Kimkim Trip Reviews for Costa Rica

Once again, the view from our room and balcony was awesome. Quite beautiful and luxurious.

This hotel was very nice. However, in comparison to Tabacon, the staff here really avoided us and were not that helpful nor kind. Often in entering the lobby, I felt like I was interrupting their day, and that they did not really want to assist us or offer any touristy information. I did leave a review of this and gave it to the front desk.

We had the honeymoon suite (been married 31 years!) but what an experience this room was. The balcony view of the volcano was simply amazing. The hotel offered everything we needed and more. Everyone was so knowledgeable and kind to us.

This tour was crowded with so many people. So many people on tours with guides, and our guide, unfortunately, did not really seem expert. He followed the other guides and seemed to just view from their perspective. He was very nice and energetic.

Very good experience and saw some monkeys and birds. I enjoyed going over the 5 bridges in the clouds. Unique experience.

Unfortunately, this guide did not speak English well and had a tendency to speak to just the one in front of the group. So we often had to ask him to repeat and say again...

Ziplining was FANTASTIC. THOSE GUYS REALLY EARN THEIR PAY. I simply loved this activity and so glad that I did the "freefall," too. Very knowledgeable and happy personnel.

Great hike. Our guide did not ensure that we all had water before we left for the hike, though. Thankfully, one of the hikers gave me a bottle of water.

Our guide, Diego was just outstanding. He knew so much and showed us everything important.

Great hot springs s as nd beautiful setting

Enrico was great

Lots of animals- sloth, monkey, turtle etc…

Boring

Staff was superb!

Fantastic view of the bay and beach below. Very caring staff. Clean and well appointed. Very nice swimming pool. The cat in residence was a nice touch as well as the young sloth that slept above the veranda. They were also very accommodating with us hanging out at the pool till it was time to leave for our late night flight back to the US.

Beautiful facilities and grounds. Very attentive staff. Great view of the volcano. Excellent pools.

We had a nice calm day. Were able to see dolphins close to the boat. The staff was very helpful when learning that our grandson has celiac disease and can't have gluten. The snorkeling was good and the food was too,

This was one of the highlights of the trip. The park is filled with many different kinds of animals. We wouldn't have seen many without the expertise of Andres Martin Socio, our guide. I can't say enough positive things about him and what he shared with us. He showed us sloths, igauanas, bats, land crabs, numerous birds, lizards, orchids, and all sorts of plants. The park is beautiful, and if you can request him as a guide, absolutely do so.

I was impressed by the thoroughness of the staff in getting us ready and checking the equipment at each transfer point. There are 7 zip lines, one that is a half mile in length, so it was exciting! Definitely something we would do again,

Great fun in excellent weather. Our boatman, Antonio was skilled and gave us a terrific experience. The water level was a little low so we scrapped over some rocks, but had a very fun time.

The hike was very interesting. Roy was a great guide. The walk down to the base of the waterfall was memorable because the 515 steps down and back up contributed to sore legs the next couple of days, but totally worth it.

The location of the Valverde is excellent, with beautiful river views, including from the open dining room. Our bedroom was better than a glamping experience, as we had a hotel style room with a very large bathroom and AC. What made the greatest difference was the awesome staff attention to details and extreme friendliness. We felt truly welcome. Thank you to manager RONNY and restaurant team and captain JASON. This hotel offer guided trips to the park multiple times of day, with their own boat, super convenient. This was a simple hotel but had an interesting character being directly on the river and a great attentive staff.

Staying in this resort is an incredible experience on its own merit. It is located next to the national park. You cannot reach it unless by boat. We took a private road trip to the port near Sierpe and from there a met the hotel team. Then a beautiful river ride (2h stopping along to observe animals) and final ocean ride to hotel beach (30m). On the way back we took a 30m boat ride to Drake bay and 30m to the Drake airport back to San Jose to our international flight same day. All of it organized by the hotel, impeccable planning and execution. The hotel borders the national park and has beautiful beaches of its own. There are many nature and eco activities to be done here. There are 2 restaurants all great, one with stunning view of the pacific. We had a regular bungalow and was excellent. Thank you LUIZ at the restaurant for tables with beautiful views and MARISA and SOL at front desk and coordination of everything including our perfect return trip. In this resort everyone of their staff is focused on a delightful and awesome experience for all their guests.

