Kimkim Trip Reviews for Costa Rica

We fell in love with Costa Rica after joining a G Adventures tour in 2024. We wanted to return, but wanted to visit different areas, with the focus on wildlife, birds and experiencing the forests/jungles/wetlands/national parks. We did not want 5*, all inclusive or private travel where shared travel options were available.
Olman understood our requirements and crafted a wonderful 2 week itinerary for us, and we enjoyed every second of every day - wishing we had arranged a longer visit as our time to depart arrived all too soon.
Our pick up at the airport was perfect, and our overnight accommodation at the Park Inn Hotel was comfortable. Shared transport to Tortuguero was fine, and we thoroughly enjoyed our 2 nights at Pachira Lodge, including the wonderful early morning boat tour. (We would not have wanted to stay in Anhinga lodge, the sister to Pachira). The buffet breakfasts, lunch and dinner were all very tasty with plenty of choices. Lunches at El Ceibo were fine.
The transfer to Sarapiqui Rainforest Lodge was very comfortable, in shared transport (often we were the only 2 passengers when using shared transport). The Lodge was particularly beautiful with a very picturesque 'wild' pool. The location was perfect for our trip to La Selva Biological Station and, of all our drivers and transport, the lady who collected and drove us was absolutely wonderful. She was full of knowledge, information and very charming and so kind and helpful, she was the best, I am just sorry that I don't recall her name. La Selva is a fascinating place - we barely scratched the surface of all there is is to see and do there. Whilst staying at The Sarapiquis Rainforest Lodge we were able to walk to 'Dave and Dave's' to watch birdlife very close up in a perfect natural setting. Highlights included the hundreds of hummingbirds feeding on Heliconia flowers, within feet of us. Dave Jnr, the host is a fountain of knowledge and no more than 6 people can visit at a time (pre-booking essential) so a very individual experience. We would definitely revisit this place. We were also able to walk to the Tirimbina Biological reserve and enjoy a night frog hike which was another amazing experience, seeing night birds and so many frogs with our knowledgeable guide. We loved how accessible Sarapiquis Rainforest Lodge was to all these experiences - perfect for us.
Our transport to Hotel Lavas Tacotal in La Fortuna was excellent and we were blessed with good views of Arenal. Our stay here was fine - as we were out most of the time. Our day trip to Rio Celeste and Tenorio Volcano National Park was fabulous. En route we stopped to rescue a sloth that was trying to cross the busy highway - our guide picked it up and carried it to safety, placing it on a tree on the other side of the road. We ended up with a bonus visit to a chocolate/coffee farm and a sloth farm where we came across a tapir. We also came across 3 eyelash pit vipers - our guide was able to share the importance of safe distance.
The drive to Natural Canon Negro Lodge was private transport, and very comfortable. The lodge itself is in a lovely location and we ended up doing a second boat trip in the afternoon to a different section of the wetlands - what a treat. We would love to return to explore more of the wetlands at Cano Negro, as the map indicates the wetlands cover a very large area.
Our trip to Rincon, again private, took longer as the more direct road was impassable and we were advised to go via La Fortuna, making it a long drive. Buena Vista Lodge was excellent, and again the location of our room with unspoilt views over the valley was perfect. There were many trails we could walk ourselves and we thoroughly enjoyed with hot springs. Again birds, wildlife, sunrises and sunsets could not be beaten. The buffet breakfasts were excellent.
Our drive to Tamarindo was on time, and comfortable, as was the hotel. The Wyndham Hotel had wonderful sunrise and sunset views with a regular shuttle bus to and from town, though we discovered a dusty track through the dry forest down to town where we could enjoy the amazing bird life, monkeys and even a Grey Fox. We enjoyed a roof top meal in Tamorindo as the sun went down and another on the beach where we were treated to a fire show. The Sunset catamaran tour was great, though snorkelling was curtailed by our guide due to an excess of jelly fish in the sea at that time - however we enjoyed spectacular views of a jumping hump back whale and calf, on both the sail out and return. Quite unbelievable.
We were glad to have had an extra day in Tamarindo, and could have had 3 nights in all our locations (except La Fortuna)!
Our hotels were excellent and all transport was comfortable and reliable (one of our unfounded worries!).
The flight down from Tamarindo to San Jose was perfect, and an interesting experience.

Thank you Olman, we are already planning a return visit in March 2026!!

This was our first trip to Costa Rica and we wanted to sample both the volcanic/rainforest interior and Pacific coastline on a self-drive family vacation. Kimkim were impressive - responsive, knowledgeable and well-connected. Serendipity Adventures were also responsive and deeply knowledgeable. The combination of the two saved us many hours of internet research to jump straight to the best accommodation (that we would likely never have found), what to spend time on and setting up a wonderful, tailored itinerary.
Our 'small group' adventure day in the Arenal volcano area turned out to be a private tour for just our family with a superb guide, Mariano, who was full of information and insights that really enhanced our experience.
What made the experience really special is that we didn't just get an itinerary with vehicle, activity and accommodations, we got one on one support throughout our trip. Our advisor, Elena, was incredibly responsive and followed up to make sure that everything was going well. This personal support took a lot of potential stress and uncertainty away. We stayed in three different resort-style hotels that were all fantastic, allowing us to sample different areas, but also to relax and spend quality time together as a family.
For anyone not looking for package tours, but also not wanting to go it completely alone, with some local guidance and expertise, Kimkim and Serendipity are great.

Everything was made super simple with kimkim. Truly a relaxing experience! Would definitely consider usingthese services again.

