Overall I would recommend this place. The pros: the big pool (across the little street) is gorgeous (lake-like) and quiet. THe rooms were spacious and very clean. So was the bathroom. Our room faced the ocean so at night, I went to sleep with a smile, listening to the sound of the waves, keeping the windows open. The room had a beautiful balcony with two chairs and a small table facing the beach. The beds were very confortable too. THe location is awesome. You have little shops outside of the resort where you can buy clothes, excursions and there is even a supermarket. Keep in mind that this is a touristy area and as such, the prices in these stores are like in New York!! The restaurants nearby are nice where you can have dinner on the beach watching a show with people playing with fire or a happy hour looking at the dusk.

THe cons: the beach in this hotel is not very nice. THe sand is all wet so you can't really lie down. It's good if you like surfing since there are relatively big waves. THe breakfast (buffet style) could be better quality. As for the service, it seems like the waiters are asleep or they are naturally lazy and slow. The pool could be kept cleaner. There were tons of leaves inthe pool the second day. The chairs by the pool were all broken and dirty.

This was a tricky review. This was the second half of our Costa Rica vacation. We had just come from quiet, peaceful, spacious accommodations in La Fortuna to busy, loud and and very very small "ocean front" room at Diria in Tamarindo. It took me a day or two just to readjust to the different accommodations.
We met staff that was rude and we met staff that was wonderful. One of the waiters, Ronald, at the beachfront restaurant basically right outside of our room was one of the wonderful ones. He served us our first meal there and was interactive and attentive and accommodating. We saw him a few other times and he was also very nice.We will remember Ronald.
The tour desk employees were also very nice and helpful.
Our room was so small. It bordered the kitchen so it was also very loud. We heard dishes clattering, water running, staff talking ect. (THIS is why I cannot give the an "excellent" review)
The grounds were quite beautiful. The pools (one smaller one near our room and then a lagoon style pool across the street) were clean and refreshing.
The food in 3 of the restaurants part of the hotel including the breakfast buffet was all very good.
The location was perfect. It is located at the beginning of town and it takes 10 minutes to walk through the tourist (shops and restaurants) part of town.
Overall this was a great hotel; the rooms themselves was the most disappointing part in my opinion.

The reason to stay here is the beautiful beachfront location. The grounds, setting, beach and sunsets are all spectacular. The room was comfortable and clean although the shower was difficult and they only supplied two bath towels; no hand towels or face cloths. The public areas were quite attractive while the food was good but not great. Security was well done with a guard at the entrances to make sure that only hotel guests entered, but the town and beach both felt safe. The beach had vendors who rent chaises and umbrellas for a modest cost; they are not part of the hotel as the beach is public space, but it worked out well. The town was fun with several nice places to eat.
We took a catamaran excursion, not part of the hotel, which was fun with a very professional and friendly crew, but the snorkeling was disappointing with no coral and relatively few fish.
Overall the resort was comparable to many Caribbean resorts we have been to.

Ww really enjoyed our stay at the diria, the room was great. Poolside and great view of the pool. The houler monkeys were in the trees outside our room for a day.The views on the beach are unbelievable, hiked the beach every morning after our great breakfast at the hotel. The only down fall was the cost of everything in the town, come with a pocket full of money. The people there are very freindly and it was a real pleasure meeting alot of people. Our favorite place to eat was the Flying Bull. The steak was unbelievable and the service was great. If I was to ever go back to Costa Rica I'd stay their again.