My wife and I spent 5 nights at Tango Mar over Christmas. The grounds are beautiful and the staff is extremely friendly and helpful. We had a beach front room which is a pretty standard hotel room, but with an amazing view. It’s a little overpriced during high-season, but most nice places in Costa Rica are that way. The location is pretty well secluded and unlike other beach resorts in places like Cancun where you’re surrounded by a million other tourists. The pool is small, but nice and comes with a great view of the ocean. The water is pretty rough here, so most people stuck to the pool. Other than a day trip to Mal Pais and Santa Teresa, we spent each day lounging by the pool, on the beach, and at the bar. It was extremely relaxing and definitely what we were looking for.

While the food is better than the average beach resort, it definitely isn’t great. We had the lobster and a filet mignon on Christmas eve and couldn’t have been more disappointed. For $25, we got a little bit of tail meat cooked and placed into a lobster shell and no claws. It was an odd presentation and we learned from then on to keep it simple here. Stick to the cheaper basic stuff and you’ll be fine. The breakfast was complementary and was pretty good. It included lots of fresh fruit and typical Costa Rican food as well as an omelet station.

The owner, Hilde, is very friendly and is always around chatting up the guests and making sure everyone is having a good time. A lot of the beach resort style hotels have a corporate feel so this is a nice touch. A lot of the staff is there all day everyday and they are very friendly. The two bartenders, Junior and Javier, are fantastic. They make great drinks and are a lot of fun.

We were feeling adventurous on our way to Tango Mar so we decided to skip the ferry and drive around the Gulf of Nicoya. The trip overall wasn’t too bad, but there is a long stretch (about 30km) between Playa Naranja and Paquera that is an unpaved mess of rocky dirt roads that twist through the mountains. Without a GPS, we would’ve gotten lost for sure. The drive is fun, but be prepared for the dirt roads and definitely use a GPS! On the way out we took the ferry which was really easy and actually pretty cheap ($25 for two passengers and the car).

Junior and Javier were more than outstanding. They truly made our vacation on this trip. All of the staff were more than willing to go out of their way to make your vacation amazing. Most all employees can speak English.

Pros:beautiful, great staff, swim up bar ,great dinner, spa is wonderful

Cons: away from any real towns so there is nowhere to go shopping and to get to tours it's a long drive. Everything shuts down at 10pm so there is no nightlife on the resort. It would be nice to have a bar to hang out and drink at after dinner or some sort of entertainment. Lunch menu was nothing special and there is really nowhere else to eat anywhere around the resort so yu really have to. Eat at the hotel. The beach is not calm and the water is kind of dangerous to get in.

Overall. This would be a great resort for honeymooners or for celebrating an anniversary... Stop at the store on the way in for some bottles of wine for the room after the bars close! Beautiful clean resort. Would return!

My husband & I spent 4 nights at Tango Mar in November and I would highly recommend it! Tango Mar is pretty remote, so it was a bit of a trek to get there and there aren't a ton of activities, but it was soooo relaxing. We did visit the Curu Wildlife Refuge (see more info. below) and went snorkeling while we were there. The best thing about Tango Mar is the staff -- especially Eduardo, Andres & Junior. They took great care of us and were just fun people to be around. They learned our names the first day we were there (and vice versa) and always greeted us, whether they were working at breakfast, the pool bar or dinner.

There are lots of reviews on here that cover basic information about the hotel, but here are some things I wish I would have known in advance:

1.) Tango Mar is very remote, although there are some different options to get there (including a small airstrip nearby). We opted to drive to Puntarenas and then take the fairy to Paquera. We then drove from Paquera to Tango Mar (about 45 mins). The roads were terrible, but manageable, even at night. Just be prepared for lots of huge pot holes, as well as people and animals in the road. :) Also, be sure to take cash for the ferry, as we didn't and about missed the last ferry of the day (the nearest ATM is about a 10 min. drive)! The ferry only takes US$ up to $20, so be sure to have small bills or use colons. You can find the ferry schedule at http://www.nicoyapeninsula.com/general/boat.php.
2.) The room rate includes a buffet breakfast at the hotel (at least ours did). This was really nice, as the hotel is very remote, so there aren't other options nearby.
3.) We had dinner at the hotel a couple of nights (only one of the restaurants was open during our visit). The food was good, although pretty expensive (about $15-25 for entrees). However, if you don't have a car, it's about your only option.
4.) They don't offer room service, although there is a mini bar with drinks and snacks.
5.) We drove to Montezuma for dinner one night. It was further than we thought (maybe 30-45 mins) and included about 5 miles on a gravel road. However, it was fun to visit and get outside of the hotel for the evening. If you go, stop by Chico's bar after dinner. The people watching was fun and included a mix of ex-pats and locals.
6.) The "exercise room" was all but non-existent. There was a treadmill and bike, but there weren't any weights. It wasn't a big deal, just not what I was expecting. I also never found the yoga, mentioned on the website.
7.) If you'd like to save a little money, I would recommend looking for tours outside of what's offered through the hotel (especially if you have your own car). We booked a guided hike and snorkeling trip to Tortuga Island through Curu (http://www.curutourism.com/en/packages) for about half the price as the tour offered through Tango Mar. We did have to provide our own transportation to Curu (about a 30 min. drive).
8.) We stayed at Tango Mar is November, which is the end of rainy season. It was prefect weather everyday, with temps in the low-mid 80s and perfectly blue skies. There was nothing rainy about it and the rates were still low and it wasn't crowded.

My boyfriend and I were here in late November, just before the Thanksgiving day rush. It was the last leg of our trip and upon stepping onto the grounds we knew we should have planned for a longer stay here. This hotel is gorgeous!!! It reminded us of a Four Seasons Hotel. The grounds are meticulously cared for and the staff is beyond welcoming. Both nights we had dinner in the restaurant the owner, Hilda, came to greet us and ensure our stay was everything we hoped for and more. The rooms are newly remodeled and one of the restaurants had just been done as well. The food is wonderful, from the complimentary breakfast (which by the way is a FULL spread including an omelet and waffle station, fresh fruit, sausage, eggs, ect.). I cannot recommend this place enough!!!