Hotel Reviews

Amor Arenal

La Fortuna, San Carlos

Authenticity & Character

Location

Very private, lots of lush jungle

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Wyndham

Tamarindo

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Ruben the supervisor was awesome!

Cleanliness & Comfort

The coffee was meh, no espresso options and if you want drip coffee outside of breakfast hours it’s very expensive.

Activity Reviews

Canyoning in Arenal

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Food

The chicken was excellent!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Sunset Catamaran Tour

Costa Rica

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Transfer for Passenger Leaving Early

Costa Rica

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Serendipity Adventures in Costa Rica were wonderful! They texted us daily with reminders of the schedule, gave personal recommendations for restaurants, and handled all our questions that came up. The team of Holden, Wilman, and Nancy were excellent.

All tours through the parks were fantastic. We were guided by Oscar, Bernie, and others who were so knowledgable. The accommodations were spectacular. We highly recommend Hotel Lomas del Volcan, Cloud Forest Lodge (with a 5 star restaurant), and La Mariposa with panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean.

We had an amazing itinerary for a 10 day vacation to Costa Rica put together by Holden on the serendipity adventures team! They were very prompt with replies to all of our itinerary change requests, and ensured we were 100% satisfied prior to booking. We loved the activities they booked for us and the shuttle services were always on time and very convenient!

Hanging bridges, flowers, ferns, tree roots!above ground, very walkable terrain, I loved that we avg. 4 miles / hike😊 snakes, frogs, crocodiles, stopping to look over a bridge where I counted 14 crocs sun bathing! The flower I could squeeze and smell a delightful fragrance!Sorkeling and all the great food!!

We went to Costa Rica for a combination of chill time along with wildlife.

Holden and team did a nice job with that balance, planned activities with enough 'chill' time so we never felt especially rushed.

I really appreciated that they assigned a person, Wilman, that we were in contact with on a almost daily basis via what's app. He helped us a number of times (including my wife got sick and we thought she might need to see someone. . It turns out she was fine but Wilman was useful in researching our options if we had needed it), he also checked in every day or so to make sure we knew what was next (and in a few cases alerting us to a change in plans due to weather).

Overall our trip was great. We really enjoyed good weather, had fun beach time and saw a ton of animals.

Hotel Reviews

Aguas Claras

Puerto Viejo

Oh my god -- It is a bit of Heavanin an otherwise busy area with a semi-private beach and amazing service. Huge rooms with outdoor showers, yes!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Poas Volcano Lodge

Vara Blanca

This is a cool, kind of funky place. We were only there one night (which is probably about as much time as you'll want to spend.. it was cold!) but enjoyed it. If you go read the history of this place... it's pretty interesting.

Cloud Forest Lodge

Monteverde

Great views, nice rooms, nice restaurant & bar area with amazing sunsets over the pacific ocean (or, depending on the weather you can watch clouds envelop the forest below) It's a bit of adventure to get here (windy roads that with lots of potholes) but it's worth it once you arrive!

Hotel Bosque del Mar

Playa Hermosa

Amazing location that is right on the beach. Rooms were spacious but they kind of looked into each other (Our balcony was sort of looking into someones bedroom) -- Not a problem as such but just worth noting. The beach access is amazing though, don't bother with the breakfast ($60 per person for a buffet!?) -- we went to a local place or just up to the market to get some staples. The bar was nice for lunch/dinner though and reasonable.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Volcano Lodge, Hotel & Thermal Experience

San Carlos, Alajuela

This place is a resort style -- they have really nice grounds and that are well managed with plenty of tropical plants and a pretty active bird population who live there. Our unit had a private plunge pool heated by the thermal activity which was super nice -- we used it twice a day to relax (it was a really nice upgrade)

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Tirimbina Rainforest Lodge

Sarapiquí

It's a pretty basic place in the middle of the rainforest (which, I guess makes it sort of exceptional in a lot of ways). This is a less touristy area and your choices are more limited. We rather enjoyed our stay with a patio outside and howler monkeys screaming in the morning. The rooms are, I guess you would say "Functional", and the restaurant area is sort of basic but you don't come here for the 5 start accommodations so it's fine.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Arenal Volcano & 1968 Reserve Guided Hike

Arenal/La Fortuna

Of all of this things we did on our two week trip this was, by far, the most disappointing. You go up to an area and walk among the old lava flow but it's not really that remarkable(?) -- it's a rocky terrain with plants that are growing back (to the extent that it's hard to notice it was a lava flow in 1968 -- that is sort of interesting in how fast the plants have come back) then you walk back around a somewhat unremarkable lake. This was also the largest group thing we did (maybe 30 people -- they had two guides so maybe ~15 people per guide) but even if it had been private it would have been pretty unremarkable. The guide told us he's only seen the volcano clearly twice -- He's probably been doing it for at least 1 year (probably 2) so.. yea.....

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Guided Hike

Monteverde

The reserve only let's in a limited number of people (200?) but we were in the guided group so we got in easily. We had to get there early to check in and they bus you to the reserved (maybe a 5 minute drive). The guide did is good job of describing the wildlife and was good at showing us flora and fauna.

Kayak Adventure & Rainforest Hike in Punta Uva

Puerto Viejo de Talamanca

Amazing kayak on the river.. It's a super slow river (almost a lake!) so it doesn't take much effort to Kayak either direction - It is also popular for kayaking so there were other people but it really wansn't too crowded. We saw sloths, alligators, a lot of turtles, bats, birds. After the Kayak the guide took us on a short hike (probably about 45 minutes) -- I was initially thinking we could probably skip the walk but I'm glad I didn't -- a ton more wildlife and some really nice views so well worth it.

