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Costarica Hotel, Resort & Villa Reviews
Occidental Allegro Papagayo 02/02/2004
Reviewers Rating:  Great
Occidental ALLEGRO PAPAGAYO RESORT
Guanacaste, Costa Rica
Date: January 21-28, 2004
Sunquest Vacations package booked with Darren at www.escapes.ca using the toll free telephone number.
Skyservice Airlines direct flight from Vancouver via Calgary to Liberia
About us:
We are a casual, laid-back, multi-lingual, professional couple- early 50s- with extensive travel experience for both business and pleasure. I do all of my own research before choosing the resort and I book our vacations with on-line discount travel agencies. The primary purpose of this vacation was to experience some of the amazing ecosystems and wildlife of Costa Rica. Our outgoing, 24 year old daughter and her early 30s female neighbour and friend- also a vegetarian- joined us for this vacation. We prefer to mingle with the locals and learn about their customs and culture, rather than spend our time chatting with other guests. We enjoy small resorts, preferably less than 300 rooms, which are open-air and give a tropical feeling. We prefer resorts where the evening entertainment takes place outside rather than in a theatre or auditorium. For this vacation, I considered it important to select a resort which would satisfy the diverse interests of our age group. Generally we stay away from resorts with swim-up bars and discos, but I felt these amenities would be important to the girls. Cleanliness is always paramount.
Flight & Customs:
This was the second time within a one-month period that we flew Skyservice Airlines. From western Canada, Skyservice uses a Boeing 757 aircraft with a seat configuration of 3 seats, aisle, 3 seats. Again we found Skyservice to be on time, both coming and going, with a very attentive and excellent in-flight crew. We arrived at the airport in Vancouver three hours in advance of departure and were able to get seats at the emergency exit rows for all four of us. Excellent legroom and this makes the over eight-hour journey to Costa Rica just a bit more bearable. Unfortunately, these seats cannot be pre-booked and paid for, so the early bird gets the worm. I had not pre-booked and paid for seat selection for the return trip home, deciding to take my chances at getting some good seats. At Liberia airport, I was offered seats in row 40, which is the very last row on this aircraft. As luck would have it, the flight was not completely full and no one else had wanted to sit at the rear of the aircraft, so the four of us were able to spread ourselves out over 6 seats and enjoy a very comfortable flight home. As seems to be the case with most charter airlines, the passengers are packed in tightly. In this regard, both Skyservice and Air Transat are comparable.
It has become the norm that many airlines have cut back on their in-flight service. Skyservice offers a boxed cold meal- usually a sandwich, drink, cheese/crackers and a dessert. Coffee and tea round out the meal service. The vegetarian meal requested when I booked this trip was provided. Those wishing soft drinks, bottled water or alcohol on board will find these items are now subject to charge- between $1.00 to $5.00- depending on your request. Snacks such as peanuts, pretzels, granola bars cost as well. I highly recommend you pack your own goodies! Two current movies were shown en route. We prefer to bring along our own headsets and the special two prong adaptors most airlines require. Headsets are available for purchase at a cost of $5.00.
Daniel Oduber airport in Liberia is a small open-air facility and presently under construction with plans for what appears to be a major enlargement. The customs process and line-up was a bit slow but efficient. Customs forms and visitor visa forms are handed out on the plane well before arrival in Costa Rica. Make sure you fill them out BEFORE the airplane lands! Passports are required for travel to Costa Rica and are stamped both at arrival and on departure. Once through customs, the suitcases were already lined up, waiting to be claimed and customs inspection seemed to be done randomly. The Sunquest reps were easily recognized and most helpful in guiding passengers to the waiting air-conditioned tour buses. We were surprised to find that two busloads of passengers from our flight were going to the Allegro Papagayo! To facilitate such a large number of people, pre-registration including room assignment, room key cards and those dreaded plastic resort bracelets, was done on the bus en route to the resort. Whatever you do, don’t lose that awful resort bracelet, as they levy a charge of $25.00US to replace it. Bus ride from the airport to the resort is about 30 minutes. Unfortunately, it was dark by the time we arrived so we saw nothing of the countryside.
