“Far beyond our expectations” My husband and I along with another couple had the pleasure and privilege of staying at Casa Yola for four days in late March 2017. Casa Yola was even lovelier than the photos and far exceeded our expectations. I took special care choosing Casa Yola because I was charged with making all arrangements for my travel group. Case Yola wowed everyone and made me look like an expert. Yolanda and John welcomed us with open arms. Yolanda took special care in showing us the property and making us feel at home. She proactively shared a multitude of area highlights. We’re grateful for her local knowledge and extraordinary hospitality. We enjoyed all of her area recommendations. Our accommodations were spotless and beautifully appointed with many amenities. The furnishings were beautiful and comfortable. We wiled away hours having morning coffee and evening cocktails on the large balcony overlooking the forest and ocean. We were delighted by the many birds in residence. The balcony and adjacent patio had comfortable chaise lounges where we could see more stars in the night sky than what we normally see is visible back home in the Minnesota night sky. She treated us as valued guests and went above and beyond any host I’ve encountered. For example she gave us chairs and blankets for our beach outing eventhough we did not expect it.

“I'd stay her over and over again” Condo Tortuga is the perfect location for me. It's situated away from the main strip of Playa Guiones, towards the Gilded Iguana end of town. This means you are an easy walk from either part and you can get away from it all at the condo. Also, it's just 5 minutes to the beach, so perfect for my early morning and sunset surf sessions! The kitchen has everything you need and I found the bed and sofas very comfortable. There are nice little touches all over the place and Gary and Karen have put a lot of effort into making your stay a good one. You have to read their folder on things to do and see. It's the Nosara bible! There is a nice pool and that is looked after well. The condos, pool and grounds is surrounded by a wall and there is someone in the gate house 24/7. This gives that extra feeling of security. I've stayed in a couple of other condos here too. Each time, I've met and socialised with other people staying here too, so it's always been fun. My tip? Buy some meat and cold beers and fire up the grill :)

“Near the Beach = fun!” i had a great time with my stay in Costa rica being right by the beach and having the pool right outside. The pool is gorgeous and always warm for late night swims! I am looking Forward for planning my next trip here!

“Wow! You'll love the Red Sunset!” Are you looking for a luxury guesthouse near Lake Arenal and Arenal Volcano? If so, look no further and book yourself into the Red Sunset. My husband and I, along with six friends, spent a week in March there. We are so glad we did! We found the accommodations to be everything they were advertised and more. The views are amazing and the house, pool house and grounds will give you plenty of opportunities to relax and explore. While the guesthouse is excellent, the very best feature is the owner/operator Patrick. Patrick met with us each day to help us plan activities and make reservations with the best tour operators. His local knowledge and recommendations were spot on each day, and his help was invaluable. The breakfast provided each morning was a highlight unto itself. Come prepared to eat well – you won’t be disappointed. We’ve never had meals of this quality at similar style lodgings. We also took advantage of the optional evening Chef services. While there were several great places to eat in the Lake Arenal area, all of which were recommended to us by Patrick, you won’t beat the meals prepared by Patrick and his wife. Our favorite was the Chicken Parmesan – sorry, Mom, but it was the best we’ve had anywhere! The Red Sunset was the perfect place for our Costa Rica vacation. We arrived as guests and soon felt like family. We’re glad we chose the Red Sunset!

“Relaxing - Fantastic location- Great waves!” Great location on beach access road. Large individual units are great for either renting individually or together with large group. The units are nearly identical, and both are large enough to easily hold 6 people. Each unit is two bedrooms and two full bathrooms plus the living room furniture quickly converts to beds. The kitchen was well stocked. There is an outdoor charcoal & wood grill. In the early am I liked to take a short walk or go to the roof top to listen and watch the howler monkeys and all of the birds. The pool area always became a relaxing lunch hideaway in the afternoon heat. There is a very large table where we could take our time eating having drinks, and relaxing while keeping an eye on the kids floating in the pool. There is also a very nice outdoor beach restaurant and bar right at the end of the road on the beach. We had so much fun surfing, boogieboarding, snorkeling, & exploring. The perfect riding waves at this spot were endless. Even when it looked fairly flat, eventually a nice set would roll in. I recommend bringing flip flops for walking the beach road as you can go barefoot but the sand near the top of the beach gets very hot in the afternoon sun. We have stayed at a few places in the area, but will definitely be returning to Sandy Bottoms!

“Beautiful,secluded and relaxing.” Off the beaten path this cute cabina is perfect. Beautiful beach walking, shell collecting and sunset watching. Make your own breakfast lunch or dinner in the rancho or go to one of the local restaurants. Very relaxing way to recharge your batteries. Loved it.

“Our stay at the lake arenal” We stayed with 2 families 54 kids between 5 and 7) in the Lake arenal cabins. We really enjoyed our stay in this fabulous environment. Tucans flying in the garden during breakfast, monkeys on top of the cabin, the noice of the volcano. The cabins itself are well kept and practical, perfect breakfast, the host very helpful. Do not miss this place during your trip in Costa Rica!

“Heaven on Earth” Best to keep this review short, sweet and to the point: There is no place that compares to StuCasa at Las Catalinas. The house is impeccable. The beach is beautiful and peaceful. The property is perfectly cared for. The restaurant/bar and surf shop on the property are both well run and fantastic. I look forward to going back many more times. Pura Vida

“Most enjoyable tropical get away” We stayed in the Cranford's Toucan Suite. Our friends stayed in the upper level suite. The house sits on pristine jungle - the sound and sight of rare birds is a daily occurrence. We could easily walk to the river, explore the grounds which abound with exotic plants.Toucan Suite is the larger of the two units and is fully equipped with linens, kitchen utensils. We were able to borrow and exchange with our upstairs companions for the items that we needed (juicer, coffee grinder, garlic press) but it would be nice to have both kitchens equally stocked. The stove and refrigerator worked well. The issues that we had with staying at the Toucan Suite would be that the fans need to be upgraded. There are two ceiling fans that function well, although the "blue bedroom" fan makes too much noise to sleep through. There were two portable fans; one of them was okay but the other one barely moved the blades and eventually went comatose. Fortunately our friends in the upper unit had powerful ceiling fans and two super powerful portable fans and they lent us one which saved us! I strongly suggest the Cranfords upgrade the fans in the Toucan Suite. The lovely wooden doors that lead from the main floor to the porch area need to be fixed. They are off their track so we were unable to close them when the hot eastern sun shone through. The house would be much cooler if these functioned well. Blondie and Michael have a sign asking that we remove our shoes before entering and I complied with this request the first night. I found the floor really dirty and in the evening the ants, frogs and other insects would come in so we kept our shoes on. The house could use a good cleaning and some general upkeep. The upstairs suite seemed cleaner and because of the fans, cooler. The views from the upstairs suite are to die for. As the Cranfords note, the Internet seldom works consistently. Overall, we enjoyed our stay very much and highly recommend the Toucan Suite.