Hotel Villas Playa Samara: CHANGE THE GENERAL MANAGER

They had another couple in our Villa the 1st night there. We had to accept a room in a complex further away that had a very bad septic smell. The next morning we still could not have our villa. That afternoon the onsite manager (Hugo) provided us with an upgraded Villa. A short time later the General Manager (Farida) came to our upgraded villa demanding that we pack up again and move to another villa. We lost the enjoyment of 2 out of 5 days of our vacation due to poor management. Overall [... read more] the resort it quite nice. It is well kept and clean. Very peaceful. The staff is a little slow. The food is good. The beach is nice. Staying in a beach front Villa is the best way to go. The resort just needs a more professional general manager.

Azura Beach Resort Samara: A great resort

Everything is a 2 minute walk, the pools, beach's, restaurants'. And it was not busy although it was over Christmas. The beach was easy to walk on and you could do one end to the other in about an hour one way. The only issue is the 2 hr drive to and from the airport. Now that is painful.

Riu Guanacaste: RIU Guanacaste in Costa Rica

The hotel is big and spread out over a wide area. Getting around is easy if you don't have mobility issues. It could do with more elevators in certain secretions. The lobby is clean and well kept, however I saw empty plates left beside elevators for 2 or 3 days. The food in the main buffet (Liberia) was okay but not up to RIU standards. There was ample selection (fish, Italian, Pizza, hamburgers, roast, pastas, salads, and a large selection of desserts). The Steak house was popular as were [... read more] the Japanese and Italian a la carte restaurants. Service was good for the most part. There are four swimming pools, two with swim up bars. The beach was nice and sandy, not crowded and safe for non-swimmers. Lots a lounge chairs, but shade was limited so you need to get there before 9am. Lots of water sports ($) to keep you busy. There are howler monkeys further down the beach that you could feed bananas and grapes. They are friendly and will take food out of your hand.Best time to see them is in the morning between 8 and 9am. The nightly entertainment was mostly in Spanish and geared towards children.

Planet Hollywood Costa Rica: Terrible food

People say the food in Cuba is bad, they’ve never been to the Planet Hollywood in Costa Rica. Nice staff. Not the cleanest place. Lots of stingrays at the beach. Can’t walk too far along the beach in either direction, blocked by rocks.

Occidental Papagayo: Pura Vida!