A departure tax of $26.00US per person is charged by the Costa Rican government. This amount may now also be paid with your Visa credit card if you do not have the cash available. Random luggage searches by customs officials are done before you check-in your luggage, so have your suitcase keys handy. Our daughter was the lucky one from our group of four! Specifically, customs seemed to be looking for shells collected while beachcombing and many passengers had their shells confiscated. Leave the shells on the beach where they belong! I also noticed that the usual strict luggage weight allowance of 20 kilo per person set out by Skyservice airlines, was not rigorously adhered to upon departure check-in. Inside the departures area of the airport is a well-stocked gift shop with prices comparable to what the souvenir shops in towns charge for their wares. Good selection of T-shirts, handicrafts, coffee, spices and other knick- knacks. The shop also accepts payment with your Visa charge card or travelers cheques. Refreshments such as beer and soft drinks, as well as snacks, are also available at reasonable prices. Until the airport renovation/expansion is completed, expect some delays as well as construction noise and dust. A little patience, both at arrival and departure, will serve you well!
The Resort- First Impressions:
As luck would have it, we had a problem almost immediately. The girls’ reservation was unaccounted for by the airport Sunquest rep. and they were not given a room assignment when we got on the bus. It was necessary to spend quite some time at the front desk sorting things out when we first arrived at the resort. The entrance and lobby area is beautiful! We were asked to please wait and found the wicker furniture very inviting and comfy. Several pieces of unique art (available for sale) grace the tables in the lobby area. Members of the animation staff greeted the guests with a cold drink but the lobby bar was already closed and this at about 6:30 pm. More on that later! There is a gift shop and mini-mart selling sundry items in the lobby. Both shops were already closed, hours of business are not posted and they seemed to be rather ad hoc. While we waited, the other guests were taken on the small shuttle buses to their rooms with the promise of luggage to follow shortly. It was somewhat chaotic in the lobby and at the front desk and we found the reception staff to be less than friendly or helpful. Being tired, cranky and hungry after the long trip, I sought out Erika Dinarte (PR department) who had briefed us about the resort on the bus, and within minutes, she had the room allocation and key cards for the girls’ room. I found it necessary to deal directly with Erika on several occasions during our one-week stay and found her to be very professional. She was especially receptive to suggestions for improvements.
Just as the second busload of guests from our flight was arriving at the lobby, we were finally on our way to our rooms, which were located on the second floor of building #2 and #3. I insisted that our luggage accompany us in the shuttle, as we wanted to change and freshen up before going to dinner. Good thing! I overheard other guests complain that their luggage was a long time in coming up to their rooms. We were dropped off at our buildings and hauled our own suitcases up the stairs and to our rooms. There are no elevators! Opening the door and entering the air-conditioned room was like a little bit of heaven, and a big relief! I have a habit of immediately checking out the room to make sure everything is in working order, and indeed it was. I was however surprised to find that the in-room safe was not electronic or keycard operated as stated in the Sunquest brochure, and furthermore it is NOT included in the all-inclusive package. This is rather ambiguous in the brochure and should be corrected! Thankfully our buildings were not too far down the steep hill from the lobby, so up the hill I walked to the lobby where I inquired about getting a lock and key for the in-room safes. Charge for the safe lock is $1.00US per day with a penalty of $50.00US if you lose the key. With all of our valuables safely stowed, and hungry as bears, we headed down the hill in search of the buffet. By this time it was 8:30pm and the buffet closes at 9:30. Thankfully the resort roadways are well lit at night and we just followed our noses and the noise to the central area.