Countryside Horseback Ride

Monteverde

This is a real farm -- you drive up and there are dogs, random chickens and donkeys walking around and the folks who work there are basically the farmers -- only a few spoke English but it was a really fun experience. The day we went was spectacular as we tromped through the cloud forest with the dogs running with us and we even got to see them manage some cattle (with the dogs) at one point as they were blocking the way. Yummy snack at the end for a really authentic experience.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Morning Sailing and Snorkeling Adventure

Costa Rica

A super chill day on a boat with some swimming and cave exploring.

Coffee & Chocolate Tour

Costa Rica

There are a lot of coffee/chocalte tours and I thought it would be sort of forumalic but our tour guide was really good energy and it was fun to do the tour (even though it's a bit touresty it didn't feel like it) The place had an amazing set of wild birds who were flying around which was also a lot of fun. We were two adults and had a blast but you could bring even young kids and I think they would enjoy themselves.

Horseback Riding to the Waterfall

Arenal/La Fortuna

we enjoyed the riding and the horses and gear were well cared for. The hike down to the waterfall is steep (but doable) -- I would suggest you bring a pair of water shoes if you want to cross the river.

Privately Guided Naturalist Hike at La Selva Biological Station

Sarapiquí

This is an all day session with guides who are experienced. We had a private tour and the guide had an apprentice who was in training so four of us total. He really had a good understanding of the wildlife and was great at finding them with his monucular.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Night Excursion in Rainforest and Wild Frog Sanctuary

Arenal/La Fortuna

I love night walks and this was no exception - -- Pretty much all we saw were frogs but that is OK since there are a lot of fun frogs to spot.

Our trip to Costa Rica was such a great experience thanks to KimKim with guidance from Holden! Really appreciated him taking the time to meet with us, walk us through options, make adjustments to the itinerary and activities based on our interest and physical level. We were able to book a trip with only a couple of months with a maximized schedule. Loved every detail in the trip, the places we went, the hotels booked and the ease to attend all the activities. Really appreciated the KimKim team.

Hotel Reviews

Arenal History Inn

Arenal

Really liked this spot overall. It's just right off the highway and the noise from all the traffic, especially motorbikes, makes it really hard to sleep. I think guests should know that going in. It is a beautiful location with great breakfast and amenities.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Right off the main road

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Karahé Beach Hotel

Manuel Antonio

By far the best view in a stay on vacation! We stayed in bungalow #8 and while the stairs are a killer, that view was worth it every time. Loved this spot in relation to the overall town layout, the proximity to other bars, restaurants and the Manuel Antonio National Park

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hampton by Hilton San José Airport

Alajuela

It's a standard Hampton hotel. Overall it's good, not great.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

El Establo Mountain Hotel

Monteverde

This place is beautiful and in a great setting! The wind up there really gets to high MPH, so the door on the back patio really rattles through the night. Still a great spot to stay. Great food too!

Authenticity & Character

Location

It's on a mountain with incredible views!

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

EcoTermales Hot Springs & Meal

Arenal/La Fortuna

A great hot spring and meal overall. We showed up for a night swim and the pools were much larger than expected! A great layout and experience overall.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Arenal Volcano Hike & La Fortuna Waterfall

Arenal/La Fortuna

A beautiful area around Arenal. Great to have a guide! Not a huge fan of the La Fortuna Waterfall due to the amount of people but it was still pretty cool overall.

Quality of Experience

Food

Mariano took us to the Red Frog Cafe and it was delicious!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve Guided Hike

Monteverde

Overall this was pretty cool. We really liked our guide, Elvis, and he did his best to help give a good experience. We definitely had a lot of people in our group and in general there were a lot of people on the pathways with guides. It makes it hard to enjoy parts of the walk.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ocean Kayaking & Snorkeling

Manuel Antonio

Super fun day of kayaking and snorkeling! Great sightings of fish during snorkeling. Loved the entire trip!

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Our first accommodations were unique and comfortable. Mariano was our guide through Serendipity for the Volcano hike and La Fortuna waterfall. He was wonderful. Full of knowledge and personable. Highly recommend.
The coffee and chocolate tour was great!
The Villa Sol hotel was also lovely! The sail/snorkel through Kuna Vela trip was fabulous! Thanks to everyone who helped organize the trip.

Activity Reviews

Arenal Volcano Hike & La Fortuna Waterfall

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Mariano. Knowledge, great personality

Transport

Morning Sailing and Snorkeling Adventure

Costa Rica

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Coffee, Chocolate and Sugar Cane Farm Tour

Arenal/La Fortuna

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

All in all a good trip. Well organized without a hitch on all the connections. Costa Rica itself is amazing, if not a little over sold. A couple of the tours were a bit disappointing, especially the Manual Antonio tour thru the park. Way to many people, to commercial and very little wildlife. Hotels were all good except Monte Verde which had a small room and the Wyndham in San Jose which is very dated with bad (very) beds. An upgrade helped, but this one is questionable. Greg and Gustavo, thanks for all of your work, we would not hesitate to use you again now that we have a better idea of what we might like...
Rick and Simone

We enjoyed a fantastic family trip to Costa Rica! All three locations were fantastic, and the activities really let us see so many different animals. Adam and Jessica were very helpful especially with changing weather conditions right before the trip started!

