Kimkim Trip Reviews for Costa Rica

Las Brisas de Arenal feels like our home away from home. A family owned and operated hotel that is surrounded by the beauty of Costa Rica! We would stay there again! Carlos and his family (including dogs) are friendly and made us feel welcome. We were able to relax there in between daily adventure around La Fortuna. We highly recommend Las Brisas.

La Mariposa is within walking distance to many restaurants. We were comfortable in our room and loved the beautiful view of our room overlooking the ocean. The breakfasts were delicious . The staff were kind and accommodating.

The Park inn was a good stop overnight in San Jose before going out the next day back to the US.

We ended up relaxing at the hotel, opting for the pool over more adventures to the beaches.

We loved the river float. We saw so many animals, sloths, monkeys, iguanas, lizards, fish, and birds. Our kids loved paddling the rafts and even had a chance to take a cold dip in the river. The river float was a perfect first adventure in Costa Rica. It was fun, relaxing, and we learned so much.

The volcano hike was in the heat of the afternoon and was a bit much for our 8 year old. We learned a lot! Would probably spilt this up as an excursion separate from others if doing it again.

The rainforest hanging bridges tour was a chance to see poison dart frogs in their natural habitat. We learned about the primitive and secondary forests and the importance of tourism in Costa Rica.

This was a family favorite! What an exhilarating experience! The whole excursion was fun and we highly recommended it.

The park was crowded given it was Easter week. We had already seen so many animals on our trip. The guided tour was worth it as we met people who visited the park without a guide and had trouble seeing animals.if we were to go again we would go for the beach alone. It was beautiful!

The catamaran trip was a chance to be out in the ocean. We didn’t see any dolphins. The crew was friendly. The snorkeling portion was fast and we would have liked more time in the water. The slide in the boat was fun for the kids.

Beautiful room, great hotel staff, excellent food, very nice pool, pretty grounds with hiking trails. Saw a sloth when we arrived and colorful birds every day at breakfast!

Nice room. Friendly, helpful staff.

Nice room. Pretty grounds with trails. Comfortable restaurant and pool area.

Very nice hotel. Beautiful views to the ocean.

Very comfortable, clean. Excellent staff. Easy in and out.

Very nice hotel. Excellent staff and restaurant.

Excellent guide. Interesting place. Rained all morning!

Very cool night hike! Saw tapir and her baby.

A strenuous hike of 3+ hours. Go early!

Excellent hike with lots to see and learn.

Excellent variety of plants and animals. Awesome butterfly area. Very good lunch, too.

Beautiful hotel grounds with individual bungalows for rooms. Loved all the gorgeous plants and flowers. The staff was super nice and friendly. They went out of their way for us. We arrived very late at night, but someone was there to greet us and take us to our room. The front desk staff was very helpful and friendly, too.

Great place to stay in Monteverde. Big, clean and comfortable rooms. Balcony with a view. Fun, friendly, informative staff.

I enjoyed learning about the culture of the tribe. What they eat, how they dressed, their music and their language.

This hotel was fine. I wish we only stayed here one night as there is not much to do in this area and it is not a walkable area. The included breakfast was good with an omelet bar but the dinner and lunch we had here was just ok.

We loved staying here! The view of the volcano was incredible. All hotel staff were incredibly friendly. Breakfast and all meals were great as well as drinks at the swim up bar. Not too far from La Fortuna, Ubers were cheap if you don’t have a car. Our only complaint was how uncomfortable the mattresses were in our room.

This hotel was awesome! We loved that we were in a secluded place with incredible views but also had access to downtown and the beach club for free with the hourly shuttle. Views at the pool can’t be beat.

Coffee tour was awesome! Our guide was so thorough and friendly. The volcano tour was not worth it in my opinion. You can only stay at the site for 20 minutes due to the gases and we could no see anything on the day we went. I would have preferred to transfer out of San Jose quicker than staying for this tour.

Highly recommend this zip line- the views were absolutely stunning and there is a restaurant/bar with amazing views of Arenal Lake and volcano where you can eat after. The hanging bridges were great and our tour guide was awesome however we did not see any wildlife.

These hot springs are gorgeous !! When we got to Costa Rica people seemed to recommend Tabacon or Eco Thermales the most for hot springs. We also had hot springs at our hotel (volcano lodge), so I am not sure this was worth it. The dinner included was not good. Food was cold, not many options, it’s buffet style.

We loved this! Snorkel was great and so nice To get On the water.

This was amazing! One of the best parts of our trips. My partner and I had a blast making homemade tortillas and Casado.

Just a Hilton from the Curio Collection. Everything was spectacularly nice (to be expected from a 5 Star hotel), but also quite divorced from a Costa Rican Experience; once inside the hotel, we could have been in almost any country anywhere. Great breakfast. Great location. Interestingly, less-than stellar restaurant staff, some of whom were slow and indifferent. If you value the luxury hotel experience, change this rating to 5 stars.