Both my flights with Air Transat went smoothly. There were very few people on the plane both ways. I imagine likely due to the scare of a strike that never happened—but worked for me! Airport shuttles were both good as well, drivers both timely, organized and friendly. Arrival at the resort: check in was quick, friendly but I could have used a welcome drink. This was the first resort I have been to where this didn’t happen. A ride to my room was provided but I wasn’t guided to my room a [... read more]s I have been in the past at resorts. The resort is beautiful and surrounded by nature. Everywhere you look, there is wildlife! Monkeys, parrots, iguanas, butterflies, scorpions and crabs. This was my favourite part. The beach, wow. Yes, it’s not white sand beaches but it’s Costa Rica. There was sand a plenty, lots of places to walk and sit. Swimming was great. I brought water socks and found that helpful. Not many people even used the beach—I felt I almost had it to myself the times I went down. There was some sort of bioluminescence the first night—so lucky to have experienced that! The entertainment at night was classy and perfect. Live music by the lobby. The staff by the pool, only visited them once for a dance (I was horrible but had fun) but they were also great. Energetic and friendly. They have a list of activities posted by the grill—where you get your towels. They don’t seem to follow through with every activity. I was hoping to get some water aerobics in to still exercise but be minimal pain on my body but it didn’t happen the day I planned to do it. If I wasn’t so booked up with tours/limited on time, I would have done more! Each and every person that worked there was so hard working and nice. What a great staff they have! Let me tell you when I read about the walking, hills and overall distance of things at the resort I was warned about, I didn’t believe it, but do now. Be in shape, be prepared. I do not believe I was fit/well enough to enjoy the resort as much as I normally would. Though, I didn’t use a shuttle as I could have to make it easier. Note there was a short cut from my room to the lobby with less stairs! If you can’t find it, ask! I was told on my last full day there. It honestly would be nice if the resort would ask about where you would like your room or if you have any mobility issues (I have a spinal condition) as I felt I was one of the furthest from both the lobby and the beach. I should have said something but didn’t understand the distance until the daylight on the second day! Food, was quite average. I tried the grill, lobby buffet and Italian. Note, I am vegetarian so my options are more limited than others. The grill didn’t have much that looked appetizing in my opinion, I only got chips, queso and a piece of bread there. I sorta thought it would be like many beach grills I’ve been to in the past and be made to order, but it was just another buffet. The main buffet was decent, but I feel they need to try quality of quantity. A lot of the food was cold. There were a variety of items but the same almost each breakfast and dinner. The fruit was lovely—plentiful, fresh and ripe. They had an egg/omelette station. I would have liked to have seen a pasta or stir fry station maybe. Instead, I had some cold spaghetti one night and generally had the same rice and some plain roasted vegetables. My last day, there was a really nice flavourful ratatouille I wish I got to eat more of. Booking the al la carte, that was a chore. I explained upon my 7pm check in that I had only 3 full days there and that the first 2/3 I was off the resort before 8am. Still, they said I had to book between 8-3. So the second day, I got back from my excursion before 3. I was still not able to book. Last day, instead of sleeping in when I didn’t have an excursion until afternoon, here I am setting an alarm for 730 to trek to the lobby to book dinner. At first, they said there was no availability, so clearly some rooms were able to book in advance. Then said there was the steakhouse. Im sure theres options, soup, mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables but I wanted Italian. They said it was fully booked but then ended up booking me for 830pm after I pleaded to them. There were only a few tables seated at the restaurant that night which had me questioning the fully booked aspect (maybe everyone that booked was in bed…?). Again, the staff was great, waiter was SO nice! The bread brought to the table with balsamic and olive oil was lovely. The caprese was missing balsamic and the cheese wasn’t good. The eggplant ravioli could have been good but was over cooked. The sauce for it and extra cheese topping was good. The dessert, tiramisu was tasty. It was nice to have a nicer more intimate, made to order dinner for 1 night rather than the buffet . The resort also limits your al la cartes. I was only able to book 1 during my stay. For $1800, I feel I shouldn’t be stuck with a buffet for every meal but 1 for 5 days. My tours were all with the company Frank the Tank. With my short time, I wanted to make sure everything was set before I got there, and I did just that. Deposits were made easily via PayPal and I paid the rest in credit at each excursion (you can pay cash as well). Each member of his team was absolutely fantastic. Knowledgable, kind and fun. I enjoyed learning about Costa Rica on the drives. The country to include health care, education and have monkey/wildlife bridges over roads is fantastic. The country was very clean—how amazing for the people and all the animals. The guides all made me feel welcomed and safe! The river safari was amazing. I was able to see iguanas, so many birds, monkeys and crocodiles. I tasted coffee on 2/3 of my tours and wow! I am a flavoured creamer and all the bleached sugar kind of girl, but I even enjoyed it black. It was made nice and sweet with some real unbleached sugar! I will be incorporating this into my life back at home, saying goodbye to adding white sugar when possible. There was a meal served on all my excursions. All were good. My favourite was the first soda on the River Safari day. I enjoyed the family style meal presentation, the flavours were good and the drink, tamarind was delicious! The pico and guac on the catamaran was also yummy! It was nice to have fresh tasty guac! The pottery demonstration was nice to see—I love art. I am more about experiences over souvenirs but that pottery was beautiful and so I treated myself to a hand crafted, carved, painted clay shot glass—so much better than the mass produced glass ones you see many other places. My second tour was the Rainforest day. We stopped at a waterfall first where I bought another souvenir. This woman hand painted each individual shirt—how cool! I respected and adored her art and got one! Both my shot glass and shirt have a sloth on them! The sloth was my absolute favourite part of my trip and I was so happy to have seen one in the wild. For me, a once and a lifetime experience, I will treasure that. It was beautiful. It was nice to be able to get in and swim right in front of the waterfall! Breathtaking. You can leave your belongs (wallet) in the car so they are save. I always get worried about that swimming and travelling alone. Hiking through the rainforest, bring good shoes! I did! My Keens (hiking sandal with closed toe) were perfect for this. There were hills and it rains (duh)! Each step was worth the beauty I took in. The hanging bridges, an experience for sure, wild! We saw toucans, toad, frogs, snakes and a sloth. The guides knew we were bummed we didn’t see monkeys but they pulled over on the road on the way home and we saw a big group of them! That was awesome! I was very grateful for that. The catamaran pick up was easy—right off the beach of my resort. They have a smaller boat to bring you to the catamaran. The drinks were delicious and a plenty! It was a bit more party than I expected but I had fun! I liked how we had a small group compared to the large party boats I saw. I enjoyed the more intimate/more personal experience. We went by monkey head island which looked cool. We stopped at a place with a bunch of neat caves! As soon as we got there, saw my very first sea turtle. The snorkelling was underwhelming compared to other places I have been but I knew this coming into it. I was still able to see a lot of fish honestly—just not much reef life. Saw some turtles making some love during sunset—magical! It was fantastic. The boat went wild. Overall, I am glad I made all the choices I did. It’s always easy booking with Trip Central, Air Transat was good, resort overall was good and had good trips with Frank the Tank’s teams. Costa Rica was absolutely beautiful. I saw and did everything I wanted to with ease. Pura Vida! https://youtu.be/jYr8uKsm10M?si=Rev5xxPki_BhQpfk

