Sleeping Withthe Toucans
Homepage
|
|
100 GREAT PLACES TO STAY IN COSTA RICA Web Edition v. 2.0 February, 2009; Copyright © 2007 - 2009 HayFields Science Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
|
The Pacific coast from the crocodile-infested Rio Tarcoles to the oil-palm plantations around Parrita offers miles of beautiful beaches, some great surfing breaks, and one of the best stretches of highway – Costa Rica 34 from CR 3 south to Esterillos – in the entire country. The area around Carrera National Park just south of the Tarcoles bridge is one of two places in Costa Rica (the other is the Osa Peninsula) where scarlet macaws can be seen flying wild. Unlike on the northern coast, here the steep, forested, and largely uninhabited mountains come down almost to the beach. The strip of land between mountains and sea is home to the highway, the towns, and thickets of luxury condos and housing developments.
The urban center for this area is Jacó, sometimes known by its old name, Garabito. Two generations ago this was a fishing village. Now it’s a boomtown with a mix of seedy bars and quality restaurants, casinos and health spas, weekender families from San José and aging Norteamericanos accompanied by very young ladies in bikinis. Newcomers wonder if they’re too late; old-timers offer their take on when the bubble will burst; upstanding citizens grouse about the town’s loose morals, and the young and carefree take in the sun, the surf, and the still-pretty-funky atmosphere.
South of Jacó, Highway 34 speeds past beautiful south-facing beaches on its way to Manuel Antonio. Some of the best surfing is at Playa Hermosa, just south of Jacó. We’re hoping this beach isn’t ruined by condo developments. Half an hour farther south are three towns named Esterillos: Oeste (West), Centro, and Este (East). All have nice beaches. Esterillos Oeste is mainly a surf camp; for hotels and restaurants, head on down the coast to Esterillos Este. It’s still a real jewel, a hideaway for weekenders from San José and ex-pats from just about everywhere.
There are more hotels in the central Pacific area than you can count and new ones open every month. Our favorites sample the spectrum, but there are pickings here for every style and budget. Punta Leone is a popular family resort with its own beaches and park. Villa Caletas with its commanding altitude and vaguely Roman-empire styling is great if you want the privacy of your own swimming pool, but a tad pretentious for our taste (and the food is expensive and not impressive). For a family-oriented option in Jacó, try Mar de Luz, with its comfortable rooms, two pools, and no bar. Just west of Playa Hermosa, several reasonably-priced small hotels and B&Bs catering mainly to surfers hug the ocean side of the highway. We’ve stayed here, but prefer to have hot water and a bit less wind. For family surfing lessons away from the crowds, try Puesta del Sol in Esterillos Este – three nice rooms with good ocean views are available with breakfast included.
Getting groceries between Jacó and Parilla can be a challenge. Don’t forget to stop by La Petite Provence, Jacó’s wonderful French deli, for picnic provisions; it’s located in the Pacific Center just north of the estuary bridge on the main drag.
Update (August, 2008): La Petite Provence is unfortunately no longer with us.
Update (March, 2009): We just had a lovely stay at Villa Caletas, and the seared tuna was the best of six tried at central-pacific hotel restaurants. See our review in the New Finds section.
Jacó
Keywords: Downtown, Happening Place
Photo © Chris Fields
Contact Information:
888-643-1242 (in US); 506-2643-1642 (voice); 506-2643-3558 (fax)
info@hotel-poseidon.com
www.hotel-poseidon.com
Essentials:
15 Rooms
English, Spanish
All major credit cards accepted
Street or public lot parking
Swimming pool, Beach ½ block away
Continental breakfast included, Restaurant, Bar, Sports bar
Room Amenities: AC, Coffee maker, Refrigerator/minibar, Internet
access in lobby
How to get here:
Take the first (northernmost) Jacó exit from Highway 34; bear left
onto Main Street at the end of the boulevard. Cross the bridge over
the estuary, continue one block toward the center of town to Calle
Bohio, and turn right. The Poseidon will be on your right. Park in
the public parking lot across the street.