The views from the top of the hill down to the ocean are stunning. Very good restaurant and pool with same great views. Front desk staff not as friendly (not even a smile upon arrival) as we learned to expect in Costa Rica, including a discussion due to a disappointing lack of room cleaning on the first day (had to call at 3:30pm to clean room, though we had been out of it since 7:00am on our activity). The restaurant staff was great, thank you to JOHN and MAGALY for getting us an awesome view table twice. The hotel is relatively far from the beautiful beach below, hotel offers rides 4x/daily (walking is 25min down and 40min up if you are fit - which is what we did - also taxi is $10).

A beautiful bungalow hotel located within its own park, with jacuzzi overlooking the forest/mountain. Plenty of animals around the wonderfully manicured gardens. Very good food and drink options. Quiet, and isolated from the town. Great pool. GIORGIOLINA at the front desk was wonderful, providing us with the mountain view bungalow we thought we were getting (but some miscommunication between the travel agent and the hotel prevented us to have that on first night). Spending time here was a blessing immersion into the Arenal park forest setting.

Great resort, across the street from the beautiful beach. Pool opened 24h with a good happy hour. They have a restaurant right on the beach, we had dinner there everyday given the beautiful view and atmosphere. Water filters conveniently placed around the property. Competent staff and friendly front desk. Beautiful forest/garden setting embedded around the rooms.

This tour was programmed by our Corcovado Wilderness Lodge and it was better than expected. RALPH was our lead along with STEPHEN captain. On the way to the island, the captain spotted a number of boats circling and he promptly headed a bit out of our way to check it out. What a great decision, because we came to a female humpback whale and her calf playing around. SUPER! The snorkel was great, we saw 3 species of turtles, a giant manta-ray (another further out excursion from the snorkel site, AWESOME!) and innumerous fishes. The water is not the most clear, but good enough. There were many boats around, including divers below, so we followed our leader around to avoid them. Still a great experience and included short stop at the island.

This tour was programmed by our hotel Corcovado Wildness Lodge, and it was great. TIDI was a great guide. We hiked through the jungle and along beaches and along the beach. Many animals and birds around and a very beautiful forest and coast. Unfortunately we did not get to the waterfall because some members of the group became tired.

This was hosted by Tucane Tours. The guide was just average, based on our previous guides, but we did get to see some birds and monkeys and sloth. This park is very beautiful, lush forest and breathtaking ocean side, with an isthmus connecting two wonderful beaches. At the end of the regular tour we decided to stay behind at the park (optional) and hiked the trail at the end of the beaches

This trip was hosted by North Adventures again and it was excellent. Our guide BYRON was very knowledgeable and attentive. We were luckily the only ones on this activity, so it was perfect logistics. This visit is an amazing display of nature, when 2 rivers meet and due to the drastic Ph change causes Alumina Silicate particles to expand and thus reflect blue light. We did also hike through the Tenorio volcano park and saw many birds and animals. This was an incredible tour, and though far from La Fortuna, it is definitely worth it.

NOTE: This rating is based on all the transports we had by Exploradores Outdoors, not just this one. On this trip there were 2 parts, the first bringing us from S. Jose to their bus hub, not very eventful, as leader Roberto could not even muster a "good morning" at pick-up, and spent most of the time on his phone, with some occasional comment where we are and making jokes at the expense of clients. After a basic lunch, taking us from the hub to the port where we joined a boat to our final destination, we were led by CARLA. She was very entertaining and provided a lot of useful and insightful information about banana growing and harvest. The boat trip was good, passing through the beautiful jungle. It was not guided, just transport. This poor rating is based on further issues we experienced with Exploradores Outdoors: they overcrowded the buses (not a small group as advertised, but packed us like sardines with 20+ people), so needless to say it took forever for each guest to be delivered to their hotel. In one case we arrived 3.5 hours later than the estimated time.

