Hotel is more of a 3*. Quite far away from the main strip of restaurants / main town. About $12 cab journey each way. Bathrooms need updating Housekeeping upon request only. We were shocked to come home to find our room door open, unattended, being cleaned, without being requested. Super helpful reception staff and very responsive on WhatsApp. Food at onsite restaurant was okay. Would recommend outside restaurants Breakfast staff were extremely slow and seemed to prio people who spoke spanish.
This was my second visit, first was five years ago. There have been changes and new ownership. Every member of the staff here was so nice and helpful, that why I give it four stars instead of three. We were greeted warmly at reception and told that we must make reservations for breakfast and dinner. We made early ones for next day, luckily they had slots because we had an early tour. We were able to get early dinner reservations for that evening. I must have made a mistake booking room. Last time I had a bed down and one up on second floor. This time, we had two bedrooms on lowest floor in a cramped room . The wood floors are slippery, last time signs asked you to take shoes off. I only mention this because the herd of elephants in room above us were active at night and woke me at 5 am each morning. Very loud, impolite. The second morning, there was no water pressure for showers. It was okay after several hours, but certainly inconvenient. We considered moving rooms, but they were booked solidly. There was coffee in rooms, but no creamer. They told us to go to restaurant for milk ( a long walk) I was surprised that the upstairs bar and large dining room are closed at dinner. We had dinner in the “ sports bar” which is a cozy room with a nice fireplace. Televisions were silent, but showed soccer games. Anna and Oscar were our servers and were terrific. Dinner was delicious. Breakfast, on the other hand was disappointing. The buffet is gone. You order from a limited menu. Each diner gets a plate with 2 slices each of watermelon, papaya and pineapple.CR breakfast had beans and rice, plantains and choice of eggs. American breakfast was eggs, bacon and toast. I had each. First day, I had CR..I had to ask twice for Lizano sauce, the eggs weren’t seasoned . I never got the water I asked for, nor a refill on coffee. Anna and Oscar were overworked trying to serve the full breakfast room. If you wanted an extra side, it was $6. They had no croissants or pastries. The hash browns were actually potato wedges, there was no catsup or sauce on table. Second day, we had to book a later time slot. I got American breakfast because I was craving sugar and it had a tiny container of preserves. I don’t eat bacon, but they didn’t sub. My husband got pancakes and got a tiny container of syrup, but they did bring him another. They should offer at least 2-3 or a small pitcher! Every item should be offered on side, and they need to add some sweets! Granola and yogurt was other option. We actually skipped breakfast on our last day and bought some delicious banana bread from coffee shop down the road. The pool was too cold on my first visit, but was a good temperature this time. They have a pool bar with Happy hour advertised , but nobody was working there. Best spot at hotel is the deck on second floor, it’s a nice place to watch sunset and the grounds are beautiful. It is a bit remote, but we hiked to the park and the .9 miles to La Bosque restaurant. There are taxis and buses which go to town. It’s a bad stretch of road to hotel, but no worse than many in this otherwise perfect country!…
Beautiful hotel and setting. However , we found the rooms to be unpractical with very slippery floors, no hanging space for towels or clothes. Housekeeping had to be requested and the toilets didn’t flush properly. Disappointing after such good first impressions.
Spacious tidy green grounds host the hotel buildings, plus a 600m walking trail. The room we had was large with a lovely wooden smell and green views. The bathroom was very modern with nice toiletries. Breakfast was off a short menu and very fresh, though allow time for it to be made; this restaurant also had beautiful green views. The taverna was cosy for an evening drink + meal by the fire.
The staff was very accommodating and beds were comfortable. Loved watching the world from our balcony and taking walks on the trail and using the spa. It was chilly when we were there but we still used the pool once. The 2 hot tubs were wonderful and food delicious! Extensive menu as well!
We had the best few days staying at this hotel. We visited as part of a multi- location visit to Costa Rica. On arrival, the hotel staff were so accommodating as it was our honeymoon. We stayed in one of the brand new rooms, which was immaculate and had beautiful views across the gardens and trees. We are at both the restaurant and the bar - both menus were very reasonably priced with a great selection of food. We also loved the bar menu and cocktails on offer. We used the spa during our stay - the staff didn’t speak much English but the massages we had were brilliant and priced comparably to what you’d pay in a U.K. spa. Highly recommend for a quiet hotel off the beaten track, that encourages you to enjoy each others company!
We stayed here as a family for Christmas, 2 grandparents, two parents and two children. The rooms were lovely, spacious and newly refurbished. The staff delightful and the food very good. The children loved the large pool and jacuzzis.
I have to admit my expectations were low based on the reviews, however, my experience was was nothing but fabulous. The front desk staff were pleasant, welcoming and efficient. The restaurant staff were fabulous (especially Freddie!!!!). The pool was just downright fun! The entire team made us feel very special. The rooms were very clean. Our room is apparently next on the renovation list however it was just fine. I have never experienced a more perfect sunset than from my room. Fonda Vela staff … thank you for a very memorable part of our Costa Rican adventure … I hope to return one day.
We stayed at this place for 3 nights, a very tired looking hotel. In need of a lot of TLC, the pelvis in the middle of nowhere, when checked in we had to change our room 3 times before settling in. The swimming pool could do with some refurbishment the only good thing about this place is the grounds are nice .
Stayed for 3 nights. The staff are lovely, the hotel is not. It is generally tired and dilapidated. Part of the pool roof fell off during our stay, we had a room with a cracked sink and many tiles broken on the roof. All staying there when we were there felt similar. The best thing was the bus out! There is some refurbishment work going on, they start at 5am…
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