The Eagles were playing “Already Gone” when we walked into the Hotel Poseidon past couples enjoying a late breakfast, an early beer, or both. No anthem could be more appropriate. Owned by Tim and Chrissy from Aspen, the Poseidon exudes an early-70’s, escape-to-Mexico ambiance. Hunter Thompson’s ghost would be perfectly at home here.
Hotel Poseidon is located smack in the middle of downtown Jacó on Calle Bohio between the main drag and the beach. It has two bars and a casual open-air restaurant serving good basic beach food – fish tacos, fish burritos, French fries with the skins still on (Yum!). There’s an air-conditioned sports bar with three TVs upstairs. If that’s not enough, the Poseidon is just steps away from dozens more eateries and drinkeries, pool halls, dance halls, casinos, and other nightspots. The poolside bar with its pretty garden feels more tropical, but Hunter’s ghost prefers the streetside bar where on any given night you’ll meet a fair sample of the local denizens as they make their way between Jacó’s main street and the beach.
The beach scene here in the center is livelier and more continuous than at either the north end by Canciones del Mar or the sleepy south end at Club del Mar, our other two Jacó beach favorites. The only real public beach parking is just around the corner on the Calle Bohio loop and the main beachfront entertainment establishments – the Bohio bar, the casino, and the disco – are just down the beach to the south. Even the local Fuerza Publica have their station here. Expect to see early-bird surfers if the famous beach break is right, mid-day loungers, and beach parties to the wee hours.
The rooms at Hotel Poseidon are reasonably priced and have everything you need – there’s even milk for your early-morning coffee in the in-room fridge. The upstairs rooms behind the pool look over the wall toward the sea and are more open to the breeze than the garden-view rooms. Rooms 7, 8, and 9 are on the second floor right above the streetside bar, and right below the 3rd-floor sports bar, so you might not want these unless you really enjoy bar noise (or plan to close them down yourself). Even in a back corner, though, you probably can’t expect to have a perfectly quiet, restful night here at the Poseidon. However, if you’ve picked the center of Jacó for lodgings, we don’t expect a quiet, restful night is exactly what you had in mind.
Jacó
Kaywords: Downtown, Oceanfront, Surfing
Photo © Canciones del Mar
Contact Information:Essentials:
11 Rooms – 10 with full kitchens
English, Spanish, Dutch
All major credit cards accepted
Secure parking
Swimming pool
Hot breakfast included, Bar, Light snacks available, Restaurants nearby
Room Amenities: AC, Fan, Coffee maker, Refrigerator, Microwave,
Cooktop, TV, Private outdoor space (balcony or patio)
How to get here:
Take the first (northernmost) Jacó exit from Highway 34; bear left
onto Main Street at the end of the boulevard. Turn right on Calle Bri
Bri (a dirt alleyway) at the sign to Canciones del Mar. If you cross the
bridge, you’ve gone too far; backtrack one block and turn left into the
alley.
Imagine your great-aunt-Mildred died (she was 99 and had a wonderful life) and left you $10,000. You decide to spend a month on the beach in Costa Rica. If she’d left you $50k, you might go to Xandari down in Esterillos, or Makanda in Manuel Antonio. But you’ve only got $10k and you need to pay for airfare and that new surfboard. Your best bet is Jacó and Canciones del Mar.
Canciones del Mar is what a beachfront hotel in the tropics should be: relaxed, not fancy or prettified or pretentious – and right on the beach. When you check in here you can forget that the rest of the world exists, and you won’t be reminded.
All of the eleven rooms but one – # 5, the “Jungle Room,” – are suites with full kitchens, making it easy to settle in for a week or more. The Honeymoon Suite (#10) has an ocean view. We stayed in an upstairs, garden-view room with a balcony so private you can sit outside and drink your morning coffee naked if you want to.
The rooms at Canciones are simple, but well equipped. The kitchens have everything you’ll need, there’s a table and comfortable chairs on the balcony (or patio if you’re in a downstairs room looking out on the large, free-form swimming pool), a couch in the living area, and two double beds in the bedroom. For a non-luxury hotel the attention to detail is impressive. Hibiscus blossoms are tucked into towels and various other nooks and crannies. There’s enough shelf space in the bathroom to unpack your toiletries, the closet is ample and, in case it rains, every room has a large umbrella.
