Nammbú - Playa Carrillo — Hotel in Puerto Carrillo

Hi there.

Read the following to avoid disappointment before your reservation.

We stayed 3 days in August 2022 in this hotel. Its location is very good and the view of the bay from the facilities is superb. But it stops there. Many negative points taint the overall experience. I recommend looking for another hotel in the area.

1/ the hotel is not finished. It is in the middle of work with the noise of workers and tools all day around the pool. Grinders, saws, drills, arc welders and hammers… nothing was spared us around the pool, over the three days.

2/ the restaurant is very expensive for what it is. Arrived late on first night, club sandwich tasteless and charged full price. Above all, never have lunch and dinner on site! The breakfast is however ok.

3/ the rooms are certainly spacious but completely impersonal. There are no decorative elements. More annoying, there is no bedside lamp and no chest of drawers or cupboards in the bedrooms. You will live in your suitcases for the duration of your stay! It is scandalous for the level of service claimed by this establishment.

4/ the electrical installation is unstable. We had several power cuts (which seems to be the case regularly after reading the other reviews…). One evening, we were unable to park our vehicle in the hotel grounds because the barrier was blocked at the bottom due to the power cut. Our vehicle was therefore not under surveillance. I am not talking about the risk this posed to guests parked inside who would not have been able to leave the hotel in the event of an emergency… These power cuts plunge the hotel into absolute darkness. You will have to move in the light of the moon. Similarly, in the rooms you will have to light up with your laptop. The air conditioning stops and never restarts. We spent a whole night with more than 33 degrees in the room without being able to close our eyes. No one came to ask us if everything was ok or to check that everything was working again… the next morning. When I went to escalate in the morning, I was told that this was normal in a "tropical" hotel and that I was the one who didn't know how to use the air conditioning. Scandalous!

5/ the staff is generally friendly and helpful in the restaurant but very unfriendly at reception. I asked to discuss it before my departure with the "manager" of the hotel: Mr Didier Cavillo who is obnoxious and who openly makes fun of the experience of his customers. He explained to me that in all hotels you have to "ask" for a bedside lamp...or a closet...Distressing! He blamed me for not giving notice when the air conditioning went off all night. But how ? With what phone? Nobody at the reception… and seeing that the whole hotel was in the dark, I hadn't wanted to bother them and let them work to try to repair the breakdown… I should have been less polite and harassed them, he told me almost ! When I explained to him that I would put an unfavorable opinion and that I would not recommend his establishment, he told me that tripadisor already had a lot of unfavorable opinions about the hotel anyway. Nice way to see things! He does not seem ready to want to improve the customer experience and his professionalism. The hotel management should take steps to get rid of it before it's too late!

In conclusion, go your way if you are in the area. This hotel is too young, poorly designed and poorly managed. Smoky and looking for something more qualitative for the price. You will find much better in the...

🚨Unsafe for female travelers and unresponsive management.

I had the misfortune of staying at Nammbú, and as a Costa Rican and avid traveler (who visited over 30 properties in 2024), this was by far the most appalling and concerning hotel experience I have had.

Safety and Maintenance: The main door lock was broken, leaving my room insecure (I am a woman traveling solo). Maintenance took 45 minutes to fix it and replace the entire door system. This happened at 10pm on Dec 31st, disrupting my New Year’s Eve plans. Later, the new lock rendered my key card useless, forcing me to seek help from a security guard to access my room at 4am.

Unprofessional Staff: On New Year’s Day, I was rudely awakened at 8:40 a.m. by a housekeeper, despite having planned to rest and having my check-out scheduled for 12pm. Worse, if the lock hadn’t been repaired, the housekeeper could have entered while I was sleeping.

Unsanitary Conditions: My room lacked Wi-Fi, and the toiletries provided were already opened and used. The hand soap caused me to develop dermatitis.

Room Service and Food: The food was inedible—fish fingers were hard and tasteless, and a hamburger arrived raw, cold, and dry after repeated delays and follow-ups.

Hotel’s Response: Management ignored my complaints and, when pressed, gaslit me by calling these incidents “minor inconveniences.” Even after involving my travel agent, the hotel refused to take responsibility. They stated that not having me pay for the inedible food was the most they could do.

A Final Warning: As a Costa Rican, I cannot stress enough: avoid Nammbú at all costs. Your money would be better spent camping than at this property.

The property is also very much not beachfront, as advertised, and you must walk across an incredibly dangerous road to access the beach.

I regret ever choosing this place for such an...

There are a few small but really annoying things about this resort: zero privacy for the shower (no door, not even frosting in the shower stall); this is a problem when traveling with older children! I could not get tap water at breakfast (staff wanted to charge for bottled water and would not give tap water... ok, I guess I'll walk back to my room to get some tap water then!) there is nowhere to store your clothes in the bedroom safe is tiny and made of plastic there is not enough shade by the pool, and the deck got burning hot in the sun if you didn't bring your own towels for the beach you're stuck: they charge a ridiculous penalty ($50) if you bring their towels to the beach, and no option to purchase any towels (unless you go to Samara). When I asked front desk what do guests do in this situation (I mean, who comes to Carrillo and doesn't go to the beach?!?), he laughed in an understanding manner and said "I don't know!" to walk into the village, you have to go out onto the main road that's quite busy (route 160), which is not so fun especially in the dark and with small children; it would be so much nicer to go out the much quieter road at the back (north side) of the resort, but there is a fence to prevent access. the electric carts that staff use to get around are a menace (the paths are not wide enough). I suppose the tip that I gave to the cart driver who brought our luggage to our room was not enough to afford us any kindness. During our entire stay I was made to feel like I had to get out of the way of the carts.

These things would be so easy to fix! As it is, I would not return. If they fixed most of these things, then I would. On the plus side, breakfast was great. And the location is great; Playa Carrillo is super nice. Unfortunately this place is the only large resort nearby. They could use some...