My sister & I found the hotel through Lonely Planet. The only discrepency btwn the book and our experience was the new ownership and it was far more beautiful than imagined. Once owned by french sisters, the place is currently owned and operated by a hospitable, outgoing man named Richard.

My sister & I arrived in Tamarindo late and were greeted at the hotel by security. Although, we did not speak spanish & he did not speak english, he telephoned Richard (owner) and put me on the tele. Richard would not be back until a bit later, but allowed security to give us a room w/ the promise of paying in the AM. The cabina we were given was clean, quiet and we felt extremely safe. We traveled the country and of all the places we stayed, this place was the most quaint and beautiful. Decked w/ an entryway equipped w/ a table and 2 chairs for my morning coffee, which was fresh brewed each AM, & a hammock, great lounging for reading. Richard was super! Full of info & great beach recommendations! We will def see him again in the future!!!

The Hotel Arco Iris is in a great location about 200 meters off the main strip of Tamarindo and the beach. The main strip gets pretty busy so it was nice to have some solitude away from the crowds. The hotel is well kept and under new ownership. The owner, Richard, was friendly and helpful, and since he is relatively new to living in Costa Rica, has recently visited a lot of the sites to see and has good info on what to do. If you want a good location for a reasonable price, I'd recommend you stay there.

My ten year old son and I stayed there for about 2 weeks and used it as our home base. The Italian sisters were smart and kind and Chiara is friendly and precocious. My son reminded me of their chocolate fondue this morning and said that Costa Rica was his favorite vacation. They arranged an excellent horse back riding tour and we surfed everyday with "Banana Surf Club" just down the street (<---highly recommended) and had fruit smoothies at the local stand nearby. We also both had an excellent massage, ate well and were very comfortable during our stay. The town itself has been overrun by tourists/American chain stores and leaves much to be desired, but Arco Iris was a nice little haven for us. The town still pours molasses in the streets to keep the dust down and that was sweet. It compelled me to write a review as this year I am spending >$500/day to snowboard in Vail. If you are flexible and can appreciate good living that doesn't include 200+ thread count, but good, honest people with family values and respect for local culture I know you will enjoy your stay.