Perfectly situated on Costa Rica's Pacific Coast along Playa Esterillos Este, between Jaco Beach and Manuel Antonio, Alma del Pacifico is a luxury Costa Rica hotel featuring beachfront Caribbean hotel rooms and suites, a three-meal restaurant, full-service spa and a variety of exciting vacation activities. With distinct architecture and art, an extensive array of amenities and superb personal service, Alma del Pacifico Hotel is the premier luxury hotel in Costa Rica. A great alternative for luxury travelers wanting to visit Manuel Antonio while being on the beach.
If you just want to take a deep breath, relax and just have a good time, this is the place for you. A very beautiful, lovingly maintained, quiet complex awaits you, everything is very clean. The complex is guarded around the clock, access to the free parking lot is supervised. The beachfront bungalow offered all the amenities you could wish for. Generously furnished, nice bathroom, king-size double bed with good bedding, functional air conditioning. Very nice, direct view of the Pacific Ocean. On the table a wonderful flower arrangement and very fine, fresh fruit. Free WiFi worked well. Very nice pool and wellness area, which was well shaded by palm trees. The hotel's own restaurant offered a generous, fine selection of delicacies. For dinner, a wonderful ambience, subtle lighting, the sound of the sea, great! A long, clean sandy beach invites you to take an evening stroll, a wonderful sunset every evening. Watch out for the tides. Because of or thanks to the waves, there is no mass tourism here. There are no boats sailing around, no lifeboats, and no beach lifeguards. The sea is always rough, but still inviting for swimming, with the water temperature feeling like 28 degrees Celsius. But watch out for the current. There are numerous other restaurants and pizzerias on nearby Route 34.
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Date of stay: March 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
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We enjoyed the stay. Apartments are stylish, rather big, with a small kitchen, two showers (one is outside), private terrace, and a closed private garden. The breakfast was delicious, as well as the dinner we had (33$/p.p with freshly squeezed juice). Two pools that could be used 7/24h. Very quite. One h till Manuel Antonio. A nice place.
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Date of stay: June 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Parking is free on the property.
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Alma del Pacifico is a superb property. Each room is artistically appointed, has an amazing indoor (and adjacent) outdoor shower. The sitting area, kitchenette, bedroom and bathrooms were all immaculate, spacious and well lit . Each unit has a privacy/ security wall that offers guests the option of locking the gate. This feature offers complete privacy in the units outdoor sitting areas, and interior rooms. This property is well maintained. Any issues with rooms or landscaping are immediately addressed. When the housekeeper discovered a small drip from the air conditioning unit, it was immediately repaired The staff is the most professional and accommodating anywhere! From initial contact with reservations, through check-in, check-out every facet of the hotel experience is flawless. Evelyn, the reservations manager can tackle any travel challenge you may encounter. She is amazing. You will be treated like royalty at this property.
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Date of stay: August 2022
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:The beachfront units are truly fabulous. The units without beach views are well appointed and...
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.
On arrival , this resort appears to be paradise. Bright colours, appealing modern art, our room, a bungalow, large with its own little garden and a choice of showering inside or outside. The greeting by Carolina was warm and helpful. The Pacific ocean here shows its wild and beautiful side – and a grey sandy beach which goes on for miles and miles. The restaurant and bar with its ceiling fans and views of the sea were perfectly placed. But we had three nights here – nearly four days, and the holes quickly started to show, mostly being in the restaurant. As we had no car – and taxis are unfortunately far away and very costly apparently – we had no real choice but to eat in the restaurant for 3 days running and by the end of our stay we had enough. The food was below mediocre. Soggy chips, extremely oily and almost inedible pesto pasta. The best thing we tried was the steak sandwich – and the Alma salad. These were fine. Service was slow and inefficient – we had to keep flagging the waiter or waitress down to ask for anything. And when we did ask – they often brought the wrong thing! Chocolate ice cream requested – Vanilla ice cream brought – twice. (Ice cream also very good by the way). It feels like a management issue here. When you sit on chaise lounges by the pool or the sea in a resort – I would expect the option of ordering a cold drink or sandwich or something – but no one is around in these places. Empty. So it’s a DIY thing – and there are no chaise cushions, just hard netting – I ended up bringing a pillow from the room just to support my head when reading, as the chaise doesn’t go fully upright. It was the little details that let this place down. It is a beautiful place and if we would have had transport – other options to eat would have helped our stay - the accommodation is lovely –and it would be fine if you could eat elsewhere. Some service by the pool and the beachside lounges would be welcome too.
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Date of stay: April 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip 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.
This hotel is set in beautiful grounds overlooking the Pacific. You can walk for miles along unspoilt beach, relax in the shade of the palms and enjoy the chilled atmosphere. The ambiance is lively, with a nice balance of families and couples - all ages groups catered for. Happy hour and the lovely menu meant that we did not feel the need to stray, although there are some nice local shops 5 mins drive away for gifts and essentials. Special thanks to Freddy and Juanito for making us feel so welcome.
