WOW - what a holiday

Costa Rica | Jul 23 - Aug 10, 2023

Very good place to be for the first and last night. A walk around the area was OK - the other end of Sabina Park would probably be better as behind this hotel were a lot of garages and opposite a very deserted building with broken glass etc.. The hotel itself lovely, good breakfast just situation could perhaps be better. BUT as we were hardly in San Jose we did not have the chance to get a good feel for the area really.

Fantastic place with great facilities, food, tours on offer and staff. Only thing - if being incredibly picky was the very dark lighting in our room BUT that was a minute thing and really is of no consequence. Very clean, great pick up, as with all places great boat men and the turtle tour and lagoon tours were both really well managed and very much enjoyed. Food delicious and whilst off the same menu each day it was still hard to choose from what we had already eaten or trying a new dish. Location brilliant. Loved it.

Our favorite place - well in the top 2- the situation, the vibe of the area, the wild life on site - Poison Dart Frogs, 3 Toed Sloth, Green Macaws, Agouti.... Despite heavy warnings of security for the area, it is clear that if you do not go out as a rich tourist, you do not court unwanted attention. Lovely cocktails changed daily for happy hour, fantastic tours of 2ereserves close by. In a way a shame it was so close to the start of out tour as we loved the area and the feel of this place.

This was a much bigger complex than we would have chosen complete with wrist band! BUT our cabin was in a great position and really enhanced our experience here - we had a lovely view from the back that had no cabins in....had we been in another area this would not have been the case. BUT we all gained a little digestive issue - so rather than finding a SODA in La Fortuna we ate in and the food was very nice and just what those who ate needed. Good hot tube - shame some people don't have the social skills to not have loud speakers in the pools but that is the fault of the tourist and not the venue. great position for a view of the volcano and also to get to the tour site.

Was a simple room and fine for what we needed. Nothing flash and on the ground floor a lot of noise in the morning BUT that was the tour group also staying there and not the fault of the property. Suit cases wheeled by the window at 6am seemed a little loud!

Our room was fantastic with pacific views. Great AC. This was certainly more upmarket than we are used to. Phoning for a lift to a restaurant is not what we are accustomed to! Or to getting food delivered from the restaurant to our room after a late night tour. In a good location 10 minutes chilled walk from the beach. More monkeys than people was a logo and a truth, lots of wildlife in the area around our cabin - we had a fabulous time here. While the area is touristy - more so than anywhere else we had been, the hotel is great because all cabins are spread out.

Wow what a jewel, in our top 2 - BUT the top one for the all round package. We left the best to last. Great cabins - very clean, super views across Drakes Bay. Tours exceptional lead by brilliant staff - even the bar staff looked for wild life to show us in the evenings - Green frog snake eating a frog was a highlight of the in site non formal sitings. BUT Daniel and Mauricio were great on tours to Corvovado and Isle de Cano. Boat drivers were excellent in choppy conditions and also very respectful when we met Humpbacked whales. All food and drink was stunning and we could not have asked for anything more. Every thin is thought of without being upmarket if that makes sense. Even on our departure a boat to our taxi had a wet landing so they had a bottle to rinse our feet and a towel to dry them off before getting in the taxi. We would love to go back...

Good coach pick up and excelent transfer to boat and boat trip to Mawamba Lodge. Breakfast en route also lovely. All good

Really loved this place. Great night tour to see turtles - saw 6 which was really special - 1 was awesome. This was an exciting night of moving through bush and beach fast, following red lights and seeing an incredible event all in highly regulated circumstances.

Great guide and we saw so much and realised how much you need a guide to maximise what you see. Sloth, various snake species, many reptiles, primates all seen and explained really well by our guide. Great walk, lovely cool of in the sea half way around. Really good experience.

What a walk, what views and a great guide. "Mummy Nature is amazing" was the mantra of franklin. This was a great walk through the volcanic area where we were taught about the geology - pictures drawn on the floor by Franklin that the photos of will be used in our lessons in the UK. Great botanical knowledge and we smelt so many leaves and fruits and heard what they were for. Really was a great and well informed walk.

The butterfly garden was really good as were sightings of frog - our first ones. BUT this garden seemed a little over managed really - compared to others, water features etc.. are not natural.. We had a good guide but it certainly was not a 3 hour trip - well it was when we re walked it on our own. Possibly the least impressive of all our activities.

Really god tour - heart sank as loads of people were waiting but all sorted into small groups and as luck would have it ours was just the 4 of us. Great guide and despite similarities of species seen we heard now things about them. Also saw fire flies, a snail eating snake and a kinkajou which caused much excitement as it raced across the canopy. What was great was our guide also took us to a dark area, we switched off all lights and then witnesses phosphorescent fungi on tree roots. Guides worked together to share sightings, side striped viper, sloth all hidden high up but all shared and seen.

Whilst a real honey pot, this activity was so smooth and well run. All instructors at all points super efficient and friendly. Experience through the canopy was brilliant and we all loved it. Tarzan Swing fab, tandem zip lines great and then our daughters loved the superman. All in a fantastic location. Followed by a more serene but much enjoyed hanging bridge tour. With a guide we may have seen more but we had a magical Coati encounter on a path and actually it was great taking in the views we saw having been guided quite a lot already.

Really busy compared to all other sites we were on. The guide we had was great and despite the numbers of groups managed to evade much of the tripod wars going on for best sightings. Saw a number of new species, enjoyed lovely views and had a quick cool off in the sea half way around. Certainly a huge amount of people here compared to else where made this feel a little over crowded having enjoyed much quieter tours in the Caribbean area.

When you see an anteater while drying your feet from getting off the transport it is a good omen! This was a great walk and we were actually taken to Sirena station deeper into the park which was fantastic. So much to see and hear. Daniel our guide was excellent and seeing Tapir was excellent near the end of our walk. All aspects were really enjoyed and standing and listenning to the sound of frogs mingling with howler monkey was magical. Peccaries foraging, primates, reptiles, birds all added to a day not to be forgotten. Even Humpback whales on the way and on the return.

As with all aspects of Drake Bay Wilderness resort, this was a brilliant trip - well guided and stunning in our experience of turtle and a fabulous Humpback Whale siting - 10 minutes of mother and calf. The fish were mesmerising and very varied. Despite a big storm we were able to enjoy this experience a lot and visibility was good. Daniel, Mauricio and team were really helpful through out and all equipment super clean.