A wonderful place for families. We were 7 and KimKim found us the perfect house (Casa Quinta) on the property. Multiple great pools. Monkeys everywhere, which we all loved.

Not suited for young children. Mostly we saw small sleeping sloths only viewable through binoculars, which little kids can't easily negotiate. Defiinitely go early in the morning, before the heat sets in. Nice tour with a naturalist for older children and adults, with lots of teaching and explaining that bores the little ones and is great for others.

Mangroves are cool for those of us with little experience with them.

The location was secluded and a little further than other hotels or the city center. Accommodations were nothing short of spectacular, and it felt private, with lots of wildlife.

Very Comfortable with yummy breakfast options. Hot springs were wonderful - very clean! Grounds were lovely and we enjoyed the farm. Great organic vegetable garden and lots of animals visiting children enjoyed including milking one of the cows. Staff was helpful and friendly.

Very different from our first hotel but comfortable, right in town, nice breakfast options. Pretty quiet for being in town.

Very comfortable - nice staff - lovely clean pool - great outside sitting area. Right on a busy road so noisy at times and not able to walk anywhere.

Very informative but too much time in the gift shop

Nice hike with lovely views of the volcano. Good signage with a comfy cafe at the finish

Wonderful guides, beautiful relaxed float on the river. Great snacks at the end.

Saw lots of animals and birds but the trail was crowded with other tours. Guide was knowledgeable.

All kinds of hummingbirds but lots of people and the birds were all brought in to feeders

Beautiful private reserve with wide paths, a variety of terrains, cultivated flower gardens, nice views, easy walking, quiet and not ctowded

Not good snorkeling but the kayak was nice but short.

Nice beaches, a little rough for swimming.

Wonderful experience with lots of information about the spices and growing them plus excellent snacks! Snacks included home made ice cream and they provided vegan options!

On steep hill out of town, so taxis needed for transfers. Family room was large but had a huge bath in the bedroom itself and nowhere to sit indoors. Wildlife in the gardens a big compensation. Coatis and many birds.

Extensive gardens and birdlife made up for pretty basic accommodation. Restaurant was not Japanese fusion as described. Hot springs uninviting.

Good quality Hilton hotel in great central location. Comfortable rooms with all facilities.

Good pool surrounded by palms. Our accommodation was a huge apartment on upper floor but we didn't use the dining area or kitchen. Hotel a bit dated with lots of mismatched decor/ornaments. Quirky. Lots of steps everywhere. Staff a bit unapproachable and unhelpful. Restaurant/bar a bit messy and staff appeared particularly unprofessional. Prefer staff who don't sit around on the bar counter area singing along to the piped music, or who clear tables with a lollipop stuck in their mouths. 😯

Great location and helpful cheerful staff. Super open air terrace restaurant/bar on 4th floor. Great food and drinks. Industrial feel of entrance and front desk area, and bare tiled floors in room a bit unwelcoming on late evening arrival, but the whole hotel grew on us. Striking bold murals as decor for our room. No mirror. Quirky.

The rain took the gloss of this tour a little. Great views over the rain forest canopy all the same. With guides help spotted poison dart frogs and an eyelash pit viper. Also spider monkeys very high in the canopy. Animals and birds a bit thin on the ground though despite guides efforts to help us find them.

Great visit. Guides were terrific and took good care of us in the dark. Saw loads of tarantulas and other creatures including sleeping birds and butterflies.

Best ow the two hanging bridge tours we took. Maybe the weather helped. Saw plenty of birds but no sloths. Had chance to walk parts of the trail in our own time without group company. More relaxing experience on narrow bouncy bridges.

Great visit. Lovely to talk to people who are so enthusiastic about rescuing and rehabilitating injured wildlife.

Excellent guides. Showed us birds and wildlife we could never have spotted alone. Opportunity to relax on the beaches in your own time. Smallish park but with loads to see.

Something for everyone but mainly for 15-35 age group and those keen on jumping/diving into pools. Spectacular waterfalls and spacious sandy beach to end with. Lunch included.

Cancelled due volcanic activity - sulphurous fumes.

Mix up between tour operator and KimKim over pick-up time led to rushed start. Good visit though. Helpful guide. Steps down were were more difficult than up. Not much chance to observe wildlife.

Enjoyed Doka Plantation tour. Gardens not so much. Felt had to move at guide's speed and shere guides personal interest in animals and plants.

Really enjoyable visit, made all the better by welcoming hosts and really enthusiastic helpful guide. Amazing insight into language, culture and way of life of indigenous people from 300 years ago. Great chance to try skills needed to live to survive by subsistence hunting, fishing and farming.

What an amazing experience to enjoy the sounds of nature as you fall asleep at night. The beds were not comfortable, but the experience made up for the lack of comfort from the mattresses.

Edwardo and Luis were amazing rafting guides, chefs, and company. I felt so safe as we rafting down the rivers enjoying beautiful sceneries, lots of wildlife and a cool hike to a swimming hole. The guides were very knowledgable and competent in their abilities to lead our group. They made us delicious meals as we arrived at the lodge for the evening.