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Date of stay: November 2024Trip 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.
I have been to Alma Hotel several times for breakfast and lunch and the food was delicious so my BFF and I decided to have a girls night and stay at the hotel. We were quite disappointed. I don't know if they have a new chef but the food was not nearly as good as it used to be. The room was lovely and well maintained. It was very hot outside and my friend and I were really looking forward to swimming in their beautiful pools but the water was very warm - like a jacuzzi. Really awful. I spoke to the front desk about it but they made a lot of excuses. When I asked for some sort of compensation as the pool is a huge part of their hotel and why we were there, they credited me 35.00 on a total bill of $700.00. We toured another hotel down the street and their pool was cool and so nice. Sadly, last time for me at Alma.
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Date of stay: April 2024
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Traveled with friends
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.
The rooms are very spacious and beautiful, romantic and with an excellent view of the sea. Each room is separated from each other, and that gives a good feeling of privacy and tranquility. The staff is very friendly and attentive, from the reception to the restaurant. I am looking forward to staying here again on my next visit to the peaceful center of the country.
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Date of stay: October 2022
Value
Location
Service
Trip 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.
Beautiful grounds and views of the beach and ocean. Each private bungalow is large with an indoor and outdoor shower, however, only one sink. The decor is colorful and everything is built on concrete. The beds are rock hard, unfortunately, and there are no coverings on the windows, however, the hotel will supply eye masks if you request them.
You will see LOTs of geckos and it is likely they will get into your room at some point. There are also many bugs, also likely to get into your room. It is a tropical location, so that should be expected. When we went we did encounter biting flies and the bites are very itchy. You will also see LOTs of iguanas around the property sitting in the sun and they can be quite close to you which is cool, but be aware if that would be a problem for you.
The beach is beautiful black sand, flat and quiet. We were with our adult children and they indicated it was the best beach they have ever been on. You can play in the ocean during low tide and can go out quite far and it remains level and you are still only waist high. High tide brings strong rip-tides and being in the water is not recommended. The sand is very hot during the main part of the day so bring water shoes to walk on it. Good shelling, but watch for land mines as they do allow horse back riding on the beach.
The restaurant is good and offers a large menu for each meal, however, the menu doesn't change. There are one or two other places to eat in the area, but not a lot of options if you don't have a car to get to other towns. This is a great place to enjoy the beach, ocean and the sun.
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Date of stay: March 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip 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.
Very nice facility with a strange pricing policy! You pay a lot of money for the room, breakfast is included... but only one component. On the first day you have to order everything, the next day these things suddenly appeared. A week later we were there again, paid twice as much for the room and suddenly there was even more at breakfast and you had to order less.... $130 for a load of washing machine is also a bit excessive! But the location and the rooms are great!
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.
The hotel is in a quiet location, away from the tourist areas in the area. A long beach invites you to go for a walk on the beach. The resort is guarded by a security guard at the entrance. Beautiful garden with lots of flowers, birds. Two pools, unfortunately not that clean. We had a bungalow with a sea view. We were able to cover the sea view with a curtain - which was good because the beach is public. Beautiful bungalow - standard for the price range. Breakfast was different (although included in the price) - once with extras, once without. Dinner was overpriced. Although there is a small mall nearby, the operator (rightly) assumes that many people don't want to drive in the evenings.
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Date of stay: May 2024Trip 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.
Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida11 contributions4 helpful votes
I’d rent a car. It gives you much more flexibility. The hotel has a guarded gate, so the car is safe at night. Advice: stick to the main roads. If you see at local road that appears shorter don’t take it, as the conditions can be dangerous
Central Florida, Florida68 contributions25 helpful votes
The only number I have for the resort is 506-2778-7070, but I don't know if that's still current. I think that the main international airport in San Jose would be the one people would generally use.
Water temperature is ideal. Water is nice. There are rip tides before & after the high and low tides. Hotel will give you a briefing on when to be on the look out for them.Whether for this trip or some other, you should learn how to escape a riptide. It is really easy. Let it carry you out past the last sand bar and swim parallel to the beach for a little while and come back in ... it's basically just a short fast river staight off the beach that dissipates as soon as it hits a little bit deeper water. Nobody with ocean savvy ever drowns in a riptide. Other than the riptide strong currents along the beach can be found here. This too is not really a problem. Swim and play in the water and then come in and walk back up the beach to are you started. People who don't know anything about the ocean are terrified by the rip tide warnings but there's really no point in that.
There are more places to choose from in the Esterillos Este area.
PRICE RANGE
$236 - $389 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
xandari by the pacific hotel, xandari by the pacific resort
FORMERLY KNOWN AS
Xandari by the Pacific
LOCATION
Costa RicaProvince of PuntarenasEsterillos Este
NUMBER OF ROOMS
20
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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