Riu Guanacaste: Love this resort

I stayed at the main building which was recently renovated, the rooms are very spacious and beautifully decorated. The gardens are very well kept. I know that drinks can accidentally get spilled, more maintenance around the pool area is required. The meals at the restaurants were good with the exception of the Steak House. Not worth the line up to get in. Overall it was a great vacation.

Riu Guanacaste: Good Resort

Hotel was good, grounds beautiful, public area good but me and my husband got very sick from bacteria at the resort. I find dishes and dining needs to be absolutely clean/sterile for guests. We saw at the pool bar reusable cup just got a quick rinse and reuse...the rim was not washed. I felt foods on the utensils and the plates at the buffet. We had to always asked for bottle water in our room and coffee. These items supposed to be replenish daily. I enjoy my first 3 days at the resort but  [... read more]the next 3 days plus the day we checked out we were so sick. Didn't leave our room for 3 days to go and eat. Pharmacy was closed when my husband went to see if he can get something to help us. We needed some electrolytes and stuff to help us. We made tea and had plain crackers which we forced ourselves to eat. We couldn't wait and praying to get back home safe and well. We are home now but still haven't recovered. I went to the emergency here at home. Costa Rica is beautiful and too bad we got sick. We would love to visit again and enjoy fully next time. Hoping for better experience and more cleaner place/things etc. We saw how they clean the tables and placemats for the next guests...not proper. We were horrified what we were seeing. Barely cleaning the mats thoroughly, all the garbage crumbs/foods are brushed so quickly every where and onto the chairs you have to sit on. The workers need to be checked for the way they are cleaning the dining areas. The tables are not wiped properly with care and time. This is serious and should be addressed immediately.

Riu Guanacaste: Incredible resort and vacation!

We stayed here 10 years ago and it was great. But now after all the renovations, it’s absolutely amazing. We loved everything - the grounds, the rooms, the food, the pool, the service. Overall a great family trip and the kids already want to go back. Huge thanks to our travel agent Jim for helping us out so much!

