"...And Then The Dog Got Run Over" (Paraiso Tropical Hotel (Costa Rica))

Member Name: zoe_page_1

Product:	Paraiso Tropical Hotel (Costa Rica)
Date:	23/01/09 (308 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Well located, spacious rooms

Disadvantages: Little storage, and no hot water

The Hotel Paraiso Tropical provides motel style accommodation in La Fortuna, a village at the base of the Arenal Volcano in Costa Rica. My tour stayed here for Christmas last year, arriving on 24th December and departing on Boxing Day. We drove into La Fortuna along the main street and almost seemed to be heading out of town again when we reached our base, but in actual fact it is very well located, within minutes of all the village attractions, and the right side of town for trips to the Volcano. Many of the other accommodations in this price bracket seemed to be down side streets, so we were lucky to be where we were.

My first impressions were good - in my blog I called it a "nice looking motel" because that's what it was. As with many of the places we stayed in Costa Rica, the reception area was housed in a small hut not physically attached to the hotel buildings. We didn't have to do a proper check in because we had a tour reservation - the guide picked up a bundle of keys and handed the out randomly. This wasn't the only place where they seemed very relaxed about who stayed in which room, and at none of our tour hotels were we asked to provide passports of similar, though this was the case in the places I stayed in on my own.

You get to the rooms by walking along a gritty path for a few meters that looks like it could be the entrance to a carpark - there were spaces for cars, but no one staying when we were there had driven themselves to town it seemed. The rooms faced on to this area, with views towards the volcano. They were on two floors and the exterior corridors gave it all a very open appearance. Lots of wood made it feel like a national park cabin-style lodging, as I imagine you'd find at the Grand Canyon or similar. See that picture, above. Doesn't it look all rustic and back to nature-y to you? Outside the rooms on both levels there were rocking chairs for enjoying the sun, but no tables or similar. The good thing about these was that they didn't seem to be allocated per room, so you could move them about, without it seeming like you were stealing other people's stuff. There were also various plants and shurbs dotted around which livened up the outside.

Our room was nice, with bright furnishings (blue, green, yellow and orange checked bedspreads made a lovely change from those horrible, shiny, flowered ones you get in the USA) which looked good against the tiled floor and the plain walls. The front doors opened directly into the rooms, with no hall way, but there was plenty of room to move about. We had an alcove with a sort of wardrobe set up (a rail, but no doors) and a shared bedside table between the two beds. These had wooden bedsteads and comfy mattresses. We had air conditioning, though you had to climb on one of the beds to switch this on and off, and though we'd switch it off when we went out, it quickly cooled the room when we returned. Satellite television provided us with dozens of channels, mainly in English. The rooms were well maintained, and cleaned thoroughly daily (even Christmas Day). If I could have chosen, I would have liked a bit more storage - say a chest of drawers - to do a mini unpack into rather than picking stuff out of the open suitcases we put in one corner, but most people would not be staying here for more than a few days so it's not a biggie as you don't really have time to want to unpack properly and nest.

The bathrooms were nice, with massive tiled showers, but they did not have any hot water the entire time we were there. Considering we took up 9 rooms in total (out of an overall 18), I think it's safe to assume no one in the hotel had hot water during that time. This was a bit of a shock - it was my 2nd hotel with the tour, so I hadn't got used to roughing it yet - and also not the best way to spend Christmas day, but we found ways to cope. (Me, I booked into a spa for a treatment followed by...a lovely hot power shower). Also, the showers did not drain very well because the bases were not slanted - a common complaint in CR - so even with the short showers we were taking (1 minutes is about all I can tolerate when it's ice cold) it took a while for the water to disappear.

Our room had no other facilities, but the one next door had a fridge, hob plates and a microwave. I suppose you could try to request this kitchenette if you were making a private booking, but for us it came down to the luck of the draw as to who got one or didn't. The kitchenette we saw looked basic and a bit worn around the edges, and even if we had had one, I'm not sure it would have provided the facilities or the inclination for me to whip up some gourmet meals.

Many budget hotels in CR offer internet in one form or another, more so than any other country I've travelled round. In some hotels this constituted a computer room with a few PCs, but here the offer was free wifi - if only one of us had brought a laptop...

The one thing I was slightly concerned about was security, since there is no way to close off the entrance to the hotel - anyone could walk through to where the rooms were since there is no reception to pass through, or gates to open. However, I felt safe here at night. It was lovely and quiet, despite being on the main road, and we never saw anyone who wasn't part of our group, apart from a few stray dogs, one of whom unfortunately got run over right outside the hotel on our first day. His body subsequently stayed there 48 hours until the street cleaners came back to work on Boxing Day, but I think this was just bad timing more than anything else. The name of the hotel means "Topical Paradise" and the hotel's sign is a Toucan, but we didn't really see much nature, tropical or otherwise, during our stay.

The hotel has a laundry service, though being only 2 days into our trip, no one tried this. There are no other facilities like a restaurant or bar, because this really is just a basic place to sleep and nothing else. However, there are many restaurants within walking distance and there are two supermarkets very close by, so you won't starve. Due to the lack of facilities we had few run ins with the staff. The rooms were cleaned while we were out, and I never saw a maid while I was lounging in the sun on our first morning. I didn't go out for long, so they must either be invisible, or work super speedily. The receptionist was polite but we had no need to call on her to ask for anything as our stay was short. However on the last day our guide left his jacket behind, and they noticed this immediately. Our minibus turned round to go collect it and as we pulled up one of the members of staff ran out and handed it to him through the minibus window, which was nice as it meant we sisn't even need to stop.

This is a basic hotel, but it's cheap (rates from under $50 US per room per night), so it all depends what you are after. You can stay in one of the more expensive places in La Fortuna but these are all out of town, so you will either end up paying for taxis to the restaurant strip and back, or eating in the hotel with their hiked prices. Ditto, you can enjoy their pools and hot springs or you can enjoy these as a visitor on a day or half day pass while staying at a cheaper place.

That said...I still wouldn't stay here again. If this was a remote part of Costa Rica, I might give it a second chance, or recommend you do. However, this hotel is one of dozens in this little village, and as such I would suggest trying somewhere else if you find yourself in the area. Many hotels include "Agua caliente" (hot water) in their advertising, so I'd pick one of those, and complain loudly and ferociously if it doesn't appear. This place didn't come with that claim - at the time, we didn't notice because it's a given that hotels have at least luke warm water, right? Looking back, we should probably have taken it as a sign. You live and learn.

Summary: Not quite cheap enough to lack hot water...