The Resort: An Overview
The Allegro Papagayo is a very picturesque 300 room resort built on a steep hillside overlooking the Gulf of Papagayo. This resort is NOT suitable for guests with mobility problems! It is also located a fair distance off the main road and is somewhat isolated. The resort is set on Manzanillo beach which is a fine, black sand beach. The ocean was very warm! For those guests who come from land-locked areas and are unfamiliar with marine environments, be aware of the tidal fluctuations! During our visit, the tidal fluctuations were two meters with a negative tide due to the new moon. This means that the tide went out for quite a distance, making for some great beachcombing and opportunities for long walks, but make sure you do not leave your lounger and belongings near the waterline at low tide. When the tide comes back in, the lounger will float away! There was lots of natural vegetation on the beach and finding some shade was not a problem although the availability of lounge chairs became a huge problem towards the end of our stay. Only the use of kayaks is included with your vacation package. Motorized water sports are offered and priced at $5.00US per person for 15 minutes of banana boat rides. Seadoos cost $30.00US for 30 minutes. The Hobie cat was charged out at $25.00US for 30 minutes of use.
A total of fourteen, three-story buildings, spread out on the hill, house the rooms. The lower the building number, the higher on the hill it is located and the more quiet it will be. I obtained and scanned a resort map showing the layout of the Allegro. You will find the map in the Costa Rica section at http://community.webshots.com/user/maplady. A fleet of mini-van shuttle buses run along the resort roadways regularly, offering rides to guests who do not wish to walk.
The grounds are well kept with lush and varied vegetation. Guanacaste, located in the Pacific Dry Forest region, is the driest area of Costa Rica at this time of the year, which would explain why so many resorts are built here. Hot, dry, sunny conditions are almost guaranteed from January until May. To keep the grass around the resort green, an automatic irrigation system is used. While green grass is pretty to look at, the constant moisture provided made a perfect breeding habitat for swarms of biting insects, most notably tiny little black flies called no-see-ums. These blood thirsty little flies were especially bad first thing in the morning, by late afternoon near the swimming pool and throughout the early evening. Bring a high Deet content insect repellant and some After-Bite! Oddly enough, we encountered no biting insects in the forest areas around the resort because of the very dry conditions. With the exception of many beautiful birds, there was not as much wildlife on the resort as we had expected. In the first few days after arrival, we did spot a small family of howler monkeys in the treetops near the parking lot at the top of the hill and there were several squirrels resting in the trees down by the beach during the day. Iguanas of all sizes roamed the grounds frequently. At night, many toads and bats were spotted in various areas of the resort. By the end of our one-week vacation, except for the birds, which were very active early in the morning and just before sunset, little other wildlife was observed.
The resort offers medical service on a 24-hour basis and we noticed one guest being treated for a heat related illness at the beach. The sun is very powerful so be careful!! Internet for guest use is available in the lobby at $6.00 per half hour or $12.00 for one hour. Massages are offered at a cost of $30.00 for 30 minutes or $60.00 for one hour. We did not use the internet or massage services, so I can’t comment further.
The hub of the resort is at the bottom of the hill where two flights of stairs by the observation tower take you down to the pool level. A large outdoor chessboard is located on the level after the first set of stairs. A board showing daily activities offered is also posted in the staircase area. The swimming pool is a gorgeous free form arrangement with lounge chairs all around, a few palapas, and a great swim up bar which is shaded for the better part of the day. There is a shallow children’s area, a well used volleyball area, and the remainder of the pool is about four feet deep. There were no ladders, so you had to hoist yourself up and out of the pool. The pool water was warm but nonetheless refreshing. Showers are located near the beach side of the pool. There are two Jacuzzis and a fitness room located to the right side, near the base of the observation tower. Pool and Jacuzzi hours were from about 8 am until 7 pm.
