The Space
Our house is located in the small town of Paquera and though off the beaten path of Costa Rica, it's what makes this town a hidden gem when nearby a diversity of many extraordinary beaches. This is a one-story Private House, just for you and your party. Approximately 60 square meters having its own private parking, 2 bedrooms/1 bath, fully equipped kitchen, dining, and an empty spare room.
There are security cameras aimed at it from our next-door property. Though it's rare having any security issues we have taken precautions with also having bars on doors and windows.
In the kitchen and bathroom is available only Cold Water. We have Hot water in the shower only. The hot water is regulated by the showerhead.
The kitchen is complete with a gas 4 burner stove oven. As seen in pictures. There is no closet or dressers in bedrooms but does have a small shelf with a rod to hang some clothes in each room.
The empty room in the back, in the wall there are shelves on one of those shelves there's assorted game boards and assorted beach basket for smaller children. It's also where I keep the cleaning supplies for the house like broom and mop.
The main attraction is the beautiful seasonal hummingbirds visiting our feeders located on our next-door property, that you're welcome to try to hand feed by request. All the amenities offered on next door property are available to you too.
Note: We're NOT beachfront property and appreciate your understanding due to third world issues and the remote area we're located, Wi-Fi is unreliable and sometimes spotty, so it may be available in other areas by the pool/office and BBQ/picnic area.
Earplugs: if you're a light sleeper we suggest bringing them, you never know when the Fiestas are across the street or if the Restaurant is open right in front of you, there may be noise please drop us a note to confirm if they're open or not. We also have truckers coming in the weekdays, coming in on the other side of the property, so I don't think that would be an issue, they're the lifeline to Paquera, as they bring in merchandise or services needed to the little town but their engines early morning may wake you or when they come in at night. Usually, it's very peaceful but we're low-end accommodations, and soundproof construction was not taken into consideration.
Guest Access
Everything... you're welcome to stroll around the entire property and help yourself to any of the organic seasonal fruits we may have growing (mangoes, guava, bananas, noni, papayas, sugar cane, coconuts, soursop/guanabana, and hopefully avocados one day) !
Interaction with Guests
We are available to recommend the best activities you could plan in our wonderful area and the Kingdom Hall just 3-5 min walking distance you can interact on your own with brothers when visiting (ONLY "Spanish" Congregation available at the moment, since we live in the USA, we're not sure what schedules they go by, if having meetings yet or Xoom meetings.) .
Other Things to Note
Please keep in mind that the country is a "Spanish" speaking country, most bilinguals are available in the concentrated main "city" areas, but in remote areas like ours, "Spanish" is mainly spoken (please have patience with our staff, using translators) or as to avoid misunderstandings you're always welcome to contact me by message or complimentary Magic Jack in the office (making any other international calls you need).
The other thing to note, it's easy to forget at times that Costa Rica is considered a "third world country," and having "consistency or reliable" service depends on where you're visiting. In the main central cities, you'll find more consistency than in remote areas like we're in... With intermittent power lasting a few minutes to a few hours can affect WiFi, hot water to even having any water at all, we have very little control over this.
These mini outages eventually damage our electrical items like TVs and mini-fridges, so we disconnect them when not in use, and my staff tries to connect them before your arrival, but if you notice fridge or TV is not working, please check that the plug that could have been forgotten to be connected or give the fridge a little more time to get cooler.
Being in a remote area, the Wifi is not only affected by these outages but also wildlife/nature (monkeys on wires, rains or winds, etc.). We rely on the service and not being the best in the area to fix it; these are some of the challenges faced (it's not an everyday situation, but it does happen occasionally. Most of the time, you may not even notice it is you may be out exploring, and by the time you're back, it's fixed, but we're limited in giving notices when this happens because it happens unexpectedly).
Also, if you're used to being served "FAST," this is a slow pace service. If eating out and in a hurry, arrive at least an hour before leaving on time. This is a remote little town where there's very little nightlife, no FAST foods or malls but still, find fast foods, only made slow. The last thing to remember most of the plumbing in Costa Rica is septic tanks, so you'll find most areas requesting that toilet paper be thrown in the garbage and not in the toilet; we also have septic tanks and appreciate the same to be followed here.
