Villa Serenidad: secluded home, warm private pool, river walk, amazing 180° view

About Jeff & Kara Sweere

Jeff was born and raised in Mankato, MN. Kara was raised in Mankato. We both live a busy life in Minnesota, raising three children and always busy with work and/or charitable organizations. Jeff has been running a mobile electronics business since 1993 and Kara is a registered nurse focusing on cardiac rehab.

Why Jeff & Kara Sweere chose Mercedes

We heard about Atenas, Costa Rica from a friend in MN. We fell in love with Atenas and Costa Rica rather quickly. On our first trip, we spent a lot of time in and around the pool, explored Atenas a bit, took a day trip to Manuel Antonio National Park, enjoyed some excellent meals around Atenas and found out how friendly the area is. Our Spanish was lacking yet we felt very welcomed. While sitting around the pool, Kara and I started talking about retirement locations. We both love our home in Minnesota but we surely enjoy the tropics. We knew we wouldn’t move out of Minnesota if our kids and eventually grandchildren remained in the area. We love when they are home. Maybe a vacation home would a good idea? It wasn’t a really serious thought right then and there, but it set a number of things in motion. Laying around the pool, we browsed a few real estate web sites and saw a number of interesting homes. Kara and I talked a bit more and decided it wouldn’t hurt to look at a few places. We didn’t have any plans other than bumming around the house for the next few days anyhow. So, we gave Andrew a call and asked if he’d show us a few places which he graciously did. Long story shortened, a year later we found this amazing property that had most of what we wanted and after an extensive remodel during 2017 it was perfect. We love it and we're sure you will too.

What makes this Villa unique

The view is amazing. Sitting on the patio, inside the living room or at the dining room table you can see for miles and miles across the river gorge, across the coffee plantations and onto the mountains. If you happen to walk to the back corner of the 2 acre lot, the view is even better! Wow! Sitting at the top of the Rio Cacao river valley, you can take an easy hike down the hill to the river valley. A fun hike that only takes about an hour and it's literally out the back door. Evening during the wet season, sitting inside the living room, listening to and watching the rain spatter down is so relaxing through the giant glass doors and windows. Feeling the fresh breeze come through the valley is amazing. The farmer up the road sells fresh eggs for just a few cents per egg. Making a trip to the farmers market for fresh fruit each week combined with fresh eggs is tough to beat! The twinkle of lights across the valley at night is just as enjoyable as during the day. For those that like bird watching, the spotting scope is great for seeing way off in the distance with a chance to see the howler monkeys when they come through the area.