JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa
Hacienda Pinilla, Playa Avellanas, Tamarindo 50309 Costa Rica
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About
Location
3.9
Cleanliness
4.7
Service
4.3
Value
3.8
2023 Travelers' Choice Best of the Best
GreenLeaders GreenPartner
Live an authentic Costa Rican experience in a luxury hacienda style resort in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa is surrounded by the splendors of Costa Rican rich biodiversity. This resort & spa sits oceanfront and is the only international branded hotel close to Tamarindo town. The resort is located right at Mansita beach and guests can choose from four other beaches within Hacienda Pinilla. Next to the resort you will find an equestrian center, tennis courts, and an 18-hole golf course with coastal layout. Enjoy surf beaches with excellent year-round waves and warm water, visit turtle nesting sanctuaries or observe a great variety of wildlife. All guestrooms have balconies either with garden, pool or ocean view. In-room amenities include LCD TVs, soundproof windows, alarm clock with mobile docks, streaming speed internet, total blackout curtains, plush pillow-top mattresses, rich woods, and marble bathtubs.
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Property amenities
Free parking
Wifi
Pool
Fitness Center with Gym / Workout Room
Bar / lounge
Beach
Bicycle rental
Books, DVDs, music for children
Valet parking
Paid wifi
Hot tub
Pool / beach towels
Swimming pool toys
Infinity pool
Pool with view
Outdoor pool
Yoga classes
Fitness / spa locker rooms
Fitness classes
Sauna
Coffee shop
Restaurant
Breakfast available
Breakfast buffet
Breakfast in the room
Kids' meals
Outdoor dining area
Special diet menus
Wine / champagne
Poolside bar
Bicycles available
Game room
Golf course
Hiking
Horseback riding
Bicycle tours
Entertainment staff
Patio
Tennis court offsite
Walking tours
Water park offsite
Children's playground
Children's television networks
Indoor play area for children
Children Activities (Kid / Family Friendly)
Kids club
Kids pool
Kids' outdoor play equipment
Highchairs available
Car hire
Taxi service
Conference facilities
Banquet room
Meeting rooms
Spa
Body wrap
Couples massage
Facial treatments
Foot bath
Foot massage
Full body massage
Head massage
Neck massage
Salon
Steam room
24-hour security
Baggage storage
Concierge
Currency exchange
Gift shop
Non-smoking hotel
Outdoor furniture
Sun deck
Sun loungers / beach chairs
Sun umbrellas
ATM on site
First aid kit
Umbrella
24-hour front desk
Dry cleaning
Laundry service
Ironing service
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Room features
Blackout curtains
Soundproof rooms
Air conditioning
Desk
Housekeeping
Coffee / tea maker
Cable / satellite TV
Walk-in shower
Bathrobes
Interconnected rooms available
Private balcony
Room service
Safe
Telephone
VIP room facilities
Wardrobe / closet
Bottled water
Clothes rack
Iron
Laptop safe
Private bathrooms
Tile / marble floor
Wake-up service / alarm clock
Minibar
Flatscreen TV
Radio
iPod docking station
Bath / shower
Complimentary toiletries
Hair dryer
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Room types
Ocean view
Pool view
Non-smoking rooms
Suites
Family rooms
Good to know
HOTEL CLASS
Languages Spoken
English, Spanish
Location
39Car recommended
Grade: 39 out of 100
213Restaurantswithin 5 miles
49Attractionswithin 5 miles
Hacienda Pinilla, Playa Avellanas, Tamarindo 50309 Costa Rica
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My wife and I had a phenomenal vacation here, one that lived up to our hopes and expectations - especially during the long, dull winter we were experiencing. The property is superbly designed to capture the essence of "Pura Vida." The pool is creatively laid out with different areas, but all leading to the beach and the beach bar; the food is great (for a hotel), although one of the restaurants was closed for some reason (the Italian one). The gym was more than sufficient. And the beach, well, the beach was by far the highlight for us. It was quiet, unspoiled, and sparsely populated. We spent most afternoons in a little gazebo a few minutes away from the main part of the hotel which made us feel like we had our own private beach. It was truly divine - especially considering our booking overlapped a few days with a company retreat that saw the employees make a bit of a racket in the pool. Some people have complained that the resort is too far from Tamarindo. But we didn't think it was that bad. In fact, we liked that it wasn't near the hustle and bustle of the town. And if you do want to go there, the hotel has an easy, comfortable shuttle service. We did have a couple of issues. The biggest one was the the bed in our room. It was way too soft and lumpy. Fortunately, we were able to take off the mattress topper which seemed unnecessary and perhaps used to compensate for the poor quality. Not sure how a luxury hotel like this has such poor mattresses, but it might be a JW Marriott problem as we recently stayed in another JW which had an even worse mattress. Second issue were the sunsets - not the sunsets themselves, which were magical every single day - but what the hotel did during them. For some reason they decided to have a DJ blast "lounge beats" which echoed even at the far ends of the beach. These sunsets are peaceful and special; they should not be tainted with anything unnatural to the moment. Just let people enjoy the sunsets in their purest form. Other than those two things, this really is a great resort. We would definitely go back and pray that if we do, thy'll do something about the mattresses and stop the sunset beats. …
