Location is everything! This beach town is super small, tight-knit, and welcoming. My husband and I aren’t extraverts by nature, but the people in the community strike up conversations - “how do you like Costa Rica?; where are you from?; oh! You have to try this restaurant....”
This beach is one of a kind. You can find amazing shells, help release baby turtles with the local conservation effort, explore the rocks, and even cross the mangrove estuary to get to another part of the beach.
Brenda, the property manager, was amazing. Before we arrived, she emailed a bunch of helpful information- excursions, restaurants, things to do, travel tips, etc. During our stay, she checked in via What’s Ap several times to make sure we were having the best experience possible. She even booked an in-house massage for us, as well as our kayaking mangrove tour.
Fernando and Bracsi, the workers that stay on site, were so sweet. They don’t speak much English, but are easy to understand. It seemed to me like they try to stay out of sight so you can enjoy your stay.
The home itself is not super clean. HOWEVER - I think it is as clean as it CAN be, since you’re truly at the beach but in a dry forest. Yes, there are bugs. I think you will find this anywhere you stay in CR. It seems like the ants were nocturnal. They didn’t bother us, though. They don’t bite or anything. We did, however, keep our bread/cereal/etc. in the oven to keep them out of reach.
The tub on the rooftop appeared (to me) to be a hot tub. It is actually just a jetted tub that you personally fill. This was kind of a bummer, because it didn’t have a cover to keep bugs out. Fernando was great about cleaning it, but we still decided not to use it.
The pool is super refreshing! Even during 95degree days, it feel cool.
The pictures (again, to me), made it appear like the house was interconnected. The two bedrooms at the bottom of the house are not accessible from the inside. They are only accessible from the outside pool area. It’s a rule that children can’t stay in the pool-side/downstairs bedrooms, and for good reason! One of the bedroom’s doors only has about an 18” clearance from the pool. Also, drunk adults beware!
The master bedroom bed is awful. However, we would be so tired after a day of sun that we slept fine anyways.
All and all, we loved our stay. We got to experience so much right in the neighborhood. We plan on returning to Junquillal ASAP!!!
