Papagayo Golden Palms Beachfront Hotel

It's a secluded place, and the beach is quiet and less crowded. It's rocky rather than sandy, but we enjoyed walking, exploring, and chasing little sea critters there. Kayaks are available on site, and it's an easy paddle around the bay. The pool is clean and spacious, with plenty of shade nearby, and the buffet breakfast has lots of options. Our room was large and comfortable, with a well-stocked bathroom. It was very hot and dry during our winter visit. The place is kid-friendly, though a 20-minute drive gets you to the nearby city with more tourist options for food and shopping.

The staff were incredible, so friendly, kind, and easy to talk to. The rooms were average and seemed overpriced for what you get, but we still had a very positive stay. Thanks to Sergio, Todo, Daniela, Dillan, Harley, and the rest of the team. The hotel is near several amazing beaches. Most need a drive, though one is within walking distance.

The food and drinks were phenomenal, and the resort was spotlessly clean. My family spent a week at Papagayo Golden Palms Resort and had a great time, mostly thanks to the friendly, fun staff, who really became our friends. Daniela, Andrea, Toro, Sergio, Gredy, and everyone else were amazing. Toro taught our 2-year-old, “Pow Pow,” to fist bump, and she went around bumping fists with everyone. Sergio and Melany also made sure our baby Moana had all the pineapples, strawberries, and uvas her little heart wanted. We'll really miss the friends we made here. We recommend this resort 10 times over!

The beach became our morning routine. The hotel is at the protected inlet end of a wide cove, and walking the 1.8 miles to the far end was the perfect way to start the day. It's one of the most relaxing, Zen places we've stayed anywhere, a charming spot with character where it's easy to forget the outside world. We've already started choosing dates for next year before heading to Europe. Winter is escape time in the N/E United States, and this is the best place I've found to lift the winter blues. Our two weeks at the Golden Pond were the best two weeks since I was seven years old in Cuba, a very long time ago. Beach, bare feet, T-shirts, shorts, and no worries or pressure. The thing that made the stay was the people. We've traveled widely for pleasure and business over 45 years, through most of Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, but haven't met a team as dedicated to making everything right and helping guests feel at home. Maria at the corporate office in San Jose answered countless booking questions. At the hotel, Daniela, Noily, Andrea, Greddy, Melanie, Roland, Harley, Dylan, Sergio, Zoila, and all the grounds maintenance guys deserve credit. We felt like we were leaving family behind. After we left, the person who booked our stay even sent a personal WhatsApp the next day to check that we got home safely, not an automated message. The grounds are spacious, with lots of palms and mature plants. Summer, roughly winter in the NE, is dry season, so some greenery suffers even with nighttime watering. The pool isn't huge, but it's well designed, maintained, and refreshing. The restaurant has indoor and outdoor seating. Eating outside for breakfast or a romantic dinner under the stars, with the ocean and breeze around us, was lovely. Breakfast was great, with enough variety without being overwhelming, and wonderful fresh fruit. We enjoyed dinner there a couple of times, though we usually seek out local restaurants when we travel. An excellent seafood place is about 100 yards up the beach, an eight-minute walk, and we ate there several times. There are also some exceptional restaurants in town, a five-minute Uber ride away. The front desk can recommend places and book reservations, which I'd suggest doing. The hotel is spread across several buildings, each with six units, for 40 rooms in total. There are also bungalows on the property being renovated for future use. The park-like grounds and Spanish barrel tile roofs are very pleasing, and it's very quiet. By 9 p.m., usually only a couple of people are at the outdoor restaurant, with maybe a few more in the lobby rocking chairs. Then it's just you and nature. We'd had a tough year in every way and badly needed proper rest, so we cancelled our usual seven-week winter trip to Europe and chose Costa Rica instead. I'd worked there often and vacationed there before, but never on the North Pacific coast. Searching travel sites for a small boutique beach hotel, I found only one that checked all our boxes, Papagayo Golden Palms. The rooms are great: large, bright, with very comfortable pillows and beds, which mattered to me after back surgery. The shower is huge with plenty of hot water, and the rooms, public areas, and pool were exceptionally clean. That's not the main reason for the appeal, though. We spent two weeks here and have committed to returning every year.