I stayed one night here with my family. We had two bedrooms sharing a bathroom. I wasn't told that the bathroom would be down the hallway, something that probably should have been made clear. Room comfort was OK, but not great. Right next to the kitchen, so noisy late in the evening and early in the morning. I'd try to avoid that room.
The lodge is in a fantastic and beautiful location, as long as you're expecting Wales and not "Costa Rica." Dress warmly, as it can be cold and rainy. Very good walking opportunities on the property. I think people make a bit too much of the "comforts" of the lodge. I'd describe it as an old English manor house, that perhaps could use a little refurbishment.
We didn't receive a warm welcome or any other special hospitality. Perhaps because we never met the owners. All our interactions with with hired, local personnel, who handled their functions competently but without any exceptional warmth.
Some of the guidebooks say you can have dinner at the hotel for $10, but that price is now $18. With nothing on the menu particularly appealing to our children (although the dinner food does look tasty), we went to the nearby (less than 1 mile away) Colbert restaurant, which was highly recommended in some guidebooks. It was indeed an excellent meal (think Costa Rican meets French, probably one of the more interesting restaurants in the country) and good value.
We had breakfast at the hotel and it was good, but by no means exceptional. Not as good as at most English b&bs I've stayed in.
Poas volcano was less than half an hour away, and well worth a stop on a clear morning. If you walk the trails and take your time, it's probably a 2 to 2/12 hour visit. We did not go to the nearby and highly acclaimed La Paz Waterfall park because of the insane entrance fee now being levied. It's $32 (up from about $20 a couple years ago), and you can get a $4 discount from the lodge. BTW, this is a contast problem with tourist activities in Costa Rica, as the prices are shooting up to the sky as local operators charge more than what comparable activities would cost in the US (despite the much lower standard of living in Costa Rica).
Indeed, value is a problem at the Volcano Lodge as well. Had I paid under $100 for my family, I would have been more than satisfied. At about $150, I would probably choose to stay elsewhere next time. It just wasn't nice enough in a country where better value options are available.