The gardens here are lush and inviting with lots of private spaces. Breakfast (very tasty and included in the room price) is served in a thatched palapa where you can also buy a cold beer or curl up in one of the comfortable upholstered chairs and read a trashy novel. You can borrow the trashy novel from the lending library in the tree house at the back of the property.
The best thing about Canciones del Mar is the wide swath of black-sand beach. Canciones is slightly north of the center of town – you can walk to any number of excellent restaurants and all sorts of shopping in a matter of minutes – so the beach is not as crowded as it is right in front of downtown Jacó. It’s fringed with palm trees and the ocean crashes in with wild explosions of frothy spume. It’s 6 p.m. Surfers catch the big ones, dogs frolic, horseback riders canter by in the sunset. You’re relaxing in a chaise lounge sipping a piña colada. Thank-you Aunt Mildred.
Update (January, 2008): Check out the new honeymoon suite and the great views from the rooftop bar! Now serving lunch and dinner as well as breakfast.
Update (August, 2008): The room additions and remodeling are finished, but except for the upstairs rooms in the original wing, none of the windows open. So if you want natural air instead of continuous air conditioning, ask for one of the older upstairs rooms.
Jacó
Keywords: Relax/Get Away, Spa, Destination Restaurant
Photo © Doce Lunas
Contact Information:
506-2643-2211 (voice); 506-2643-3633 (fax)
docelunasresort@gmail.com
www.docelunas.com
Essentials:
20 Rooms – 1 full-handicap access
English, Spanish
All major credit cards accepted
Secure parking
Swimming pool, Spa, Massage and yoga center
Restaurant, Bar
Room Amenities: AC, TV, Coffee maker, Refrigerator/minibar, Semi-private
outdoor space, Internet access in lobby
How to get here:
Continue past the main Jacó traffic light on Highway 34, then turn left
(toward the mountains) onto the dirt road at the Doce Lunas sign.
Follow the dirt road straight about ½ km to Doce Lunas’ gate.
We had just sat down to dinner when two purring cats appeared, and in an instant the black-and-white one – “Spooky” – was in my lap. I’m a cat magnet and I never mind a furry dinner companion. Our host David recommended the pork tenderloin, which proved to be excellent, and Spooky watched while I devoured every bite. No problem – the chef beckoned, and both cats followed him back to the kitchen for their treats. We later learned that Spooky was the most famous of Doce Lunas’ 13 resident felines, having recently charmed a New York Times travel writer. He and his cousins appeared here and there throughout our stay.
Doce Lunas is across Costa Rica 34 from the town of Jacó and, unlike Jacó’s other lodging options, it has nothing to do with the beach or, for that matter, the town. No surfing regalia, funky music, or hopping singles scene here. You come to Doce Lunas to be tranquilo, and for that it provides everything you need – a quiet setting, a beautiful garden with some truly magnificent trees, a well-equipped spa and yoga studio up above the restaurant, and even cats, whose low-key approach to the sybarite’s life we would all do well to emulate.
Besides its excellent restaurant, Doce Lunas gets our prize for the best pool on the Central Pacific coast for actual swimming. It’s huge, free-form, and deep enough throughout to swim respectable laps. When you’re finished, glide over to the waterfall at the deep end and let the cascade pound your neck and shoulders. Or if you’re feeling catlike, forget the tiresome laps and head straight for the cascade; in a few minutes it will remove all the strain of driving here from San José. A smiling sun mosaic graces the bottom of the pool carrying on the sun-moon theme you’ll find throughout Doce Lunas’ public spaces with artist Felix Murillo’s colorful paintings and murals.
The rooms at Doce Lunas are all at ground level and climb up the gentle slope in separate two- or three-unit buildings. All face the garden and have semi- or fully-private front patios. High clerestory windows complement the big garden-view picture windows to provide plenty of light. Most rooms have a king bed plus a single for the kids; the junior suites on the south side are somewhat larger with a sitting area and a stereo. Room # 5 is wheelchair accessible as are the paths through the garden.