Our area is also getting expensive to eat out (remember, because we're located in a remote area, everything is practically imported by the Ferry, which raises the price) but there are two local supermarkets where you can buy your staples and make your own home-cooked meals or snacks and put your money towards doing the local excursions like the bioluminescence night tours, Curu Reserve and famous Isla Tortuga boat tour, etc. (you can look up online, another must-see is Isla Chiquita) but all BEACHES are FREE to enter when you please, and because we're in a remote area, most of these beaches could almost be found secluded (it's definitely a peaceful laid back area to getaway from the busy, hectic lifestyles of city life, but for some, it takes a learning curb to be "patient" and not demand or expect "fast" service.
There are no FAST foods, malls, or a lot of store shopping available, but home-cooked meals still offer FAST foods at a SLOW pace, so if needing to get somewhere on time, go at least an hour early!
Neighborhood Must-Sees
Downtown: Approx 5-10 min walk
Paquera Ferry: Approx 10 min self-drive
Beaches range: from 20 to 40 min self drive To Playa Organos, Playa Pochote, Playa Pajaros, Tambor
Golf: Los Delfines Golf & Country Club in Playa Tambor 35 min
Bus Stop: The bus stop is across the street to and from Ferry or other cities.
Tambor: 40 min self-drive Tambor Beach Front Resort offers All-Inclusive Day Passes
Cobano: 45 min self-drive
Mal Pais: 1Hr- 1½ Hr self-drive *Santa Teresa- 1½ Hr self-drive
Montezuma: 1½ Hr self-drive Offers Butterfly Farms, Zip-lining, and Island Tours
Getting Around
Bahia Rica Tours: approx 10 min self-drive Offering various excursions: Sportfishing, Sea kayaking, Boat Tours to Isla Tortuga and Isla San Lucas, Bioluminescent night tour Kayaking, Snorkeling, and monkey boat tours, seasonal whale and dolphin watching tours!
Curu Reserve: Approx 30 min drive and it Is the main attraction in our area. You'll see monkeys, other native wildlife, and or random exceptional animals that need rehab. Tours offered by Turismo Curu could include Daily Tours to Isla Tortuga, snorkeling, or diving on the way there and the Bio-luminescent are just SOME of the things offered at extra fees, see what's more on the Turismo Curu website. The park has about nine nature trails/hikes, a few ending at beaches.
Hummingbirds: You're welcome to participate in the unique experience of hand-feeding these beautiful mesmerizing tiny birds! Ask the girls to give you a small hand feeder. The best time to try this is asking when they bring down the feeders to clean them because that's when they're swarming looking for a feeder and may be enticed to feed on your hands!
Massages: We also offer in-room massages; subject to availability of therapist, her schedule at the moment is Thursday-Friday after 4PM and Saturdays). She's not just a certified massager but a Physical Therapist; she's the BEST I ever had (dealing with lymph issues, not many therapists are familiar with lymph massages, she's not only familiar with this but executes it very well. We may have other "massagers" available but we won't know until time of request and prices are subject to changes, so we find it's better to let you know at time of need.
Best Seafood: I highly recommend "Las Vegas" also known as "La Puruja" (about 2 minutes down the gravel road from us). Don't underestimate its unique atmosphere; it's the best fresh fish I ever had with huge portions that you can share or ask for the smaller quantity.
Standards of Costa Rica: Cold Water is the standard, so most prefer it that way (we have ten units with Hot water and six that have cold water). ~ AC is not the standard because many parts of Costa Rica are quite cool, but our area is quite HOT, don't be fooled and make sure when offered AC, they're not offering just floor fans or ceiling fans which will just circulate hot air, we offer true AC.
Gratuities or tips are not standard in Costa Rica; therefore, you're not under any obligation, but if you feel you have been given exceptional service, it will not jeopardize our employees to accept it; on the contrary, it will be appreciated being standard wages are low... We suggest checking your meal tickets when dining out to avoid double tipping because some establishments will already add it in, in the form of a % service fee.
Septic Tanks are standard, so most places have garbage next to toilets, not just for diapers or sanitary pads but to throw ALL used toilet paper. We have septic tanks, which is the custom; it does help, but we understand not all our guests will be doing this; regardless, we still have our septic tanks cleaned year-round.
Disclosure: We can only suggest and recommend other businesses we feel are doing well but being in such a remote place, the locals are faced with many challenges that change their circumstances affecting their consistency or quality of service, that we may not be aware of or liable being we're "not" affiliated with them in any way. We work independently from them and don't receive any commissions or paybacks from them.
The local transportation is bicycles or motorcycles, so it's not congested with smog or heavy "car" traffic like the city... SPANISH is the main language in our remote area; it's difficult to find bilinguals, so please be patient with our staff who use translators or contact us directly, as to avoid any misunderstandings if you find yourself a little lost in translation =)
