Las Catalinas feels like a non-resort resort town and Santarena Hotel is a lovely place to stay whilst there. The town and hotel mention a lot of wellness offerings but found that these aren't as available. The local spa in town was closed and the hotel doesn't offer any yoga or wellness otherwise even though it's marketed. Highly recommend yoga with Zoe (@zoevidaom on Instagram) and massage with a local Socorro (contact details can be provided by Zoe).
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My wife and I really enjoyed our stay at Santarena Hotel at Las Catalinas. When we checked in (Dec 6, 2020) we were the first/only guests in the past 8 months. We basically had the hotel to ourselves for the first night until a few other guests started trickling in. The service was excellent! The GM, Diego, was very attentive and helpful making sure we had everything we needed. Andrea at the front desk set us up with daily adventures and was very helpful with advice on what to do! (Congo Trail zipline and ATV tour, hikes, kayaks, snorkeling, ect.) The food at the hotel was outstanding! The complimentary breakfast was the best "free" breakfast I have eaten. The fruit bowl was so good every day! When we weren't on an adventure we spent our time at the rooftop infinity pool drinking buckets of beer and champagne watching the the sunset.. Our room was clean, comfortable and modern. I will be returning to Santerena on our next visit to Costa Rica! Pura Vida!
My husband and I were the first guests to check in when Santarena reopened. The level of service has been amazing. Diego, the GM, made us feel right at home, and Andrea helped us with booking excursions. The rooftop pool is intimate and beautiful. There are nearby hikes for all skill levels. Zip lining, ATV and horseback tours are within close driving distance. The beach is just a few steps away. Our room was comfortable and beautifully modern. Highly recommend this hotel for a getaway!
I give this hotel a 5 star because we had a beautiful room and the hotel's location. Although the pool closes at 6pm, but the beach is only 60 meters away. We had an ocean view room. We fell asleep with the patio doors open, in the sounds of nature - the waves hitting the shore…
There were many water sports starting 30 meters away from the hotel, such as snorkel, scuba diving, paddle boards, kayak, fishing.
There are things that can be improved, such as one day, they just forgot to clean our room. When we pointed that out, they fixed immediately. Also there is no mini-fridge in the room, but they provide plenty of ice cubes. We had a comfortable stay and enjoyed the views and beach very much.
This hotel would be fine if it was $300/nite but I paid $700 with the expectation of a iprefer hotel. we were so disappointed at the poor service and poor amenities. Literally we met a couple in our first 15minutes that warned us of the poor service and told us to go to Las Catalinas service desk (not the hotel's) if we wanted any information. We had just left Nayara Springs in the Arenal rainforest which exceeded all of expectations on service/concierge quality/food and the room. This was such a disappointment as we were hoping to continue having an authentic experience and purposely did not book a large US chain hotel.
Pros: Hotel is in a Safe american retirement community (with a good general store)
Good AC, beautiful view and a 5minute was to Casa Chameleon which is a spectacular hotel with great food and service (the best thing we did)
pleasant plunge pool and view on top floor
Cons:
No mini fridge in room (its >90 degrees daily) so water was warm
No iron or hair dryer or robe/slippers in room
no complimentary morning coffee in lobby - I was charged $5 for a takeaway cup
No mangoes, fresh orange juice (only tropicana) or local fruit at breakfast in a country which has them growing wild everywhere and is available at every roadside stand
No beach chair, no boogie board, no snorkeling equipment for use- can be rented at higher rates than Santa Monica beach in USA. A ripoff at every turn
"Beach club" which is a pool with a few chairs is $30/pp
Although tamarindo was only 40minutes away, we were charged $180 car service for return trip - with no alternatives provided - this was more than our private transfer to the airport (we did not book via hotel)
So we made the most of these 3 nites by escaping the US retirement community that this hotel was located in through finding day tours/excursions which are abundantly available and make Costa Rica such an wonderful destination
Spent a week staying in Las Catalinas at Santarena Hotel. The rooms are modern and comfortable and you could not beat the proximity to the beach. We spent several days enjoying the beach which was quiet, clean and relaxing. The staff at the hotel were generally friendly and eager to please.
It would have been nice to have a small fridge in the room and chairs on the balcony off our room. Overall, it was a great stay.
