CostaRica.org Reviews

The food was very good.
Hacienda Baru was beautiful and there were lots of birds, butterflies, monkeys and sloths.. very hot and very little ablility to escape the heat, the managers were very unfriendly.

We loved the Corcovado Adventures Tent Camp and would love to go back!!!! Our tent location was ideal! The food was very good.
Our car was locked up in a fenced car lot in Sierpe while we were there.

WE really liked the San Gerardo de Dota Valley and we did see a quetzal!!!!!!!!!!! No danticas however.

Wonderful vacation.
We would not have done anything different. That right amount of activities and down time. Could not believe how many people try to see the whole country in one trip. Some people thought it was kind of strange we only moved a couple hundred yards from one resort to the other but for us it was perfect. Our moving day took twenty minutes not the entire day! All of your drivers were right on time and very professional.

We always felt safe and never once had to worry about where we were going. The Aurola Holiday Inn was in a good location because on our last day we were able to walk to the wonderful Gold Museum. One thing we did find out is that we had a 40lbs per checked bag weight limit with that Nature Air. They have three different fares that can be purchased, 15lbs, 27lbs, & 40lbs. We were told we had the Flexfare, with the 40lbs limit. Also, luggage size was much less restricted. We're not at all upset about this because it really forced us to take just what we needed but thought you should know for future planning. Couple last thoughts; My birthday celebration at Jinentes de Osa were perfect! Mary tells me you helped put it together, thank you very much. Also, at Aguila de Osa I think we got an upgraded room. We were put in a stand-alone cabin with a king sized bed. It was #12, at the very top of the hill. To us it was the best unit on the property! On our last night, with the full moon shining on the bay, we had a special visitor. Cocos, the resort's wonderful dog, showed up on our deck and shared a magical time with us.
Best Regards & warm wishes

Overall the trip was fantastic.
Overall the trip was fantastic.

Best trip ever.
La Paloma Lodge was a naturalists paradise but if you're into luxury,air conditioning, streaming hot water,this place would not be for you. On the other hand the area was full of wild life and beautiful foliage and flowers. The food was plentiful and pretty good. The hospitality, service and tours (Corcovado National Park and Cano Island) from there were wonderful! One other draw back is that I have poor vision and the rooms were very dark, especially the bathrooms, but I would certainly go back there.
We called it luxury camping, the lodge was very nice and the views were breathtaking. Oxygen Jungle was voted by the Detroit Free Press as one of the most beautiful resorts in the world and I agree. Up in the mountains a bit difficult to find but definitely worth the trip. We loved the beautiful glass enclosed units The bathrooms and showers first class. The views were beautiful. Howlers were our neighbors and our morning wake up calls. We saw toucons and parrots. The restaurant served gourmet dinners that were amazing but there was no menu, they served what they purchase fresh from the Italian market daily. It was a bit expensive.

Also one last detail. Using your service, there were no problems and all the people were so so pleasant but the most important thing was that you were personally always available to be reached which was very reassuring Again, best trip ever. Thank You.. Cant wait to go back.

Puerto Viejo has a very laid back island feel to it.
I have been to Costa Rica many times.

We liked Hotel Aurola - Holiday Inn.
First of all, let me compliment Kerryfrom My Costa Rica for her continuous willingness to work with us and for her patience when we made changes to our itinerary even after arriving in Costa Rica.

We had an amazing time and loved the new havens.
Woody and I just got back from our amazing trip to Costa Rica. This

As a whole the trip could not have been better.
It will be a little difficult expressing how awesome our trip was in just a paragraph, but ill give it a try.
First off transportation services were great.....haha especially the driving "techniques" they follow. They were always on time and due to the speedy delivery we were always early. The hotel in San Jose (Aurola Holiday Inn) was nice with good service, however it was nice to leave the city, bound for Mal Pais. "Surf The Place" was extremely nice, great people, good atmosphere, well located, and the food they prepared for us was above and beyond 5 star. As a matter of fact the food in general everywhere was amazing and worth the trip alone.

The tours were great especially having them set up prior. The "Canopy Tour" (Canopy Tour de la Pacifico) was a blast...we all enjoyed that one. Also the trip to "Tortuga Island" was one of my favorites, snorkling, white sand, Cerveza...etc. One of the days we got an early start on the ATV's and drove over Star Mountain to Cabo Blanco and hiked the reserve. Also drove to Montezuma for lunch, visit to the waterfall, and walked around the town. Lastly the surfing. The waves were great, I went every morning at about 6-6:30 and every evening for the sunset.