To the left, you will find the office which houses the beach club/water sports sign-up and towel facility. This office is open from 8 am to 6 pm. Be aware that sign-up for the free boat shuttle to the private Nacascolo Beach Club is very limited and the line-up begins to form at 7:30 am! You may only reserve one day in advance and the Beach Club is closed on Mondays. There are four shuttles departing at 9:30, 10:00, 11:00 and noon and only about 20 people are accommodated each time. You are also not permitted to stay at the Beach Club all day! If you go on the 9:30 am shuttle, you must return at 12:30 pm! As we were very anxious to get to the Beach Club because of the snorkeling opportunities available there, I attempted to sign up for a shuttle the morning after our arrival. This is when I encountered the first “ugly” incident of our vacation. The first shuttle was unavailable because the sister resort, Costa Smeralda located across the bay, needed it for their guests who also use the Nacascolo Beach Club. The second shuttle was filled by a guest who jumped the long line-up and immediately signed up her large party of 10 people, much to the howls of protest from those of us waiting patiently. After managing to sign us up for the third shuttle, I spoke with Roger who is in charge of the Beach Club and Erika from the PR department. They agreed that a fairer system was required when there are so many guests at the resort wanting to go to this remote, private beach, about a 10 minute boat ride from the resort. The following day, sign-up procedure for the Beach Club was changed and also limited to a maximum of four people per person. If you are traveling with a large group of friends, make sure several of you get out of bed early to wait in the long line-up! The daily beach shuttle spaces were full within 10 minutes!
The Nacascolo Beach Club amenities include plenty of lounge chairs, hammocks, a snack bar with picnic style tables and benches, a bar, washrooms, kayaks and snorkel equipment. There are no showers to rinse off the salt water if you go swimming. The sand at this beach is rather coarse in places, so water shoes or aqua socks would be useful. This area is privately owned and you are not permitted to wander around on the trails. In Costa Rica, the first 50 meters of waterfront property are considered public areas with access to all. At the beach club, which is leased by the resort, you are only permitted access to the first 100 meters back from the waterline. The beach itself is about half a kilometer long and is used by Costa Rican families as well. The best snorkeling is to the far right of the beach near the point but only when it has been calm for a few days. We managed to go to the Beach Club twice during our vacation. The first time, the water was very murky with about 2 feet of visibility in front of us and we saw nothing. Our second snorkeling effort, the day before departure, was much better and we saw many fish. We travel with our own snorkeling equipment so I cannot comment on the equipment offered by the resort. We all felt that the effort to sign up for the private beach was worth it and we highly recommend you try to go at least once.
There is a large open-air stage area where the rep. Welcome Briefings and evening shows take place. Make sure you attend the briefing! Our Sunquest rep. was a delightful lady named Luce. She was most approachable and very helpful. Luce is also very experienced, as she had formerly worked as a travel agent in Montreal. Together with Ronald, who is the rep. for a local tour company called Swiss Travel Service, they offered a wide variety of excursion opportunities. Please feel free to contact me directly for their excursion price list. At 8 pm on the stage, a show involving the kids kicks off the evening entertainment. This is followed at 9 pm with an audience participation segment for the adults. The usual shenanigans from outgoing guests seemed to be the norm. Afterwards, a variety show involving many members of the very talented and energetic animation team is offered and this included some great comedy routines and dancing. The beautiful costumes, attractive backdrops and an excellent sound system at just the right volume level made the few shows we did watch very enjoyable.
To the right of the stage area is the buffet restaurant Los Corales and adjoining this on a lower level is the lunchtime snack bar area as well as extra seating for the breakfast and dinner buffet. Across a pathway you will find the Sports Bar/billiards room/disco with the a la carte restaurant Las Reses, located upstairs. Pablo’s bar, located across from the buffet, is built out so that it appears to be part of the swimming pool. There are tables and chairs set up for guest use as well as an area where local artisans and craftspeople can come to set up tables with their wares. This entire area of the resort is very well used and can be quite noisy throughout the day and evening. If this is your cup of tea, then a room in building #15 right next to the pool will be the perfect location for you!
Our Rooms:
Our room (#222) was pretty much identical to the room assigned to the girls (#322), except that we had one king size bed and they had two doubles. We were in building #2 and they were in #3. At each building, there is a station with an ice machine and water cooler as well as a telephone to call for a shuttle if one is not immediately available.
