I would highly suggest going in the off-season...i.e. not during school breaks-YIKES! The end of our trip coincided with the beginning of winter break. We had a suite which was very private and well appointed. The whole concept of the resort is to blend into the natural landscape. Loved being in the outdoors, monkeys outside of our balconies in the mornings-everything is very open and outdoorsy. Tons of wildlife. Fabulous food, fabulous spa, fabulous vistas, fabulous service. Definitely worth heading down there.

We stayed here for our honeymoon in November 2005. We are in our early 30's. The resort is beautiful and the staff is very polite and welcoming as you would expect. The rooms were also top notch. For a first-time Four Seasons guest, it was a great experience. The resort is a bit isolated, and you would have to take a 90-120 minute bumpy ride to take advantage of most of the tours that are offered. The Tours are well-run and cater to the Four Seasons customer, and the full day tour is a must, and so is the Catamaran. Food is close to 4 star, probably 3 star. It is a peaceful place. Obviously, its not a place to party, but to relax. Fair Warning: They have a bit of a raccoon problem at night, and you could be joined by three of them for dinner in the open air terrace restaurant. While nature is beautiful, we did not want to share a table with the raccoons (who walked all the way into the restaurant and onto tables!) The front desk comped our meal, which had to be taken to go. Other than that, it was a great and memorable trip!!!

just got back from costa rica, stayed at four seasons the papagayo peninsula is beautiful,the resort is isolated but outstanding , i was definately impressed . very expensive but we were on our honeyroom so it was worth it, we stayed on the third floor and for the extra money this room was amazing, with a great outside area , we had a ocean view and loved it , i tried the spa and if you enjoy spa i must admit this is probably the most beautifull spa i have been to and i do go to alot of spas, recommend it for sure, the only downside is expensive , service is definately four seasons quality , but thats what you pay for.

My husband and I stayed at the Four Seasons
in late February for 4 days/3 nights of our 12 day vacation in CR. After reading the other reviews, we decided to try it out. This was our experience.

Grounds - ridiculously immaculate! The grounds are absolutely amazing. I can't think of a more beautiful resort that we have stayed at. I don't play golf or know anything about golf courses, but I was deeply impressed with the greens. Also, the beaches are beautiful, just don't step on the armies of hermit crabs at sundown.

Rooms - We stayed in the deluxe rooms. These are basically the standard rooms with a view/partial view of the bay/ocean. We stayed on the bay side. The view was impressive and the room itself was pretty nice. They must have had some issues with dishonesty because they no longer had a minibar in the rooms. You had to call room service if you desired a $21.00 six-pack of domestic beer. Also, the bathtub drain in our room was broken. Otherwise, the private patios are awesome and the matresses are very comfortable.

Restaurants - First of all, I have to say that I was sick for our stay at the Four Seasons, so I had absolutely no appetite. My husband gave me his imput on the restaurants. The french toast at Papagayo is the best french toast that either of us (I had a bite) has ever had, hands down. Congo's, for lunch, is very expensive for mediocre food. The $15.00 cheeseburger and fries were worth it to me though, it was the only thing that I could stomach on the trip. My husband loved his Filet Mignon at Caracol.

Other Guests - If you want to witness embarrassing, stomach-turning rudeness toward staff, go to the Four Seasons in CR. Many of the guests were polite, but I was apalled with some of the behavior I witnessed from other guests. Granted, the staff is paid (well, I hope) to take care of us. They are not, however, paid to take verbal abuse (and physical from unruly children who kick and bite) from unreasonable guests, with perma-frowns, who seem to never be satified. The staff took this abuse with more grace and dignity than I could ever muster in their situation. I won't go into specific detail, but I think that it is sad that this is what I remember most about the Four Seasons CR.

Overall, I would not go back to the Four Seasons CR. Yes, the grounds are amazing, the staff are extremely attentive, and the rooms are above par, but we experienced this in other locations in CR as well. We would rather go to a location where the prices are reasonable and the atmosphere isn't tense.

If you are planning to stay at the Four Seasons Papagayo, I hope that your experience will be better than ours.