There’s a first time for everything and for me this was a great introduction to the very special Osa Peninsula. Our journey there was only ok, as usual Sansa was a mess and our flight departed late, the 4×4 that picked us up in Drake Bay was a tad scabby but the boat journey was reasonably smooth it was just a shame that our arrival seemed to be almost unexpected.

I suppose I’ll get my gripes out of the way as there were not many, lack of a pier to disembark could be troublesome to folks who are maybe not so mobile, particularly the 89 year old lady staying there. The only other real complaint was the food, while there was nothing wrong with the quality or presentation the combinations did not work, I found some things to be overcooked and could also feel cavities forming after the uber-sweet deserts.

Now for the good part. The staff were very attentive and took care of any request instantly, it was the best service of any hotel I have stayed at in Costa Rica, bar none, and I can’t praise them highly enough. The location is excellent, particularly as you can enter Corcovado Park directly from the property and I loved the fact that there is no TV, internet or phone access meaning you have to immerse yourself in your surroundings which in turn allows you to forget about the material world in which we live. Even the gas-guzzling, air-conditioning loving, me, me, me types who were there saw that there are other ways to live than an oil-based lifestyle.

There is only one new building on the 170 acre property, the Colonial style restaurant which is too sterile for dinner, and the rest are holdovers from the property’s days as a Cacao Plantation (that’s chocolate to you and me). Originally opened in 1993 as a working plantation, this came to a sudden end when disease wiped it out along with most of the plantations in South and Central America and when the dust settled the owner decided to allow the rainforest to reclaim its land and open an Eco-Lodge on just a small part of the property.

While the rooms are basic, the beds are comfortable and I has 2 sound nights of sleep awakening to the sound of Howler Monkeys in the trees nearby, the lack of a fridge was a disappointment but I understand the reasoning with all electricity being generarted on-site.

To surmise, ideal for Honeymooners as they have 4 Honeymoon Suites and also larger groups as the Deluxe Suites can sleep up to 8 people comfortably but not younger families as the kids might get bored. The journey there and back can be a bit rough, but isn’t that the whole point after all? Service was phenomenal, the tours were very well run and the guides were excellent as they were very knowledgeable and I must give special thanks to Carlos and give his new Internet Cafe in Drake Bay a plug too.