mo261

Hello All-

We'll be heading to Costa Rica in January for our honeymoon.
We are trying to decide on our accommodations for Arenal. Normally, the posted $415/night price at The Springs would be out of our budget, but there is a deal online for about $250/night right now (deal expires tomorrow night!). My brother raves about the place, as he stayed there on his honeymoon a few years ago, and wants to treat us to a night there as a wedding gift.

My dilemma is this: The Springs seems a bit over the top for me, and I have read other reviews that have said as much, that is seems a bit "Disney" etc...
Nayara seems very luxurious, while being quieter, smaller and perhaps more authentic? However, my brother tells me that I really want to stay somewhere that has it's own Springs (I am aware that there are other places that have their own springs...Tabacon, Silencio etc, but right now Im trying to weigh Nayara vs The Springs).

Being that the price between Nayara and The Springs is about the same with this internet deal- does anyone have a preference? Is the Springs as loud and busy as I fear it might be? Is it possible to relax in one of the springs at The Springs without throngs of tourists or packs of splashing kids around??

Would it be silly to spend one night at The Springs, and the other 2 nights at Nayara?
Thanks in advance!

volcanogirl

I don't think you can really go wrong. They both get rave reviews. We've stayed at the Peace Lodge, which is a sister property to The Springs with the same owners. It doesn't feel as authentic as other places we've stayed, but it is very over the top and indulgent, and we still loved staying there. We always stay at the Lost Iguana, but I want to try a few nights at Nayara on a future trip. Personally I don't feel the need to stay somewhere with springs. We wouldn't be in them every night since once a trip is about right for us, so we just go to Eco Termales or Tabacon for our fix.

I don't think it's silly to try both as long as you're okay with the hassle of transferring all your luggage, etc. and realizing that's time that could be spent doing something else. Congrats on your marriage.

mo261

Thanks Volcanogirl- that is very helpful.
Hoping others will weigh in. I should add that this is definitely the "splurge" part of our trip. Before getting to Arenal we will be roughing it in Osa/Corcovado and staying in mid-range places along the Nicoya. So we definitely want to stay somewhere romantic and relaxing in Arenal before heading home! Thanks again!

Pat_Hewitt

We work with The Springs all the time. I haven't heard about this special. I was a little concerned, because we have about a dozen pending reservations. It just didn't ring true.

So I called my rep there. No one there knew anything about it either, and they do the billing for ALL reservations. I was told that there was no such special, and that they were not offering anything like this, even now in green season.

January is an extremely busy time, and they have no reason to give their suites away at this price. Actually, they are already pretty full for much of the month.

From my experience, I have never seen rooms there for anywhere approaching this price. Most hotels offer specials during the green season. At the Springs, it is a spa credit. But this is not a room discount, and that special expires in December.

I don't want to say "Scam" just yet. Maybe there is some confusion over what hotel this actually is? Lots of hotels there have "Arenal" or "springs" in the name.

Where is this being offered? I would be interested to know, and the hotel asked me to let them know too!

Hope this helps! Let me know if I can offer any more advice.

Warm Regards,

Pat Hewitt
Travel Professional

qwovadis

Personally prefer arenalnayara.com and tabacon.com

for a more authentic vibe... thespringscostarica.com

is amazing nice if you can look past eco issues like for

all the teak forests that were slaughtered to build it

plastic landscaping and caged animals are sort of a downer.

But it is cosmetically attractive if free I would go for it...

The night lava views from Tabacon Springs and my room

were aamazing and romantic a do not miss for me...

do not think you have the night lava views from the Springs

Congrats!

qwovadis

bookit.com/costarica/lafortuna/hotels/tabacon-grand-spa

have snagged Tabacon from $149/nt with free best hot springs

in the past.. also www.lostiguanaresort.com is an awesome

property at a great price point usually under $200

great night lava views...

Pat_Hewitt

Hi Qwovadis,

You will have to excuse me. You and I agree almost 100% of the time, and I always respect your opinions. So much so, that when I see that you have already answered a query I move on. I usually don't have much to add. But I have to disagree this time.

