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PolyglotTraveller
Laval, Canada
3865
Time Share Exchange, Good Idea!
3.0 of 5 bubblesReviewed 24 Mar 2011
We also used this RCI timeshare for the week of March Break (March 12 - 20). We had unit 11 right beside the garbage cans (although we did not smell it, we didn't make use of the hammock outside our condo). As mentioned this is a condo unit with a small pool that I didn't see anyone use or sit near. Parking is available should you choose to rent a car. Taxis are available but you can easily walk down 300m max. to the Best Western Irazu to catch one. The complex has a gate where you ring the bell to enter. There is someone at the front desk 24-7. There is WiFi outside the main reception (reliable and high speed; i.e. can use SKYPE on your iPhone/iTouch). Room cleaning service at your discretion by hanging the sign on your door. There is a $150 deposit requirement; upon departure $100 is returned to you ($50 is kept for cleaning service).

The Unit
We had a 3 bedroom (see pictures - more posted on general PHOTOS section) with one main bathroom. The Master bedroom had a full ensuite (shower/bathtub), toilet, bidet, sink etc. The main bathroom had shower, sink, toilet. There is also a vanity downstairs (toilet/sink). One room had a double bed; another room had 2 twins; the master had queen/double. There is also a futon in the central area on the second level. Downstairs the living room and dining room was ample size for 4 adults (would get crowded with 6 adults, in my opinion, but there is that sitting area upstairs as well). Two TVs - although we never turned them on. There is also a "mud room" with sink. The kitchen has full length refrigerator (just slightly bigger than European size). There was a microwave, kettle, stove. All cookware and dishes present - the all important cork screw!

The Location
It is literally 300 m from the Best Western Irazu... so if you have the time share for a week (Sun. to Sun.) I highly recommend you try to fly into San Jose on a Sat. and stay the night at the Best Western (which allows up to 3 adults in a room). It is about a 10 to 15 min. cab ride to downtown (which will cost you roughly 4000 colones - depending on where you're going downtown). RCI paperwork (when booking) makes mention of Sol Tropical as the tour operator (a previous review mentions this company headed by Mark). After several inquiries through email prior to our departure to Costa Rica, we opted to forgo Sol Tropical's "menu" of tours and decided to hire our own driver (exactly for the reasons the previous review mentioned was a disappointment). It will cost a bit more but when we hired the driver, we got to do what we wanted to see and when we saw something along the way, there was no issue about stopping or changing itinerary. San Jose itself is not a great colonial city by any means and you can do the core downtown in 2 days - easily. I suggest you stay in San Jose as your central location to travel around the country. You can also check out Nature Air for cheap flights to, for example, Manuel Antonio, which will spare you the "Costa Rican Massage" of the roads! Or as I said, hire a driver (we used Walter's Tours - he speaks English - walterramirezc@yahoo.com (506) 8873 4266), and definitely go to Arenal, Monteverde, Manuel Antonio. We were picked up at 7 a.m. and didn't arrive back until midnight (as requested) - like I said, you hire the driver for the day and indicate what time you want to leave and return.

All in all, b/c Villa Palmas is a time-share, we only paid minimal costs associated with the rental agreement. I would recommend it for adults or families with older children.
Date of stay: March 2011
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Reviewed 20 March 2011

My cousin and I spent a week here (in exchange for an RCI timeshare) and had a fabulous time. It is NOT a resort, that's true. But it can't be beat for its location just west of the city center, resident travel company, and the arrangement of the condos around a central courtyard (very conducive to meeting and greeting the other guests). We took a tour each day to a different part of the country and thoroughly enjoyed the contrasts (Christian is, indeed, an incredibly talented tour guide). Almost all of the tours included at least one meal and were a very good value. What an easy way to see the country!