This was a double tour from North Adventures. First we hiked in the Arenal volcano park, great tour with the very experienced Marlon guide. Identified sloths and many birds. The park setting is very beautiful with forests and mountains. Second we went to the Mistico park site with the exciting hanging bridges. Here again our very experience guide Marlon identified many birds and animals, as we hiked through the forest. We were lucky that the volcano was clear of clouds so we had a picture perfect experience with the mountain.

We wanted to experience the hot springs and booked this event in the evening. The food buffet was very extensive. We were lucky to have a driver to ourselves, as we chose to leave earlier than scheduled. Maybe a daily event would have been better for us, so we could see more. But it was great to relax in the hot pools after a long journey.

This is a very beautiful park. The tour was excellent, we saw many birds (too many to list) and animals (sloth, snake, monkeys). Our guide was great and even ventured on beautiful locations before entering the park that where remarkable. We hiked all the way to the tip and spend there another 30min swimming.

This tour (or better, multiple tours) are arranged by our Valverde Lodge, with their own boat and hired guide. Ronny was great at managing everything and captain Jason and guide Jairo. This made the Valverde location a great choice, as it was very convenient to join to join early tours. The hotel also offered regular trips (5min) to the Tortuguero town, as we were down the river. We felt great being in a quiet place with river views, but also able to join the lively town as we wanted. In the tour we saw a lot of birds (too many to list) and other animals, including 2 types of monkeys, sloths and cayman.

The staff seemed a bit lackluster.

Absolutely amazing, our favorite place, especially the yoga and food!

The rooms were lovely. I appreciated its boutique feel. The only small issue was that the restaurant prepared the beef ultra rare and did not really fix the issue when asked to do so (another patron appeared to return her steak to the kitchen for the same reason).

Short but worthwhile, quite warm though.

There was some confusion re: pick up, but the dive master was great even if the vis was limited (no one's fault obviously).

So much night life!

This was my favorite activity, loved getting out and hiking in the national park with a private gruide, who was quite knowledgable.

Loved our private tour of this area, our guide was very knowledgable.

Great restaurants there and loved the breakfast buffet!

We were moved to the Poco a Poco Hotel by the Monteverde Country Lodge which turned out to be fine since we think the Poco a Poco turned out to be a nicer hotel.

Loved this hotel and we were lucky to get the honeymoon suite.

This hotel was conveniently located in LaFortuna. The rooms were clean and comfortable. The negatives were that the walls were pretty thin and we could hear the neighbors quite loudly. Also, the breakfast was kind of weak, not a lot of options.

This was an amazing hotel. Our entire family loved the overall experience and wished we had more time to spend here!

This is a very basic hotel. It was clean and the outsides were beautiful and very close to nature. However, it is just off the main road and very loud. The property is dated. There was a very limited breakfast on offer that was poor! We ended up avoiding the associated restaurant.

Having never gone cliff diving, I completed one off the bucket list. The whole family would definitely do it again.

This activity was so close to nature! Everyone enjoyed the leisurely walking pace and the heights of the bridges. Would definitely recommend!

The ziplining part was truly breath taking. However, there was a very clear line of misunderstanding about what was happening and when. We were given a different itinerary from the travel agent and one at the front desk. I understand things may change. However, with small children a scheduling heads up might have helped in allowing us to better prepare what we should carry with us in terms of food and water.

Nice hotel but only gave us two bath towels when booked for three people. Could not get anyone to answer the phone for an extra towel. Gym was really good.

Loved the complete disconnection. This is camping … no electricity, no wifi and no hot water which was all good but wish we knew this in advance to set our expectations. Best sleep listening to the river.

