters for MiniGolf, the man at the desk insisted on seeing our passports! This was despite our gold bracelets that included our registration number. On our first 2 to trips to pick up equipment, a lovely woman just asked for our room number and name. Why this inconsistency? If passports are truly needed to borrow poor quality putters for 30 minutes, this should be specified in the introduction. Now for the TERRIFIC- Room, AC works well, super quiet overhead fan works well, so no AC needed when sleeping. Bathroom clean and well provisioned. Good hot water. Excellent sized safe in the room. TV worked well, several English channels. WiFi was free, limited to the room only. Beds were comfortable, linen very clean, linen service could be ordered as needed via a sign on the doorknob. Selvamar units are near the Carabelas restaurant. We ate all breakfasts and all dinners at Carabelas. Lots of variety. Attentive service. Great fresh fruits. All the fish we tried were excellent. Lunches we had at either Carabelas, or at one of the two a la carte restaurants, Leon Marino (near the large pool) or Playa Blanca (reservations needed for lunch). Both of the latter had excellent food and service. The bars at both the small pool by Carabelas and the Mantas Bar by the large pool were friendly and the Mantas had an extensive menu of mixed drinks, including superb pina coladas. The small pool was refreshing and mainly in the shade. No towel service there. The large pool was fantastic with warm water, a ramp to walk in, and an abundance of space both in the pool and for lounge chairs with umbrellas. Lots of sunscreen needed, by the way. The complex is large but the shuttle bus that runs between 8 am and 5 pm is efficient with a friendly driver who will drop you off close to your room. Walking to various places in the heat can be a challenge. For example, our room to reception was 700 meters. The large pool would be an additional 300 meters. The Mantas beach then another 100 meters. The beautiful beach of Playa Blanca must be reached by shuttle bus. Regarding the beaches, Mantas beach is pretty but a bit stony.. Umbrellas and lounge chairs are run by a private company. The Playa Blanca beach offers 2 lounge chairs and an umbrella for $US15 per day. Very warm water, but watch for the warning flags. Surf can be excellent for surfing. For Nature Lovers, the Punta Leona resort offers an abundance of birds and butterflies. We saw 29 different bird species and 12 different butterfly species, some of the later in the special Butterfly conservatory building. Unfortunately, the 615 am morning bird hike is not as good as it was 7 years ago. The guide speaks poor English and only seemed interested to converse with Spanish speaking visitors during our one trip with him. We only saw a small number of birds with him, most of the 29 were seen by ourselves while walking the grounds. The area around the MiniGolf has Blue Potterweed that attracts hummingbirds and butterflies. Monkeys were abundant and fun to watch around Carabelas. The MiniGolf itself has been redone since our last visit and is very good, with some very interesting and challenging holes. Don't forget your passport?!? Finally, with respect to Covid precautions, all restaurant staff wore masks at all times. The resort had plenty of sanitizer and hand washing facilities. In summary, a very good resort for visiting Costa Rica as long as you are aware of the nature of the resort. Hope this has helped.

Riu Guanacaste: Disappointing to say the least

The resort is showing its age. The food is poor. The buffets had very few options that were worth eating. The A La Cartes were just as bad. The only decent food was served in the Asian style a la cart. The steak house as crawling with raccoons. My wife and I were unwell for most of the trip due to the quality of the food. We were there for 7 days and by the 4th day we just wanted to go home. I would never recommend this resort to anyone. This resort is worth only a fraction of the amount that yo [... read more]u pay. We were more than disappointed in our trip that we were extremely excited for to celebrate our 10-year anniversary. The only positive was the stunning weather we had all week.

Azura Beach Resort Samara: Beautiful Costa Rica Resort

Azura Beach Resort is lovely inside and has lots of hanging plants and water features. The food was the best we've ever had at an all-inclusive. Buffet for breakfast only Lunch and dinner a la carte (no reservations for lunch - just show up from 12:00 3:00 and order off the menu). Reservations required for dinner at a choice of 3 restaurants. The staff were amazing: Nadina, Mario, Julian and Alexa at the front desk. Randy, Roxanne and Kayla from Chora's and Chill and Grill. Erick the con [... read more]cierge. Randall the bartender - this man knows his drinks! Nice large room with espresso machine, cold and hot water dispenser, remote control blackout blinds and tub on the balcony. The view was of the pool and ocean. Room was cleaned daily and fridge restocked with coke original, coke zero, apple and mango juice and beer. Very small (75 rooms) and quiet resort with nightly entertainment. We would definitely return.

Villas Sol Beach Resort: Fair Resort (for the price)

The re-sort was Good ** Food--had variety of Choices to choose from ** Rooms Cleaned ***Staff ---Good ****Surrounding area-Pool--cafeteria--was Clean *** Scuttle busses--VeryTimely My only Comments *** Not Enough chairs at the beach(Only 10) *** Foods--There was No bananas-no Oranges- No fish (Sounds Strange) But All Is WELL Definitely RECOMMEND

Riu Guanacaste: Absolutely amazing

Everything about it was fantastic. I loved that the rooms the pools buffets swim up bar are all close so you don't have to look for it . Very easy for people that can't do lots of walking. What a amazing trip. The only thing I would change would be softer bed but everyone has their own preference hard soft and firm etc.

Best Western Jaco Beach: Totally Amazing

The moment I arrived I was really impressed by Reception and the following days the bar staff, dining staff, security staff, cleaning staff, pool staff etc. all went above and beyond to make my vacation a wonderful experience. The Hotel is clean, safe and a great place to visit with family, friends or on your own like I did. The menu was different each day and food was delicious. Each dish was individually labeled so there was no problem in deciding what to eat. Personally I ate everythin [... read more]g ;-) The Off-site trips are excellent and the guides are knowledgeable and friendly. If you are deciding where to go on you next vacation - The Best Western Jaco Beach is the place to go. Looking forward to my next visit. A HUGE THANK YOU TO YOU AND YOUR TOTALLY AMAZING STAFF. Marian

Villas Sol Beach Resort: Two wonderful weeks

This is our 4th time at Villas Sol since 2017. We stayed in deluxe rooms in main building. They've made some upgrades to rooms and pool since 2020. The food is great and so is the staff. The beach is beautiful, i do wish they had some drinks available at the beach. I don't mind using the shuttle. Great for families, couples and friends. Not preferable for those with walking or mobility issues, hotel is on a hill. No problem for us. There is some great activities and live music some nights. Th [... read more]ey did play music late some evenings. Overall great resort and value for your money. It has the most beautiful view and sunset.