El Gato Rojas Surf Hostel — Hotel in Cóbano

I don’t like writing bad reviews, especially in the hotel industry, because I understand it’s hard work. However, after traveling around the world—including many countries, even India—I have finally found the worst place I’ve ever stayed in.

Bottom line: This place is completely neglected. The owners and staff simply do not care—it desperately needs new management. If you're here to surf, just surf and leave the hotel to someone else to manage!

Internet? Forget about it if you're in the back rooms or on the second floor. The router is near reception, where the family that lives in the front of the hostel probably gets all the signal.

Hot water? Nonexistent. Yes, there is no hot water in the shower. Actually, forget about the shower altogether—there were multiple times when there was no water at all. One of the rooms had water issues, and instead of fixing it properly, they shut off the water for everyone. In one of my rooms, the showerhead was clogged with stones, but I had to drag the owner there to prove it after he insisted it was a general low-pressure issue on the second floor. And by the way, low pressure is easily fixable—if this were a decently managed place, they would have taken care of it.

Air conditioning? Some rooms don’t have it working properly, especially on the top floor. This area is extremely hot and humid at night, and without AC, sleeping is nearly impossible.

Soap? After using the toilet, don’t expect to find any. The most basic hygiene item—especially post-COVID—is missing.

Common area on the second floor? It’s supposed to be a resting area, but the fans are tiny—only two of them—and they’re old and rusty. Every other place I’ve stayed in Central America has big ceiling fans because, well, it’s insanely hot here! It wouldn’t even be expensive to install them, unless you're just selfishly pocketing all the guests' money instead of providing the basic services you're supposed to.

Medical negligence: I’m a Type 1 diabetic and need to store my medication in a fridge. On my last day, I discovered that one of the fridges had broken during the night, potentially ruining my insulin. No one informed me or did anything about it, even though all the staff knew. Insulin must be kept cold when not in use; otherwise, it’s only good for a short time. This could have ruined my entire trip!

The only reason I stayed so long was because I was sick. The owner initially offered to move me to another room when I complained, but after changing rooms three times and running a fever of 39°C while on antibiotics, I simply had no energy to switch hotels.

By the way, this is just a summary—I haven’t even listed everything that was wrong.

The only good thing about this place is that it’s near the beach. If you're into surfing and need a board or lessons, they’re okay for that. But as for sleeping there? Absolutely not. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone—it desperately needs new management.

Oh, and one last important thing—the day after leaving, I was at another beach, surfing, happy, and coming back to a room at the same price where I was welcomed with a smile, fresh towels, soap, and a clean, well-maintained space. There are plenty of decent places in Costa Rica—so don’t waste your time in a dump like this!

If you're here to surf, just surf and leave the hotel to...

The El Gato Rojas Surf Hostel is the only hostel I would stay in when I come back to visit Santa Teresa! For one, I met multiple people who hostel hopped in town, and they always came back to El Gato's because they liked it better. Secondly, it is actually owned and operated by a local family...and in a place like Santa Teresa where there are so many internationals who own businesses, while the locals are struggling to survive working 2-3 jobs, it really does feel good to support locals as much as possible. Third, El Gato is the nickname of one of three brothers (all of whom who surf, and support the surf lessons), Marcos, who, if I am correct, was a pro surfer. All the Rojas brothers are great surfers, one of them, Carlos, was even one of the best longboarding champs in South America. All that to say, they offer amazing surf lessons, where they film you, and later that night everyone gathers around to analyze the videos, and share what could be improved, and what went well. After spending 3 weeks there, I can honestly say that not only my surfing improved, but being so close to the local beach break (5 min walk), my ability to read the ocean has also gotten better as well. I could barely catch a wave when I got there, and by the time I left I was able to catch waves on a short board (thank you Marcos, Micheal, and Carlos!), and look a little less than a kook. Oh, and they have quite the quiver of boards to rent from, so you really do have access to boards for any condition out there.||People come from all over the world, of all ages (I saw every age from a baby to a seniors) stay here, not just to surf, but also to relax and enjoy the pura vida. I am so grateful to have met so many authentic, caring people that I hope to see again, and grateful that a place like El Gato Rojas Surf Hostel exists. Definitely recommend! I only wish I was able to take another surf class...

My wife and I just checked out this morning and it was a great experience at this hostel. The atmosphere was great, from the guests to the staff especially. It is family owned and they really make you feel part of the family.

The room we stood in was just freshly finished from being built and the hostel was still under a bit of needed construction but it wasn’t at all intrusive like other comments suggested. I myself work in renovation work and understand that things need to me done and take time. The workers were courteous to the guests and did not impede in the enjoyment of our stay. There is not any hot water but it’s hot outside and I don’t see the need for a hot shower. The room and bed sizes were great and our room had an A/C along with a small fridge.

The owners were fantastic, they happened to do some group trip invites and we all pitched in and they grilled for us and made an amazing dinner on the beach along with showing us a great club for salsa dancing. They were very kind and helpful with giving us recommendations and directions when asked. The staff was really friendly and one of the employees Carlos made me a personalized chain from cord for my wedding ring. I was skeptical about coming to Central America but after this stay it had me wanting to come back for more. All in all it’s definitely worth a stay to see...