MissyT

I am traveling with my 2 adult daughters (19 & 24) in early March splitting our 9 day trip between Arenal and Manuel Antonio. Now that I have made airplane reservations in and out of San Jose, I am up to making hotel reservations, and need some assistance.

My Wish List:
-Airport Transfers
-Concierge Desk to assist in activity scheduling
-Breakfast (preferably included)
-Wifi
-3-4 star style
-Not to isolated, or a style where you can interact with other guests

I'm looking to have some options;
ie: If we choose to stay at the beach different amounts of time easy access to hotel
After a day of activities, ease of dining choices

All these wishes and I still desire to be amongst nature and wildlife, live like a local and not be a tourist.

I'm looking for input from those who have lived my trip before me!

volcanogirl

Our favorite in Manuel Antonio is Tulemar Bungalows; they give you your own private concierge that will do everything from making reservations to booking tours to stocking your frig for you. They have their own beach. We loved having a frig to keep drinks cold and keep any leftovers. There are several good restaurants in walking distance. We had them pick us up and drop us back off at the airport. They also booked a car for us for days that we wanted one. There's lots of wildlife on the property; we saw monkeys every day, sloths, and an aracari.

volcanogirl

We've stayed at a few places in the Arenal area. Really like the Arenal Observatory Lodge and the Lost Iguana, but those might be too isolated for you. The tradeoff with being far from town is that you can see wildlife there. Closer to town we like Nayara and The Springs Resort and Spa (stayed on a Groupon deal) - they're more upscale properties. Silencio del Campo might be another good option for you or maybe Tabacon. Tabacon brings busloads of tourists to their springs but the springs are very nice.

NewbeTraveler

Thanks so much Volcanogirl!


Manuel Antonio
It is not very clear to me if the beach area in Manuel Antonio is one long beach? Or many divided some how. I was talking to someone who had stayed at the bungalows at Tulemar that told me that they took a taxi to and from the beach. Also, I gather that there are several sections or divisions to Tulemar.
The bungalows are booked for my dates, but they have something at Pacifico Colonial. But it looks like that is an apartment without the amenities of the resort. Or a Villa for $475 + 13% resort fee, +4% tax, which is more than I wanted to spend.

Any other suggestions?

More later....

volcanogirl

Lots of other spots that get good reviews if you want to explore them - Arenas del Mar and Gaia are pretty popular, also Si Como No, Los Altos, and Costa Verde. Tulemar has their own beach, but if they took a taxi somewhere they were probably going to the beach inside the national park. There are different beaches around town.

volcanogirl

And La Posada Jungle Lodge - forgot that one.

NewbeTraveler

Most of those are just as pricey, and very "romantic", not the vibe I want for me and my kids. The property at Tulemar, hiking trails and beach amenities seem more our "flavor". Would Tulemar be your favorite?

NewbeTraveler

I guess I am looking for comforts, but with a more nature ambiance, not pristine luxury. Rustic luxury

volcanogirl

La Posada Jungle Lodge that I mentioned is very popular with families. Maybe check Villas Nicolas as well. We've also stayed at Mango Moon, but Tulemar is our favorite.

Patty

Tulemar has its own cove beach. I'm not familiar with Pacific Colonial. We stayed in Upper Mot Mot at Tulemar and got to see some of the other units like Casa Panorama. Lots of wildlife and some trails on the Tulemar property. I've stayed at Gaia as well and they don't have beach access. They also have trails onsite and we saw a sloth and spider monkeys on the Gaia property but not quite as much as at Tulemar.

florclover

We stayed at Hotel Costa Verde in Manuel Antonio (Quepos). It's very jungley. There are different levels of luxury there. Breakfast was on site, but for dinners the staff shuttled us happily to two restaurants nearby (for free). Staff was amazing and booked all tours and transportation for us. There is an adults only area. We took a taxi to beach or walked (about 15 minutes).

Birdie

My adult kids loved Tulemar. We rented one of the two bedroom units. It was perfect for us. We walked all over town, trying out different restaurants. The concierge staff was great.