Doce Lunas received its fourth star in October, 2006 and sets a new standard for Jacó. Have a massage or a chocolate wrap at the Equilibrium Spa, sign up for the special “Chef’s Table” seven-course dinner, or just sit under a tree, pat a cat, and enjoy the silence. Who needs the beach?
Jacó
Keywords: Spa, Oceanfront, Fishing
Photo © Club del Mar
Contact Information:
506-2643-3194 (voice); 506-2643-3550 (fax)
hotelclubdelmar@racsa.co.cr
www.clubdelmarcostarica.com
Essentials:
8 Rooms, 1 Suite with full kitchen, 22 Villas with full kitchens
English, Spanish
All major credit cards accepted
Secure parking
Swimming pool, Spa
Restaurant, Bar, Room service
Room Amenities: AC, Coffee maker, Refrigerator/minibar, Internet
access in lobby, Private outdoor space (upstairs rooms and villas only)
How to get here:
Continue past main Jacó traffic light on Highway 34. Turn right at
the Club del Mar sign just past the Enersol station. If you start up the
hill, you’ve missed it.
It was five p.m. when we arrived at Club del Mar so after unpacking we headed to the spacious bar for a well-deserved piña colada. The conversation around us was all about blueprints and land deals. Jacó is booming with new hotels and luxury condos going up on every corner. Club del Mar seems to be a center – maybe one of several – for the wheeling and dealing.
Club del Mar is not your usual small hotel. Besides its eight second-floor hotel rooms, all with ocean views from private balconies, the Club offers a sumptuous third-floor penthouse and 22 fully-equipped condos, all owned by private individuals and managed by the hotel. A conference facility is available for business meetings. The atmosphere is well-groomed and professional; the décor and furnishings in the condos are very first-world. If it weren’t Costa Rica, this would be the fast lane. Expect to meet gated-community ex-pats, sportfishers and business people here, not the youthful surfers and aging hippies you find elsewhere in Jacó.
Owner Philip Edwardes built the Club del Mar almost two decades ago when the population of Jacó was only about 300 people. The Club occupies the tranquil southernmost corner of Jacó’s black-sand beach just north of the rocky headland that separates Jacó from Playa Hermosa to the south. The center of town is a 20 minute amble up the beach or a quick taxi ride. A complete remodel in 2000 updated the entire property. Edwardes’ playful architectural touches are everywhere from the swooping spinnaker roofline of the main hotel/restaurant building to the beach-umbrella-shaped stairwells gracing each of the condos.
The best condos are # 13 – 16, two-bedroom units facing the beach and farthest from the highway. Upstairs condos offer more privacy as all the grounds are public spaces. The condos are extremely well-equipped with microwaves, televisions, full-sized refrigerators and stoves – all the comforts of home (as a matter of fact, if you don’t look outside and North America is your home, you’ll feel like you never left). When you do go outside, however, you’ll find lush, beautifully landscaped grounds, a fabulous pool, and the beach just footsteps away. If you can afford it, stay in the two-bedroom penthouse suite with its vaguely African-colonial décor and fabulous five-panel linear ceiling fan – almost as good as your own private frond-wafter.
The Club’s Sandalia’s Restaurant features inspired local cuisine such as the ample filets of fresh-that-day snook smothered in tiny shrimp that we enjoyed for dinner. Prices are very reasonable and service is attentive and efficient in either English or Spanish. Everything is open-air but with broad roof overhangs to protect from sun and rain. Settle back with your piña colada, enjoy the sunset, and maybe you’ll end up owning part of Jacó!
Update (March, 2009): Club del Mar is as beautiful as ever, and the Sandalia restaurant is still up to par. Surfboards, boogie boards, and kayaks are available from the front desk.
Esterillos Este
Keyword: Oceanfront
Photo © Pelican Hotel
Contact Information:Essentials:
12 Rooms
English, Spanish
All major credit cards accepted
Secure parking
Swimming pool, Pool table
Restaurant, Bar
Room Amenities: AC, Fan, Private outdoor space (upstairs rooms only)
How to get here:
Take first (northernmost) Esterillos Este exit from Highway 34,
following sign for Pelican Hotel or Xandari. Cross the grass airstrip
and turn left onto the dirt road. The Pelican is just past the east end
of the airstrip, on the right side.