That is not teak you are seeing at the Springs. It is actually laurel that has been stained a teak color, or painted concrete.

I thought the same thing when I saw it, and mentioned it in my blog: http://truecostarica.com/?cat=110. They have some pretty expert painters on the payroll. They did an amazing job. I spent half of my first visit there knocking on posts and walls, and being amazed at the "Trompe-L'oeil" effect. So they actually used sustainable products.

Regarding the caged animals. This is not a roadside zoo. The Springs works with the Costa Rica government. The majority of the big cats there were confiscated from people that were keeping them as pets, which is illegal in Costa Rica. They could not be released into the wild, so they were being held in horrible conditions in a reserve near San Jose. Other animals at that same reserve were injured rescues, or animals orphaned by poachers.

The reserve went broke, and the National Zoo couldn't take them. So the government was going to euthanize all of these animals.

Lee and Cindy Banks (the owners of The Springs) stepped up. They built larger and better enclosures, and are constantly improving their habitat. The Springs does not collect anything from the wild. All of the creatures there came from the government. The animals are cared for, and monitored by a veterinarian. The conditions are actually much better than at the under funded, though well meaning National Zoo.

When we visited the animals a couple of years ago, we went down with the head keeper. The moment the young puma (named "Guapo", or "Handsome") saw the keeper, he started to rub against his cage and purr. It was very sweet.

Is it ideal? No, of course not. Ideal would only be if they could live free.

But that is not possible with socialized animals. So this is the next best thing.

Hope this helps! Let me know if I can offer more advice.

Warm Regards,

Pat Hewitt

Travel Professional

mo261

Hello Ms Hewitt-
Thanks for your help. The deal is currently being offered on jetsetter.com, which is a reputable, upscale travel deal website. I'm not worried that it's a scam, but let me know if you think otherwise.
Thanks

volcanogirl

Make that Mr. Hewitt.

Pat_Hewitt

Okay. I think I have it figured out. It took a few phone calls and emails.

I have to admit that I was a little upset by this. We have a long and positive relationship with these folks. I was surprised that they would undercut us like that. Especially for a one time deal.

This company is using this hotel as a loss leader. They do have a special rate at The Springs, but not much different than other wholesalers.

They are willing to lose a little money, by giving a great rate on this one property. They want to convince the customer to book the rest of the itinerary at regular prices. The bet here is that you will spend at a high level for the rest of it. In that case, they are buying a well heeled customer for not all that much money. Actually, a pretty smart strategy.

Though my rep stressed that this rate expires in mid December, when the spa specials also end. She claims that this is not valid in January. But she was wrong the other day. So go ahead and book it.

If they come back as "full", then go to Nayara. That is a lovely property. Just keep in mind that Nayara's least expensive room class does not guarantee a volcano view. You have to move up one class to get it.

Thanks for the sticking with me on this. It has actually been educational for us. After working in Costa Rica exclusively for twenty years, I can always learn something new.

Hope this helps! Let me know if I can offer any more advice.

Warm Regards,

Pat Hewitt
Travel Professional

volcanogirl

mo, thanks for the info. on jetsetter. I had never heard of it before. We used Luxury Link for one of our trips and got a great deal.

mo261

Thanks again everyone!
I decided I couldn't resist the deal at The Springs, but I knew I did not want to spend all 3 nights there so we bought one night at the Springs and will do 2 at Nayara. Since we'll have a car, and wont have to rely on transfers or taxis, hopefully the time spent moving from one place to the other won't be too disruptive.
Pat- The deal did extend through January (and maybe further, I didn't check) and it seemed you could purchase as many nights as you wanted.
Also- a heads up on jetsetter, they will be posting a deal for El Silencio Lodge on 9/24. They seem to have good deals on high-end Costa Rica hotels almost weekly.
Thanks again!

volcanogirl

mo, is there a fee for using jetsetter?

mo261

Volcanogirl- No fee on jetsetter.

volcanogirl

Thanks, mo!