Guanacaste is a gorgeous province in Costa Rica where prickly cacti and volcanic rock meet the soft shores of black, white, and even pink sand beaches. The weather here is always warm (January is the coldest month with average max temperatures in the 80s), and the sunsets over the Pacific Ocean are absolutely stunning. And the perfect home base to explore it all is The Papagayo Golden Palms.
When we booked our stay at the Papagayo Golden Palms, I had no idea how much we’d enjoy it! In the end, I wished we had an extra day to spend lounging around their pool, swinging in the beachside hammocks, and chatting with the staff.
Our stay was nearly perfect, and everything about the hotel was the epitome of relaxation. It also felt highly intimate because there are only 40 rooms and suites on site.
Sound like your kind of resort? Keep reading to learn all about it!
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Overview of the Papagayo Golden Palms
This beachside resort is located on the Papagayo Peninsula and has direct access to a lovely black sand beach. The entire resort is a tropical paradise featuring bamboo, colorful flowers, emerald hedges, and soaring Guanacaste trees. (Fun fact that the manager Luis shared with us: the Guanacaste tree can be used to make an all-natural soap!)
The 40 rooms are scattered throughout the property, with tidy brick pathways connecting each section. Each suite has a private terrace where guests can enjoy the gardens or tropical forest while listening to the waves lapping against the black-sand shoreline.
The hotel has an open-air restaurant that serves daily breakfast (included), snacks, lunch, and dinner made from fresh local ingredients.
Just outside the restaurant, in a small, sandy area decorated with fairy lights, you’ll find several hammocks swaying in the ocean breeze.
There is also a pristine pool (and small splash pool) where guests can cool off and plenty of seating to soak up the sun rays.
Garden Suite at Papagayo Golden Palms
We booked a Garden Suite for our stay, and as I mentioned early, I had no idea how much we would enjoy it! The pictures online really didn’t do it justice, so I was pleasantly surprised at how large, bright, and comfortable it was!
The queen-sized bed was incredibly comfortable, and the room’s AC was a huge relief after each hot day outdoors. I also enjoyed the sitting area near the private patio was nice for taking a break indoors while basking in the bright sunlight through the floor-to-ceiling patio windows.
I also loved the large, upscale bathrooms here. The long counters had room to spare, and there was tons of storage space between two four-shelf nooks and a full-size closet.
At the end of the bathroom hallway, a separate room contained the toilet and an enormous shower. I think we could have fit about six people in the shower without touching! I liked that the shower had multiple shelves and a bench to hold our toiletry items, as well.
One thing to note is that the toilets here do not flush toilet paper! This is pretty common in Costa Rica, but I know it’s odd for many travelers. You just have to remember to place your TP in the trash can for a few days.
The suite was also tiled throughout, which was great for staying cool. I know it’s also a benefit to the resort staff as you’ll likely be tracking in a bit of sand each day.
The room also had a mini-fridge, TV, coffee maker, and two desks.
Breakfast & Snacks at Papagayo Golden Palms’ Restaurant
Papagayo Golden Palms has a lovely, open-air restaurant off the lobby where guests can enjoy a delicious daily breakfast while looking out over the pool terrace or the Pacific Ocean. Each morning, we could choose from one of 3 included meal options or upgrade to the “Chef’s Specialties” for an additional price.
We stayed for three days, which gave us the chance to try all three breakfast options:
- Tico Breakfast: Gallo pinto, eggs, cheese or sour cream, corn tortillas, & plantains
- Guanacasteco Breakfast: Corn tortilla, omelet, Guanacaste Criolle beans, & Costa Rican breakfast sausage
- Continental Breakfast: Toast or pancakes, butter, house jelly
Each breakfast also included a fresh tropical fruit parfait, orange juice, and coffee, tea, or milk.
We tossed around the idea of eating dinner at the hotel restaurant, but in the end, we opted just to try a couple of their “snacks” instead. We ordered the fried cheese cubes and passionfruit cheesecake as a late-night snack after a highly disappointing dinner at a restaurant down the road.
I’m glad to say the Papagayo’s chef did not disappoint! Both dishes were incredible, and the staff was kind enough to wrap up the fancy plates and let us take the food to go because we were worn out.
Pool & Beach Access
One of my favorite parts about the Papagayo Golden Palms was the relaxing beach-resort atmosphere. This was so far from the crowded resorts I’ve been to in Florida. I think that was mainly due to the smaller size of the hotel.
The hotel has a gorgeous pool in front of the restaurant, complete with a waterfall and a turtle-shaped inner pool with jets. A handful of lounge chairs scattered around the perimeter provide perfect spots for sunbathing, and a small pool off to the side offers a safe place for kids to splash around.
