I just returned from costa rica.
Si Como No in Costa rica is completely overrated. I got the most expensive room and it was a complete zippo. They need to be completely renovated. The view was terrific but the furnishings were a joke.

The villa a the Makanda was first rate.

DITTO! We spent 5 nights at the Makanda last year. Beautiful! We spent a week in Manuel Antonio, but couldn't reserve Makanda for the whole time, so we booked two nights at Si Como No. Definitely a downward move from Makanda. Rooms were no better than a motel here (we had a "honeymoon suite&quot, it was busy, the adult pool overlooked a corrugated rooftop! But what amazed me the most, was how disney-esque the place was. Steel pipe painted to look like bamboo, fiberglass rocks...totally out of character with all the natural beauty around it. (giant bamboo grows like a weed down there, plenty to use) Makanda, by contrast, was peaceful, lush, and top-notch in every way. (Maybe I'm a bit biased, because we avoid big, busy hotels always.)

I stayed at si como no honeymoon suite this past Jan. I thought the hotel was very nice. We had a room with 2 sets of glass doors overlooking the ocean and a small balcony. The bed was comfortable. and there was a small sitting area. We had a large bathroom shower only. The room was very clean and the service was great. The breakfast was fruit,rolls,bread , several juice and cook to order items. I found both pool delightfulas was the hot tubs.I ve been to disney resorts several times and did not get the same feel.I would recommend this hotel

you call that a hot tub at si como no?
It is one of those plastic inexpensive hot tubs. I would not even step foot in it.

All I am saying is this is not a high end property. It has nice views but the property and the rooms are on the level of a holiday inn.

The spa is also old and has no character. The hotel is many years old and it shows.

I have to agree with you all, thats why unless someone says in thier post that they have children I try to steer them towards Villas Nicolas or Casitas Eclipse, or some of the other properties here, depending on costs. I also do NOT like the fact that the water slide splashes water onto the food being prepared in the open kitchen. I cancelled my meal there on day after seeing that. That is very poor design, but when you don't change it, that is poor management.

Okay, now I'm nervous. I just booked a deluxe suite for our family (2 adults and 2 boys, 9 and 13, over Thanksgiving. Si Como No is not cheap so someone please reasure me that this is money well spent! We are also staying 3 nights in Arenal.

Can we have some further comments please from folks who have stayed here recently, with and without kids?

Do not worry about staying at Si Como No with kids. We just returned two weeks ago, and it was the best family vacation we've ever had and we LOVED Si Como No. I can appreciate the above posters' observations, and if I were going to Manuel Antonio without my kids (daughter 15, son 10), I'd probably stay elsewhere. But for families, it can't be beat. The kids' pool is great, and I enjoyed swimming in the adults' pool. The rooms are fine, if nothing special. The hotel staff was wonderful, couldn't have been nicer or more accommodating. The excursions we took - half day horseback ride, canopy safari, night-time jungle walk, right across the street, all three of us enjoyed. I'd say go without worries. Your family will love it!

I can also recommend Si Como No for a family with kids. We stayed there with our daughter who was 7 at the time and she loved it (especially the water slide). I don't think I would recommend this hotel for a honemoon. We stayed there before the expansion was completed.

Lovincostarica, unless the layout of the pool and Rico Tico restaurant have changed since we stayed there (August 2001), I don't see how water from the slide could splash into the food prep area - they are on the opposite ends of the pool.

Thanks for the reassurance, Andib. I appreciate it. Can you tell me more about the night time jungle walk? How long and how much?

Keep those comments coming, Fodorites. For the money I'm spending for 5 nights at Si Como No, I need all the reassurance I can get!!

The hotel has recommendations for lots of excursions. They are quite expensive - e.g. canopy tour was $65 per person, horseback ride for half a day was $55 I think. They also offer a 3/4 day ride. You need to book most of these a day in advance, or at least we did during February school vacation week. The night time jungle tour was great - they take you out for about two hours, and everyone gets a flashlight. I went with my son and a family with three boys, and the guide said we didn't see that much (a tarantula, some frogs) because they weren't quiet enough. My daughter went the night before and they saw sloths, a kinkajou and a howler monkey (which we also saw outside our room windows on two occasions). Trust me, you and your kids will have a great time. We met lots of other families, and all agreed that Si Como No was terrific.

I think I had the most expensive room too. I was there in January. I thought the room was nice, (except for the fabric on the daybed, needs replacing) but a tad overpriced. I was very pleased with the cleanliness of the room and I liked being able to have coffee every morning in my room. I went to the expensive restaurant once and ordered some kind of breaded MahiMahi. Didn't like it. Also have the quesadilla appetizer which was great. All in all I prefered the grill, but I can't say I had a wide variety of food at the grill. That costa rica cake dessert is great, try it. I thought the landscaping was a bit too 'junglelish'. Staff was okay, but not great at making a single person feel welcome. All in all Abud, I'm sure you will enjoy yourself at Si Como No.

Anyone else have a comment??

I am fully aware that Si Como No is in the rainforest but my room was unacceptable as it was swarming with ants. I also stayed at the makanda and did not have any ant problem at all.

I guess Makanda did a more thorough job of spraying down the rooms.

The bedspread and blankets at si como no were absolutely disgusting. Something I would expect in a cheap motel on the las vegas strip, not from a place I just paid $185 night

The adult pool jacuzzi was nice but the main pool jacuzzi was a joke. It was one of those plastic above ground jacuzzi's.

Plain and simple. The place is jaded and is in need of a major renovation.

I just posted a trip report that included Manuel Antonio. When researching lodging, it seemed that many of the places in the area were overpriced and not worth it, especially Si Como No.

Makanda, Tulemar and Nicholas seemed really nice, but way out of our price range. Otherwise, many of the places in the $65-80 range, with the exception of La Colina, were over priced simply b/c it was in MA. Examples are: Banana Tree Hotel, Blue Monkey, Hotel & Cabinas Espadilla... which all, I would never have paid more than $35/night in any other developing country.

Wish I could say that I like Manuel Antonio area, but the crowds, spring breakers, overpriced hotels and outrageous prices on everything else didn't compliment the experience of the nature and beautiful beaches. The development, I'm afraid, will reach Hawaii standards.

Just returned from a 4 nite stay at Si Como No (3/14-3/18) and while it was not my first choice (Makanda was sold out) I was happy with my superior room. Great view, very clean and I liked the oversized shower. The room did have a motel feel to it but it was fine since most of our time was spent outside exploring the beautiful area.The adult pool was beautiful (terrific view better than Makanda's which we did visit for dinner) and a great place to escape from the noise at the kids pool. I would reccomend the hotel.

Don't worry about staying at Si Como No. I'm sure there are other hotels in the area that are better, but we, too, had a good experience there. We thought the views were lovely and our room had no ants, was very comfortable in every way, and I would not hesitate to recommend it. Don't worry about it. . .your choice is just fine. We certainly weren't disappointed.