Hotels Near Playa Carrillo in Carrillo

My wife Jamie and I had an amazing time here! It was sad to leave, and I wish so much that we could have stayed longer. The hotel is unique in a really good way. For example, instead of the usual mass-produced, foreign-manufactured toilet paper dispenser, our bathroom featured a beautiful, one of a kind, live-edge wooden TP holder. I absolutely loved the level of detail and personal touch. The finishes all throughout the property are creative and constantly remind you of the natural surroundings. They genuinely value artwork and even encourage guests to participate in free local art classes facilitated by the hotel. Attached is a picture of my keychain that I made. His name is “Ralph”. It feels so good to express creativity while relaxing on vacation. Usually creativity serves as a much-needed temporary escape from chaos of daily life, but starting the creative process from an already relaxed state is a game changer. I would highly recommend it! The staff at this hotel were such a pleasure to talk to. This was some of the absolute best service I have ever experienced in my whole life at any hotel. Everyone was so nice and happy. I want to especially thank Joe and Edward: I first met Joe at the concierge. He said if we need anything during our stay, please let him know. A few hours later down at the beach club Jamie and I were talking about how we wanted to make dinner reservations for that evening’s Annexation of Nicoya bicentennial celebration. I said to Jamie “we will need to try to catch Joe when we get back up the hill to the front desk”. Seriously, just a few minutes later Joe appeared at the beach club, addressed us by name, and asked if there was anything he could help us out with. Right there at the beach Joe made us a dinner reservation using his wireless phone. Edward was usually working the bar at the main pool/restaurant. Jamie was so happy with everything he made. There were some handcrafted house cocktails and some nonalcoholic fresh local fruit juice that Edward mixed up from scratch. I enjoyed making solo trips to the bar for drinks to bring back to Jamie in the room because Edward was so great to talk to. Thank you to Joe, Edward, and their entire team for A+ Excellent customer service!

Even though it was the rainy season and the place was undergoing a fair amount of maintenance, it had a good buzz and excellent amenities. Amazing pool, lovely water quality.. the route to the beach was an arduous trek as the signposting is poor so we could not find our way easily there and back. A tough place to stay for any length of time without a vehicle of some sort..

I spent a month in Costa Rica and Panama in January 2024, using Selina all the time. Santa Teresa South was my first stop. Now being able to compare all, I would say this one was okay, but others were better (Puerto Viejo was way better). The biggest difference as a solo traveler is the effort they make to socialise. The Welcome Drink here was me and the receptionist! At other places you were put onto a newbies table and then natural chats started... and you could go for welcome drinks every day. Not here. Santa Teresa is great. If you want to do Selina, stay at ST North. More fun, more social. South is almost all private rooms, so families and couples. But my biggest complaint was a tour I paid over £100 for the 'Cabo Blanco Beach & Forest (Full Hike)', described in their slick literature as 'our guide will show you the wonders of the forest until you reach Caboe Blanco beach, a pardisical white sandy beach where you can enjoy quiet waters for swimming, sunbathing or simply to enjoy the striking view of Cabo Blanco island'... There was no beach. The guide said we had no time and could either rush there and back or enjoy the forest. He also insisted we pay entry to the national park when I confirmed afterwards that this was supposed to be included in the hefty up-front fee. It's clear Selina is not running these tours, even though they word them as if they are. I was encouraged by Juan the manager of Santa Teresa South that he would arrange a refund for me. I would have been happy with a partial refund. But since leaving, I have been ghosted by him in our WhatsApp conversation. I have emailed Selina contacts and had no reply. And posting a complaing on their website give an 'Ooops' error and doesn't allow the complaint to be posted. Go to Selina's, they are good, they are especially good for wifi and working. Don't book their tours. Go direct to the tour companies, save some money, and perhaps have a better chance of being sold what you are going to get. Disappointed.