Excellent gym - comfortable beds / room and the breakfast was amazing. Very large hotel campus on steep mountain so you cannot get around unless you order a shuttle. It is open air - open windows as it’s very cool in Monteverde. Due to that you do hear other guests as they walk in the hall … Really enjoyed but it was a bit too big of a hotel campus for me.

Amazing experience and our guides were amazing cooks…. best food we ate during our vacation

It's a basic B&B

We enjoyed staying here the room was lovely

Sorry but this was not our favourite. Room was dark, few powerpoints, no bedside lights, WC horrible. There were nicer rooms but ours was not one. Restaurant overpriced and bad food. Also it's too far from La Fortuna

Good for first night

we really enjoyed this hotel, lovely surroundings, friendly staff, good restaurant and bar, nice big room and shower in a natural and exotic setting.

This was not a 'birdwatching' tour but was OK. Our fellow guests were a strange lot and not very friendly. But we did see a quetzal so that was cool. It was quite crowded.

One of the best trips - Kendall was amazing. Took us outside the reserve to see toucanets - brilliant. Lots of people but we saw lots of things thanks to him. He would have liked to start earlier and I think it would be good if he could have contacted us directly.

This was OK , butterfly enclosure a highlight. Not many birds

This was good after a rather scary drive to the park in the dark. Ronald very knowledgeable and pleasant. Nice selection of birds and good breakfast afterwards - appreciated after missing breakfast at the hotel

This was good and we saw loads. Minor problem was others on the boat had no binoculars so it slowed everything down. 2 good guides and nice lunch afterwards.

Good guide for early morning walk after downpour Christian 2. Best part about BT was the feeders which brought loads of birds

Our first bird tour, very good. Loads of birds. Christian very knowledgeable

The link sent us to the wrong place; we eventually got there but it was pouring with rain. The bridge was very scary

Staying at this resort was a nice way to end out trip. We enjoyed the beach, the pool, the bar (happy hour!) and the restaurant. We were able to walk down the beach one night to a local restaurant where we heard live music during our dinner. The monkeys playing in the trees around the pool was a nice touch! The included breakfast was great, food was tasty and service great.

This 4-star resort was spectacular! Our cabin was absolutely beautiful. It was big and spacious with a private deck and outdoor shower! We greatly enjoyed brewing coffee and enjoying it on the patio each morning. Patio is covered so let it rain! The resort grounds are so nice, with paths and walking trails! We took hikes on the well-marked resort trails from our room down to the blue river and through the rain forest. Around the hotel were all kinds of birds and animals, we spotted Coatis and even an Agouti, so cool. We greatly enjoyed the beautiful pool and we hung out some at the swim up bar. The restaurant was terrific and the service staff were superb throughout! Our only caveat with this resort is that if you don't have a rental car, it's not easy to leave it to explore the surrounding area on your own (no Ubers or taxi's are around we were told). Of course we got picked up twice for our tour/hikes.

This resort is pretty. We had our own cabin which was very quiet and nice overall. We greatly enjoyed the hot springs, grounds, pool, and pool bar. We liked the fact that we could eat by the pool after visiting the hot springs instead of having to go to the restaurant. The included breakfast was fantastic, lots of options. The staff was very friendly and helpful. We note that the cabin we had could use a little TLC, especially the bathroom. Also, the resort did have a water issue the 2nd night and we were without water for several hours.

We had a lovely time riding the 40 foot sailboat, with drinks on the way to snorkeling (lots of cool fish to see), and snacks and drinks on the way back. The crew was terrific and attentive, the views from the boat were superb.

We enjoyed the beach, the pool, the bar (Happy Hour!) and the restaurant. We were able to walk down the beach one night to a local restaurant where we had live music to our dinner. The monkeys playing in the trees around the pool was a nice touch!

This hike was conducted by Oscar who was a nice guy, very knowledgeable (told us so many facts about the area and blue river) and guided us well. We saw snakes, then the blue river, the spectacular waterfall, and then the joining of the two rivers that cause the water to be blue. Oscar explained everything in great detail. On our hike back out of the park, we had a Tapir sighting!

