Kunken Boutique Hotel — Hotel in Sierpe

I'm from the states, not my first time traveling abroad. Was traveling with a friend. Our trip was a 14 day stay. We visited multiple spots around the Osa peninsula, snorkeling, hiking through the rainforest, waterfall exploring, tuna fishing charter. We were on our way to Mogos for our final stay, and being the curious /spontaneous guys we are, we drove down this random road that was beautifully carved out that lead us to land at this breathtaking resort. My first thought was, this can't be real. Josie and Alejandro laughingly assured me it was in fact real. We had another 20min drive to our location. We had the most amazing lunch and a beer outside, while watching the most beautiful rainstorm I've ever witnessed. I was so overwhelmed by the surroundings, that my next question was how much lol. Needless to say, my buddy left and I had the most incredible 3 night stay I think I'll ever have until I go back. The room was breathtaking. HUGE Room, Comfy beds, clean rooms, private lawn, wrap around deck, the sounds of nature throughout the day and into the night are rather calming. The wildlife is in their own habitat, coexisting with this place is so fun to watch. I will say it was hot and no ac, but hey, when in Rome, right? I had no problem sleeping. This place is in the rainforest, you're gonna have bugs on occasion, it's simply unavoidable. They don't bother you but the same rules apply no matter where you go, pickup after yourself. The room service staff was amazingly hospitable. Greeted me every morning. Asked me how i slept and offered breakfast, smoothie and a coffee. Its a 5 course breakfast that leaves you feeling light with a full tank of unleaded. My room was cleaned everyday, and they also laundered my clothes. The chef's were Top Notch! Shoutout to Josie, she made the best papaya smoothies and had a hand in creating the drink menu. Obviously it did not disappoint. It was by far my favorite beverage with the fresh sugar cane being a close second. I'm pretty sure there was a papaya shortage when I left😂. Alejandro was no stranger behind the bar. He was slanging fire drinks whenever i called on him. The activities there are endless, just like the scenery. If there's something you want to do and they don't have it there, they bring it to you. I had the most incredible jet ski ride on the pacific, EVER! The entire stay is worth every penny. Anybody looking for one of the most incredible surreal experiences has to go to the Kunken. One thing to remember, you're not at home, you're in another person's country. I can assure you, they do things their own way. Nobody is in a hurry, things move slower down there and they dont like the "Karen" type. I absolutely loved that and you'll want to respect that. Learn to speak some spanish. Almost nobody speaks English and why should they? I don't speak Spanish very well but well enough to navigate and communicate effectively. They totally respected that. I'll never forget the staff that took great care in fulfilling all my needs and creating an...

Our stay at Kunken Lodge was intended to be a luxurious and relaxing getaway as part of a larger exploration of Costa Rica. Instead it turned out to be a huge waste of money and time and nearly ruined our final few days in this beautiful Country.

There is no doubt the OSA peninsular is a remote part of the Country and the lodge obviously caters for those looking for exploration and adventure. We were of similar mindset but at a cost of $800+ a night for our cabin it’s crazy unacceptable to discover NO curtains or privacy, INTERMITTENT WiFi, NO hot water, ageing cabins, mosquito nets with holes and ZERO privacy or distance between our cabin and a large family part with children (who were very friendly but not exactly keeping the noise down and no staff around to manage). We had booked for 3 nights and on arrival took an explore, the grounds and beach are breathtaking; it’s one of the most beautiful secluded spots I’ve ever been to, but after being shown around by one young friendly check in attendee named Anderson it became clear he and one other (more about him coming up) were the only ones running things, so after being shown to our room, discovering that this wasn’t what we’d been led to believe from the very slickly made but totally misleading website drone video I went to look for anderson to request check out following day with refund on final 2 days, but Anderson had gone into town so i asked one of the cleaning staff to talk to a manager. I waited nearly 2 hours. At which point I complained to her that this wasn’t acceptable, my holiday was being ruined, and no hotel should have no one on duty. Forget about customer service, It felt negligent. She very rudely dismissed me, saying “we’re not a hotel” (which seems strange when the website is called Kunken Hotel and spa) finally - the manager, all 20 something years of him showed up at my cabin door in the dark, and before i had a chance to let him know why we wanted to check out the following day he encouraged me to but assured me there would be zero refund. He point blank refused to accept any of the reasons why the hotel should listen to any complaints. It was clear by the lack of guests (pretty much us two and the large family) they weren’t overbooked. They hadn’t accepted credit cards (clear now why) and refused to reverse any charges on my debit card. He said he couldn’t if he wanted to (not true) and the owners who are out of Spain apparently wouldnt support that.

I have rarely if ever complained when staying at a hotel, and dont remember ever writing a review but the exhorbitant cost of this place and the badly trained staff who totally failed to deal with my complaint in a professional way makes me want to put this review out there.

I hope one day new management takes his property on and turns it into what could easily be one of the most magical hotels on earth.

Until...

The lodge is surrounded by nature in a clearing directly on the Golfo Dulce. There are only 6 bungalows, so the number of guests remains small and this provides a very relaxed atmosphere. The bungalows each have 2 bedrooms, both with their own bathrooms, one of which has an outdoor shower. In one of the rooms there is an (empty) fridge, a coffee machine and a tea maker. There is no television (why would there be in this environment). There is no air conditioning, only a ceiling fan, which is quiet and efficient. All terraces offer beautiful views over the gulf. The two bedrooms are only separated by a thin wall, so you can hear everything that happens in the other room. They are therefore more suitable for families or if you know each other (very) well and can put up with that. We were travelling as two couples and didn't realise this. We felt it was a great courtesy that we were offered accommodation in separate bungalows for at least 3 of the 4 nights we had booked, as the booking situation allowed for this. We also felt that we were well looked after in every other respect. Everyone was very friendly and our every wish was fulfilled. There were lots of animals to watch and the best thing was the macaws that had their lunch in a tree on the beach every evening. We had a partner massage in an enchanted spa in the forest by a stream, which was unique. You get used to the lack of air conditioning surprisingly well, especially as it cools down to 20°C at night and the bungalows are open all round (protected by fly screens). Contrary to expectations, there were hardly any mosquitoes. The food was very good and varied enough for a 4-day stay. There was only a small salad as an alternative to soup as a starter, in this respect there could be a little more choice. Everything is very attractively designed. What was there to criticise? That was actually only the communication in advance. This is apparently handled by an office in San Jose and the staff there don't seem particularly motivated. Answers are only received with a delay or after repeated requests and enquiries do not reach the lodge. We had booked a tour to Corcovato NP early on, which the lodge didn't know about when we arrived and which therefore didn't materialise. Strange payment links are also sent out, although the booking is made with the information that payment by credit card is possible. This was particularly tricky in our case, as the lodge's booking account was hacked and we only recognised that it was a fake message when our firewall warned us. Kudos to Booking who helped us in this situation and were able to stop this with the lodge office. You should therefore always insist on payment by credit card and be careful with links in emails - even via the Booking email system. We will definitely be back. Thanks to the Kunken team for a great stay at this...