We stayed at the Castillo de Pavones hotel last month for two weeks, and it was quite possibly the best vacation I have taken in my entire life. Normally our family visits more touristy spots like Cabo or Cancun, but we decided to give this place a try because it looks so awesome in pictures online.

We decided to make the drive from San Jose, which Brad the owner warned us was a long drive, but it was definitely worth it! We made some stops along the way, and Hadia, the manager, checked in with us to make sure everything was alright during the trip (she is so nice!). We arrived that night to the Castle, which was all lit up, and the manager and employees were waiting for us! They brought down mango margaritas immediately, and Arnon helped us with our bags. Hadia gave us a cute velvet bag that had our AC remotes, TV remotes, and room keys, and we were served dinner in the restaurant. The food was to die for!! Cindy, one of the chefs, is the sweetest girl ever, and she prepared whatever we wanted. There is also a brand new bar upstairs where we could sip drinks and look out at the ocean during the day, and we watched the sunset from the tower at night.

We did different activities like deep sea fishing, kayaking, horseback riding, and a river tubing tour. All of which were reasonably priced, and we actually had a guide for each one (Arnon or Henry) because as you know, you are in the jungle in a Spanish Speaking country, so most activities people didn't speak English. I find it funny when people complain about things like people not speaking English when you go to a spanish speaking country!! Arnon and Henry were awesome, and they took us around town, showed us where to buy souvenirs, took us to eat, etc.

Hadia took us to the Panama border with her to shop in their pretty awesome Land Rover that looked like something right out of an African safari! We were impressed... Basically, I can't say enough good things about this place. The staff was so accommodating, friendly, and helpful.

So about our rooms... The Mezzanine room is the best by far, and all of the rooms have been redone. They all have teak ceilings Hadia said, new furniture (there is a white couch in the restaurant that is so cool!), and everything is new. The outside actually looks new too! We are going to be back for sure, and we loved everything about Pavones and the castle. No bugs, but HOT! But I guess that's what the AC is for.

Hopefully this helps you out if you are contemplating going to the Castillo!

My husband and I booked our trip (taken mid-January 2013) through a Groupon deal. We stayed in the Mezzanine suite, which was beautiful, however not very private for couples. (The owner Brad, did make a different recommendation, but the photos online were so beautiful that we had to have the Mezzanine anyway...) Our room was clean, and someone came in to clean every morning while we were at breakfast. There were several times that we left valuables (money, an Ipad) in the room while we were out, and nothing was ever touched or missing. The view from the restaurant was beautiful...looking out over the jungle, followed by the ocean, followed by mountains. We woke up every morning to the sounds of birds, chickens, and monkeys. Noisy, but far different from the city noise we are used to!

We were a little surprised at first about the restaurant, as it was not what was described on the website, and there was no buffet or even meal choice. There was one dish every night. HOWEVER, I will say that the food was AMAZING and there was not 1 meal out of the 5 nights that we stayed that didn't blow us away, nor did we ever walk away hungry.

Henry, Arnon, and Kenny were great guides, they showed us around town and joined us on our excursions so that we would have a translator. We honestly felt that we were among friends at the hotel, and within the town. Everyone was SO nice, we never felt unwelcome or unsafe. (A fear for us spoiled Americans traveling in a 3rd world country.)

I would HIGHLY recommend this hotel for anyone looking for an "off the beaten path" experience. My husband and I love the outdoors and enjoyed the smallness of the Castillo and the town far better than if we had gone to a major resort in a big city. We are hoping to go back in a couple of years because Pavones was just unlike any other place on Earth!!

Sidenote: I wouldn't recommend for small children...a lot of walking and not many kid-friendly foods if your kids are picky like mine. Also, although we felt very safe, we did break the number 1 tourist rule and left our bag unattended on the beach for about 10 minutes while we went swimming in the ocean. When we came back our camera and about $40-60 was gone. We let our guard down because of how nice everyone was, but you still have to remember where you are and that people will take advantage of tourists. :-( That was probably the ONLY downside to our trip, and as I said, was our own fault because we knew better.

We finally found Paradise! My husband and I have traveled all over Costa Rica. He visited Pavones 15 years ago but in our previous trips down together we never made it that far south. Last March I saw the Castillo featured on Groupon and rallied to troops (friends and family) to make a trip out of it.

After many months of counting down we finally made in January. We had no idea what to expect and had a group ranging in age from 63 to 13 years old. The Castillo is amazing and we were all in awe when we arrived. But what really makes it, is the staff! From the second we got there we felt like Arnon, Hadyia, Kenny, Henry and all the rest of the staff were family. We never had to ask for anything. By the time we thought of something they were already on top of it. Especially Arnon, he really went above and beyond (hanging out until the early morning hours with us and then was waiting for the guys to go surfing at 6am). I really don't think he ever slept.

I am sure you only here when there is a problem and I wanted to share with you our really great experience. I have no idea what anyone could find wrong with this place! From here on out, the Castillo will forever be what we compare other places to. We made, what i hope, are lifetime friends and we cannot wait to come back!

Our room, the Mezzanine was beautiful and the beds and linens and towels were plush. In bathrooms signs to put toilet paper in trash instead of flush which was pretty gross but I guess issue with the plumbing. When we got there there was no remote for the air conditioner all day (and no one to find it for us) and it was so hotttt! Also nice big screen TV but no cable all week. Activities director said he would lend us a DVD/VCR player but never did. Really enjoyed a guide who took us around the local area, showed us good restaurants and wildlife and was the surfing instructor. Our boys loved surfing with him but he got injured so no more surfing. Food was excellent at the Castillo but one particular meal was served, no menu to order off of just so you know which we didn't. Son and I are vegetarian and they did accomodate us well. Also the concept of time and schedule there is pretty foreign. We were always told dinner was at 6:30 but never got until 7:30ish. Need to really go with the flow there as times and activities can change often. Roads to and from Castillo are TERRIBLE-imagine going over nothing but pot holes for an hour and a half (time from Golfito). Beaches are black sand which is nice but not what I expected. Really wanted to go scuba or snokeling but weren't told until there that is was the wrong season (water too murky)- really bummed! Recommend zip-lining and jungle tour (need to wear close toed shoes). Caught lots of fish deep sea fishing but never offered for us to keep any. Boat was pretty rough and a couple flat life jackets, fine for us but likely not what you expect. Captain spoke No english. All in all we really enjoyed our trip but definitely not perfect.