Melissa5

I'm a nervous flyer, but I'm going to take a scary Nature Air flight down to the Osa, just so we can see the beautiful nature at Bosque del Cabo.

I need a hotel convenient to the airport (Nature Air) where I can calm down, relax, and feel pampered, before and after the flight to the Osa. I understand Nature Air flies out of a small airport west of San Jose.

I would like to choose a hotel with great customer service, where I can unwind. I'd like the hotel to be convenient to the Nature Air flight. Hotel Bougainvillea? Grano de Oro? Another suggestion?

I'm considering the <b>Hotel Bougainvillea</b> in Santo Tomas de Santo Domingo de Heredia, because we stayed there for 1 night on our first trip, they have an excellent staff, and a beautiful garden, plus a good restaurant. But I'm not sure if the Hotel Bougainvillea is convenient to drive to the airport for the Nature Air flight?

I'm also considering the <b>Grano de Oro</b> in San Jose, but they seem to have a bewildering variety of types of rooms, since their refurbishing. The tripadvisor reviews for the Grano de Oro are all over the scale, as each room is so different. Some people had noisy small rooms, and I'm a light sleeper. But some people had nice rooms, and it sounds like the hotel has a good restaurant and is a nice place.

When we return to the San Jose area after visiting the Osa, we will spent 2 nights near the San Jose area, and either relax at the hotel, or plan an easy daytrip from the hotel. (We don't need to be in downtown San Jose...I just want to be conveniently located for the Nature Air flight to and from the Osa.)

Next we end our trip with a drive to a destination wedding on the Central Pacific coast of Costa Rica. And then we fly home out of the San Jose airport in Alajuela.

volcanogirl

We stayed at Grano de Oro and liked it. It's built in an old mansion, so the rooms vary in size and amenities; if you stay there, just book one of the more expensive rooms. They have rooms with their own little private gardens, etc. They have a really good restaurant on site. The service was great here.

I don't know if this location would be convenient enough for you, but we loved Xandari; very beautiful property with good restaurant and a nice spa on site. We stayed in a great villa with a gorgeous view. The room had a small frig stocked with free juices, water, soft drinks, also had robes, cd player with classical music. Definitely a pampering kind of place. Our patio had two big cushy lounge chairs on it. You would like it.

qwovadis

www.casabellarita.com best SJO boutique BB will pickup deliver

They are GREAT fairly close to both airports

and will pamper you...

Melissa5

Thanks for all the replies. I'm looking into everything. If anyone else has suggestions, hop in!

I haven't heard of those b&bs but I'll check into that. Thanks.

I've heard of Xandari, volcanogirl, I'm glad to hear their food is good. That's important to me, and harder to get in Costa Rica, which is known more for nature and frienliness, but not so much for the food. I'll check into Xandari and see how far it is from the smaller airport in Pavas.

If I stay at Grano de Oro I would have to book one of the more expensive rooms for quietness, and comfort. I think a few of the rooms might even have AC but not sure. Some of them appear to be too small and hot from the reviews. I think a bigger well-ventilated room would be all right. Maybe Xandari is better, I'm going to check everything.

Well, if Hotel Bougainvillea is really 45 minutes from the airport in Pavas, gee, that's pretty far. But maybe we could stay the final night at Hotel bougainvillea since we will eventually have to fly out of the bigger airport at SJO at the very end of the trip.

Finding the right hotel near the smaller airport in Pavas is what I'm focusing on now.

volcanogirl

Yes, Xandari's food is very good; they even grow a lot of their own food - have a greenhouse, orchards, etc. It was really fresh, and a lot of it was healthy. The temps were very cool when we were there; it felt wonderful. Here's their website
www.xandari.com if you want to check it out. Our room also had a bathtub which always seems like a luxury in CR to me.

Melissa5

Hotel Bougainvillea has written to me and says they are a 15 or 20 minute drive from both airports, depending on traffic. (SJO airport and also the smaller airport in Pavas.) I'm still considering staying there.

Xandari sounds nice too, volcanogirl. Thanks for the web-site. I do love fresh locally grown food as well.

ParkerSunshine

i think you should skip spending so much time in san jose. 2 nights too many on your return! san jose is nothing special it is like any other big dirty city with a lot of noise and a lot of crime.

PlayaCoyote

Another vote for Casa Bella Rita.
Very relaxing and great hosts. Can't beat it.

volcanogirl

Casa Bella Rita looks like a great spot; I haven't heard much about that one.

shillmac

Hotel Boug. is further than 15-20 minutes from Pavas, that's for sure.

Melissa5

ParkerSunshine: We won't actually be seeing the city of San Jose. I will want to spend 2 nights in the Central Valley on our return flight from the Osa in order to relax and gather my wits after flying. I'm a nervous flyer, and it actually comforts me to know that when I get off the plane, I won't have to go far to settle into a nice hotel or b&b and relax before heading out on another adventure. Since we'll have 2 nights in the Central Valley after flying back from the Osa...we will probably do a short day-trip nearby...we haven't really seen anything in the Central Valley. Or, depending on the hotel, we might even hang out and relax at the hotel. (For example Hotel bougainvillea has a nice pool area and a beautiful garden.) We haven't seen Poas volcano yet...if there was time on this trip we might be able to see that. (Since this trip involves plans to stop at a hotel in the Central Valley 3 different times...)

