Playa Matapalo Hotels

"First and last time staying at a Riu. Very disappointing. Called the hotel the day before our stay to confirm 1 king bed and not 2 double beds. I was told that we were all set and confirmed for 1 king bed. After traveling all day, we arrived to our room to find 2 double beds and an extremely musty odor. We then went back down to the front desk to inform them of the issue and luckily, they were able to get us into a room with 1 king bed. The grounds were well kept but the room was not well cleaned before our arrival. The floor was filthy and there was hair in the shower and all around the floor. Food was terrible! Everything except for 1 restaurant is buffet style. Inconsistent, many times it was cold and not a lot of healthy options. Bartenders and wait staff were extremely friendly. "

"This was such a perfect place for a relaxing vacation in Costa Rica! The check-in process with Jacky and Cesar was so easy - and they are very helpful with recommendations. We did not plan much in advance and just waited to see how we felt that day and it was perfect for me. The hosts Jane and John were so kind and understanding of a last minute date shift, and were able to help me work out some details, which I was so appreciative of. The villa was amazing, clean, well-stocked with plates, linens, beach towels. The resort pool was relaxing, and you could sit on the lounge chairs and enjoy a nice breeze while looking out at the beach. The beach was fabulous with good snorkeling right off shore. We saw howler monkeys right in front of our villa one day! We enjoyed the on-site restaurant - great food and service. I did not want to come home! Would love to stay again soon. "

"The public areas of the hotel are very nice and well maintained. The pools are plentiful and shade is readily available. I did not go to the beach. Too hot for me. Our room was clean. Nice balcony on the garden view. Furnishings and decor is dated and tired but the hotel has a major update planned so will get better soon. Staff accommodated our reservation request to be close to elevator. Much appreciated. "

"Could not be more pleased with the location and cleanliness! Owner was super responsive and the staff on site was great. Monkeys outside the door. Steps from the beach. Appreciate the security guard doing nightly walk around. This was our second stay and would highly recommend. "

"We just got back from a wonderful week at Roxi's villa. The view from the villa is incredible. The villa was very well appointed with everything we needed. Everything was very clean and the air conditioning worked well. It was a hot week! It is so convenient being just up the hill from the beautiful, sandy beach, showers, pool and restaurant all right there. The food and drinks at the restaurant were superb! We were able to snorkel right from the beach and saw so many colorful fish and sea turtles. There were howler monkeys in the trees by the beach one day and up by our villa another. We walked from our beach over to the next cove and enjoyed the restaurant on the beach there too. We adventured to the Rincon de la Vieja Volcano for ziplines, white water tubing, horseback riding, hot springs and a mud bath. We also checked out the Llanos de Cortez waterfall for fun. We couldn't have asked for a better experience and place to stay. Roxi was great about answering all of my questions. She recommended a place for a rental car. Normally you have to take a shuttle to the rental car place from the airport, but because we were recommended by Roxi, they had the car waiting for us at the airport and we were able to just leave the car at the airport too! I would highly recommend staying at this villa. "

"The good, bad and ugly (in reverse order)... The ugly: There is a HUGE construction site immediately adjacent to the unit, the outdoor terrace and pool. When the crew of almost 100 workers is onsite, any outdoor usage is impossible. The noise from heavy machines, hammering, shouting, sirens and trucks is horrible. Construction can be 7 days a week. It can also be more than 24 hours. We had the misfortune of our first night being that. Flood lights shone directly into the unit all night long. Impossible to sleep. We left early because of this and was given a partial refund. This unit should not be on the rental marker at all for this reason. The Bad: The construction crane blocks the view. Floors were mopped, but not clean. No bed linens for pillows at all. Cheap linens and towels. Extremely poor quality cookware. Furniture upholstery needs to be cleaned. Shower head in master bath violently sprays everywhere. Many burnt out lightbulbs. Altogether - such a high $ place should be cleaner, be better equipped and better maintained. The Good: beautiful view (aside from the crane). Spacious. Comfortable. Great outdoor space. Location is prime. Pool area is nice and quiet (when no construction). The property management company did their very best to re-accommodate us on short notice, so kudos to them! Overall, one star because the unit should not have been rented in the first place, or SERIOUSLY discounted with a clear warning at time of rental in regards to construction. "

"Very beautiful location. Unfortunately we were not told ahead of time that there would be construction. Paying full price for this feels unfair. When I reached out to Vacasa regarding this I got no response. Few other positives: Very clean. Nice pool. Good location. Very elevation made for a beautiful drive. Lots of linens and towels. Laundry on site. Close to coco for groceries. Very big and spacious and comfortable for a group. Lots of wildlife.Negatives: the knives don't cut anything. The coffee pot carafe didn't match the coffee maker causing coffee to brew all over the place. The oven didn't work well - took an hour to make a thin pizza. No baking sheets for the oven either. We had to pack and pay for double the luggage as we were told there was no laundry machines even though there was. Regarding the construction: there's a hotel being built beside this condo. They would be hammering and drilled until 11 at night and started again at 5am. If you are looking for peace and quiet and to listen to the wildlife around, you can't hear it from the construction going on. The listing for the condo has been since updated to say there's construction going on but unfortunately at the time we booked this was not told to us. Giving the overall stay a 3/5 due to no communication from vacasa on construction. "

"Excellent communication with the host before, during and after and the onsite supports by Jacky and Cesar who are the concierges for the resort were wonderful - they helped arrange transportation, a couple of great tours and graciously answered many questions we had during our stay. The villa was lovely, clean and came with gorgeous views and a well stocked kitchen which we appreciated because we live to cook. The fact that we had access to an infinity pool steps from our back seating area was icing on the cake. "

"Views were everything! Service was great from Nicole and chef Gina!"