Santa Elena Hotel Guide - Playa Guaria hotels in Santa Elena, Costa Rica.

"The pictures on the Expedia listing are not accurate. The whole property is filty and unsanitary. In rooms and common areas there is mold, rust peeling paint and trash everywhere. This property is a health hazzard. The food is not eatable and very minimum choices."

"We stayed in a second floor master suite, which was very spacious and had a great view of the salt water pool area and the beach from a large balcony. It was kept very clean. The food was excellent - lots of variety and consistently delicious. There was a different theme at each evening meal. The water in the pools was warm and inviting. We found the constant music at the pool area distracting and a bit tiresome."

"Beautiful rooms and views"

"We had an amazing time at Buena Vista Eco lodge. We stayed in the cabins and it was such a clean and cute accommodation. The buffet breakfast was excellent, we couldn’t have asked for more. We ate at both the Jaguar and the Mirador restaurant, the Jaguar had a wider selection and the food was delicious, while the Mirador is lighter fare but with stunning views of the country side and sunset. We did the zipline, the horse riding tour, the bird tour and the night tour. The zipline and horse riding was amazing, I would do it again in a heartbeat. The bird and night tours are lovely, but you have to be realistic in what you may or may not see. The staff in every location: the front desk, all restaurants, the nightour and bird tour guide, and the horseback riding guides are incredible, helpful, friendly, and they make it such a great experience. Be sure to set aside a day for the thermal pools, at first we didn’t realize how immense it was, but definitely worth it! "

"Food was good and pools were fun. Met a lot of nice people. Difficult walking, lots of hills so not good for people that have trouble. Shuttles run all day till late at night and never had to wait long for one. They take you wherever you need to go from your door. "

"The lunch and dinner meal was not what I expected.. rice wasn’t cooked fully and stake house let me down as a restaurant. "

"It was ok"

"Excellent service everyone is very friendly and polite "

"We had a lovely time at Papagayo Golden Palms! We were lucky enough to stay there at a time where it wasn’t very busy, maybe 20-35 people total, so we had our pick of pool loungers, restaurant tables and so on! Pure magic! The property itself is absolutely gorgeous, the landscaping, the pool and the beachfront is wonderful. The rooms are a little dated but the bed was super comfortable and it had everything we needed. The beach has a few rocks here and there, nothing too bad, but water shoes are a good idea. When the tide is out, if you walk along the beach to the right, there’s a restaurant called Eco Camping Papagayo, it had a delicious burger. The hotel restaurant is wonderful, the food there is REALLY good, the included breakfast is also exceptional. The only note we had is that it is expensive. Cocktails are 15 USD, which for a Canadian ends up being more like $21, and a large bottle of water is $10 USD. So if you have most of your meals there, it really adds up. That is really the main reason for the 4 stars instead of 5. However, we recommend taking an uber into town (if you didn’t rent a car) and buying bottled water, snacks and alcohol there to bring back with you. Lastly - the staff, wow are they amazing, so kind, so personable, you really get to know all of them. Daniela was our concierge and she was so helpful and friendly at every step of our vacation. Sergio, Roland, Melanie and the rest of the restaurant staff made all the difference. We will be back!"