Kenaki Lodge — Hotel in Cahuita

Kenaki Lodge has the potential to be simply amazing, unfortunately it falls well short of where it could, and should be.||||||We arrived after a long drive from Manuel Antonio and checked in no problems. The view from the room was nice as we had one of the rooms looking over the sea and gardens. There is a lot of glass in the room which brings in a lot of natural light. The breakfast was nice but nothing special. The staff were very friendly. A quick note that on arrival the lady did mention they were under new management.||||The location is ideal, 4.5km out of town but you have the entire beach to yourself and a short drive to Cahuita National Park. ||||Unfortunately this is where the good bits end. With the room being a lot of windows you would hope for good curtains but they do nothing to keep the light out so assume you will be awake as soon as the sun comes up, if your lucky that the sun doesn't wake you then the heat will. While a fan is OK for the night time as soon as the sun comes up it is almost unbearable in the room. A decent set of curtains would help both issues.||||When looking for places to stay we specifically look for WiFi so we can use trip advisor to find restaurants, but more importantly so I can back up my photos to a cloud in case calamity strikes. Kenaki Lodge should not advertise having WiFi, this signal did not reach our room and when I sat outside the main building to try and find somewhere for dinner it was almost impossible, the Internet was slow and dropped out continously for the entire time. Maybe not a big deal for some, but a significant pain for my photo storage. They should not advertise having WiFi, everywhere else in CR we have been had excellent WiFi.||||Another bone of contention was that the window in the shower room is only half frosted and you can clearly see all of the owners balcony, I never got the feeling that they would look but it is still off putting none the less.||||The room was clean upon arrival but there was no servicing of the rooms during our 3 nights. There is a sign on the bathroom door saying leave dirty towels on floor if you want new ones but I wouldn't bother. It also meant that the sheets were dirty (especially as you wake in the lorning covered in sweat) the bathroom isn't very pleasant after the first day or so as nothing can be flushed down the toilet, including toilet paper (this is normal in CR) but without the bin being emptied it begins to feel a bit dirty.||||Overall the feeling was it was being run by someone who is use to running a hostel, you a get a room and little else. Unfortunately the associated hostel cost is not there. Either a significant drop in price or increase in service/quality is needed. This is a real shame as the potential for this to be the best place to stay in Cahuita is obvious to see.||||Would...

We spent one terrifying night at the Kenaki Lodge. Here are the details:||- Booked Kenaki for 5 nights and left within 12 hours. Literally fled at 5am (after 3 hours of fearful 'sleep').||- Upon arrival we met Isabelle, the owner (who did not introduce herself, nor did she make conversation). Isabelle seemed super disorganized, she asked how long we were saying and if we want breakfast. I filled out paperwork and I never received a copy of the paperwork I signed. I asked her name and tried to make pleasant conversation. ||- Isabelle began screaming/streaking around midnight. She was screaming, "Stop!" The screams here guttural and very loud. I didn't know if I should call for help. My husband and I were panicked and nauseous by the disturbing screaming/streaking. She screamed expletives in French. I understood she was yelling at someone. I saw her pacing around inside the main house. I thought Isabelle was alone. Then, I saw the silhouette of a man. I did not hear the man yell or talk at all. The fighting and screaming continued for 20-30 mins; although time moves slowly when gripped by fear. Finally, the fighting/streaking ceased. Complete silence. Then, the unknown man left the main house. I watched his silhouette walk toward our cabin. I moved away from the window. I presume the man turned off the lights in the main house. The chaos was followed by complete silence and total darkness. ||- The just OK parts (not terrifying, just unpleasant): no amenities, the 2 towels smelled of cigarettes, and there was a pungent garbage odor wafting in from outside the toilet closet. ||- The beautiful photos used to advertised...

Spencer's was perfect for what we wanted at the beach. Waterfront location with the glorious white noise sound of waves crashing up against the sea wall. (I see some reviews disliked that aspect, but for us it was a major plus. In addition to the soothing sound of water, it blocked any and all racket from town such as cars or Coco's music.) We took a second floor room so had the balcony outside the rooms at our doorstep for watching the ocean, relaxing in hammocks and rocking chairs, etc. There is a hammock garden in the palm trees between the hotel and the ocean, so there are hammocks enough for everyone.||||Pleasantly simple rooms - clean wood floors, tiled bathroom, high ceilings, standing fan. There is wifi, but it doesn't reach all the way to the rooms very well. But again, this is why you come to the beach - to relax and what could be better than listening to the ocean, swinging in a hammock, and reading a book.||||The staff was upbeat. They were able to do our laundry on site. The price was quite reasonable. This is where we will stay when we come back and where we will recommend to everyone. I can't imagine anywhere else we could have...