As a whole the trip could not have been better. The planning and itinerary you prepared for us was perfect. There was one bump in the road with our pick up from Holiday inn to the airport. The private shuttle did not make it but they called a taxi for us and the original driver from the private company waited there at the airport to ensure that we made it (Not a complaint). It was truly amazing and we thank you so much for everything you did. It was a great trip and can not wait till the next one.

Thanks for putting together a fun-filled package for us that we will never forget!
On the first trip: La Posada in San Ramon was a cozy place with beautifully carved furniture and jacuzzi tubs. All the rooms faced inwards which was a plus for noise control but the rooms smelled of smoke and it took a long time to cool them off with the air conditioner. We enjoyed the breakfast there - one of the nicest of our trip! The rooms were of course reasonable. Arenal Springs Resort hot springs- we enjoyed this hotel tremendously from the food to the springs to the spa services.
The service left something to be desired. The line for breakfast was the biggest drawback (guests started waiting in line from 6:15 am for the 6:30 opening) and because the line moved so slowly, we couldn't take our breakfast by 7 (even though we were in line at 6:30) and make Vince's flight in time, so we took it at a spot along the road back (near Villa Bianca at the Israeli restaurant).
The food there was excellent, though.

On the second trip: La Posada Jungle Villas in Manual Antonio was comfortable enough and the staff was very nice! Villa Vanilla Rainforest Spices Tour was wonderful. So glad we went! Loved the tour guide, she was so informative. Really enjoyed the walk through the farm as well as the break at the platform with the various treats. Shopping was fun, too, albeit a bit expensive. The transfer from Villa Vanilla to Monte Azul went well and was fast. Transfer from Monte Azul to El Remanso - wow, it said 3 hours in our itinerary, but took 5+ and then another 1 hour to El Remanso by their vehicle. This was the only glitch in our trip, as we didn't have lunch until 2 pm, but we managed!
El Remanso was quite a treat. It had ocean, jungle, and a nice central area for pool and dining. I did end up upgrading to a cabin, as I found the garden view room too dark and not enough air during the first night, since we shut our windows (there were no screens). The cabin had a great view and great air flow and the bathroom was nice. It was like Oxygen, but with better airflow and not as hot and humid.
We really enjoyed our wildlife adventure package, and the guide was so knowledgeable and fluent in English, Spanish and Dutch. We took several walks, including a night walk. The staff service was exceptional - true concierge service (like Monte Azul). We took a dolphin tour and saw a group of around 200 dolphins hunting in the Golfo Dulce which was amazing.
I saw three trogons on the road during our bird watch up close. The rooms could have been cleaner and the 7 pm strict start time of dinner was a problem for those nights when Maya was tired (such as a day when we had a 5:30 am bird tour). I think they could have offered a turn down service like Monte Azul does - this might have made things a bit better - that's all I can think of.

Thanks very much for putting together a fun-filled package for us that we will never forget!

The hotels were exceptional.
The trip was fabulous and the arrangements you made were all excellent. The transfers were on time, the adventure tours (Pacuare River Rafting- Exploradores Outdoors, Hanging Bridges) were very organized and a lot of fun.

We had so much fun, time went too fast!
I can't believe we are already home! We had so much fun, time went too fast!
Arenal Lodge was ok, I thought we were staying at a place with hot springs. The front desk staff seemed a bit unfriendly, but upgraded us to a beautiful room with an amazing view.The swimming pool was cold, and nobody could use it. Also, it was about 20/30 mins outside of town, so we spent alot of time in the car driving around. I would rather stay close to town @ a hot spring hotel. BUT... The view was amazing, breakfast really good, horseback ride was great, the area surrounding was beautiful. My husband really liked it.

The River Safari Float (Desafio) was great... Staff really friendly and fun. Great lunch too! Jeep/Boat Jeep Transfer to MonteVerde was fine, I would do it again. My kids get car sick, so this was fast & easy!