Hotel Review

Hotel Kokoro Mineral Hot Springs

La Fortuna

Fantastic location, very quiet and peaceful. Easy to get into town and such a spectacular view!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Review

Arenal Volcano Hike & Paradise Hot Springs & Meal

Arenal/La Fortuna

Great hike and our guide was very knowledgeable about the area and the history of the area. The hot springs and meal afterwards was a perfect way to enjoy the evening.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

This was a great way for us to get a feel for Costa Rica and an understanding of the available options for further travel. All of our tour guides were knowledgeable and enthusiastic and their experience and sighting skills made a huge difference to how much we were able to see.

Hotel Reviews

Tenorio Lodge

Bijagua de Upala

Tenorio Lodge was my favorite of our 3 hotels. Small, owner operated and lovingly maintained it had an astonishing array of birds, from Toucans to Baltimore Orioles, coming in to enjoy daily feedings of bananas. Also sported a pair of resident sloths, and a tapir trail through the grounds. We stayed in Cabin #6 which was airy, comfortable and very private. Breakfast was excellent, if we went back we would probably go into Bijagua for dinner--we had a very tasty lunch at El Barrigon.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cloud Forest Lodge

Monteverde

Very attractive hotel with comfortable and stylish room. The grounds right around the hotel were beautifully landscaped but we saw only an occasional hummingbird on the grounds. The trails were not very inviting--poorly marked, and the loop we followed wound along the service side of some of the buildings. The food was excellent, albeit expensive. Staff was helpful and efficient, but felt quite corporate compared to Tenorio Lodge where it felt like a family operation.

Bahia del Sol Hotel

Guanacaste

This hotel had a stunning location right on the beach, and beautifully landscaped grounds-- I found it odd that we didn't see any pollinators on the many tropical blossoms. The reception staff was very helpful. Our standard room was a let down from our first 2 hotels--primarily because it had no windows. The room itself was comfortable and stylish. We liked being able to walk around the town of Potrero Beach and had a couple of nice meals at the Shack and La Forketta.

Activity Reviews

Rio Celeste & Tenorio Volcano Private Hike

Bijagua / Rio Celeste

It was raining, and the only trail open in the park was the waterfall walk, but our guide gave us a great tour. He spotted several snakes, I tasted a termite, we made it to the waterfall and back. Our driver was extremely attentive to wildlife along the road to the park and stopped so we could get a good look at howler monkeys and a king vulture. The fruit snack at the end of the hike was delicious, and we were delighted when the driver and guide accepted our invitation to lunch on the way back to the lodge.

Day at Selvatura including Hanging Bridges and Fauna Exhibitions

Costa Rica

The hanging bridges walk was a chance to experience the grandeur of the canopy. I enjoyed simply breathing in the surroundings, but we would have understood what we were seeing much better with a guide. I would skip the sloth and reptile displays. The butterfly garden was worth a visit--we had a particularly good guide for the Fauna exhibits who had a special interest in insects. The next day we booked a last minute tour at the Monteverde Biological reserve, which I highly recommend. It was a nice complement to the canopy walk at Selvatura.

Palo Verde National Park Safari Cruise with Lunch

Costa Rica

This is remote--we enjoyed seeing the countryside, but it was a long time in the car. The boat tour itself was excellent, and the captain was very skilled at spotting wildlife and maneuvering the boat in close for a good look. It was in our favor that it was low tide and there was a breeze. The lunch and stops at a community center with a craft stand run by single moms as well as a stop to see traditional pottery were both quite interesting and a nice change from many of the souvenir shops with made in China goods.

Overall Comments.
We had a fabulous three weeks holiday due very much to the quality of Kim Kim’s itinerary planning, logistics organization, the quality of the operators and tour guides employed and the on-going communication and support to us throughout the trip by Kim Kim.
Trail damage and mud due to heavy rains prior to our trip or on several days during our trip, forced some limited rescheduling of tours but in all cases tour operators (and we) adapted without problems.

Kim Kim Organization
Kim Kim organization of our itinerary and communication with us was first class. Gustavo was very responsive to our concerns and suggestions in crafting our itinerary. Greg did a fabulous job of attending to the details and building this into our on-line itinerary. The scheduling of a Skype type call with us just shortly before our trip was very helpful in our preparations.

Kim Kim Support.
Greg’s availability throughout the trip to clarify issues was reassuring.

Locations Visited.
We were very happy with all locations visited and, with one exception, the amount of time spent in each. With advanced information on the closure of the Tortuguero Hill trail which evidently had been closed for around two months because of a fallen tree, a day less in Tortuguero would have been appropriate.

Tours.
All the tours organized by Kim Kim and the guides they employed were first class. Of the self guided days that we had built into our itinerary as efforts to cut down on costs or take a break, the Day 1 Cahuita Park trek and the three days in San Jose worked out well. Because of the mud situation with the jungle hike in Gandoca Manzanillo Refuge the Exploradores guide, Rodriguo made an excellent substitute by taking us kayaking. We loved that experience. The Tortuguero Hill trail was closed so we organized our own water taxi to San Francisco and that was perfectly fine. Making a self guided trek to the Arenal Volcano proved impractical because of the isolated location of the Lost Iguana Resort so we took a tour of the Arenal Volcano through the hotel. The English language skills of the guide were nowhere near as good as the other guides we had. In Santa Elena we decided taking a tour for the Curi Cancha Reserve was a good investment both for the guiding services and transport to get there. We booked this through Ocotea, the same company as Kim Kim engaged for the Cloud Forest Reserve, and it was a good tour. The San Pedrillo tour in Corcovado was much better for us than the Sirena tour but this was largely because of the fantastic wildlife sightings we made at the first compared with the second (a tapir and a puma up close) and also because of the shorter trip and easier sand beach access of the first. Our sightings on the second day in Sirena were slim and disappointing by comparison but from what we heard about prevalence of wildlife at each location our sighting experiences could easily have been the other way around. The beach embarkation at Sirena at low tide on large rocks as well as long rock slippery shelves had its difficulties for us and the wet shoes we had didn’t help our experience. Flip flops are not an option particularly at Sirena. Unfortunately for Susan one of her Keens’ water shoes had separated at the sole so weren’t usable so she was making do with flip flops which were not advised.

