Riu Guanacaste: Great Resort

This hotel was very comfortable and relaxing. The accomodations were excellent.The entertainment was a bit disappointing. Also, the process of booking an a/la/carte was frustrating. We needed to line up an hour before the restaurant opened just to get a reservation Only four restaurants for booking, not nearly enough for the amount of guests. Food was good, also staff was efficient and courteous.

Occidental Tamarindo: Nice resort

The resort is very clean, we had a great room, with a beautiful balcony that faces the ocean, although hard to see the ocean with all the trees, but I’d rather they were there than being cut down for a view. Food was good, can get a bit of the same though. Great natural beach, fun to watch the surfers. Only down side is a little far out for a lot of the excursions, but still had plenty to offer.

Riu Guanacaste: Great resort

Room was great and clean, we got the best view (ocean view) and happened to get the best room! The customer service was great, the maids did a good job decorating our rooms. Lots of people, you could join the party or go somewhere more private if you preferred.

Hotel Villas Playa Samara: Great value

Overall good ! Expect friendly staff clean rooms , nice grounds , chill atmosphere, no smoking on resort expect a 2.5 hr drive from airport ! Lots of bars and restaurants 5 min taxi ride to town solid 3.5 star

Riu Guanacaste: A beautiful warm resort.

The resort was much like other Rui we have stayed at as far as facilities. Didn’t find the food as good as other visits but you can definitely find something to eat. We had a partial ocean few, facing north which was perfect, think it may be too hot on the balconies facing south. The room was also just above the night entertainment and would have chosen the howler monkey’s over the noise from the entertainment.

Riu Guanacaste: Amazing Vacation experience!

We had an amazing experience at this resort, very beautiful grounds, very well maintained! Lots of bars and restaurants around the resort, 24 hr snacks could have a better selection but the nachos held us over until meal times. Everything is very centrally located, which was nice to not have to walk to far. The resort is shaped like a U we had a room in the inner court on the 4th floor. You could see some of the ocean with your view. In the court yard there is the restaurants, the theater and a  [... read more]couple bars. Further up was the pools including a pool bar. Included with the resort was admission to the water park, we didn't go but there were a handful of slides and a kiddy play area and it was walking distance from the front of the hotel. There was also some shops, a disco and casino between this hotel and the Riu Palace. The staff was all so helpful and kind, it really set a great atmosphere. The sunwing staff onsite were amazing! Soooo friendly and so helpful with excursions and answering all of our questions! Food had a very wide selection in the buffet and we only went to two restaurants the Italian was really good! The beach is amazing!! Just amazing! Great to walk along, down the beach from this resort there is a small touristy area where the local white faced monkeys swing by. They are so cute and great for a small photo op. I would highly recommend this resort for families or singles and anyone between! You will love your stay here

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Amazing resort!

Grounds, restaurants, staff, tour guide, etc. were all fantastic. Our family had a perfect beach escape in paradise and cannot wait to return. From start to finish, we had an outstanding experience in CR!

Riu Guanacaste: Good time

I really had a great time at this hotel. Food was good. The white party on Friday night was a blast! The only thing I would change would be to clean up the beach a bit. Very rocky. Also the resort has become a bit dated. A renovation would make it a perfect place. Costa Rica is an amazing place. I love it here and I’d go again 100%

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Riu Palace - great experience

Resort staff were friendly and helpful. The grounds and indoor facilities were well maintained. The restaurants had a variety of food to meet everyone’s needs. My favourite was the Italian restaurant. The Sun Wing representatives spoke fluent English and were very helpful. My only recommendation would be to offer a longer tour in the city of Liberia and leave the coffee tour on a stand alone tour.

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Excellent resort

Beautiful resort. Quick check in. Friendly staff. Clean rooms. Amazing buffet. Lots of choices. Good a la carte restaurants. Never a problem getting a drink, whether at the pool or beach. Always lots of loungers available. Did not need to "reserve " in the morning. The only issue was the wind. This time of year it can be quite strong, but it was hot hot hot.

Planet Hollywood Costa Rica: Stunning Resort!

This resort had amazing views and beautiful grounds. The staff were all awesome, Jeffery especially! Food and drinks were delicious. Location is on a hill, so it’s quite a walk up from the pool, but they have shuttle service going constantly, so no need to worry!