The furnishings included a desk and chair, two night tables with large lamps, a large three-drawer dresser, a wicker chair, a small table with a thermal water jug and two glasses on a tray, a mini fridge which is not stocked, a small TV with remote control ($15.00US charge for lost remote), a telephone and a generous sized clothes closet with hangers. The in-room safe, contained within the closet, is large enough to store cameras, wallets and travel documents. Cost for a safe lock and key is $1.00US per day. The rooms also had a ceiling fan and air conditioner. Our A/C was hardwired with a control mounted on the wall. The girls’ room had an A/C, which required a remote control (charge of $50.00US for lost A/C remote). There is no clock so bring your own. The flooring is ceramic tile with a small mat on either size of the bed. On the balcony were two plastic chairs and a small table. It took four days and five requests before balcony furniture was finally provided for the girls’ room! The balcony railing is an open, wrought iron design with a solid partition between the balcony area of the room next door. A screen for the patio door is also provided. Patio door locks worked well. Adjoining rooms with a lockable door between them are available and handy if you are traveling with children staying in a separate room. Soundproofing is pretty much non-existent. The girls had a family with a crying baby next door to them and spent a few sleepless nights. Next to us were people who seemed to re-arrange all of their furniture every night before bedtime.
The bathroom has a tiled shower area only, no bathtubs. There are no exhaust fans in the bathrooms and ventilation is by way of a small window. Make sure you close the window while showering or else anyone walking past your room can freely look into the shower area and bathroom. Good water pressure and plenty of hot water in our room, but the girls had problems with their showerhead. The sink was rather small as was the vanity counter area. A built-in, wall mounted two-speed hairdryer is provided and a small 4 cup size coffeemaker with supplies is also sitting on the bathroom counter. Soaps and shampoos are provided although we always bring our own. There is a large mirror on the wall and a small, four-tube florescent light fixture on the ceiling. I suspect that the girls’ room was originally slated for some maintenance and minor repairs as they had problems with the light fixture and hairdryer as well as the shower and water pressure. These problems were eventually resolved by the maintenance staff after several requests to the front desk, and since we spent little time in the rooms anyways, these issues were seen as a minor inconvenience. The view towards the Gulf of Papagayo from both rooms was just amazing!
Sadly, the maid service was lacking at this resort. The rooms were not cleaned well! Many guests we spoke with encountered similar problems. Although we had different maids for our rooms, the problems were the same. Housekeeping management appears to be very slack at the Allegro! The bathroom mirror was dirty when we arrived and not cleaned once during our stay. The dark blue shower tiles had a soap scum build-up. The faucets, countertop and floors were often not wiped or mopped. Some days, no bath mat was provided and only two small hand towels were hung. Other days, large bath towels appeared but no hand towels. We never received any facecloths so bring your own. The girls did get a facecloth once! The bed linens were however changed every day and the floor was swept, if not damp mopped. Our maid arrived to do the room between 4 and 4:30pm. No facial tissues are provided so bring your own. Coffee supplies were not always replenished. It occurred to us that perhaps the resort was terribly understaffed during our stay. The maids seemed rushed and able to do only the bare basics. As each day passed, more guests arrived and the resort was very obviously at capacity, if not over capacity. We did not have any bugs or critters in our room, but the girls discovered ants in the drawer of a night table, which they had been using to store their lingerie. They literally had ants in their panties!
Food options:
We found the food selection and preparation in the Los Corales buffet to be very good to excellent. We opted to eat most of our meals in the buffet. The pastry chef outdid himself with an amazing variety of cakes, pastries, breads and desserts! Fruits and salads were fresh and plentiful. Of the various theme nights for dinner, we especially enjoyed the Mexican night. The seafood night featured prawns, lobster, mussels, octopus, whole snapper and a great variety of other fish prepared in various ways. There was also a good selection of foods available for those with special dietary requirements. The vegetarian in our group was pleased with the offerings and found many items to select from. It was hard to resist second helpings and we all gained weight during our one week vacation.
