My wife and I honeymooned in Costa Rica for 7 nights in July 2008. We stayed at three different hotels during the trip: Peace Lodge in Heredia, Hotel Fonda Vela near Monteverde, and Arenas del Mar near Manuel Antonio. Of the three hotels, Peace Lodge was our favorite, and perfect in nearly every way (complete reviews for the other two hotels on their sites).

We only stayed at Peace Lodge for one night this trip, and it wasn't enough. When we go back, which we will, we'll make sure we have two days there to fully enjoy the grounds and scenery. I'd recommend that you do the same.

SERVICE
Very friendly staff, who were available whenever we needed them. Spoke the best english of any of the hotel staffs. The hotel itself could have been more accomodating in a couple instances - had to buy toothpaste instead of having it at the front desk like many resorts; no leeway on early check in or late check out, although they held our bags for us at the front desk - but that wasn't the staff's fault. On thr bright side, when we were first showed to our room there was a complimentary bottle of wine waiting as a honeymoon gift. They also have masseuses at the reception desk to give free (+tip) back and neck massages for most of the day, which was a nice perk.

GROUNDS
Absolutely gorgeous. Green and lush. Well manicured around the hotel, and then turning into natural forest. Having the animal exibits there was a perfect way to start our trip, getting to see a lot of the flora and fauna of the country right away and up close. The waterfall hike was beautiful, getting to see waterfalls right in the heart of the jungle. I imagine that if you're travelling with kids this would be even more ideal.

They have two pools for guests to swim in, each having a hot tub, with Trout Pond pool by far the nicer and larger of the two.

ROOM
Our room was amazing. We opted for the lowest price "Standard Room" and it was more than enough for two of us. Large room and well appointed, comfortable bed, huge bathroom, very rustic with the fireplace and dark wood throughout. When we first arrived we fired up the deck jacuzzi tub and soaked away our day of travelling while watching hummingbirds zip right by out patio. There was a second large jacuzzi tub in the bathroom, plus a huge waterfall shower. One slightly negative thing I will say with our room was that we didn't have much of a view. Since we were on the ground floor of the two story villa - I believe all standard rooms are ground floor - instead of having a view out over the valley, the view from our patio was straight into some tropical plants. We didn't mind because it added to our privacy, but there really wasn't a view to speak of. If you want a view, you'll probably need to upgrade from a standard.

FOOD
Very good, not great. The free breakfast buffet was huge and delicious, consisting of local breakfast foods and fresh fruit, and was served in a wonderful open air room with great views. Couldn't get enough of the fried plantains. We may have enjoyed this breakfast more than any other meal throughout our trip. Lunch at the Trout Bar was also very good, and reasonably priced. Dinner was mixed, but overall quite good. We got a lot of food for what we paid, too much food really, as we chose the 4 course dinner for two, that I think was $35 each before tax and tip. I just wish they'd reduced the portions and kicked the quality up that final notch. For example, I got beef tenderloin as my meal, and a lot of it, where I'd have preferred a smaller portion of fillet. Not that any of it was bad, we just were left wanting a little something extra. Given the portions, we were very grateful that they were willing to give us our deserts to go, which we brought back to the room and enjoyed later with a glass of wine while laying in bed with the fire roaring.

We probably would have eaten dinner at the Trout Bar if we'd stayed a second night, hoping for a lighter meal, but having one fancy dinner was nice.

Our service durint the meals didn't stand out at all, but no complaints either.

THE "ALMOST"
You can decide for yourself how much this last piece matters to you. When we woke up at Peace Lodge and I went in to use the shower, I found two cockroaches diving for cover. Since I found them, I didn't really care and was able to dispose of them quickly. Had my wife been the first one into the bathroom, it wouldn't have gone over so well.

This hotel was absolutely amazing from the second we walked through the door. The lobby was beautiful--the wood work and wrought iron are breath-taking. The food was incredible and the pricing was very reasonable for the quality and the experience. Personalized service--follow the recommendations that are given (tour the waterfall gardens, do the nightly frog tour, feed the hummingbirds, catch a trout and have them cook it for you). We felt that the staff was always one step ahead in meeting our needs and were very helpful any time we needed assistance. We were so impressed with the customer service that we are approaching the owner about speaking with our national CEO group. We could not stop saying how much we love this place, and we will go back!!

We went to the Peace Lodge last year for just one night and had to really rush to see everything. This year, we planned to stay two nights so that we would have time to really enjoy the property. We came via Monteverde, and the roads were awful, so we were so glad to pull in to the Peace Lodge and check into our beautiful room. We had a Deluxe room this trip, complete with fireplace, balcony with gorgeous view, a hammock, 2 jacuzzis, a cozy bed, and a waterfall shower! The bathroom was huge and live bromeliads covered the walls. It was so relaxing that I almost would have been happy never to leave the room, but this property offers lots of activities, so off we went.

We toured the aviary, butterfly house, serpentarium, the hummingbird garden, the cat house and monkey house, and the ranarium. Since the frogs are nocturnal, nothing much was happening there. I'd suggest doing the nocturnal frog tour to see them at their most active. They have guides at each station to explain to you about the animals, and you can get quite close to them. Twice a day you can hand feed the hummingbirds in the garden - great experience, and a don't miss in my book.

We also did a combination tour of Poas volcano and the Doka Coffee Estate. Both were wonderful. When we got to Poas, it was already enshrouded in fog and mist, but as we waited, it all cleared out, and we were lucky enough to see the crater! Get there early for the best view. The Doka Coffee tour was enjoyable too; we got to sample a lot of different coffees, hike into the field, pick some coffee beans, visit the roaster, and buy some nice coffees at their gift shop.

The next morning we got up early and had the entire waterfall hike to ourselves since it wasn't open to the public yet. We saw 5 beautiful waterfalls and enjoyed the hike. At the end of the hike, there's a little area where they set out bananas for the animals, and we happened upon a coati happily devouring one. Saw lots of beautiful birds here as well.

On our last visit, breakfast was included for free, but apparently that policy has changed. Breakfast was good, but for the price I probably would have been happy just to have packed a few granola bars. We ate lunches and early dinners at the Trout Bar - a great spot for casual food, with a view of the trout lake where you can fish. Burgers and casados were good here, and we always a couple of Imperials. The nachos were cold and made with Cheez Whiz, so I'd give those a pass next time, but all the prices were affordable. On our last night, we ate at their Vista Poas restaurant and enjoyed a 4-course dinner that was delicious, but pricey at $35 per person. We had sweet corn chowder, a delicious salad, beef tenderloin and shrimp served in a Bernaise sauce, and brownies topped with Bailey's for dessert - all of it was delicious, and the service was spot on.

I would say two nights here is ideal; it's a beautiful property with gorgeous landscaped grounds, and being only an hour from SJO, the location is pretty convenient to the airport. It's romantic and would be a perfect spot to begin or end a honeymoon. We will definitely be back.

We arrived at what we thought would be paradise. The Hotel it self is truly beautiful. The service on the other hand was horrible. For what we were paying $350 a night we exected at least ok service. That was the last thing we ever got. On all the videos and on their website they said they will include breakfast they never did. We will never visit this hotel again!!!!