How wonderous it is to enjoy the exquisit natural wonders of Costa Rica! That's a "given".

Another "given" is the beauty of the Occidental Grand Papagayo, which is a man-made edifice errected in such a way as to blend into the natural landscape, and -if it's possible- to enhance it.

But with out the service, the spirit, the kindness, of the people who work there, it would be an emplty shell.

From the manager, Harold Rojas, to the host and hostesses, the wait-staff, the drivers who drive the vans around the grounds, to the bar people, the porters and maids, they must have all been schooled to do their individual jobs gracefully, and designed to give the guests more than they expected.

We mentioned Harold Rojas first because he sets the tone for the entire staff. He is one in a million who made us feel very special as I'm sure he did for all the other guests.

We would not hesitate to recommend this resort with its special personnel to all our friends. We plan to return some day to relive the joy we experienced.

After staying in the beautiful Occidental Gran Papagayo in Guanacaste, we booked a room at their other property, the Torremolinos in San Jose. What a dissapointment. The hotel is dated and worn. The shower stall doors were of the cheapest quality, difficult to open and in need of replacement. The closet in the room smelled terribly musty. It's on a principal street, so some of the rooms are noisy. The hotel restaurant food was not good at all. The buffet breakfast was just mediocre. The free internet access in the lobby must have been on dial-up, it was very slow. The towels, sheets and table linen were threadbare.

However, the service from the staff was very good.

The place needs a facelift and a better chef!

My husband and I stayed at the Occidental Torremolinos at the beginning and end of our trip to Costa Rica. We loved the hotel!! The staff was the best. The staff was always willing to help us...Katarina, Lilliana and Dennis went beyond the call of duty to make our stay enjoyable. The rooms were clean. The only thing that we noticed was that the soundproofing was not good. There are jalousie windows over the doors that lead to the hallways and the noise in the halls was very loud at times. But we were up and out early...so it wasn't the worst thing. If we were looking to sleep in, that would have been a problem. The restaurant staff was extremely courteous and helpful. They would make me a pot of hot tea for my room whenever I asked for it. The hotel has no elevator, which could pose a problem for some patrons. The hotel was not in the center of town, but for $2 a taxi will take you into the center of town.

We stayed at the Torremolinos at the beginning and end of our vacation in Costa Rica. We had no major complaints with the hotel. The rooms were average and showing their age but were clean and comfortable. The staff was friendly and helpful. The location of the hotel is its best advantage. It is close the park, the airport and it is easy to get to downtown San Jose.

The only real downside to the hotel is the way that it is designed. The rooms have windows to both the hallway and the courtyard. This is perfect for keeping the rooms cool but it can be very noisy if you are in a room with a lot of traffic in the hallway. The best way to avoid this is to ensure you have a room on the 2nd or 3rd floors, that way there is less traffic passing your room.

We would recommend this hotel to anyone who doesn't plan on spending a lot of time in their room and who doesn't expect it to be a 5 star.