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Big resort

The pool areas were amazing, no shortage of places to lay - so many pools for all its guests. Even had a water slide area in front of the hotel for kids. I was under the impression it was an adult's only, this is not the case. The rooms are dated and worn but very clean. Our sinks plugged every other day but they were quick to come and fix them. The buffet was the best place to eat (along with the bbq's by the pool areas). Ate at their steak restaurant the first night but the steak was i [... read more]nedible. Full of fat and grissle and couldn't even cut through it. Entertainment was good with lots of variety however was disappointed on their International night that they didnt honor Canada. It was very very windy so the beach was not the best place to be with sand blowing everywhere. Beach is brown sand but that's because of the volcanos close by. Workers very kind and helpful. Found out Riu Guanaste has a sports bar which would have been nice here as the restaurants closed at 9:30. You had to line up at the restaurants for sitting at 6:15 or 8:15. No reservations. Buffet was the best option for us each night. Locals (not staff) aren't fond of those that stay at the Riu as apparently they crossed a few boundaries with environmental laws when building the resort. All in all weather was amazing and the pools were great.

Hotel Villas Playa Samara: Relaxing

This resort was very nice. It was neat and clean and employees were courteous. Rooms were clean and well appointed. We were disappointed about the amount of chairs available at the beach- this could definitely be improved. There is no entertainment with the exception of a soloist performing at dinner. Also no disco so keep this in mind when booking. This resort is also quite far away from any excursions you may want to take. Overall though we had a wonderful time at the resort and in Costa Rica [... read more]. What a beautiful country!

Occidental Papagayo: Sensational and exceptional. Fully deserving of all five stars.

In every respect. As a brand new facility, built on a gentle slope, the service is excellent and the food is exquisite. Only 165 rooms and although it was full when we were there never felt it. The buffet restaurant features theme cuisine nightly from Costa Rican to Mexican, Peruvian, Caribbean, French, international, and chefs surprise. Hardly want to break away to the specialty restaurants although the Italian restaurant is also excellent. Beaches in Costa Rica are all public. The hotel bea [... read more]ch is pleasant. Beach exploration is a passion on this bay and in this area. More spectacular beaches are 10 minutes, 15 minutes, and 30 minutes away. Transportation easily arranged. Unforgettable experience. Flawless.

Occidental Papagayo: This was such a beautiful resort.

I loved the hotel. This was one of my best trips so far. Everything about it was excellent. The rooms were cleaned everyday, the staff were friendly. The grounds were kept up. I can't complain about anything. The food was very good especially the desserts. I would reccomend this resort.

Riu Guanacaste: Nice resort

The dining for Al a cart restaurants was poor. You had to line up for at least a half hour before hand. And no guarantee that you can get in, No opportunity to reserve ahead of time. The hotel is set back quite a bit from the ocean.. don’t waste your time and pay extra for ocean view as the garden view are actually closer to the ocean anyway. I paid for ocean view and got a room that had a solid cement wall instead of railing. Therefore no view unless you stand up near the wall. [... read more] If you sit down on the balcony chairs you only see cement and no view at all. As well no view of ocean from inside the room only could see cement.

Riu Guanacaste: Great place, worth the price

Beautiful hotel Great pool area Great service Trips offered should have more information about dangers ie: Cement Slide Restaurants: should be able to make reservations in morning instead of standing in line for an hour waiting to get in

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Great Family Memories

The Riu Palace was a a great resort to take our family on a memorable vacation. We wanted to take them to a place that would have something that we could all enjoy plus cater to a gluten free diet. The hotel itself was kept very clean. The rooms were spacious with good resort, ocean and mountain view from a balcony. We all were pleased with the selection of food at the buffet as well as the food at the al a cart restaurants. I can see why some people were disappointed with having to line  [... read more]up to get into restaurants, reservations would be better. The barbeque pool side every afternoon was awesome as was the buffet. We enjoyed the lobby cafe as well but the late night snack bar could of had better selection. There was enough to do to entertain us all for the week. Had a great time around the pools waterpark and ocean. The foam pool party was the best fun! The monkeys and iguanas were enjoyable to see. The monkey bar was was worth the walk, they made a great BlackBerry daiquiri! A ten minute walk from the resort in the forest. Between all of us we went horseback riding, atvs, seadoos and ziplining. The hour massage for $30. on the beach was good as well! Great family memories!

Hotel Villas Playa Samara: average resort

Coles notes.... upon arrival be prepared to wait for your rooms 3 hours average we saw most incoming guests surprised and upset about this including us..lesson in patience...Resort clean.. food was repetitive but very good. No smoking at this resort very little service .even if you tip..get your own drinks..food..wait for all other services...must be patient All tours off resort...hundreds of us dollars..car rental in town better..very beautiful country..great weather

Riu Guanacaste: Amazing location - loud resort!

The grounds of this resort were stunning and the location was perfect. The food and drinks were fairly good and the hotel was very clean and the staff were always friendly and helpful. The water park and pool were perfect for the kids and the local wildlife was amazing (sea turtles, monkeys, birds, iguanas). One issue was the noise in the evening from the bar/club. It was SO loud. If you have a room facing the courtyard I would ask to be moved. Luckily we were so tired from exploring the beauti [... read more]ful region that we fell asleep - but the noise was brutal.