Riu Guanacaste

It was a beautiful place.The architecture was amazing, the structures are visually pleasing with much attention to details such as hand painted ceilings, open spaces, beautiful gardens and landscaping...Exceptionally clean. The room was great, and there was a deep and long soaking tub. The King bed was super comfy. There were many food options to enjoy. The food was delicious with few exceptions. The pools were very good, we enjoyed the in-water tables to rest and relax at. The beach was clean, but the water/surf was a bit much for us, we are accustomed to the calmness of the Caribbean. We did have a few fairly calm days, and the water was just warm and lovely. We went off resort on several adventures, booked from the hotel, that were fantastic. Costa Rica is a very lovely little gem to explore!!

We loved our time at Roy Guanacaste. The rooms, restaurants and grounds were very clean and well maintained. The pool and beach areas were fantastic. Lots of dining options. The food at the buffet in particular was delicious! Staff at all levels were courteous and friendly. The resort is close to the Diamante Eco Park which was excellent. All in all a fabulous stay, would highly recommend!

While we very much enjoyed the beach (way better beach access than RIU Palace by the way) and pool and bar, I do have some comments I would like to share. 1. I wish the pool stayed open later than 6pm! This is the ONLY resort/hotel (all inclusive and non-all inclusive) that I have ever stayed at where the pool closed extremely early! 2. I wish the nightly entertainment finished much earlier than 11pm. Many many people (children and adults) begin resting/sleeping hours before 11pm. Additionally, I wish the volume of the entertainment was not so loud! Therefore by default, my family and I could not sleep until past 11pm due to the noise. This did not allow us very much rest on what should have been a restful vacation. 3. Up to 2 restaurants would be closed for lunch or dinner without any posted notice. I only wish a notice was posted so that we could plan where we would have our meals ahead of time. I do praise the friendliness of the staff and everyone provided excellent service.

I’ll start with what was good, followed by a section of what can be improved upon, followed by a section of what wasn’t so good but can’t be improved upon and close with a brief conclusion. The good: The view and cleanliness of the grounds were great. You’re facing west so it means you’ll enjoy sunsets over the water. The food was decent and food selections were average. The rooms were very good, especially having your own booze bar in the room, complete with liquor bottle dispensary. Most of the staff were very friendly and helpful. The vegetation and wild monkeys at the resort’s edge were a thrill. Take the walk past “The Monkey Bar” and go riight at the T intersection. Go about 100 yards on the right and you’ll see some wild white faced monkeys you can feed up close. It’s a safe thrill. The not so good: Some staff weren’t as friendly as others. You can’t go to the sister Riu resort next door but they can come to your side. Cheap Caribbean advertise this resort as the adults only resort but it is the sister one that is. That said, if you don’t want kids around, travel during a time when they should all be in school. The times at which they clean the aisles in the main areas could be changed so that you’re not darting around them. The not so good that can’t be changed: The beach is a black sand volcanic beach that has sections of jagged rocks you may not always be able to see. There are no waves as this resort is in a cove. Most of the ocean view rooms have palm trees obscuring the view of the ocean. The ride to and from the airport is long but worth it. Conclusion: This is a nice resort with good amenities. If you want solitude from children, book the Riu Palace next door. You’ll love the vegetation and wildlife. There is a great variety of bucket list excursions you can take, so I’d recommend you check them out.