Hotel America

A clean room with several beds and a simple breakfast of mostly bread and hot drinks. It’s reasonably close to the airport, so it works as a base before heading out on a trip or as a final stop before flying home. The stay was acceptable. One tip: the price was lower when paying in person than the advertised online rate. I’d book online and choose the manual payment option.

Two nights here were miserable. The room stayed hot, nearly 80 degrees even though it was 65 outside. There was a tiny fan, but it stirred up dirt and made it hard to breathe. No hot water or Wi-Fi, and the bed was awful. The pillows were like bulky bags of strange filling, the single sheet was stained, and both towels were yellowed and smelled bad. The bathroom doors were broken too. The shower cap broke on the first night, and I couldn’t shower anyway because there was no hot water. I managed to wash my hair with a little water from the sink. The room was next to a casino, which was very noisy through the paper-thin walls. A staff member said the elevator often breaks, so don’t take it. He also said the owner, Mr Carlos, wouldn’t pay for Wi-Fi and had staff tell guests there were temporary problems. That was exactly what I was told. We were bitten by something overnight, though I never saw what, and my back was covered in tiny red spots. I’d booked a room listed with two queen beds and a sofa for $49 a night, but got two single beds with all these problems. They charged me $140 on arrival for the full stay. When I asked why they wouldn’t let me cancel the remaining nights after seeing the room, they said the policy had changed years ago because so many gringos used to cancel after the first night. I was too tired to argue about the charge. They said they’d send someone to fix the room, but nobody came, and they wouldn’t move me because I’d already checked in. Someone else mentioned 11,000 colonies a night, about $18. Given that person’s five-star review, maybe camping is their thing. Do yourself a favor and spend another $30 somewhere decent. If you do stay, remember me that first night. I wouldn’t be surprised if they charged by the hour too.

For 11,300 colones, this is a clean, safe place right in the center of a very cute town with friendly people. The room is simple and has its own bathroom. Wi-Fi is available, and parking nearby costs just $1000 a night. It’s no Hilton, but I had a great experience.

The beds could’ve been a bit more comfortable, but that was about the only downside. It’s a lovely old town hotel with wonderful food and great staff who made us feel at home. We’d love to visit again.