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Date of stay: February 2023Trip type: Traveled as a couple
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
1 Helpful vote
Helpful
Let me share the good and the bad. First, the staff is superb and does all they can to make your stay superb. This is exemplary. A shout out to Freddy at the Kids Club. He is a saint! The location is not at too far away from everything unless you enjoy a very remote location. The beach is not good for swimming and it has strong currents. Ensure you have a car unless you plan to mostly Just stay in the hotel. The hotel activities are weak. Yes, there is a kids club and this is great for kids but there is little to else really going on for them. They should invest in some racket sports courts, kids equipment, etc. The kids outside play area is subpar and needs a total replacement. It is dangerous as well. Management is nice but does little to resolve situations. They are without a GM for the next months and this shows. The VP is hard to reach. Now I understand why, after multiple requests to speak with a GM, there was no response. They gave be bad information that was very costly to us both financially and time wise. Furthermore, this caused me to have to spend too much time during what was supposed to be a pleasant vacation. Fortunately, the next hotel in La Fortuna at Arenal is much better. The food is too expensive for the quality. That said, the breakfast is excellent. As I mentioned, service is very good. It is unlikely that I would return there due to lack of management resolution. I also would recommend other hotels there well before this Marriott.…
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Date of stay: April 2023
Value
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Room Tip: Kids club is good except that our son was almost always the only child there. There is too...
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
2 Helpful votes
Helpful
We Enjoyed our stay at the JW Marriott, The rooms Were Great and confortable large The pool is beautiful and big, spacious for everyone,The staff was very friendly. The travel guides and concierge staff was top notch,Very knowledgeable staff. This was our first trip and we really enjoyed it We Booked 3 tours through Pininos Adventures. One was Palo Verde National Park - that was great. The other was Buena vista combo tour. So Great and the last one; Our favorite the Atv tour with carlos.
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Date of stay: April 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
1 Helpful vote
Helpful
First I will say the staff at the hotel is exceptional. It’s no fault of theirs that this hotel is in the condition it is. From the very beginning, the hotel charges for a per night resort fee on top of the rate that we already paid, $700 for 7 nights. Supposedly it is for some type of activities, which you are not given an option to choose. There are three on property restaurants, all of them basically serve the same food, under an alleged different cuisine. Food quality is horrible. Even the poolside restaurant, Azul, is awful. The only decent one of three is Tamarine, and that was only after the chef prepared fish we had caught for the day. During our stay there was a conference that the hotel let dominate the property at the expense of the other guests. Outside of our room there was an opening and closing reception, both of which came with loud music and lights well into the evening. During the the day the group had DJ at the pool that started blasting loud music until a Property Manager told them to lower the volume. All in all this property is a disgrace to the JW Marriott brand. If it were not for the staff this place should be removed from any travel plans until they get their house in order. We even heard these comments from frequent visitors that this hotel has gone down in quality. I only wish we had not wasted our time or money on this hotel when there are so many better options.…
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Date of stay: April 2023Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip: Avoid this property until they get their house in order. This is it a typical JW Marriott quality...