At the Pelican Hotel you might think it was thirty years ago, before Costa Rican tourism was a big business and it was just you, the friendly staff, and the beach. Rooms at the Pelican are a bit basic, but you’re not here for the rooms. You are here for the ocean: the mighty Pacific stretching from your doorstep straight south to Antarctica. The waves here were born far away; they break like thunder. The bright blue sky can turn black and wild in a twinkling.
Guests at the Pelican are clearly expected to spend their time outside. There is the endless beach with long stretches of black sand separated by occasional rocky headlands. The Pelican provides chaises, as well as huge driftwood logs drawn up like theater seats. A wood-fired grill is available in the garden for cooking your day’s catch, as are shaded picnic tables, hammocks, and a small wet bar. A full-sized pool table occupies its own covered patio next to the main bar and restaurant.
This isn’t Jacó; don’t expect much nightlife. Ex-pats we know come to Esterillos to get away, no kidding. There is no center of town and no evening hang-outs where you’ll meet whoever’s around. If you’re interested in a lively scene, you’re better off up the road in Playa Hermosa – that is, if you’re a surfer – or in Jacó or Manuel Antonio. Esterillos offers something different: peace and quiet, or rather, peace and the constant song of the surf.
The Pelican’s restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner with an emphasis on steaks and local seafood. Our marlin ceviche with rice-flour tortilla chips was excellent, but we found the prices a bit high by central-Pacific standards. If you want something fancier, slip on your high-heeled sandals and walk along the beach or back up the dirt road (that is, west) to Xandari for contemporary cuisine. Across Highway 34, Las Brisas offers upscale Italian. For snacks, beer, or anything else in the way of groceries, stop in Jacó on your way to Esterillos.
The best rooms at the Pelican are # 7 and 8 above the pool with queen beds, private balconies, and ocean views. If these are taken, go for # 4 or 5 upstairs over the restaurant; they also have private balconies, and you can enjoy the view from the new deck at the end of the upstairs hall. Avoid the two cheapest rooms out by the road unless you want only a place with a bed that’s out of the rain.
Esterillos Este
Keywords: Oceanfront, Art/Architecture, Relax/Get Away
Photo © Alison Tinsley
Contact Information:Essentials:
16 villas by end of 2007, 13 beachfront
English, Spanish
All major credit cards accepted
Secure parking lot
2 Swimming pools, Spa in early 2008
Continental breakfast included, Restaurant, Bar
Room Amenities: AC, Coffee maker, Refrigerator/minibar, Free WiFi
How to get here:
Take first (northernmost) Esterillos Este exit from Highway 34,
following signs for Xandari. Cross the grass airstrip and turn left
onto the dirt road. Xandari’s gate is on your right with the colorful
vertical flags.
When we need a break from real life, Chris and I drive down to Xandari before lunch, eat in the open-air palapa restaurant, then check-in. After lunch we wander down the long, smooth beach (if it’s shady – otherwise, it’s very hot at mid-day) to collect sand dollars and exquisite deep pink shells. We have a long siesta in the late afternoon, watch the sunset from our private patio, then it’s back to the restaurant for a delicious dinner. At night we sleep deeply, only subliminally aware of the surf crashing on the beach just meters from our villa.
The next morning we get up and make coffee in our own little kitchen (no stove, but a refrigerator, coffee maker and complimentary goodies in the mini bar) then venture out to the beach to do our yoga in the sunrise. After the complimentary breakfast, we generally take another long walk in the other direction on the beach and collect a gazillion more sand dollars and pink shells. Then I swim in the lap pool, we check out and drive home. It is a 24 hour vacation that makes me feel like I’ve been away for a week.
You’ll want to stay at Xandari longer than 24 hours, though. Three or four days would be just right. Not only is there plenty to do at the hotel itself, but your Xandari hosts can arrange horseback rides, river rafting, jungle tours, and trips to ever-popular Manual Antonio park. Actually, a great trip to Costa Rica could include a stay at the original Xandari (above Alajuela) for several days as a base from which to explore the Central Valley and northern part of the country, then a stay at Xandari on the Pacific.