On the edge of the pool’s terrace, a small gate opens up to a hedged, brick path. If you follow this pathway, you’re just steps away from sinking your toes into some of the softest sand ever! Papagayo Golden Palms has direct beach access to Playa Panama, a small black-sand beach that curves around the peninsula.
We enjoyed scouring the shoreline to see what washed up with the tide: a pufferfish, crabs, shells, coconuts, and plenty of driftwood. When we arrived our first afternoon, the shore was pretty small because the tide was in. But we returned our last morning and were surprised to see how far the sand stretched into the Panama Bay!
We definitely could have spent some time soaking in the sun and exploring more had we had some extra time.
Beautiful Landscaping & Peaceful Environment
As soon as we entered the main drive, I fell in love with this beautiful resort. All the paths were paved with neat brick lined with vibrant green hedges. Many of these bushes displayed bright red flowers that perfectly encapsulated the tropical vibes of the area.
The resort was almost always quiet except for the ocean, birds, and the rattling of bamboo on the edge of the forest. It was ideal for strolling the paths between suites to enjoy the gardens.
The suites were all painted a sunny yellow hue, with terra cotta tiles topping their roofs. Each section of rooms bordered one of the resort’s garden squares, which were all impeccably landscaped with towering palm trees and plants in a rainbow of colors.
We had a great time just walking around the small resort to enjoy the tropical atmosphere and beauty.
Closer to the beach, we found a peaceful area strung with fairy lights and several hammocks, where you could sit back and enjoy the ocean breeze. This sandy spot also had several small fire pits and a series of low, semicircle stone walls that you could use as benches around the fires.
It was never crowded and made an ideal spot for hanging out around sunset.
Incredible Staff
The staff at Papagayo Golden Palms was so welcoming and friendly at each interaction.
When we first arrived, Luis, the manager, got us settled into the lobby with some cold drinks while we read the welcome information. Then, he walked us through the hotel processes, from cleaning procedures to room service to checking out beach towels.
After we’d signed the documents, he personally escorted us to our suite, which was such a nice touch. And when we accidentally got locked out of our room later that day, he even came back with the maintenance workers to make sure we got back in okay.
We met another manager later during our stay who walked with us on our way to the front gate. He was very friendly, and we had a pleasant conversation with him about the area and found out that he was from La Fortuna, where we had just been staying. When we saw him the next day, he remembered us and asked us about the tour we’d gone on.
These little interactions elevated the customer service experience and made us feel welcome.
Our limited contact with the rest of the staff was also far above the standard, from the sweet waitress who took our breakfast orders each morning to a friendly maintenance man who offered to hose off our sandy toes so we could jump in the pool after a walk on the beach, rather than go all the way to our room to rinse off.
We didn’t have a single negative interaction, and even when we felt like we were being a burden, everyone helped us with a smile.
Touches like this really make me fall in love with a place and want to come back, and also why I fully recommend that you book your stay here as well!
Closing Thoughts on Papagayo Golden Palms
All in all, our stay at this beautiful beach-side hotel was fantastic. We loved the location, the amenities, the experience, and the friendly staff.
It was also in an excellent spot to explore the area’s beaches, restaurants, and scenery.
The only “negative” experience we had was with the wildlife, which is pretty much unavoidable, and I honestly expected we’d be interacting with a lot more critters on this trip.
There was a small lizard guarding the wall over our bed when we arrived, but he was completely harmless and pretty cute. We let him outside before bedtime and made sure to close the front and patio doors quickly to keep other unwanted guests out. We also had one cockroach in our bathroom, but again, that’s expected pretty much anywhere south of Florida. A girl we met who stayed at a low-budget hotel down the street had a brown recluse in her shower, so we felt pretty good about our stay, haha.
If you’re looking for a beautiful but affordable hotel in Costa Rica, you can’t go wrong with the Papagayo Golden Palms!
Please feel free to drop any questions you have below, and I’ll answer them as best I can.
If you’re interested in visiting Costa Rica, check out the rest of my Pura Vida series to see the fun experiences we had in La Fortuna.
The Pura Vida Series
- 11 Important Things to Know Before You Travel to Costa Rica
- Addicted to Coffee & Chocolate? You’ll Love This Tour!
- Everything you Need to Know About the Mistico Hanging Bridges
- Into the Rainforest: A Trek Through Sloth’s Territory
- An Exciting Zip Line & Rappel Tour in La Fortuna
- Why I Didn’t Want to Leave Montana de Fuego Hotel
- How to Make Your Trip to Costa Rica a Success: A Packing Guide
And if you want to learn more about Guanacaste, be sure to sign up for my blog to get notified of my newest posts! I’ll be covering the Guanacaste province for the next few weeks.
Thanks for stopping by, and happy travels!
