I spent three nights, with my wife and our four month old baby girl, at Cocotinos.
All the staff were very friendly and made us feel very welcome. My wife tried the spar and had a body massage and scrub, while I went off diving. She said the service in the spar was excellent, and left feeling refreshed and relaxed
The dive team were very efficient and friendly, the equipment I hired was in good condition and the dive sites we were taken to were excellent.
The room we had was excellent, well laid out, equipped and maintained. The open air restaurant is very relaxing, good food and cold drinks. There was always someone on hand to take care of the baby for a while, to allow us to eat. I would definitely stay here, if I visited Manado again. They also have another hotel of a similar style in Lombok, so when we visit Lombok next year, we plan to stay there.
The pool was a bit small, but it is a boutique hotel and most people are diving in the daytime, so there is usually plenty of room.

We spend 2 day in this beautiful boutique hotel. Nothing comparable to big resort that you can find in Bali for exemple but the Room are nice, spacious and clean. The food at the restaurant is also quite good. They have a spa and dive center with look quite professional. Make sure to let them know that you going to plan diving as they tend to give day off to there staff when the occupation of the hotel is low.
The only good or bad point will be that you need a good hour to get to the city so make sure that you have everything that you need before getting there.

Cocotinos hosted our group of 13 snorkelers for 4 nights after our 8 days on a Raja Ampat liveaboard. Our group was made up of advanced snorklers and nature lovers. On arrival we were quickly greeted at the Manado airport by their ground staff and the 25 minute ride to Cocotinos was comfortable. Arriving at the hotel we were met by the staff and given fresh cold towels to cool off from the afternoon sun, and coconuts ready to drink.

Our rooms were spacious, complete with a safe, refrigerator, flatscreen, extremely comfortable king bed, robes, and AC. Everything was spotless, and the extra shelves and hanging areas were very welcome after our small quarters on the vessel. The showers were expansive and gave the feel of an outdoor shower with screened in sections that allowed live plants to grow and sun to filter in. Outside the rooms was either an ocean view or the crystal clear and inviting pool. Amenities include an open bar/restaurant area with free WiFi (in room WiFi available at about US$8/12-hour period), a massage area overlooking the ocean (US$30/hour), and a short walk takes you to the Odyssey Dive center and pier out to the dive boats. Additionally Odyssey has a camera charging room, with computer, Fish ID books, and an assortment of musical instruments.

We had two full days snorkeling the reefs of Bunaken Marine Park and Siladen Island, both about a 40 minute boat ride away. We were given packed lunches and spent our entire day in those areas, snorkeling vibrant and robust reefs. Our third day we traveled to the Tangkoko Forest for a day of primate and bird viewing. Tangkoko is about 2-hours away and Manado is about 25 minutes from the hotel. The hotel grounds also had active sunbirds, eagles, and kingfishers that could be easily spotted each day.

The hotel sits in the small village of Kimo Bajo, our group walked freely in the town and was warmly greeted by the children and the folks that flew kites in the evenings. Our meals were served in the open air bar and were buffet style with multiple, delicious offerings. Each night we had at least four entrees to sample, as well as soup, salad, and fresh local fruits and a dessert. The breakfasts offered equally diverse selections. On our last night the group arranged for the Cocotinos special bar-b-que and they went all out. Grilling fresh farmed fish and shrimp, as well as chicken. They also had a live band. The great food and music were enjoyed by all.

The dive center was great. I did do one dive on the nearby house reef and saw dragonets, pipefish, small shrimp, nudibranchs, and many Banggai cardinalfish. However our group was there to snorkel and that we did, about 5 hours in the water each day. The dive staff provided four guides for our 13 members and took us to great spots pointing out many creatures, and kept us safe in the ever changing currents. The boat used was spacious, covered, with a fresh water shower, and had a bathroom. They provided snacks, purified drinking water, and towels each day. On our return the staff "made" us leave all our gear and they rinsed and hung our equipment, having it back on board the following morning. The shop has all the equipment needed to rent if you did not bring your own. Also the dive guides busily collected plastic pollution as we saw it when snorkeling. It was great to see them do this on their own and by the end of the day we were all pitching in bringing back plastic bottles / bags and various fishing line encountered while snorkeling. Don't get me wrong the reefs were great but as anyone that spends time in the ocean knows plastic pollution is unfortunately everywhere these days.

All in all I would highly recommend both Cocotinos and their dive facilities. It is a great central spot to explore the area, and not as isolated as staying at Siladen or Bunakin would be. During our free time our group was able to arrange tours into Manado for sightseeing. Lembah is about 1.5 hours away and easily accessible for organizing a day of diving if so desired. The spacious clean rooms and quality of care given by the staff make this hotel a "sure" thing for a traveler exploring Sulawesi.

My husband and I stay in cocotinos for 1 night, on November 4th 2012
Since we havé à very short time visiting Sulawesi , we have quite a hectic and tiring schedule . And we found this hotel through tripadvisor , without reading each and every review . So we rely on our guts. On the way to go there, seems it was quite isolated , and we start to have doubts. We don't want bad resort after all this tight schedule. But we were satisfied . Despite there's no diving instructor available on Sunday ( I think you should really consider this ) , the ambiance, hospitality of the whole staff ( the one who welcome us her name is Elle ) , the food , the villa, the cleanliness were satisfying and all the little details were well thought and professionally execute.
It's a perfect place to have diving holiday, or just enjoy the nature in Sulawesi !! Keep up the good job guys !!

Ginsa&Florian