If you doubt that a spectacular boutique hotel could establish a second, equally fabulous location, Xandari on the Pacific will convince you. You’ll find the same sweeping, modern architecture and the same eclectic color, phantasmagorical mosaics and vivid art that owners Sherrill and Charlene Broudy are known for from the original Xandari (he’s the architect, she’s the artist). The villas at Xandari are huge, cool, brightly colored spaces with elaborate tile showers, expansive leather sofas, comfy king-sized beds and very private patios. The two “Maxima” villas even come with tiny private pools.
The most dramatic difference between the two Xandaris is the location. While the original Xandari is high above San José in thick high-altitude forest, Xandari by the Pacific borders the long, flat Esterillos Este beach which seems unending when the tide is out. Both locations have two swimming pools, extensive gardens, and exquisitely designed restaurants serving healthy food, but the Pacific Xandari has a tropical paradise flair that makes even the briefest of vacations seem like a long, long time in a distant destination.
Update (January, 2008): Xandari's promised spa is now open - Enjoy!
Update (February, 2009): Xandari's buildout to 20 villas is now complete. We still like the ocean-front ones the best. Alison tried out the spa and had a fabulous massage.
Surf Inn Hermosa is the brand-new upscale alternative in Playa Hermosa, once home of funky beach bungalows but now sprouting hotels and condo developments. If you're staying in Playa Hermosa, you're probably there for the surf, and Surf Inn Hermosa is right on the black-sand beach. The Inn offers four air-conditioned rooms, all with kitchenettes, and a two-bedroom/two-bathroom suite that feels more like a swish condo than a hotel room. Owner/designer Christina artfully put the swimming pool between the room blocks; its continuous waterfall nicely screens night-time road noise. The roof-top restaurant offers breakfast and dinner, plus a great sunset view.
Surf Inn Hermosa is on the ocean side of the coast highway (CR 34), in the middle of the Playa Hermosa strip.
Reviewed February 16, 2009
El Paso de las Lapas opened in December, 2008 and is already becoming a favorite with San José weekenders looking for quiet and comforts away from the bustle of Jacó. The ten air-conditioned rooms are spacious and nicely furnished, and include well-equipped kitchenettes and (upstairs) private outdoor space. The rooms all look onto the pool, the intermittantly-flowing river, and the rising hills beyond. The poolside restaurant only serves breakfast, but is available to guests as public space the rest of the day. It's a perfect combination for groups or special events.
Ask at the desk about spa services - Alison enjoyed a 2-hour facial treatment in the river-side palapa, listening to the conversational kiskadees and the splashing of the fountain.
El Paso de las Lapas is on the inland side of the coast highway (CR 34): turn at their sign between Herradura and Jacó (also signposted "Pueblo Nuevo" if coming from the north). The hotel is about a mile up the dirt road, on the right.
Reviewed February 17, 2009
For a location and style that are over the top, you can't beat Villa Caletas, perched 1,000 feet above the Pacific with a view from Jacó all the way to Puntarenas. The rooms start at luxurious and work their way up, from visually-private ocean-view decks through private gardens and your own swimming pool to the ultra-deluxe romantic-historically (Egypt, Africa, the 1920's) themed suites of the Zephyr Palace, a stand-alone palace (no other word for it!) with its own banquet and event facilities. Architectural styles range from gingerbread-Victorian to whimsically and magnificently neoclassical, with rows of columns sprouting bromeliads, carved stone lions, and arched passageways leading to secret destinations.
Guests and visitors to Villa Caletas converge at sunset on the Amphitheater Bar, to sip cocktails and admire what has to be one of the best sunset views in all of Costa Rica, a sweeping panorama over the Gulf of Nicoya and the sea. Summer evenings bring classical quartets and other musical events to the amphitheater. After the sunset, one has a choice of dining on the terrace for the lingering view or in the stately splendor of the formal dining room.
It's over a mile from the Villa Caletas guestrooms to the private beach, but it's all downhill, and an hourly shuttle will bring you back up. The beach is rocky and dramatic, and surrounded by dense forest. A beach-front restaurant is under construction, as are boating facilities.
Reviewed March 3, 2009