We just returned from our stay in Santa Teresa at Casa Don Tomas. The cabin is very comfortable and charming, full of wall murals and clean and comfy beds. It is as expected at the shore in Costa Rica (I am Costarrican), some things get rusty due to the salt. But all in all, we found everything we needed and had a great time.
(I read the last review and found it exaggerated and ill meaning. For example: 1. Tsunami warning, nowhere in Costa Rica will you find that. 2. Potable water: nowhere in Santa Teresa should you drink water from the tap, always buy bottled, and this isn't Don Tomas' fault, 3. I have found scorpions in my house in San José, at fancy hotels and anywhere near the coast, this is part of the charm of coming to the Tropic, 4. We had a few problems with the internet connection, nut as soon as we reseted the router, it worked again, I had a Skype job interview, and the connection was perfect for that). The house needs some tiny repairs but nothing that would prevent me from coming again. The swimming pool was amazing, always with sun and some parts with shade from the trees so that we could enjoy with our baby the whole time without worrying about being in direct sunlight and getting sun burned, but able to sun tan too. It looks straight to the beach (which is no more than 30 seconds walking from the house). The bedrooms are very comfortable, Don Tomas even found us a baby crib because we were travelling with our small baby. It would easily fit 6 people (2 adults and a child in each room) as it has a double bed and a single in each bedroom).
Chepita is an ANGEL! She manages and takes care of anything and everything and always has time to smile and be charming. She is a bomb of energy and is there for anything we needed. She even had coconut water for us while we were at the pool! Don Tomas is very charming and easy to talk to, he had many good recommendations for us and knows the area well, he pointed us to the new bakery which was very good. Also to some nice places to eat.

All in all, Santa Teresa has everything we needed, restaurants, many supermarkets, bank and pharmacy, so, no need to go anywhere else! Bring cash because almost no restaurant or cafe, or shop will take them (not even at the closest gas station), but supermarkets take cards. There is an ATM at the crossing.

Location is everything and Casa Don Tomas has that in a 5-star bag, located near the quiet northern end of Playa Teresa's powdery sand beach. We enjoyed the pool daily and just adored Chepita's diligent care of us. I would rate her service as 5-star but Don Tomas lack of communication drops the whole experience to 2 star.
Don't even think about sleeping more than 5-6 people in this unit as it would be very difficult.
But let me address the drawbacks first, before you start dreaming. You cannot drink the WATER, which means about $5/day/2pp for bottled water and the need to make ice cubes, and have bottled water for brushing your teeth. We didn't find out that there is a central grill to use until our very last day, because there ISN'T A WELCOME BOOK in the unit to inform clients or to advise on emergency evacuation. (There is an APP for your computer/phone for tsunami warning in Costa Rica.)
There must be a LEAK IN THE ROOF, because the back section is covered in black plastic, ensuring a dark place for scorpions and other critters to hide. They sometimes get into the house. Two of the three chaise lounge chairs at the pool are BROKEN. We reported this to Don Tomas at the beginning of our full month rental, and they were never repaired or replaced. In fact, he ignored me. Two of the screen doors are BROKEN from people walking through them. The kitchen is very DIFFICULT to cook in. Two of the 4 burners on the stove don't work. The grease splattering the back wall is awful + I suggested that it be partially tiled for easier cleaning. The louvered wood cabinet doors are dirty. The cutting board and toaster oven should be thrown out and replaced. There isn't a measuring cup, a single sharp knife, or a cookie sheet. The Teflon pans are all scratched + should be replaced—very unhealthy.
I communicated all of this to Don Tomas, but I don't get the impression that he cares as he didn't respond to the notes I sent him. We had a few other blips with ant infestations ( no "raid" available--we went and bought it) and something dead on the roof that dripped body fluids into our air conditioner. That's another thing---the air in the master bedroom takes a very long time to cool down. This whole thing reminded me of being a kid and vacationing in the North Woods in a cabin. Hot water is tricky, and my husband assured me that the exposed wires wouldn’t cause a shock. But don’t touch them, please.
Ask Chepita for the fish man’s (Alexi) phone number for fresh fish to be delivered to you at the Casa. (Ahi tuna $7/lb, lobster #10 tails for $24, big shrimp--$9lb.—but all items sold in kilos.) She is your advocate, as she kept on Tomas's case regarding the poor connection for internet, and made the necessary phone calls. She is a gem. Wish Tomas would buy her a leaf blower so she wouldn't have to work with a rake and machete keeping the grounds clean. (an endless endeavor). If you are driving in, I suggest that you shop in Cobano at the big super Market with better prices (not Pali). There’s a butcher shop across the street and closer to the main intersection, but beef isn’t the greatest in Costa Rica. Other than that—fresh fruit and produce is available at the Saturday farmers market down south on the beach from 3-6…but get there early as the stuff goes fast. Walk the beach for errands instead of the dusty road. The trip all the way to the intersection in Mal Pais takes about 1.5 hours, but you don’t need to walk that far for groceries or a surf board rental. Best restaurants are Brisas Del Mar and Alma. Ambrosia is an overpriced hamburger place with a bar. We went to the Italian bakery several times and always got hot bread just out of the oven.

I was in the smallest house/bungalow on the property! It was a very nice, good size room with a kitchenette, great size refrigerator and bathroom! It was somewhat rustic with no A/C and an open air concept! Along with open air came many spiders and bugs, but that is part of the costa rican charm. The beds were not very comfortable but it met my needs for the value!
The property was gorgeous with 2 larger houses and a pool. It sat on a great part of a sandy not rocky part of the beach! A number of surfer were in the water all day. One house had 2 bedrooms w an incredible view and A/C. The other home had 3 separate rooms w a shared kitchen concept.
The property was very close to many restaurants and even better was directly across from a market which had all the necessities one would need. Josephina was the very helpful hands-on caretaker of the property. Her English was limited but we seemed to communicate just perfectly!
Don Tomas worked with my changing schedule.
Hints to fellow travelers, Costa Rica requires your passport to not expire within 3 months of entrance so make sure your passport is current! We had 2 people in our party not get entrance to the country! No one knew this rule and I never saw it posted any where!

Santa Teresa is one of the nicest places in Costa Rica. I loved the beach house and the service. Chepita, who is the caretaker and administrator is wonderful. One afternoon she brought us some home made tortillas and they were delicious. The owner Don Tomas, is friendly and very easy to work with. We learned that he is a former US Marine and we swapped stories about our military service.

The service here is great, the accommodations were excellent and the beach is the best! Just outside the property there is a nice supermarket so we often went there to buy groceries. Because we could cook part of the time we saved quite a bit on meals. While I am not a surfer some of our friends were and they said that it was a great place to surf. For us, the beach was heavenly. We had a wonderful time.