Unfortunately, the buffet restaurant seating area is too small and cannot cope with the large number of guests when the resort is at capacity. This became very obvious near the end of our vacation when long line-ups formed at the entrance to Los Corales for all meals. You are required to wait at the entrance to be seated at a table for meals. When large groups of guests or families arrive and linger over their meals, a major backlog and lack of space happens quickly, hence the long line-ups and waits of 45 to 60 minutes just to be seated. I highly recommend you arrive for dinner at 6:30 pm when the buffet opens! The buffet restaurant was very obviously understaffed, so tables were not cleared and reset quickly. Lots of very unhappy guests! On a positive note, the service was excellent if a bit slow at times. A bar area within the buffet allowed for cocktails, beer, wine or soft drinks to be brought to your table by the servers during lunch and dinner. We tried to sit in the same area every day and the staff quickly remembered our beverage preferences, often bringing them to our table before we even asked. Tipping was unnecessary but very much appreciated! At peak times, we just opted to help ourselves to a coffee refill or grab the necessary cutlery if the table had not been reset. No big deal and the servers appreciated our self-sufficiency!
Las Reses a la carte restaurant offered seatings for 6:30 or 8:30 pm. It is closed on Mondays. Reservations are made by calling guest services at Ext. 21. Dress code for men applies, so no shorts or sandals allowed. We checked the menu in advance and found this restaurant served little in the way of vegetarian options. It is primarily a steak house. We therefore opted not to eat here as a courtesy to our vegetarian travel companion. Feedback from other guests was positive. There is a surcharge for some menu items. We did hear of an ugly incident involving three very drunk guests who showed up wearing bathing suits and insisting they should be allowed to eat at Las Reses. To avoid confrontation, they were allowed in. Must have been quite a show!
The snack bars, both at the Beach Club and at the resort, served the usual fast food items- hot dogs, hamburgers, fries, nachos with cheese, etc.
Drinks and Bars:
There are several bars with varying hours of operation at this resort. The main bar is called Pablo’s, located by the swimming pool and open from 10:00 am to 11:00 pm. Cocktails using domestic alcohol are included at no charge. Premium alcohol such as Johnny Walker scotch, Canadian Club, etc are available at a cost of $5.00US. The list of cocktails was extensive and we soon discovered our favourites were the Caipirina and Papagayo Sour. Both of these cocktails are made with a Costa Rican liquor called Guaro which is distilled from both burnt and raw sugar canes and similar to rum. Beer on tap was Imperial, but my hubbie preferred the Pilsen brand, which was also available on a limited basis by the glass, poured from bottles kept in a nearby fridge. The swim-up bar was a popular place, open until 5 pm and always crowded. Bring a thermal mug to keep your drinks cold! Plastic cups are used for drinks during the day around the pool and at the beach club. There is no bar directly on the beach in front of the resort.
The Sports Bar, located in the area with the billiard tables, opened at 5 pm and closed at 2am when the disco shut down. A notice by the entrance indicated guests under the age of 18 would not be served here and were not permitted after 10 pm. No idea if this rule was strictly enforced! The girls went to the disco only once and found it to be very small, rather stuffy and unpleasant.
In our opinion, the nicest bar at this resort was the El Mirador Lobby bar. It opens at 10:00am and for some bizarre reason closes at 5:00pm. Such a shame considering the gorgeous sunsets, wonderful views and lovely terrace area available off the lobby area, which by the way is also very quiet and probably the most underused area of the entire resort. It would have been a treat to sit here in the evening, enjoy the breeze and some solitude while sipping a drink. I feel strongly that El Mirador should open later, say at around 2 pm and remain open until 10pm. If enough guests request this, perhaps management will oblige. In the meantime, the only option is to take a few drinks from Pablo’s bar, hop on a shuttle to the lobby area and sit back and relax. On Thursday evenings only, the Manager’s Cocktail Party is held in this area. Go and enjoy!
We found all of the resort bartenders to be quick and efficient.
Other Activities:
The resort offers a Kid’s Club program for children aged 4-12 years. We observed a group of older kids playing soccer on the beach and younger ones building sand castles under the supervision of an animation staff member. There were many children at the resort, most of them from the Costa Rican families who were also vacationing there. An adventure playground with swings, slides, etc. is set up under the trees on the beach but it was not used much.