Riu Guanacaste: Beautiful surroundings, delicious food, service needs improvement

Buffet was ample and varied and delicious. Their system for waiting in line for an hour for the specialty restaurants is unfortunate. As at other resorts, they should have a sign-in policy for these restaurants. Wasting precious vacation time waiting in line from 5:00 to get a seat at 6:00 makes no sense. Italian restaurant was amazing. Note the following: 1) we requested a wake-up call to get [... read more] to an excursion: it never came to either of two rooms 2) we advised there was a dripping sound at night in our room: repairman came and said it was the fridge and moved the fridge. Next night dripping continued. A repairman came and said it was the air conditioner and that he fixed it. Dripping continued. Unclear why they couldn't get it right. Safe needed a repair: the battery was missing. It was repaired. Then the batteries fell out and it needed another repair 3) accordingly, because of the drip, I moved my room. As I packed up the first room I noticed my neck pillow was gone. I asked the front desk to look into it. They took note. I came back that night: no news. They said come back in the morning: they'd call housekeeping. I came back: no news. Finally I google translated a message to Spanish and showed it directly to the housekeeper, indicating that i would have no choice in hotel reviews but to indicate that housekeeping staff steals things at Riu Guanacaste. She communicated with others in the housekeeping staff: much animated chatter ensued and calling to others amongst themselves Eventually: my neck pillow appeared. Unclear how it had disappeared. Unclear why it was so difficult to get messages and requests to be taken seriously. Staff is very pleasant and relaxed, but either doesn't take matters too seriously or doesn't get the message in English. There should be one person on duty at front desk at all times who is proficient in English.

CC Beach Front Papagayo: Our 1st All-inclusive Resort!

My wife and I accompanied her sister and our brother-in-law to CC Beach for a week through their invitation. We both appreciated the location and style of our Standard room opposite the gym. As my wife is vegetarian and I’m diabetic we were thankful for the range of vegetables and healthy foods offered and available at all 3 daily meals. All four of us regularly used the pool. My wife and I used the dual kayak 2x during the week. We were pleased to see monkeys living in the trees and all the igu [... read more]anas sauntering around the property. Above all the friendly patience of the staff to communicate with my mid-level Spanish and their native rapid Spanish!

CC Beach Front Papagayo: Great vacation!

This small quiet resort was a great backdrop for exploring the beautiful country of Costa Rica. Staff were amazing and always helpful. Only one buffet restaurant but the food was amazing. Rooms were dated but kept very clean. Repair is needed on the roofs of the buildings. Staff attempted to keep the pools clean but were fighting with the falling leaves. Beach is black sand with some garbage being washed ashore.

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Amazing resort

This resort is absolutely beautiful. The staff is so friendly and welcoming. The beach is nice and if you walk down the beach you will see monkeys. There are vendors on the beach but they are not pushy. They are trying to make a living and the prices are incredible

The Westin Reserva Conchal Golf Resort & Spa: Costa Rica 2024

I stayed at The Westin Playa Conchal Resort in November 2024 with a group of ten friends, and our experience was excellent. The service and hospitality exceeded our expectations. The staff were consistently professional, courteous, and attentive, ensuring that every detail of our stay was taken care of. The resort itself is beautifully maintained golf grounds, beautiful beach, and facilities that balance luxury with comfort. Our accommodations were spacious, modern, and well-appointed, provid [... read more]ing the perfect vacation experience. Dining was exceptional, with a diverse selection of restaurants offering high-quality cuisine and excellent service. The atmosphere throughout the resort was relaxed yet refined, making it ideal for both groups and couples seeking a premium all-inclusive experience. The pool, beach area, and evening entertainment all contributed to a memorable and enjoyable stay. Overall, The Westin Playa Conchal exceeded all expectations in terms of service, quality, and experience. I would highly recommend this resort to anyone seeking a first-class getaway in Costa Rica. We look forward to returning in the future.

Occidental Papagayo: Amazing

What can we say....our stay was over the top!! Enrique, Carlos plus The kitchen staff made our stay! So accommodating with someone that has celiacs disease. The food was great. The beach was awesome. Loved seeing the whales in the bay. We have nothing bad to say!!

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Beautiful resort!!!