The zip line experience in Santa Elena turned out to be quite a highlight for us. We were nearly going to pull out but after our two test runs and encouragement from the staff, we went ahead with all five more.

Transfers.
The transfers operated and coordinated by Ride CR (almost all) all went off very smoothly. So did our Sansa flights.
The boat trip from Puerto Sierpe to Drake Bay was an hour and a half later than expected (the boat departs at 4pm as opposed to 3pm) and possibly not with the boat and skipper we were expecting. We are not even sure we even met Captain Licho 😊 But it all worked well in the end and we enjoyed the experience. We certainly were happy to have taken this method of getting to Drake Bay rather than an extra two and a half hours by road.

Accommodation.

Hotel Santo Thomas - San Jose.
This proved a great choice for us. The location relative to downtown, to a number of excellent restaurants and a bank was superb. The room was spacious and comfortable with all the amenities we needed. The breakfast was perfectly adequate. The staff were all cheerful and helpful. The price was also excellent.

Umami Hotel - Puerto Viejo.
This hotel was also excellent. A well appointed and nicely decorated room although the mattress on the main bed was not as firm as I would have liked. The staff were friendly and helpful. The location was great. We really enjoyed Puerto Viejo.

Mawamba Lodge - Tortuguero.
This lodge is well located in reasonable proximity to the village and ocean beach. It is well laid out and the pool is great. The ability to walk into the village of Tortuguero was very good. However the hot water in our room was intermittent. Some of the staff could have been more friendly and enthusiastic.

Lost Iguana- Arenal.
This hotel was excellent and staff were universally helpful, friendly and enthusiastic. The food at the property was good and our room excellent. However it was very isolated from La Fortuna and because we didn’t have our own car it cost us US$40 each way to go to La Fortuna and didn’t allow us to eat dinner anywhere else other than the hotel’s restaurant.

Mar Inn - Santa Elena.
This motel, though modest in services and appointments met our needs very well. It was located close to the centre of Santa Elena village.

Rancho Corcovado- Drake Bay.
This motel was a real mixture. We were in a beautiful and huge room that seemed only partially furnished. It had no chairs or tables (other than recliner chairs on the balcony) and no hangers of any description either for clothes or towels

Possible areas for Improvement might be two or three page printed spreadsheet itinerary that was more easily referenced in off-line locations (we created our own). Also, better information on things like the trail closure on Tortuguero Hill would have been good.

Hotel Reviews

Hotel Santo Tomas

San Jose

This proved a great choice for us. The location relative to downtown, a number of excellent restaurants and a bank was superb. The room was spacious and comfortable with all the amenities we needed. The breakfast was perfectly adequate. The staff were all cheerful and helpful. The price was also excellent.

Authenticity & Character

Old tile floors, spacious rooms, high ceilings.

Location

Easily walkable distance to downtown attractions such as the Teatro Nationale and the Museo Nationale, a bank, on the edge of the Barrio Anon district with a number of great restaurants of different cuisine styles and price levels and a number of good souvenir shops.

Staff

Thomas, the owner provided a lot of good advice and all the staff were helpful and friendly.

Cleanliness & Comfort

The bed was firm and very comfortable.

Lost Iguana Resort & Spa

Fortuna

The Lost Iguana Resort & Spa was a fabulous experience with beautiful surroundings and great amenities. However, its location half an hour outside of La Fortuna with no public transport made things a bit difficult. Getting to town required a cab ride, which was quite costly at $40 USD each way, making it less convenient to explore local dining options. It's a great place to stay if you're not planning on heading into town frequently.

Activity Review

Corcovado National Park Hike from San Pedrillo Ranger Station

Drake Bay

The Corcovado National Park Hike from San Pedrillo Ranger Station was an incredible experience. Being in a small group was a significant advantage, allowing for a more personal and quiet exploration of the park. We were extremely lucky with our wildlife sightings, getting up close to a tapir and a puma, which was unforgettable. Despite some wet access on the boats and rocky terrains, this activity was a highlight of the trip due to the amazing wildlife and scenery.

I was impressed with KimKim from beginning to end. I worked with Olman to plan our itinerary and everything went like clockwork. All our transfers were arranged and on time. Our tours were scheduled and went off flawlessly. We stayed in wonderful lodges/hotels with no issues. We visited three areas of beautiful Costa Rica -La Fortuna, Monteverde and Manuel Antonio. Our itinerary allowed us to experience waterfalls, safari river float and hot springs in La Fortuna, cloud forests, hanging bridges hike and horseback riding in Monteverde and beach time in Manuel Antonio. In Manuel Antonio, we watched monkeys from our balcony while staying at the Jungle Vista Boutique Hotel. I Gracia from KimKim checked in us while we were in Costa Rica. Because of rain we had canceled one tour and she wanted to see if we were ok. She also answered questions I had about our departure so we felt well taken care of while there. I highly recommend KimKim and am a very satisfied customer.

