The Hideaway Hotel

By checkout, the hotel had grown on me. The staff were good, and being woken at dawn by a troupe of howler monkeys was awesome. It sounded like being on an African safari. We also saw two iguanas fighting beside the pool. I don't want to encourage anyone to manipulate nature, but I loved that morning moment. The food was some of the best and most reasonably priced I ate in Costa Rica, from breakfast pancakes to tenderloin steak and the New Year's special New York steak. For example, four tenderloins, guacamole, a pepperoni pizza, a margarita pizza and four non-alcoholic drinks came to about $130. If you've traveled through Costa Rica, you probably know what a bargain that is. Still, I don't understand the near-perfect reviews. I wasn't expecting a five-star hotel for what I paid, but a place with so many rave reviews shouldn't get basic things wrong. The room itself was nice, the beds were comfortable though small for two people, double rather than queen sized, and the bathrooms were excellent. It's a decent hotel with an excellent location next to two of Costa Rica's best beaches, and I'm not necessarily unhappy, but the annoyances made the glowing reviews hard to understand. WiFi barely worked in our room. Reception said something had affected the whole Samara area, yet the connection was perfect in reception and the dining area. I guess only our room was affected. We hadn't had this trouble at any of the other three hotels on the trip, and even had excellent WiFi in Monteverde despite its difficult terrain. We asked to borrow a corkscrew for wine. The man at the bar looked around and said there wasn't one, which was strange beside a wine refrigerator full of wine. A woman next to him said something, and they gave me one to keep in the room because they had others. It was old and rickety, and I spent a good 15 minutes wrestling with it. I bruised my hand a bit, then returned it to the bar. Management should update their corkscrews every couple of decades. The road into the hotel from the main road was completely unpaved and very rocky, unlike at similarly priced hotels we'd stayed in. Usually these roads are evened out enough to drive on, especially for tourists in rental sedans. This one was among the worst roads of the trip, and I was driving a Montero Sport. The TV in my room was also the smallest I'd seen at any hotel during this trip, and seemed to sum up the gap between the online reviews and the reality. This is a budget to mid-range hotel. The road in front is in horrible condition, WiFi can be spotty, and the staff's English can be hit or miss. The beaches take a short drive or a long walk at low tide, and the two nearby towns are very far without a car. Keep your expectations reasonable and ignore the exaggerated reviews, and you'll have an excellent experience.

The staff were all super friendly, and the location makes it easy to walk to two different beaches. Our room was clean and comfortable, with powerful air conditioning. My six-year-old son loved the small but well maintained pool, and the included breakfast was amazing. They make the best breakfast burrito ever!

The staff greeted us with genuine, heartfelt smiles, and the rooms were very clean. The food and service were phenomenal, especially breakfast. We arrived late on our first night when the kitchen was almost closed, but Dana made sure the kids got pizza and we had guacamole and chips. It's a little way out of town, which can be a plus because it's quieter. The pool has a nice big step where small kids can play.

The rooms are laid out like individual villas. Mine had stone floors throughout and a new, comfortable bed, and you can tell the rooms have been upgraded recently. The beach is just a couple of minutes away on foot, and getting to town is convenient too. It's an adorably cozy bed and breakfast with a restaurant and bar. The 12 rooms are spread around the property, with a pool in the middle, so it feels intimate. Breakfast is included each day, and there's a nice menu of food and drinks for lunch and dinner. The food was fantastic. Highly recommend!