The pineapple treat prepared for us after we completed the long hike to the waterfall and back was a nice treat!

Such a unique hotel. The grounds are beautiful. The staff are wonderful. Our room was at the top of the mountain. It is easily a 20 minute walk. The shuttles made getting around the hotel super easy. I would recommend staying as high up as possible. You get a good view and a bit more of a breeze. I can't say enough about the staff. My daughter tripped and was injured and required stiches. The hotel staff offered to have a doctor visit the hotel to have her treated. They could not have been nicer. I would definitely stay here again.

This was a wonderful hotel. The rooms all had balconies with views of the Arenal Volcano. The thermal springs were amazing - there are at least a dozen places to enjoy the springs, all with varying temperatures. The morning buffet was extensive, as were both the restaurants in the hotel. The staff were so friendly and helpful. The hotel is located outside town, and there isn't a lot within walking distance, so you need to take a taxi or Uber if you want to explore the area. Would definitely recommend!

This is a cute hotel, located on the edge of town. There are a few aces to eat and shop nearby. Santa Elena is a few minutes walking distance. The restaurant was nice.

This hotel sits at the top of a hill, a little outside of town. It has a great view from the restaurant and pool. The rooms were nice, with great views from the patio.

We saw so many animals on this hike. The guide (Jason) was great. He kept the kids in our small group engaged. It was fun crossing the bridges.

Our guide belonged to an indigenous tribe from Costa Rica, and explained how a lot of the plants in the area have been used for years and years. We did the 3-mile loop, and had a really nice time.

Don't miss this one! On this guided tour, we saw so many types of birds, it was wonderful. We learned all about the cloud forest, the plants that live there, and what makes this area unique.

This was a highlight of our time in Monteverde. We were picked up at our hotel and driven to a small coffee farm. We first got to press some sugar cane and a lime, and had some to drink. Then we learned abut how coffee is grown, roasted and what gives it unique qualities. We sampled several roasts of coffee beans. We then ventured out into the forest when it got dark, with flashlights and nerves on edge! We saw a mother and baby sloth, armadillos, tarantula, a couple of snakes, and frogs. We purchased some coffee that had been grown there to bring home. Our guide, Junior, was knowledgeable, entertaining as heck, and passionate about growing coffee. This was one of the best experiences of our trip!

This trip involved a walk into the park, noticing the animals and birds that lived there. We saw sloths, snakes, birds, insects and monkeys. We had time at the beach to swim in the Pacific Ocean before heading back on a different path.

This hotel was above our expectations! The staff, the location, the tour guides, and the facilities were great! If one day I go to Tortuguero again, I would definitely stay in Mawamba Lodge. We saw all the animals we wanted on the first day in their garden.

We really think that this was the worst hotel we've ever stayed in our lives. The only good thing is the view from the room but I can make a long list about the negative experience we had in there. We noticed a leak in the toilet the first day, so we called the reception, someone who doesn't speak English came into the room to repair it. He said that it's all good and left. But we found out that he just put a towel on the floor around the toilet for the leak. It was written that they have wireless in the rooms but actually there wasn't. The room location was at the top of the mountain, very dark, and very far from the reception, restaurant and the rest of the facilities. So we could only reach to the room with a golf car. They changed our room on the next day with Priscila's help. The second room was all right but there was still no proper internet inside. We had to dine in the hotel's restaurant because the hotel seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. The food arrived in 1.5 hours and it tasted really bad. They have poor breakfast as well. They offered us a spa to say sorry for the leak in the toilet. So we arranged a time for that with the reception. When we went to the spa area, we had to wait for half an hour for the massage therapist to finish their session with someone else. To summarize, I wouldn't recommend this hotel to anyone!

Great hotel with great food. The location is close to many beaches and the wifi is great!

The driver who picked us up from the hotel to take us to the airport for Tortuguero left us in the international departure building, so we had to walk around 10 minutes with heavy luggage to the domestic airport.

This activity was unnecessarily long! 2-2.5 hours would be definitely enough. The restaurant wasn't great either. We didn't know what to do so we waited in the reception for an hour for the time we agreed with the driver and he was late!

The tour guide was late.

They have the best beach in there! But the time we spent in there wasn't enough. ( 30 minutes)

The tour guide gave us a really bad canoe comparing to the other peoples canoe in the tour, so we kept falling.

Amazing views, food, drink, and pools. Everything we needed and more.

The rooms themselves were pretty average but the hot springs were the standout! We spent a ton of time outside and enjoying the proximity to Fortuna.

So peaceful and attentive. Loved it.

This was our family's favorite activity!

The sloth exhibit was so impressive, as they were very active and right next to us. This was our daughter's favorite part of the trip.

So many wonderful surprises on this first night for us, especially the mother sloth carrying her baby across a power line in the dark. What great luck!