All the individual guides and drivers were very good, especially those on the Rio Celeste hike, they were very thoughtful in dealing with the rainy weather. The accommodations were each very different, Tenorio Lodge had exceptional wildlife and birds.

From our first interaction with Gustavo, we were impressed! Kimkim arranged our perfect trip after inquiring about our interests and preferences. We were easily able to modify our trip when our circumstances changed.

The vacation itself was perfect. The hotels were amazing and the transfers from one locale to another went seamlessly. Each and every driver was friendly, informative, and accommodating. When our trips were long, our drivers suggested fabulous lunch spots! The activities Gustavo suggested were amazing from the hikes through the rainforest and cloud forest to the catamaran cruise, where we snorkeled and spotted a pod of humpback whales. Over the two week adventure, we enjoyed spotting caiman, sloths, monkeys, crocodiles, raccoons, an anteater, pit vipers, and a plethora of colorful birds! This was truly the trip of a lifetime!

Working with Elena and Wilman from KimKim team was amazing. We had a great vacation which was tailored to what we were looking for from the vacation.
Starting with the itinerary creation, the process was very collaborative and Elena took a lot of time to ensure we minimized travel time by traversing the country in the right order, got the hotel choices that met our expectations of luxury and booked activities that we would enjoy as a family.
Once the journey started Wilman was a great day to day contact, checking in our us, ensuring everything was smooth and as per our expectations. He also helped with last minute taxi bookings. We asked a for a last time adjustment to the itinerary the day before the end of the trip to include an additional volcano visit and Wilman organized everything for us within a couple of hours.
Costa Rica is famous for its laid back Pura Vida approach. Elena and Wilman made sure our experience was Pura Vida while they said alert and on top of our needs.

Thank you both for a great trip. We will remember this one for the rest of our lives!

Overall our trip to Costa Rica arranged by KimKim (Serendipity Travel) was great!. The hotels were located in good locations and were comfortable. The staff were friendly

For the most part, the local tours were fantastic! The guides were friendly and knowledgeable and truly loved their job and country! We saw sloths, howler, spider and capuchin monkeys as well as Macaws, and even one Toucan!!

Hotel Reviews

Hacienda La Esperanza, Boutique Coffee Farm House

Cartago

One of our favorite places so far in Costa Rica. The house was beautiful, with art relating to the area and with a beautiful garden with many fruits, herbs, and local plants. The staff were friendly and cooked amazing meals for us! We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and would highly recommend spending as long as you can here!

Authenticity & Character

The hotel was over 100 years old and filled with local art and history!

Location

The hacienda was located on a slight hill close to the town of Aquaires in a large garden setting.

Staff

The staff was lovely and cooked amazing meals!!

Cleanliness & Comfort

We stayed in the Coyote room with has a double bed (I swear it wasn't a queen), as well as another bedroom with three single beds. The bathroom was large and the shower was good!

La Mariposa Hotel

Manuel Antonio

We had a large room overlooking the Pacific. Unfortunately it was located right next to one of the bars that played music all day, but luckily went quiet by 6:00 pm. Since we were on the west side of the hotel, mornings were enjoyable sitting on our private patio, but by later in the day, it was way too hot to be outside. Breakfast buffet was good, nothing outstanding. The staff was friendly and helpful.

Authenticity & Character

It's a fairly modern hotel with not a lot of character, but that's not necessarily a bad thing in this case, since the view was outstanding.

Location

The view over the Pacific was amazing. Fairly quiet neighborhood.

Staff

Not really.

Cleanliness & Comfort

While there was a loveseat in the room one could sit on, there were no end tables where you could put your drink. The window shade on the largest window overlooking the bar could not be closed (it appeared to be broken with no chain with which to raise or lower the shade). You could see the bar tenders/guests at the bar, so we always felt we had to be mindful of walking too close to the window that we needed to be dressed.

Hyatt Place San Jose/Pinares

San Jose

We only spent one night here on our way from the airport out of town. It was fine, nothing outstanding.

Arenal Manoa & Hot Springs

Fortuna

Nice bungalow in a resort 8 km or so from the main town. We had a premium room which included a jacuzzi tub (which was awkward to use when taking a shower) and a large patio with rocking chairs and hammock! It was quiet and private even though we shared a wall with one other unit.

Authenticity & Character

Beautiful setting with bungalows scattered throughout the property so you always felt you had your own space.

Location

Far enough from town and the main road that it was quiet and very relaxing.

Staff

The cleaning staff came by our room twice a day!!

Cleanliness & Comfort

The bed was comfortable and the room very clean.

Activity Reviews

Aquiares Coffee & Community Experience

Turrialba

We had a very informative tour of the coffee plantation and the process from planting to roasting the beans! Manuel was our guide and he did a great job explaining why their coffee is so good!!

Rain_Maker Night Tour with Traditional Dinner

Manuel Antonio

I'm not sure if we were expecting too much from this tour or it just wasn't the right one for us. I think it didn't help that they were late picking us up, the 12 passenger van was full and it took 45 minutes to get to the actual tour location. The "traditional dinner" consisted of rice, beans and meat so overcooked it was impossible to eat. Our guide was knowledgeable, but really into frogs... we saw a lot of frogs.

Food

Get a better cook!

Archaeological Tour of Guayabo National Monument

Turrialba

Our guide was informative, but unfortunately it poured the entire time we were there which made it difficult to see the site fully.

