This is a beautiful property, perched on a hill overlooking the Pacific Coast. The pool is massive, the rooms are spacious and comfortable with nice views of the ocean from your balcony, the staff are relatively friendly, the food is excellent but kind of expensive. There were a few bugs in the room, probably since the hotel is in the... more

Regarding the review that totally "trashed" this hotel, we totally completely disagree with them. It is a very beautiful hotel and we thought the staff was very friendly and accomodating. We ate lunch, dinner and breakfast there and all meals were very delicious. In particular, we highly recommend the rice with heart of palms dish. We stayed in the master... more

What a great place is this! We were there for 3 days beginning Feb. They offered us an upgrate and we stayed in a terrific master suite. The view from the room (and the large terasse) is incredible! (all the rooms have see view). The pool is very large and with also great view on the Pacific. At the back... more

Cristal Ballena I don't have much good to say about this place except it was nice looking. Staff was arrogant, unfriendly, unresponsive, slow. Extremely overpriced and restrictive. We actually called after the first night and tried to have our travel agent remove us from this hotel. The hotel denied our leave saying we would do so and not be refunded.... more

We went to Costa Rica for our anniversary, we stayed at a few hotels along the Pacific coast and Hotel Cristal Ballena was one of them. We expected to see a 4-star hotel and by the appearance, it looked that way. The sad part was the confirmation of petty theft in this country. The most likely places for things disappear... more

We were given a free room at a nearby hotel, however, not impressed with the quality we searched out another location - I would rather pay for a great experience. We observed the entrance to this hotel and decided to take a quick look. We were very impressed with the grounds, I immediately began snapping pictures of the ocean view.... more

We have just returned from our second visit to Cristal Ballena this year. As returning guests, the staff treated us like family upon our arrival. They spared no effort to ensure that we were satisfied with our room which was comfortably furnished with a balcony which has a fantastic view of the Pacific Ocean and the surrounding mountains. In the... more

Cristal Ballena is an impeccable resort. The grounds are beautiful and our corner suite (10) was amazing. The room overlooks the grounds, pool and ocean with 270 degree views. We had a car so getting around was never an issue. Dinner & breakfast were included it our rate. Never had a chance to eat breakfast because of excursions, but the... more

My new husband and I spent one night of our honeymoon here, on our way down to southern Osa, after having our wedding in Manuel Antonio. The Good: The grounds are stunning, well manicured with beautiful views. Our room was large and spotless. They even had champagne and fruit waiting for us when we arrived. We had a suite with... more