My husband and I recently stayed at the Courtyard Marriott for 3 nights during our first trip to Costa Rica and highly recommend this hotel. Courtyard was a restful haven as we dashed about. Nicely appointed rooms, lovely pool, excellent breakfast - included in our rate (both Costa Rican and American food), convenient gift/snack shop with long hours, and good restaurant recommendations. We made arrangements in advance through the concierge--Mr. Acuna-- for a pickup at the airport (the free shuttle stops around 10 pm) and for a Rainforest Tram Tour (this was with Costa Rica Temptations, which we highly recommend). Mr. Acuna was a great help with our planning. The hotel has van drivers available for hire who are stationed in the hotel parking lot. We hired a driver for the day who took us to Inbio Parque (an excellent overview of Costa Rica's ecology), waited for us, and then drove us to a couple of museums in San Jose. The driver spoke English and gave us an informal tour of the city. Courtyard is located in a nice suburb across the street from a small mall with numerous good restaurants and some shops. The hotel is not far from the city, but you need a car or must get a taxi or hire a driver as there is no public transportation.