Casa Bellarita...I haven't seen info on that one before. I'll look at that one.

My challenge is that I want to spend some nights at 3 different times in the Central Valley, but I need a quiet night's sleep. I'm a light sleeper, easily awakened by noises such as traffic or dogs barking nearby. But I do well with steady back-ground sounds, such as insects or frogs, those steady gentle sounds are soothing...or the sound of the ocean is soothing. Anyway I'm bringing my battery-powered sound machine so that will help! If a dog barks once at night, or a truck honks, that is no big deal. It's being kept awake all night by traffic sounds or dogs barking all night...that sort of thing is a problem for me, being a light sleeper.

shillmac: Oh dear, do you really think Hotel bougainvillea is further than 15 or 20 minutes from Pavas? Maybe it depends on the traffic. It's hard to know ahead of time for sure. We enjoyed staying there last time when we had to fly out of SJO. It was only a 20-minute drive from the SJO airport. But I'm trying to stay in a hotel or b&b that will give me a quiet night's rest, and is convenient to both airports...SJO and the smaller airport in Pavas, Tobias Bolanos airport...

There are a lot of nice accommodations in the Central Valley which are probably too noisy for me, since I'm a light sleeper. (My husband would sleep through an earthquake!)

At Bosque del Cabo I'm definitely planning on getting on the same schedule as the monkeys!!!

volcanogirl

Uh-oh, Xandari has a rooster.

Melissa5

volcanogirl, roosters aren't so bad. They just get excited when the sun comes up! At least they aren't noisy all night.

I found some nice maps that print out on www.govisitcostarica.com . It's helpful as I can see where the Tobias Bolanos airport and the Juan Santamaria Int'l airports are. Many of the little towns are printed out on the map as well. Since Hotel Bougainvillea is actually in Santo Domingo, it doesn't look too far from the Tobias Bolanos airport on the map. I think that the problem is there's probably rush hour traffic, just like anywhere. Hopefully we won't be stuck in it, but we'll just have to allow extra time. San Antonio is actually between the 2 airports. (Not sure what hotels might be in San Antonio.) Anyway Santo Domingo looks as close as San Jose is to Tobias Bolanos airport. (Of course, I don't know about the traffic patterns.)

Anyway if anyone is trying to choose a hotel in the Central Valley, these are neat maps to print out from the web-site I mentioned above, as they print out nice and clear, with lots of little towns mentioned and the position of the 2 airports shown.

I've also got another idea. Maybe at the end of the trip, if we spent 2 nights in Alajuela, we can be convenient to the SJO airport for our flight home, and we can also maybe visit the Poas volcano, which I have never visited.

Thanks everyone for listening to all of this! I probably should change my original question.

volcanogirl

We've stayed at Peace Lodge a couple of times - it's great at the end of a trip because it's only about an hour from SJO. You'd have to check on the road conditions since the January earthquake though.

I know roosters do what they do, but this one started way too early for us - lol.

Melissa5

volcanogirl, since you've stayed at xandari and peace lodge...do you have a favorite between those two? Well, this is getting further and further from my original posted question, but I'm thinking that if we spend 2 nights in either Alajuela or north of Alajuela at the end of the trip, we can fit in Poas volcano national park. Plus we can still be convenient to the SJO airport for our flight home. (I haven't yet checked on the road conditions since the January earthquake...thanks for that tip. Haven't compared prices yet either...I'm afraid to look!)

volcanogirl

The Peace Lodge is pretty close to Poas and would make it easy for you to visit. Xandari is closer to the airport. Either property is great. I always stay at the Peace Lodge and only gave Xandari a try because the Peace Lodge hadn't reopened after the January earthquake. They are both higher end properties. Based on what you've posted, I really think you would like either one. Maybe go over to tripadvisor to see pics and see which one is more your style. Would you rather have a fireplace and waterfall shower or a cool modern villa? Hard to go wrong either way I think!

Melissa5

volcanogirl, which one is the "fireplace and waterfall shower" and which one is the "cool modern villa"? I guess I'll read reviews on tripadvisor for both Peace Lodge and Xandari...and check the prices! Bosque del Cabo is already costing a bundle, although they do include all the food in their prices which sure helps. Very helpful to know that Peace Lodge is pretty close to Poas... Thanks! I guess you are a Peace Lodge fan if that is where you usually stay. Do you have a certain favorite type of room? I guess I can see your tripadvisor review.

volcanogirl

Hi, Mel - Xandari is the cool modern villa; the property was designed by an architect and decorated with funky modern artwork by his artist wife.

The Peace Lodge has over the top rooms - literally waterfall showers, a fireplace that pops on with the push of a button, cozy beds, jacuzzi on the balcony, great views, cd players in the rooms, big tubs, even an aromatherapy machine with all these scents to choose from. It's really fun to stay there after you've been somewhere hiking and sweaty for a few days. It's not the most authentically Costa Rican place, but it's really indulgent and fun. The waterfall gardens are gorgeous, and you can hand feed hummingbirds there. There are standard and deluxe rooms; the standard rooms are plenty posh. We've stayed in both, and I'd go with standard again.

lennoxcat

How about a new vote for Casa Bella Rita. Rita will have a massage arranged right there for you, beautiful view/pool, airconditioned, wonderful hosts who will make you feel relaxed about everything. Send her an e-mail, you'll feel her warmth radiating thru your computer!