Monteverde Country Lodge was new & clean. Not any character, rooms very small, construction still going on. But wonderful front desk staff, good breakfast, close to town. Much better location! Selvatura (Zipline/Hanging Bridges Combination)was great, we all ended up doing the zipline, and returning the next day to do all of the attractions together. The Monteverde Cloud Forest Train was good as well, better than I thought! I love the hike at the halfway point and the coffee/ cake included. The Place in Mal Pais was better than I thought, the staff very friendly and helpful, the food amazing, location perfect! Great pool area! La Posada Jungle Villas was very cute, room small, but great location and wonderful staff. We left early for the park before breakfast, but they gave us food to take with us. We returned after the park and used the pool. They gave us towels and made us feel comfortable even though it was 3:00. Wish we had more time there. Lots of monkeys all around the pool!

Costa Verde was very nice, beautiful big room w/ ocean view. The only downside was it was a big property, I walked up the big hill to breakfast and then to the pool.I had to carry my 4 yr old. My husband drove the car! I would prefer a small place like La posada where everything is right there. But.. Our last day was spent at the pool, surrounded by monkeys, and a mother & baby sloth in the tree right next to us! Beautiful ocean view as well. It also felt a bit too American, not much local flavor, not as much character. The Domestic Flight (Nature Air) back to San Jose was a perfect idea! We were very tired of driving in the car, and it was great to spend our last day by the pool and not stressing about time! Thank you again, I hope we can come back again soon.

It was nice to have everything taken care of, usually we just wing it, but all & all , it was great, and there was nothing that I would complain about.

We absolutely loved our vacation and had no problems!
We absolutely loved our vacation and had no problems! Our favorite hotel was definitely the Arenal Nayara...wow is all we could say. That was exactly what we needed to make it feel like a romantic getaway!! It was the perfect amount of time at each hotel in arenal and tamarindo (Tamarindo Diria) and the short night we spent in san Jose (Hotel Indigo) was great as well. All the transportation drivers were excellent and very friendly.

The breakfasts were awesome and all the activities (Pacuare River Rafting- Exploradores Outdoors abd Canopy Combination Adventure- Arenal Mundo Aventura) were so much fun! Thanks for helping us make it so amazing!!

You know we had a fantastic time.
We had a fantastic time.

Overall a very dreamy, bonding experience for us!
Overall a very dreamy, bonding experience for us! I just love the lighter fare of food, and of course the freshness of all the fruit- divine!

The Aurola Holiday Inn is fine- the first night there we got a room with a non-working AC and had to get very assertive to get that fixed- ideally windows that open for us!

We loved the river trip (Pacuare River Lodge) and our guide especially- Luis- he cooked so well for us too. The second day on the river we got a hot shot guide who tried to bump into other rafts- I wound up int he water twice- he thought that was hilarious-- but Luis was golden and we tipped him generously. I think you might tell 3 day trippers to bring at LEAST 3 changes of dry clothing- we were practically moldy by the time we finished that trip- we never got dry!

We loved the atmosphere of the Arenal (Arenal Springs) place- so top notch! We never did see much of the mountain but that was fine- and the springs are not as hot as we'd like so we didn't spend much time in them- but dearly love the green lush atmosphere up there.

The road trips were tough on Corin who gets car sick- again it comes down to the drivers- some take the corners more roughly than others. However it would be VERY helpful to know going in how LONG each trip will be- some times it was not mentioned- we could have gotten some medication for the 3-4 hour trips had we known what to expect.

We liked the horse trip (Nacuya Waterfalls) VERY much- great people and great treatment of their animals- this really matters to us.

We liked the beauty of the last place in Dominical (Costa Paraiso)- but not having an open restaurant was a bummer- and not really being able to swim there was not idea- also a bit hot for ME, I would like to sleep higher up next time- it's so pleasant up high with a view!

Thanks so much for your help on all aspects.

I thought the tours were phenomenal.
I thought the tours were phenomenal (One Day Costa Rica Adventure Pass and One Day Arenal Volcano Tour with Hot Springs). The tour guide/driver was awesome and very knowledgeable. The zip lining was the number one thing I was told I had to do in Costa Rica and the one we visited was a great choice. The tubing that we did was also some of the best tubing I have done. Then you get to finish with the mud bathes and hot springs! Totally the right way to finish an enjoyable day.

Then the next tour we did was the hot springs near the Arenal volcano and they were unlike anything else I have ever done on a vacation. Everything was beautiful and so glad I booked through your site. Will definitely recommend to anyone else heading to Costa Rica and if I ever make it to central America again will try and book as much as possible though the site.