Private: Arenal Hanging Bridges Guided Walk

Arenal/La Fortuna

We had a fantastic guide, Bernardo, who could spot a monkey high up in the treetops! He was great at answering our many questions about the area and wildlife. We were fortunate to see not only Capuchin but also howler and spider monkeys.

Quality of Experience

The hanging bridges were a not to be missed experience!

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Our guide Bernardo was outstanding. Personable and very knowledgeable about the park and wildlife.

Río Peñas Blancas Safari Float

Arenal/La Fortuna

Floating down a river in Costa Rica is a not to be missed experience! We had an excellent guide, Chris, and another couple in our raft who were fun to talk with. While we did float downriver a bit, there was also quite a bit of paddling to be done. Th raft was ok the first hour, but by the end of the second, we were all sore and anxious to get off the raft.

Manuel Antonio National Park Guided Nature Hike

Manuel Antonio

This is a fantastic tour IF you have a guide! It makes the whole experience so worthwhile if you have someone who can not only find the wildlife you've come so far to see, but also the history of the park. Our guide was another gem who could spot wildlife and zero in on them with his telescope! We got some fantastic pictures of sloths and one Toucan!

EcoTermales Hot Springs Experience with Buffet Meal

Arenal/La Fortuna

There were several large hot spring pools cascading down a hillside with smaller, warmer pools scattered around. The dinner buffet was pretty good.

Local Flavors Cooking Experience

Manuel Antonio

Fun experience on the tour owners farm. There were only 4 of us on this tour so everyone got the chance to dice the veggies and stir the pots! Delicious food and we were given the recipes at the end!! It was fun to get out of town and see some of the countryside.

Holden and his team (Nancy, and Wilman) took the time to know us and customized our trip to offer a wonderful experience. Our focus was nature and wildlife photography. The hotels they recommended were a delight and the guide and excursions were fantastic. They recommended a 4x4 which was perfect for the type of driving and excursion we had in mind, they also recommended a local and knowledgeable guide for us in Monteverde who customized our tour to allow us to see the elusive resplendent Quizals (a rare bird!). The Serendipity team was in touch with us through whatsapp during our trip, always ready to answer any questions and offer suggestions. They regularly checked on us to ensure everything was smooth, they took care of every detail, even ensuring we could return our rental car to our hotel which had a free shuttle to the airport, making the return smooth and stress-free. I recommend them without any reserve and use their service again on a return trip to Costa Rica.

This was an amazing trip, and in no small part thanks to the knowledge, experience, and service from Serendipity Adventures. Holden had a great itinerary planned out for us and quickly took feedback to help us personalize it exactly how we wanted. Nancy was fantastic in setting everything up and getting all our confirmations in order, and Wilman was a solid and constant presence checking in with us on the ground and helping us when we needed it.

Starting in Manuel Antonio with our first guide Andres set the bar high for our expectations. The forest there and the animal life was a great start, along with our first hotel, La Mariposa. That site was fantastic, and the staff were courteous and kind. In our guided walk we saw sloths, insects, and birds aplenty. We saw howlers, capuchins, iguanas, and so much more. Taking time on the beach was great and very comfortable. The kayak we had the next day was a bit rough on the water, but it was great to see the park from a different vantage point, and snorkel in amongst some schools of fish.

Moving from there to Monteverde was easy enough in our rental car... the roads can be a bit choppy but easily managed when driving with care. The Cloud Forest Lodge was a beautiful spot to stay, with wildlife right out our deck and Alejandra was particularly helpful. When we realized we had a flat tire, she quickly got Wilberth involved who fixed our tire for us while we were off on Cloud Forest tour with another fantastic guide, also named Andres. The restaurant on site was also amazing, and recommend anyone staying to have at least one dinner there.

La Fortuna and the Arenal area gave us yet more wildlife out our door (pretty much common most everywhere we were), at Kioro. Here we went to hot springs, went kayaking on the lake, forest hike, made quick trips into La Fortuna to hit up local and cheap restaurants, and waited patiently for the clouds to part to show us Arenal in its entirety... we didn't get that, but by no means did it diminish our experiences. :D

A quick trip up to Rio Celeste, and staying at the Hideaway was a beautiful spot with our very own casita. We had a night hike to see Tapirs, and got to witness a bunch of other wildlife including an anteater, vipers, and frogs. And the next day we caught a sloth on the Hideaway property, even. We had hike over to Tenorio park and while it was clouded in and we couldn't see the volcanoes, the sun did come out for us to see the beautiful Rio Celeste and its remarkable colour.

From Rio Celeste, over to the busier town of Tamarindo, we had a night trip to witness the beauty of sea turtles coming up the beach to lay their eggs. Tamarindo is definitely more bustle, and lots of folks go here for surfing. In addition to our turtle tour, we enjoyed walking the beach, and had a good catamaran sail which took us around to a bay for some beach ocean swimming.

Overall, this was an amazing trip and we have a bunch of really great memories. I'm sure I've missed a lot details above, of only for the sheer volume of great moments. The people of Costa Rica were warm and welcoming, and really accommodating. And while I was a bit concerned with driving around, we found it quite easy to do, albeit with an eSIM and a data plan to help with the navigation. We felt quite safe all the time, and even when we had to go to a pharmacy to get some help, they were amazing in trying to understand the symptoms and give us the right medication.