A very beautiful hotel. The scenery is incredible. Several pools, restaurants, and bars. Just one problem: if you love the beach, this probably isn't for you. The beach itself is nice, with black sand, perfect for swimming. Since the sand is volcanic, the sea bottom is very smooth and firm, which is very good and safe to swim. There are sun loungers on the beach, but no umbrellas at all. A few small trees provide shade, but that's not enough. There's also no bar on the beach, but the guys from  [... read more]the pool bar occasionally come onto the beach, but it takes about an hour for them to bring you a drink. We've been there in September, which is the rain season. Normally, there is a heavy rain in afternoon for a few hours, However, we liked it - the nature is enjoying the rain as we are.

The Westin Reserva Conchal Golf Resort & Spa: The Best All-Inclusive Experience in Costa Rica

I recently stayed at The Westin Reserva Conchal and I cannot say enough wonderful things about this resort. From the moment I arrived, I was impressed by how beautifully maintained the property is—lush greenery, stunning wildlife, and a peaceful atmosphere everywhere you go. The rooms were spacious, spotless, and very comfortable, with everything you need for a relaxing stay. The beds were heavenly, and I always woke up refreshed and ready to enjoy the day. The food and drinks exceeded my expe [... read more]ctations for an all-inclusive. There was a wide variety of options at every restaurant, and everything I tried was delicious. Service was attentive and friendly—staff truly went above and beyond to make sure guests felt welcome and cared for. The pool and beach areas were incredible. The pool is huge and relaxing, while the beach at Playa Conchal is simply breathtaking—soft sand, warm water, and plenty of space to unwind. It felt like a tropical paradise. Overall, the resort offers the perfect balance of relaxation and activities. Whether lounging by the pool, enjoying the ocean, or exploring the property, every moment was enjoyable. This was an unforgettable stay, and I would highly recommend The Westin Reserva Conchal to anyone visiting Costa Rica. I am already looking forward to returning!

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Amazing vacation!

The hotel itself is beautiful and always clean. The view to the ocean is great. The staff is really what makes the experience even better. They are always very polite and love to have conversation. Seeing the monkeys on the beach was an added bonus!

Occidental Papagayo: Good laid back hotel

This resort was exactly what we needed - laid back atmosphere, nice beach, good food, light entertainment and great weather. Resort has beach in the bay area , so there are low and high tide and beach is getting wider and narrow , but we were able to swim and snorkel. Long beach is good for walks, but have water shoes as some areas have sharp stones(also can purchase in little store at the resort). There were no mosquitoes ? and flies, couple times towards evening we had rain but still we had  [... read more]the whole day to enjoy the beach, they have plenty sun-beds and shade under the trees. Rooms were cleaned every day and we had free supplies of 2 water bottles, 2 beers, 1 Coca-Cola and 1 Sprite. Keep in mind in the evening there are raccoons checking garbage outside. People are very friendly and eager to help with any question you have. There are many steps in the resort, so ask for rooms in buildings 1 or 2(it is close to dining and pool area) if walking is a problem. Would recommend this place to friends - it is a good value for money.

Hotel Villas Playa Samara: Disappointed

My one week stay in this resort is full of disappointment, the food is very bad, the main restarunt is closed and there is only one kitchen serving 3 meals during my entire stay. No buffet, I can choose the meal from the menu and there is no variety. Food qualit is so bad, so I need to ask the chef to customize, so I can remove the items I cannot eat and choose only a few item I can manage to eat. In my room there is a small kitchen but the stove is sealed so I cannot use the kitchen, no micr [... read more]owave and no coffe maker. I never recommend this hotel to anyone

Azura Beach Resort Samara: Exceptional service

My wife and I stayed in a garden view suite. The accommodations are very modern and comfortable to relax or connect to your favorite streaming service on the TV. The resort is located in a beach that is very swimable and calm. Good for kayak, swimming or even beginner surf lessons. During our stay, all the restaurants served from. The menu. Two restaurants always open for lunch and dinner. Our favorites were Bocatto and Chill and Grill. The staff was exceptional throughout and further made  [... read more]our stay more enjoyable. Many of which we got to know on a first name basis. We recommend this resort if you are looking for good quality food, accommodations and relaxing stay.