Tasia

After spending months researching and planning our first trip to Costa Rica, stumbled across this site, and appreciate all of the valuable insider info. posted by others. Our family is going in March (2 adults & 9 year old), have planned and reserved the first 12 days, ending in Quepos. We had planned to spend the last three relaxing on the beach, only to find out most hotels near Manuel Antonio are already booked. We have tentatively booked the Tulemar, which is a little outside of our price range, but we'll splurge if it's worth it. We were also looking at Rifiki Jungle Lodge, which isn't on the beach, and is a little farther out, but looks very interesting. Planning on then flying from Quepos back to San Jose, as it seems the most efficient way to get back to the international airport. Any feedback or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Also, we've had varying opinions given on whether we need malaria meds.?

Nebraskan

We had wonderful time there this past June. Stayed at El Parador, very nice, but not on the beach. We loved it there. Flying in to Quepos would be best in my opinion since you are traveling with a youngster. Manuel Antonio is a beautiful place - nice beaches, varieties of surf, nice hiking trails to see wildlife, jungle comes right up to the beach, monkies and iguanas in the trees. Take water and food, there will be others at the beach. You may also want to think about a zipline canopy tour, too. Pura Vida!

wayfarer

We stayed at Tulemar last year on our trip to Costa Rica with our two boys (6 & 9) and I highly recommend it. It is a bit pricy for MA but you are on vacation - have a good time. We loved the private beach and the free kayaks and boogie boards, and the monkeys. The staff was very nice. I posted a trip review on this board about six months ago. It has more details about restaurants we went to etc.

Have a great time!

faithie

Tulemar is a great spot , so even though it's a bit of a splurge for you , I do not think you will be disappointed . Have you looked into Verde Mar ? La Posada Jungle ? maqbeach.com gives a great listing of hotels .....

Tasia

Thanks so much for the feedback. Wayfarer - I will look for your review. I think we've talked ourselves into the extra cost of Tulemar as it sounds so nice, but just received notice there's room at Si Como No - any preference between the two?

faithie

They both get great reviews here , and seem equally popular , I prefer Tulemar .... But the next person could say SiComoNo !! You can't go wrong ....

Melissa5

Hotel Si Como No is great for a family...there's an adult pool and a family pool. There's a small movie theatre where guests can see a free movie in the evening. Their restaurant, Rico Tico bar n Grill, had the best food for the best prices that we were able to find in the Manuel Antonio/Quepos area. The rooms are very comfortable but NOT anything over the top...I loved how the buildings are spread out over the tropical grounds so you get the sights and sounds of Costa Rica around you.

Next door is Villas Nicholas where my niece stayed, but they don't have a television, which bothered her, but it wouldn't have bothered us. She saw monkeys right outside her room. (Hubby saw monkeys from the Hotel Si Como No lobby one day but I missed them.)

There's an internet cafe right next to the HOtel si Como NO where you and your kids can pay for internt use...my teens were so delighted by this...

although the hotel offers a free shuttle to a beach, we had a car and didn't use the shuttle. Besides the beaches within the Manuel Antonio Park are the best ones anyway.

Enjoy your trip!