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
We spent a wonderful week at the end of March 2023 at theJW Marriott Guanacaste Resort. Let’s get the one obvious thing out of the way, it’s a Marriott Resort so it is not going to be inexpensive, in fact Costa Rica is not inexpensive in general as you would think for a Latin American country. Also, the resort is beautiful with everything that you would need while on vacation, but it is remotely located, nearest town is Tamarindo about 15-20 car ride away. So I highly recommend renting a car to be able to get around easily. Now for the very positive things. We found the employees at the resort to be extremely friendly and accommodating. In particular, Alfredo from Bell Hop services was super nice and always greeted me by my name. Michelle (“The Viking” 😉), Miguel and Astrid from the Concierge department were very warm, friendly and helped us set up multiple activities and transportation. The pool area is beautiful, plenty of chairs when we were there, did have an issue with lack of towels on two days, but that did not bother us. The servers at the pool are all so friendly, Alejandro and Carlos were very attentive the times they served us. We ate at the resort for 6 nights and found the food to be of high quality, if maybe a tad expensive, quite frankly very similar prices to resort areas in the States. The one exception I would say was the Sabanero Steakhouse. I don’t know how else to say it, management has mastered the Steahouse prices but has a long way to go to reach Steakhouse quality. My best advice, simply skip dining at that restaurant if you stay at the resort. Breakfast at Pimento was very, very good, great way to start the day. Lastly, there is a restaurant manager, Juan Bramma, who is a jewel. He was extremely helpful and accommodating to all requests. On our last day there he made a Mojito at our table at Azul restaurant for my wife. Taking his time and explaining every step as he would make them in his hometown city of Havana, Cuba. Made my wife’s day, she video taped it so that she can try and duplicate it at home. Thanks Juan!…
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Date of stay: March 2023
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Service
Room Tip: Rent a car.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
1 Helpful vote
Helpful
The staff was very friendly from our arrival at the hotel. The pool is very large and comfortable for all the guests. During the mornings my family and I dedicated ourselves to walking and biking to observe the monkeys and iguanas around the properties. The hotel is quite safe and the food is very good. I would highly recommend Pininos Adventures, we do many activities with this company, it is a family business with fair prices and the quality of service is excellent, they can help you with transportation from the Liberia airport.
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Date of stay: April 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
My husband and I were just there last week, which was mid April. We were with a group of multiple couples, an incentive trip for his company. The hotel is absolutely beautiful. The grounds are breathtaking. We rented their bikes and took a ride around one early morning and saw so much wildlife. There’s adorable monkeys all over in the trees. There are so many workers at this hotel, and they are all super friendly and helpful. The pool is beautiful and the beach is very nice. You can walk to the left off the beach, you do have to go past some rocks, and a little bit of water, but there’s a whole other area down there with some fantastic restaurants. Speaking of restaurants, everything we ate at the JW was phenomenal. The breakfast was amazing. The poolside service was great. You can eat by the pool & of course, drink by the pool.. multiple bars. They have pool toys that you could borrow. They really have thought of everything. I would definitely recommend and cannot wait to go back! Oh & the rooms are beautiful! Daily maid service was fantastic. We had a lovely balcony, overlooking the pool complex.…
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Date of stay: April 2023Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
We live outside San Jose and decided to go to the beach at the last moment. So, we were very happy to get a room here even at $700 per night. Every other hotel was full. Now we know why. This hotel should not have a JW Marriott name on it. It is terrible. First, the good. It is a pretty spot. The breakfast is passable once they seat you which is a process that reminds me of Costa Rica 30 years ago. Certainly no resemblance to a luxury resort. Kind of a joke actually. After that there is nothing good to say. The "Asian" restaurant is an insult to Asians. We spent $170 for our family of four and than went out to dinner in Tamarindo. Didn't touch any of the restaurants after that. The service in general is terrible. I wouldn't blame the servers. They haven't been trained. There are tons of great Costa Rican hotels with great servers. Not sure who is managing this place but they aren't doing their job. I could literally go on and on about the bad quality of everything. It has gotten to the point where my whole family and I have been laughing at how bad it is. We've just decided to enjoy what we can and go to town for everything else. We're lucky because we have a car. Although, typical, there is no space to park. I just parked on the grass and dared them to