Giardini di Papagayo, Bakersfield

Date: April 21-28, 2008 After reading mixed reviews for this hotel, I wasn't sure what to expect. It was my first time at an all-inclusive hotel and my plan to to take advantage of all Costa Rica had to offer regardless of the hotel. I never thought that this hotel would be amazing! The reviews fail to mention that it is nothing short of a nature's paradise! We saw more wildlife hanging out from the hotel than on jungle trips. There are howler monkeys that hang out in the nearby forests and many huge lizards roaming around. There are many different species of birds including parrots, vultures, crested blue jays, bentivis (portuguese), etc. There are costa rican raccoons called mapaches and the best part is the coral reef at its doorstep. We saw many different schools of fish of all the colours of the rainbow. Some of the guests saw marlins, sting rays, and jellyfish. We were so lucky to swim in phosphorescence. It was the first time that I had ever experienced this and it is really more amazing that words can express. The hotel staff are amazing, friendly, and very accommodating. They really take care excellent care of the guests and go the extra mile to make sure that they are comfortable. Example: we asked permission to make a bonfire on the beach for our last night. Before you know it, there was someone chopping wood and arranging it on the beach. They told us to come back at 9pm! I was really impressed! The food is very delicious and fresh. There are always fruit, salads, fried plantain, lots of fish, meat, and vegetables to enjoy. While I overheard some guests complaining that the menu is repetitive, I am more than happy to eat delicious fresh salad, rice, fish, yuca, vegetables, soup, every day of the year. The coffee is amazing (not a huge surprise) but certainly an added bonus. The rooms are very comfortable and clean with a/c, tv, coffee maker, hair dryer. The staff helped us organize a rental car for a good price. We were able to take it to see the Arenal volcano- which i highly recommend. Near the Arenal volcano there are fabulous hot springs, waterfalls, jungle trails and of course the volcano is breathtaking. We also went on an organized tour to Rincon del la Vieja, organized by the hotel. The tour was amazing, and our guide, Larry, was very knowledgeable and showed us lots of animals and volcanic mud pools, waterfalls, etc. I would recommend this hotel for any fellow nature lover but not for the tourist seeking ultra luxury. However, there is a Four Seasons down the bay. Something to note is that the bar closes at 10 and it helps to have a rental car to go into town at night. There are no activities, which I thought was great, but some of the older guests would have liked that. I can easily entertain myself, especially with snorkeling gear at a coral reef, but if you can't this might not be the best place for you.

WE just returned 3/8/08 and felt the resort had a lot of problems. We had no water for one whole day and intermittently for two more days and no electricity for one morning. The pool was cloudy. There was no one to complain to except the girls at the desk who keep calling someone else for every problem we had. We rooms and grounds needed upgrading disparately. The food was ok but too expensive for what we got. Not much verity. The location was great but hard to get past the resorts disappointments.

We have just returned from Giardini de Papagayo. Overall it is dirty and needs a lot of maintenance. The food is very monotonous. The shuttle service to and from your room (the resort is built on a hillside) is not always reliable. My husband is a semi invalid and we were told that there would not be a problem with getting him up or down the hillside. One morning, the shuttle did not start running until 8 am -- it is supposed to start at 6 AM. Several other times we had to wait 20 minutes or more. The resort advertises plenty of hot water. We had "warm" water on the day we arrived (Feb. 26), then nothing but cold water for 5 days (we complained each day and got a promise that it would be fixed). On March 2, finally we had "hot" water, only to find out after we returned from our excursion on March 3 that the resort had no water at all. We paid for a superior room. The room was small with a king size bed, 2 bed tables but only 1 had a lamp, and desk with a small refrigerator built in. Other than the desk chair, there were no other chairs. The bedspread looked dirty. I wonder what the standard room was like? We had the all-inclusive package including all local soft drinks and alcohol. While we were there, they had no tequila, no marguarita mix, no bloody mary mix, and at times had no rum, no ginger ale -- to name just a few. There seems to be no on-site manager. Only the staff who are wonderful people, but can only do what they have the authority to do, which is not much. I would give this resort 2 stars at most. Would I recommend it to someone or do I have plans to return - Absolutely NO! Ken and Susan