5-Star Hotels in Guanacaste, Costa Rica

Just returned from our stay at the Planet Hollywood and have mixed feelings.  There were some excellent aspects… but also a few areas for improvement!  Let’s start with the good stuff: Edu (bartender at the lobby bar) was a STAR.  Trust him to make your drinks, just tell him the flavor or preference for liquor) and he will spin you up something completely magical!! We LOVED spending our nights sitting at the bar watching Edu make peoples evenings.  We also loved the included watersports like paddleboarding and kayaking ( unfortunately the big water tricycle was out of order).  The Fuel Coffee bar is also a fabulous addition and great place to escape the heat for a cold coffee.  Now, the negatives - the front desk staff was pretty subpar and didn’t seem to communicate very well - one girl was actually very rude when I was trying to sort out a room situation and I wish I got her name.  The pool drinks are SO bad.  Not sure what type of bottom shelf alcohol they use at pool bar, but we tried so many different drinks and they were all disgusting.  The only thing somewhat drinkable was the Mojito.  I ended up switching to non-alcoholic drinks after day 1 and they were much better at the pool.  Did my real drinking at the lobby bar with Edu in the evenings.  Otherwise, the room was clean - resort was nice and entertainment was entertaining.  The food was decent but the buffet was SO hot and humid without any air conditioning. Overall, this was far from the best all inclusive experience I’ve had, but, we still made the most of it and had a nice time.

A beautifully situated, large, and luxurious hotel with excellent service. But unfortunately, it's primarily geared towards partying Americans. This results in constant noise pollution. On the first day of our stay, there was a poolside party with lots of people drinking and very loud music from a DJ. On the 2nd day, a large screen was set up by the pool, showing the Super Bowl game from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. It was incredibly noisy. Our dinner in the restaurant was therefore unpleasant and disappointing. The management is engaged and positive, but they can't make up for our negative experience. Conclusion: if you're looking for a luxurious experience with lots of parties, crowds, and loud music, this is the place to be. If you're looking for the peaceful pura vida experience surrounded by nature in Costa Rica, this is not the place to be!

The staff were friendly, very polite, and always attentive to customer needs. A nice hotel with several dinner options and a good location.

the breakfast is the BEST!

Located at the Peninsula with stunning views. All the activities are fun and family-friendly. What a pleasant stay.

A great place to experience Costa Rica, but I feel some of the food there (sushi specifically) not the best quality. We booked the all inclusive. Their pizza and the steak house’s food were amazing. Overall we were super glad to have booked it there. You can also book the excursions through guest services and Andres was great in that process.