tell me to move it. I'm sure they wanted to charge valet. Anyway... the room is terrible. Completely run down. Two towels for a family of four. Long wait to get towels. The door doesn't work properly. The drawers don't work properly. The air is incredibly loud and the room was musty always. The pool is beautiful but the chairs have bird droppings all over them. No service at the pool. I saw a manager and asked if there was service at the pool and he looked angry that I asked him and then said that there wasn't any service poolside. Ok?? I'm sitting eating breakfast now and the tables around me are now empty and it takes about 15 minutes for them to clean them. The birds are all coming to eat the scraps about 10 feet from me. Worse, there are two guys just staring at the tables. I guess it isn't there job to clean them. Who knows...crazy that a Marriott can be this incredibly bad. I could go on and on. I've never written a review of a hotel anywhere but I decided to do this one to warn people about this place. …
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Date of stay: April 2023
Value
Location
Service
Room Tip: Don't come here
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
2 Helpful votes
Helpful
Family with 10 and 13 year old. We split time between here and Westin. Westin is hands down 1000 times better!! Both places are beautiful, but the marriott has a rocky beach and no activities on site. You have to leave for everything. The food is average and despite not being full they still only limited reservations. Would not recommend this place for kids or those looking for adventure. Definitely choose the Westin. More lively, more options, better staff. The staff here is way more know
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Date of stay: April 2023Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip: Good for those looking for a remote quiet vacation.
Hire a driver if you come here.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
Beautiful location and great view from ocean front room. However, disappointing in many ways. Definitely does not compare to other JW Marriott hotels that we have been to. Very remote location requiring a shuttle costing $20 per person for a half hour ride to Tamarindo. Car rental is available on premises. Road is rough and part of it is gravel. Hotel is older but kept up well. Service is friendly but lacking in many ways. Pool is nice and not crowded. Can’t find anyone to serve you drinks or food poolside. Some of the chairs do not work correctly and some have bird poop on them that we had to clean ourselves. The beach is small and the water has volcanic rocks underneath. Towel availability is hit or miss. Who would think that in a hotel costing about $800 per night there would not be pool towels? The restaurants are of poor quality and way overpriced for what you get. Poolside restaurant is good as well as the breakfast buffet. We have been told there are much better choices in hotels in the surrounding area. Tamarindo is wonderful and next time we will stay there.…
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Date of stay: March 2023Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Helpful
PRICE RANGE
$560 - $858 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
jw marriott guanacaste resort & spa costa rica hotel santa cruz, jw marriott guanacaste resort and spa costa rica, jw marriott santa cruz, marriott santa cruz
LOCATION
Costa RicaProvince of GuanacasteTamarindoPlaya Avellanas
NUMBER OF ROOMS
310
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Frequently Asked Questions about JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa
Which popular attractions are close to JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Nearby attractions include Black Stallion Eco Park & Estates (4.9 miles), Papaya Con Leche (3.6 miles), and Spa Maya (3.5 miles).
What are some of the property amenities at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include a pool, an on-site restaurant, and a lounge.
Which room amenities are available at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Top room amenities include a minibar, air conditioning, and a flat screen TV.
What food & drink options are available at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Guests can enjoy an on-site restaurant, a lounge, and a poolside bar during their stay.
Is parking available at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Yes, free parking and valet parking are available to guests.
What are some restaurants close to JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Conveniently located restaurants include La Oveja Surf House, HiR Fine Dining, and Black Stallion Ranch Style BBQ.
Are there opportunities to exercise at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Yes, guests have access to a pool, a fitness center, and a sauna during their stay.
Is JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa located near the city center?
Yes, it is 0.5 miles away from the center of Playa Avellanas.
Are any cleaning services offered at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
Yes, dry cleaning and laundry service are offered to guests.
Does JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa offer any business services?
Yes, it conveniently offers meeting rooms, a banquet room, and conference facilities.
Which languages are spoken by the staff at JW Marriott Hotel Guanacaste Resort & Spa?
The staff speaks multiple languages, including English and Spanish.