This hike/walk is right through the rain forest at night, some of the footing was slippery and muddy, but the boots and headlamps they provided were a great help. We saw lots of frogs, snakes, spiders, and birds. Then our guide Anthony got word that there was a Tapir nearby so we hightailed it to go see it. That was fabulous! The funny thing was, on the way back to the Hideaway we also saw a Tapir on the side of the road, which our driver slowed for us to view.

We loved our guide Roy, he was so nice and shared his amazing knowledge and took his time to tell us all about the Volcanic area, animals, plants, and interesting things. The hike was a highlight of our time in Arenal and we greatly enjoyed it. It was a beautiful day and the views we encountered were amazing.

Well, it's a Hilton. So nice to see carpeting!!

The views of this hotel are amazing! The hotel, I would rate as 3 stars. The showers are nice, the corner room again with an amazing view. The previous two hotels had friendly, accomodating staff, so we expected the same. Unfortunately, we found the staff to be indifferent, though we were friendly towards them. We thought they did the minimal, answered questions quickly without much feeling, and didn't seem to want to be there. I think this is more of a reflection on management. The dinner took two hours, as the server seemed preoccupied. The swimming pool was nice.

This was rated as a 4 star hotel, though the simple accommodations (no TV, room needing more modern renovations) would rate is more like a 3.5 star hotel. The complimentary breakfast was great, the dinner was fair. The staff was accommodating and mostly friendly. The grounds were very pretty, though the green lake did not look swimmable.

The hot springs in the back of the hotel were amazing. Lots of fun and the resort makes it very convenient to hop in a resort shuttle to travel to the springs, which is a very short ride away. The room is nice, though hotel renovations are needed. The restaurants for dinner at Ave and Tucanes were great. The complimentary breakfast was fair, wishing there was more variety.

Finally! I got to see the white-faced monkeys. I also saw bats, a snake, iguanas, and birds. This was more exciting as I finally can see a lot more animals without squinting all the time. This tour is why I came to Costa Rica, and it did not disappoint.

My husband's high point was the ziplining. This is the second time I ziplined, and I felt much safer because we are harnassed to the cables after landing. The tour guide gave me the harness used by workers when I shared my health history, which made me feel more secure. I think the photos were on the expensive side though.

This was fun even if it was raining. The tour guide was very informative, the group only consisted of six people, and the animals were motionless mainly, which made them easier to spot and photograph.

I think we wanted more activity other than sitting on a boat and squinting up at trees. There weren't enough animals to make it exciting enough for us, and perhaps we aren't great bird watchers. The monkeys were fun! But soooooo far away!

A nice, professional and friendly tour guide gave us the volcano's history. I appreciated her enthusiasm.

Very convenient for arrival and departure nights so close to airport. Kind and courteous staff.

Great hotel. Many restaurants and boutiques around but not much other shopping. Long drive to get to activities.

Very nice hotel. Small individual cabins were great. We spent a lot of time at the pool.

We liked the convenience to the airport and nice selection on the restaurant menu.

Enjoyed the location, staff very accommodating but the rooms could stand some upgrades. Transfers to downtown were good.

Delightful room, conveniently located, super staff, nice setting with immaculately maintained grounds, and a very nice restaurant.

A true tropical paradise with immaculate grounds, hot springs, pool and restaurants. Super staff, great ambiance at La Saca Restaurant. Pizza by the pool was excellent. Will stay there again if we return to Arenal/LaFortuna!

First rate! Great captain (Gabriel) and crew!

Great guide! Excellent English! Very knowledgeable!

Felt a big suburban and too commercial

Guide very knowledgeable and used his scope to zoom in on birds and monkeys. He took pictures through his scope with our cell phones. Hike to the volcano was a little bit taxing in stretches but the guide and fellow hikers let us catch our breath and take our time