My boyfriend and I were looking for an untouched place in Central America and we found it at La Cocotera. We've been to Costa Rica and Nicaragua, but this little paradise in El Salvador beats them all. First off, the location is amazing because on one side of the property is the ocean and when you walk to the other side (through a coconut grove) there's an estuary with views of the mountains and volcanoes which gives a completely different vibe.
We stayed on the ocean side. The room was impeccably clean and spacious and done in a really cool rustic and modern combination. I loved the shower and the bed was so comfortable, I could have just stayed there the whole day and listened to the ocean. The pool was also a treat with its different areas to swim and sit in the shade and sip a delicious drink.
All the staff were so warm and friendly and extremely service oriented and the food was delicious. Our favorite were the pupusas, which is a local dish. Chef Enrique was wonderful! If you don't want the dish of the day for any reason, there's always a choice of a pasta, salad or local dish.
Though I could have just laid in a hammock all day and read (or slept) my boyfriend wanted to explore, so in addition to long walks on the gorgeous beach we did the volcano tour and climbed Santa Ana, El Salvador's highest volcano. Great fun, but I was so glad to get back to La Cocotera. This place is truly a find!

It's hard to know how to review La Cocotera. Firstly, it is in the middle of nowhere. That is mostly a good thing, other than the long bone-jarring drive along the dirt roads to get here. The facility itself is beautiful and peaceful. We had a bungalow on the beach which was simply splendid. We were also the only people at the resort which was nice and thus gave us in effect our own personal chef, and plenty of nice, nice people who were keen to help with anything. However, we both got the worst case of food poisoning on the second night we were there that I have ever had. I've never been that sick in my entire life. The remote location of the hotel added a little to the worry of what might happen because at one point, I thought we might need an IV to rehydrate us, but we would have sure have been out of luck with that, given that there was nothing for hours around. The chef seemed perplexed as to what caused it, I suspect the shrimp, but he was also very apologetic as well. That part of the trip was an absolute disaster. I guess that can heppen anywhere, but it does give one a feeling of some sort of problem with cleanliness in some way. I think I would still go back, but I would bring medicine with me this time, just in case.
Otherwise, the kayaking was awesome, the pool lovely, internet spotty, but when it worked it was fun to lay in the hammock by the pool while online. It was just the perfect place to unwind, but bring Cipro!

My daughter is studying in San Salvador, so I decided to fly the rest of the family down to spend Thanksgiving together.

Since my daughter has been living in the most modest of San Salvadoran conditions for the last 4 months (cold shower once a week, washing clothes in the basin, etc.) I knew I wanted to take her away to the beach for a few days. My internet search began.

That's when I met Joe, the owner, a Pennsylvanian now residing in San Diego. Through many conversations I learned that he fell in love with the property while visiting a friend down the beach. He bought it and had all local artisans and builders build the resort. Our front bungalow was right on the Pacific Ocean. As “Gilligan’s Island” as it was on the outside, it was Four Seasons on the inside. Air conditioning, flat screen TV (for movies only – no television) luxurious rainforest-like showers, etc. My kids’ room even had a shower outdoors. The back bungalow is on a beautiful estuary teeming with life (there is only one other bungalow, set back a few yards from the first). The rest of the resort from front to back – the pool and dining area, bird sanctuary, bar area with pool table, turtle sanctuary, estuary. Most everything is thatched roof and bamboo. It is a beautiful property.

For most of the 4 days we were the only guests. When we went to the pool they staffed the pool and asked us what we wanted to drink. When we went to play billiards they staffed the bar and asked us what we wanted to drink. When we went to the beach they followed us and. . . well. . . you know. Meals were amazing thanks to Enrique, head chef and second-in-command next to Ricardo, the GM who is about service at every corner of the resort. And while most of our time was spent relaxing and reconnecting as a family, we tried surfing boogie boarding, went waterskiing, hiked, swam and oh yes – sent 4 Olive Ridley Turtles home to the sea. At the end of the stay the only thing on the bill was a $20 charge for skiing and 3 pages of drinks – everything else was part of the room charge.

I feel fortunate to have found this small slice of heaven. If you have the opportunity, don’t even think twice. I’m just sorry that I’ll probably never get there again.

If you are looking to unplug and completely disconnect for a few days yet not lose any level of service in doing so, this is your place. This is literally a tropical oasis on the Pacific coast of El Salvador. Very remote location so if you are looking to stay connected or want nightlife or shopping, this is not the place for you.

The grounds are impeccably maintained and they have some very unique animals they foster and protect. Namely the Macaws as well as the Ridley turtles. If the weather and time (months of the year) are good they will allow you to release a baby Ridley into the Pacific Ocean. The surf was very rough while we were there so we chose not to release. The property is also uniquely situated with water on both fronts, Pacific on one side and tidal bay/mangroves on the other side.

The staff is extremely accommodating. Rooms were very spacious and spotless clean. It is an ecolodge so if it is cloudy one day (solar powered) you might not have as warm of water but it wasn't a major issue at all.

The chef, Enrique, is fabulous. It is not far short of having your own private chef as he was very flexible with our menu needs (vegetarian) every day. The food was wonderful and El Salvadoran and healthy--don't think a single thing was fried.

Pool is very relaxing. If the resort was at 100% capacity (18 people--probably rare) it could be a little crowded. There are 6 loungers and 2 chairs but thats it--very nice setting and very relaxing. Only thing I would have wished they had would have been some loungers and possibly an umbrella or two to lay around on the beach. As awesome as the staff was, I'm sure if we asked they would have found a way.

Would definitely recommend this place. Ricardo (Property Director) is a phenomenal tour guide and is really doing a wonder for El Salvador. He recommended several things to do and arranged the Ruta de las Flores tour for us (that is a must). He actually even made arrangements for additional side trips at our request (which we chose not to pursue but nevertheless, he was there to accommodate).

I'm hesitant to write this review because I don't want people to find out about this hidden gem but the country is beautiful with a developing tourism industry and a place like this deserves to be discovered.