Tulemar Gardens (12)

My family (my wife, me and our two sons, ages 14 and 11) ended our week-long vacation in Costa Rica with a 3 night stay at Casa Cielito at Tulemar. As soon as we opened the door to the Villa we were immediately wishing we had booked it for longer! The property is quite possibly the most gorgeous place we have ever stayed. The view is absolutely spectacular from all of the rooms - although we spent most of our time on the balcony (including eating all of our dinners there - because why go out and miss the sunset?). The casa is well furnished - gourmet kitchen, jacuzzi on the balcony, smart TV, luxury bedding, washer/dryer, etc. And the indoor/outdoor showers were fantastic! Chris, our concierge, was great. He (and Julien) answered all of my zillions of questions with patience as I was planning the trip. Chris set up a couple of activities for us. Chris also gave us a tour of the grounds when we arrived, checked in with us daily, and even brought us a plate of warm brownies that were delicious. Chris also set us up with private chef Jose and his assistant Rudy for a gourmet dinner for our last night. That was a big splurge for us but well worth it. The food was delicious and the service was perfect. My only wish is that we had thought to do it on the first night so we could have eaten the leftovers instead of leaving that all behind when we checked out. The grounds are incredible. We saw more wildlife here than anywhere else on our trip. Sloths, monkeys, lizards, iguanas, birds and butterflies. The landscaping is lush and the flowers are bright and beautiful. We loved the pools and the beach is even nicer than Manuel Antonio - which is saying something! We just wished we had more time to chill there to enjoy the beach. The location is perfect - between Manuel Antonio beach and Quepos. There are restaurants and grocery stores within walking distance. We loved El Avion restaurant with its beautiful view and surprisingly great food. If you stay at Tulemar, be sure to plan for enough time to just relax and enjoy. It is a wonderful place to stay, and the service is top notch. We can't wait to go back and visit again!