Iluminar Beachfront Suites — Hotel in Nosara

Utterly appalled by the lack of professionalism of this place. The review left by Maxime Lovric is indeed true and no, he didn't review the "wrong business", the person in charge of this place's social channels knows it very well since they were messaging back and forth the whole time we were staying - just another lie to try to save faces.

Now, this place doesn't have a pool. It doesn't have breakfast either. You need to walk to other places for each of them. Why don't you disclose that information ? I don't pay $150 a night to have to walk around a destroyed area to get the services you "offer" but don't provide.

There is no reception, we were left at the door without any indication since I never received the instructions that the agency said they so nicely sent through iMessage. Why would you assume someone has an iPhone ? Why wouldn't you use e-mails as a better way of communicating with travelers that most likely won't have phone reception in a foreign country ?

We used my boyfriend's treasured iPhone to finally be able to communicate and were told check-in doesn't start until 4pm. The platform where we made the booking, clearly displays 3pm. We were then told we shouldn't leave the hotel premises until someone came to properly "welcome" us. We were handed an iPad to tick off boxes that were mostly irrelevant and given no additional info.

We travelled to Nosara to be able to spot the turtles but didn't hire a car, since the location is remote from everything, we were looking for a way of getting around and booking a tour. The PDF they send you informs the guests they can contact the managing agency for any needs they might have, so we did, but never received an answer after asking to book the tour, besides a quote for 3 times what we end up booking on our own (Contact Gilbert, a true turtle passionate, $30 pp). When confronted about it the next day, we were first told that we were lying and that they did respond, to then simply apologizing, realizing they had, indeed, not responded.

The construction starts at 5.30 every morning, it isn't just the building next door, it's the whole street. The Yoga Shala is closed and also under renovation which creates dust and more noise. That doesn't fall under "the construction next door"; it is your own property and you should disclose that.

There is no direct beachfront access, again, it is a walk on a dirt path that's not kept and dangerous at night.

There is even a tip box inside the room. If that fact alone doesn't shock you, let me ask, FOR WHAT ? There's 0 service nor cleaning done during your stay.

By this time, all of you reading might think I'm just another Karen that's never satisfied and complains about everything but let me assure you, that is not the case. I have traveled all around the world and never have experienced this level of unprofessionalism.

The whole area is a complete dirt hole with developments and new businesses popping out of the ground but the streets are completely unsafe with potholes everywhere. Our driver got his car stuck right in front of Iluminar when we were dropped off. All that foreign investors money couldn't save Nosara, as most businesses are closed anyway. We walked past a good 10 shops before being able to buy 2 coffees, all of them closed, out of business already or with technical issues. Past 9pm nothing - at all - is open, so if you are returning from a night walk to spot the turtles you will be left with no other option than going to bed starving, since again, there is 0 service at the "hotel".

This place is a joke, they want to surf on the cool, laid-back hipster vibe but it is all very fake. The street Iluminar is on has no less than 3 real estate agencies, the contact with the locals is always turned towards money, people will talk to you in English even when you speak to them in Spanish only because you are white but will drop "Pura Vida" left and right while leaving trash everywhere and looking at your butt. Never been so disappointed by an "hotel", "beach town" or country for...

So grateful for our family time at BVC for 3 weeks this Jan. First and most importantly b/c of the STAFF-these guys hire the most loving, caring, qualified staff- Brian, Jason, Wai Wai, Nacho Man, Mariella, Kaya-always smiling and checking in with us, playing with our 4 year old, offering fresh coconuts, taking care of any questions we had...this is why we have stayed loyal to BVC (formerly Kaya Sol) for 15 years of return visits-the love and genuine humble connection the staff exhibits is really special to find in today's world-and it's especially meaningful to us as parents-feels like extended family. Other major pluses for us is JP's cafe-Naked Foods-truly the best food in Playa Guiones. You can read about all the other benefits as well-as close to the beach as you can get, beautiful old growth trees that have been well loved and create a little sanctuary right in the heart of the bustle of the town, and the kids/arts programs at the collective were the best icing on the cake we could have asked for! Upon arrival we learned that our son could take free art classes and kids afternoons, as well as kids night out that included organic vegan catered dinner, jungle path treasure hunts, making art of plastic bottles etc...I teared up when I learned this...we have nothing like this in the states and I felt so grateful my son could have a break from the indoor disney movie/pizza scene of US kids nights out and instead enjoy fresh air and great food and loving teacher with kids from around the world-a parents dream AND a date night out for my husband and I. I can't recommend BVC more highly-especially if you are coming as a family. This one is the real deal, family owned and operated and loved for years...you can't find anything better and we look forward to going back as soon...

Not awesome and overpriced. Road to Nosara is a nightmare, and at the end of a long journey we found an overhyped and way overpriced town. And our hotel at $300 at night with no front desk or running water. This place has no soul, just a condo building basically. No pool as described but said you can use the hotels across the street which is just a square of water with a bench on the side. Walk to beach is much farther than indicated and there was a sign in our room asking us to tip the cleaning staff. I messaged the owner to inquire about the no water situation and he pretended to be unaware and said it goes out from time to time. Except there was clearly an issue that was being worked on and we were huffing resin all night from them fixing the pipes.

The owner responded to my original post after I refused to take it down, saying that bad roads bring good people- suggesting that me and my family are not good people, even though he himself is dishonest and clearly doesn't pay his employees enough. He said that the work that was being done was to add in a back up tank which is he is only mentioning now? He also said he offered us a credit to return after we had to leave early due to a family emergency- he refused to refund us for 3 unused days and his exact words were 'there's a chance that I could give you guys a credit if you come back, why don't you stay in the loop, and just let me know if theres plans to come back and I'll try and take care of you guys''. Which is not reassuring or in any means a guarantee. I stand by my review and my statement that this place is not...