The resort offers many activities throughout the day. We were very interested in the nature walk at 10:00am and finally after four days of trying, we found Pedro and insisted he make himself available for this activity the next morning. Another member of the animation team did show up, but did not have a good command of English. We therefore relied on our own wildlife guidebooks and the few markings on the trail. Most important to us was that we were shown where the actual walking trail was located. Thereafter, we ventured out on our own, usually before sunset or early morning before breakfast. These are the best times for wildlife viewing. By the way, the trail begins in the area near the shooting range close to the rear of building #15!
Excursions:
Without a doubt, these were the highlights of our vacation in Costa Rica! As previous reviewers had suggested, I arranged our tours by email before departure. Our Costa Rican guide was Ricardo Vargas. Not only does he speak English fluently, but he is an amazing source of information. You can get in touch with Ricardo directly to make your own arrangements. His email address is lavargas@hotmail.com or contact him by cell phone at 506 385-4312 or home phone at 506 670-0790 when you arrive. Ricardo can also arrange golf packages at the newly opened Four Seasons Golf course or scuba packages, along with various land tours similar to those offered by the resort.
We opted to do the Mega Combo Tour ($115.00 per person) and the Palo Verde National Park tour, which included a river cruise ($75.00 per person). Both of these tours are also available with Swiss Travel/Sunquest and can be booked with your rep. using your credit card. The advantage to doing them with a private guide is that the tour will be customized for you and done at your own pace. Payment is with cash or traveler cheques only. Lunch, Costa Rican style, was included with both tours. Ricardo picked us up and dropped us off at the resort security gate. Others have previously given a good description of these tours, so I won’t burden readers with my personal details except to say that the Palo Verde Tour was arranged for the day of my husband’s birthday and it was and will surely always be remembered by all four of us as a very special and enchanting day. Thank you Ricardo!! Feel free to contact me directly if you wish further tour details.
For those wishing to arrange private sailing or catamaran tours, I suggest you get in touch with Michael Mills directly at his email address, which is discovercostarica@yahoo.ca
Conclusion and Summary:
We enjoyed our trip to Costa Rica and will definitely return. Next time, we will rent a car and tour more extensively on our own rather than stay at an all-inclusive resort. I highly recommend that guests staying at the Allegro Papagayo resort plan an excursion for every other day. It will give you much needed variety, especially if you are not the typical all-inclusive guest who spends their entire day loafing by the pool and bar. There is just so much to see and experience in Costa Rica!
I do hope that the resort will quickly resolve the overcrowding issues encountered at meal times. Long waits for buffet dining are not acceptable!!
Housekeeping management and procedures also need a major shake up!
The down right ugly of our vacation experience was the rampant theft of beach/pool towels at the resort. Luckily we were not victims, but only because we decided to use our own towels for the last three days of our vacation. Some of the resort beach and pool towels are embossed with the Occidental Hotel and Resorts logo and words, making them a coveted souvenir item for unscrupulous departing guests. Lost towels are subject to a $25.00US fine and many, many guests we spoke with found themselves victims of towel theft and other items such as sunscreen, hats and cameras. One guest had her bag of personal scuba gear stolen from in front of the water sports office. During the last days of our vacation, and especially the day after three flights had arrived from central Canada, it was almost impossible to get a lounge chair. Every one of the approximately 180 chairs around the pool were reserved by 7:00 am!! Same thing happened with the loungers at the beach! I’ve never seen so many towels and books sun tanning themselves in reserved but unoccupied chairs for so many hours at a time.
If by some chance you still have questions after reading this epic resort review, feel free to contact us directly at YVRcuba@hotmail.com. I have many photos available for viewing in our Webshots.com photo albums. Due to previous experiences with unauthorized downloading of our images, the photo albums are locked. If you wish to view our photos, please contact us directly.
Vancouver Couple plus two
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