We stayed at this hotel to break up the drive between Monteverde and Manuel Antonio. The rooms are decent, but not quite worth the $130 they charge (all-inclusive). The AC units are small and never quite catch up with the humidity outside. They obviously don't check the rooms as the one we stayed in hadn't been looked at in a while judging by the multiple piles of toad poo in the bathroom.
The grounds were absolutely beautiful. We saw Toucans outside both days we were there and there were dozens of other species also. It is tucked right into a little valley with a little river/creek running right next to it.
We did the all-inclusive route with food as I didn't think there was any other options in the area. It was very much like cafeteria food. Not real bad, but also not worth the money you pay to stay there per night. When we checked in, no one explained the details of the all-inclusive meal plan to us. I only knew that alcohol was not included. I walked over to the bar area and grabbed a Pepsi out of a huge bin of drinks sitting there. One of the waiters ran up to me and took the drink from me telling me it was not included in the plan and that I had to have a fountain drink. The rule is not that big of a deal (a Pepsi is a Pepsi), but they need to work on their approach as they made me feel like I was stealing something. Maybe I didn't mind paying for a Pepsi???
All in all it was a decent place that just tries to charge resort rates and they just don't have the facilities to deliver.

We stayed at the Villa Lapas for two nights, May 25-26, 2007.

Our tour was accomodations only, so we were not part of the all-inclusive plan that is offered at Villa Lapas, and boy, we wish we were. Since we got such a fantastic rate on our tour, we originally didn't mind that we had to pay for our own meals, which, in our experience prior to Villa Lapas, had been very reasonable (we always had a choice no matter where we were in Costa Rica in regards to food - and it was good, cheap and nutritious).

Since we were not on the all-inclusive, we paid for our meals. No problem. The lunch we had the first day was very reasonable as it was a la carte and there were lots of choices. For example, I got a cheeseburger and two beers, and my boyfriend ordered pasta and two beers. Tab was $18 - which we thought was great! Dinner, however was a different story.

When we got there - a buffet was laid out. We took a quick look, saw very little selection, and asked for the a la carte menu. They told us there is no a la carte available - just buffet. Since we had never
had an unreasonably priced meal in Costa Rica in the entire 8 days we were there, we decided to go with it. When the bill came, we were
floored...$20US per person not including alcohol, which was $6 per cocktail. That doesn't sound like much - but considering we had previously enjoyed four course meals including beer for less than $20
TOTAL elsewhere at VERY nice restaurants in San Jose even, we were a little peeved.

The next day we decided to scope out the area to see where else we could go. The answer is NO WHERE. Jaco is 30 minutes away by car, and
the nearest town is Tacores, which is a little sketchy and had one soda. We were stuck eating the buffet or we could starve.

Other than the food issue - we were VERY pleased with Villa Lapas. Room assignation is VERY IMPORTANT. We were lucky in that they gave us the master suite even though we paid for a standard...king bed, sitting area, little dining table, everything. Plus it was HUGE. We walked by and saw the other rooms and all we can say is that we lucked out bigtime! (We also lucked out in other places too since they automatically upgraded us to the master suites or deluxe rooms - must be because it's the low season or they just like us :P heh heh).

The grounds were beautiful but watch out for the road when it rains! The bricks become covered in some sort of slimy algae and we were slipping down the road all over the place. We ended up taking the route around the other rooms to get to the main building instead.

The canopy tour was very nice - but since we had just come from Monteverde and its glorious Skywalk, it was a little bit of a let down. But it's a haven for great birdwatching and wildlife...we had little poison dart frogs stuck to our door at night!

All in all we had a great time - just remember to go with the all inclusive plan - $40 more per person per night - but worth it as there's no where else to go!

The location of this hotel is spot on for birders, and with a free bar, good food and fantastic rooms it is no wonder why it is difficult to get in! It is really close to the Carara NP and Tarcoles Estuary which are two of the regions birding hotspots.

The food was lovely and the location of the hotel in the forested valley is really beautiful, especially with a King Vulture gliding over!

The bathrooms were fantastic, large, clean and the bedrooms had aircon and ceiling fans enabling you to relax in comfort. This hotel is head and shoulders above the rest in the area and is probably one of the best in the country

We stayed at Villa Lapas for 2 nights toward the end of a two week organized tour of the country in January 2007. Compared to the other hotels and eco-lodges we stayed at during the trip, this one was disappointing. To be fair, we must add that we didn't have a chance to compare it to other lodges in the immediate area and therefore aren't sure of the relative value etc.

The grounds are OK but not as well maintained as other places we stayed and and as they could be - e.g. we saw one of the housekeeping staff sweeping the debris, including scraps of paper, from the floor of one of the rooms right into the gravel drainage area in front of the room. Rooms are arranged in motel style rows facing the river and there is a second row of rooms or villas behind these where occupants can drive up and park in front of their accomodations. The air conditioning in our room worked, but those in some of our fellow travelers did not or was very noisy. The room was clean, there was a ceiling fan in addition to the a/c but the bed was extremely low and the sheets were paper thin. The bathroom was large and clean. There was an in-room safe available for $3 per day. The buffet breakfast served in the restaurant next to the lobby was generous and included an omelete/egg station. As this was included in our tour, we have no idea of what the price would have been for independent travelers.

There is a pool and a jacuzzi (with cold water, as is apparently typical all over the country). There is a large screen TV in an open room with concrete benches covered with cushions but this was not a comfortable place to sit. There are a few hammocks and several lounge chairs facing the river. There is also a pavilion with a pool table and a foosbal game. There is a nature trail in the rainforest across the river which is accessible by hanging bridge and a zip line which was undergoing maintenance the day we arrived. At the far end of the property, a new zip line station is being built.

On the grounds, accessible over a bridge is another restaurant and an artisans' craft village with three gift/souvenier shops and a chapel arranged around a plaza area. Our group had its dinners in this restaurant. Dinners were buffet style with a nice selection of salads, soup, hot dishes, vegetables and several flavors of ice cream with toppings for make your own sundaes. On Sat. night, you could also get freshly grilled chicken breasts or a grilled seafood dish, but this was not available the next night. Two or three juice or cold drinks were available as well. On Sat. night, a musician played keyboard and took requests from the diners. There was a small dance floor too. Again, we don't know the price charged for the dinners so we can't comment on the value.

The hotel isn't far off the main road and road noise could be heard while outside the room. The hotel is convenient to the Taracoles River and Cararas National Park. Boat tours of the river are offered nearby and the late afternoon tour was absolutely beautiful. Crocs are abundant in one part of the river and the variety of birds is amazing.