Hotel Reviews

La Mariposa Hotel

Manuel Antonio

This was a hard to beat first spot to stay on our travel through Costa Rica. It was relatively easy to locate, and a good location to get to Manuel Antonio, or drive down to Quepos. Had a beautiful room overlooking Manuel Antonio and the bay, and the sunset views from the restaurant were amazing. Staff are super friendly and accommodating. Are willing to work with my basic Spanish, and also English.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cloud Forest Lodge

Monteverde

We had an incredible few days at the Cloud Forest Lodge, and the surrounding areas. Everyone was engaging and quite helpful. They even fixed my flat tire for me while I was off on an excursion!! The grounds are beautiful and it is convenient a few small walking paths are onsite, to enjoy at your leisure. The rooms are expansive, and they provide heaters which I do recommend using at night. We had wildlife coming almost up to our deck… and plenty of it around. The onsite restaurant has amazing cuisine as well, and you won’t be disappointed staying and eating there... Endemica provided us one of our most memorable meals from our trip.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Hotel Arenal Kioro Suites & Spa

Fortuna

We had a beautiful room overlooking the gardens and a direct view towards Arenal. It was a joy to look for the resident Great Currasow each day, and the many other birds. We were extremely comfortable and felt quite pampered in the space, and the staff were quite friendly. Particularly the gentlemen working the front gate were always quite friendly and happy to greet us. Easy access to their sister site with hot springs, and quick drive in to La Fortuna as well... really easy to access, but keep your eyes out for the signage coming back from La Fortuna, because you can miss it. ;)

Authenticity & Character

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rio Celeste Hideaway Resort

Bijagua

This is an absolute gem of a location and a must-stay recommendation. We had our own spacious casita, with a deck overlooking the nearby valley and we were just surrounded by trees. The site has access to walking paths, which can get you right on down to the Rio Celeste if you're bold enough to take a dip. (just be careful of the current). We felt like we had our own private space with this location, and it was comfortable and relaxing. Woke up one morning to Howler monkeys nearby, and came back from a tour one evening to see a sloth in one of the trees. Of course, plenty of birds and other beings to entertain nature watchers as well... the dining area even has koi pond with an island in which birds will pop down and take up a branch or two. A great addition to the dining experience.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Cala Luna Boutique Hotel & Villas

Guanacaste

For being so close to the business of Tamarindo, being on-site was relaxed and we didn't feel the bustle. Our room was tucked away and private, though the walls were a bit thin for us to hear the family next door. The resident cats were entertaining and we had to stop to offer pets a number of times. Access to the beach was quite nice, and easy to stroll down from there towards Tamarindo Beach, and into town.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Private Manuel Antonio National Park Guided Hike

Costa Rica

We had Andres as a guide and he was amazing... he found us two toed and three toed sloths, insects, frogs, iguanas, howler monkeys, and more. He had a wealth of information about everything we saw and shared a lot of great details. The park is a must-see for Costa Rica, and the guided experience is a must-do.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Andres was absolutely fantastic

Transport

Ocean Kayaking & Snorkeling

Manuel Antonio

This was nice to get out on the water and see Manuel Antonio from a different view point. We had sunshine the whole time, but the waves were quite choppy. And our previous experiences had always been single kayaks on the ocean while this one we were put into a double kayak. Snorkeling was lower visibility due to the choppiness... and while I could confidently go at it, my wife was new to the activity and did not get much in the way of instruction as to how to use the mask and snorkel. Also, my history of snorkeling in various out places, I've always had fins.

Quality of Experience

It'd be good to have an option of single kayaks being made available. If snorkeling is offered, probably ensure folks are clear on the operation of it before leaving land.

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Cloud Forest Reserve Privately Guided Hike

Monteverde

Our second guide named Andres, and another one who had a wealth of information to share. He was kind to pick us up from our hotel (as we had a flat tire), and we headed over to the Cloud Forest reserve. Started things out with the hummingbird area, and also saw a motmot up close. From there, we hiked around and enjoyed the beauty of the forest. We were introduced to stingless bees and the value of their honey, and were introduced to a lot of the plant species in the forest.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Treetop Dining Experience with Wine Pairing

Monteverde

It's an experience that is definitely about the food more than anything. The concept of the treetop dining seemed great, but in practice by the time we got there, it was dark and we were just looking out on the lights of the town. While it was a novelty to have our own private dining room up high... the highlight was definitely the food. We did have a bit of a communication issue and had to engage with Wilman and Serendipity to straighten out that our drinks had been paid for, with the food. And on that... definitely a great tasting sampling of regional-inspired dishes. It felt to me a lot like what deconstruction and reconstruction of food concepts might be with fancy restaurants. The wine pairings were good. Not to say the food was not delicious... it absolutely was! My own personal dining preferences, though, would have wanted more of it, and maybe less focused on reinventing foods that are already great.

Quality of Experience

Food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

David was a great guide through our culinary trip

Transport

Private Kayaking on Lake Arenal

Arenal/La Fortuna

This was a great trip out on the lake, and it gave us the best view we had across all our four days, of Arenal. Abel was a fantastic guide and helped us find cranes, kingfishers, and more. We had single kayaks (big plus!), and while it was windy, were really comfortable out on the water.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Coffee & Chocolate Tour

Costa Rica

A great experience, for folks wanting to learn a bit more about how coffee is made... its history, and the basics of beans, roasting, brewing, etc.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tamarindo Turtle Nesting Tour (Seasonal)

Costa Rica

A definite must for the animal lovers out there. Seeing a mother come up out of the ocean, across the beach, digging her nest, and laying her eggs... it is just absolutely next level.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Tapir Valley Nature Reserve Night Walk

Bijagua / Rio Celeste

This was a great opportunity to witness quite a unique animal up close.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport