Arenal Kioro Suites & Spa - European Plan

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

2247 reviews

• 

  Dream hotel with stunning view

  A dream hotel with a direct view of the volcano, which we were lucky enough to see, as it is often hidden by clouds. Inside the property, total relaxation prevails. The two restaurants offer a wide variety of options, and the breakfast has an incredible selection of items. The hotel, in addition to having a gym and a game room with billiards and ping-pong, features a charming garden where you can encounter coatis, monkeys, and a variety of birds, a beautiful patio, and an enchanting cascade of hot pools to relax in after a day of excursions. Our room was very large and beautiful. I would suggest installing a lower showerhead, as otherwise the water feels lukewarm, and setting the air conditioning to a slightly higher temperature, since at 16°C it can feel excessive.

  Jan 16, 2026
• 

  Disappointing experience.

  Hotel Arenal Kioro was our 3rd hotel stop on our Costa Rica tour, the largest of the hotels we had chosen so far, the highest class and the most disappointing. The hotel is well situated in close proximity to the Arenal volcano and all rooms have excellent views of the volcano, it is a round 20-25 minutes outside of La Fortuna. We had a very nice welcome, a fruit drink and an overview of the facilities, restaurant times and a map of the site, we were advised that no matter where your room is you are only a minutes walk away from the central hub, this is not strictly true! If you are rooms 800 and above it is 3-4 minutes not a hardship by any means - but why not just say that from the outset! We were also advised that some parts of the pathways were not very well lit and that it would be advisable to use a flashlight or phone torch - this is sound advice, some areas are very dark and the paths undulate a lot and are uneven. Given that it is necessary to warn people about this, it would seem sensible to add some additional lighting. The grounds are very well kept and very pretty to walk around. Our room was very large with 2 king beds and a day bed to the rear, separate shower room, bathroom and hot tub-there are hot tubs in all rooms, which is a nice touch. The room was kept very clean and was well presented with towel art and flowers on the bed. The rooms however are quite dark, in fact the hotel itself is quite gloomy, particularly the reception area. There is a small swimming pool and a collection of thermal pools of varying temperatures. A large pool area restaurant serves lunches and drinks. This area is not very inviting and there was no atmosphere here at all. The staff at this restaurant were often grouped together in 3s/4s and were very loud and they were not very customer centric. On one occasion one gentleman who had brought us our drinks returned to take our food order and simply stood at our table and made some kind of quizzical ‘hmm, hmm?’ sound which we took to mean-are you ready to order or can I take your order! 🤣 The food here however was very good, with plenty of choices for everyone, I can recommend the buffalo wings. In general we did not find any of the staff here friendly or amenable- restaurant, ground staff, front desk, concierge-we could not decide if they were simply a bit rude, disinterested or had some kind of superior manner because of the perceived level of hotel it was, but it was deeply out of context with our experience in ALL the other hotels we had been in (and have been in since) and indeed restaurants and parks we had visited on our travels through the country, so it was extremely noticeable. I attended reception one morning to check on when our laundry might be available to pick up and was met with a curt ‘Can I help you’ from the same guy who had so effusively welcomed us at check in, no ‘good morning’, no ‘how are you’. In fact our laundry was ready and apparently we were not in our room when they attempted to deliver it so they had squashed everything into a paper bag and left it at reception -much of it was completely screwed up and needed re-ironing, (I have pictures!!) Breakfast is a buffet in the main restaurant - there are plenty of choices to suit most tastes and an omelette station. Service here for tea and coffee is a bit haphazard. There is a separate bar, but on almost every occasion we passed by it was empty and when we visited, we were the only couple in there. It is quite difficult to feel any atmosphere at this hotel, it seems to struggle for an identity. One thing I also noticed here in stark contrast to all of our other Costa Rican hotels, is that the bins for soiled toilet paper are completely uncovered, everywhere else we have been, including park toilets and restaurants, the bins provided have a flip lid or pedal bin closure-in some hotels, including smaller more remote boutique hotels, they had motion sensor operated ones, surely for a larger hotel such as this they could do better than this-it felt unhygienic. This is a long review I know, apologies for that! I have tried to be balanced about the good aspects here and honest about our overall experience of Hotel Arenal Kioro. We would not recommend the hotel for the reasons I have mentioned in my review, particularly service and for the general lack of warmth and atmosphere there.

  Jan 15, 2026
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  Recommended Arenal resort.

  Superbly run lodge near Arenal. Super friendly staff and great well cared for rooms. Grounds are great for walks. Breakfast (included) is outstanding and dining roof staff always has welcoming smiles. Lunch and dinner at the main dining room or pool is very good but is also expensive. To save money you can walk to the main entrance and across the road is a more typical tico restaurant that is good. We just used the hot springs on property as they are great and were fine for our needs.

  Jan 11, 2026
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  Best Resort in the Arenal Area

  This is our return voyage to Kioro. We had such an incredible experience last holiday, we wanted to come back. There’s so much that makes this place the best—not just one thing. 1) The people. Everyone knew every one of our family members’ names. Every day. 2) Their service is excellent. 3) The resort + amenities are exceptional. The rooms are generously sized, all have views, robes, slippers, umbrellas… 4) The hot springs on property are such an incredible treat. Don’t stay at a resort in the area that doesn’t offer this. And unlike some of the larger resorts, no bus-fulls of tourists sharing the pools. 5) The margs use fresh squeezed juice & too shelf tequila & are delivered pool side 6) The buffet breakfast is a highlight 7) The food & options are exceptionally better than anywhere else in town (not going to CR for the food—but theirs is great) 8) Wildlife. Everywhere. All over the property. Birds, sloths, raccoon things that travel in giant packs, monkeys jumping the trees in the distance… 9) Their view of the volcano from every spot on property. On a clear day you can see it puffing steam. 10) Very family friendly. Their social media images show tons of honeymooning couples. We were nervous it wouldn’t be child appropriate. Turns out there were lots of families and they cater generously to children: special drinks, menus and cute towel shapes on the beds after making up the room… We love it here. Best resort in the Arenal area. We’ll definitely be back again.

  Jan 09, 2026
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  Our favorite family vacation

  Came for a second year in a row. Met and exceeded expectations again. Wed highly recommend staying here. The accommodations were great and the staff was incredible.

  Jan 03, 2026