The only downside (if it can be called that) is that Mark, the owner of Sol Tropical (the resident travel company), tries to accommodate absolutely everyone. This means that the pushy people could push your vacation off track if you are not forewarned! Just make sure you understand what you are getting (even if this means you have to sit down with Mark and calmly and clearly identify all the details). Things can get rushed on Monday morning when everyone is swarming around setting up their tours and you may think that you know what you are doing the rest of the week only to find later that everything has changed. We did find that some details of our tours were later changed but when we spoke up and identified to Mark or Christian what we needed, each made every effort to accommodate us. (This included Mark coming to the office on Sunday to drive us personally to the airport when he learned of an accident that was causing a terrific traffic jam). I will definitely return if I have the opportunity.

Date of stay: March 2011
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10  Thank eswoodruff
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 17 August 2010

We got this apartotel in exchange for an RCI timeshare. Rated for up to 8, the 3 bedroom really is only enough for 6-7 (less privacy for the 7th). We went with our 3 sons, 16, 19 and 27. Good basic accommodation, comfortable but not luxurious, as the lone negative viewer seems to have expected. We definitely would go back there again.

Do remember that Costa Rica is a developing country. If your expectations are realistic, you'll be delighted. If you want to feel as if you haven't left the US or Canada, stay at the Best Western Irazú and eat at the Denny's down the street

Date of stay: August 2010
  • Trip type: Travelled with family
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13  Thank BillF20639
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 15 August 2010

I stayed a month with a teenager and a child under 10, we had the best time ever. The people at the condo were great in helping us with anything we needed. The younger office staff (James and Leo) were an absolute delight to be around, so friendly and so willing to talk. I just would love to see anyone that uses the wifi to listen to music do it with headphone please. The unit itself was actually better than what I had imagined.
We took tours with Sol Tropical. Happer was our driver, great guy! And Christian the tour guide is such an amazing person, so knowledgeable about his country, he made our trips so much fun. He was more like part of our family than our tour guide, I am honored to have met him.
I enjoyed myself so much I have already booked my trip back for December.

Date of stay: July 2010
  • Trip type: Travelled with family
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11  Thank ricksbrand
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 22 June 2010

If you could not feel the springs through the mattress, if you could not see through the sheets, if they did not charge 50 dollars for utilities, if the towels were not paper thin, if they caulked and grouted the holes in the walls so the bugs couldn’t use it like a highway, if it had air conditioning (you do need it in San Jose to rid the clammy feeling),if you didn’t need two people to guide you into a parking spot, if they gave you more than 2 little soaps at check in, if they gave you ice cube trays that didn’t use an eyedropper to fill, if they didn’t use a sheet of plexi-glass on the roof to make rain sound like a B52 bombing raid; if they didn’t charge 30 dollars if you lose a towel that’s worth maybe 25 cents, if they did all these things then, maybe , I could rate this Timeshare as sub standard.
I don’t ever want to see another make the same mistake I did. It was so bad we moved to the Hilton Doubletree which was a joy. I would avoid other Taranova resorts based on our experience here.

To be fair and balanced, as they say, it did have great hot water.

Date of stay: June 2010
Trip type: Travelled with family
19  Thank derb99
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 31 May 2010

I liked the Villas because it was very close to the city of San Jose. It has a kitchen with appliances and a stove as well as 2 bathrooms. It's also very close to a supermarket, drugstore, and a few restaurants.

The staff was very nice as well. I accidentally left my cell phone there. My husband called them and they let him know that they found it and would hold it for me until I got there to pick it up.

There's a computer available for use as well as free wi-fi. The wi-fi was a little bit of a problem because it didn't really work that well unless you came out of your room and sat near the office. So I'd just sit on the sidewalk by the office and use my laptop there. I didn't really mind doing that but that may not be convenient for someone that wants to stay inside thier villa and still be able to surf the net.

I also liked that there was a tour company that had a welcome breakfast there on Mondays. They gave out brochures/pamphlets on the outings that they offered. Some of the outings were a city tour of San Jose, Arenal Volcano and Baldi Hot Springs, Poas Volcano, and a rainforest hike. This was good because I really didn't know where to start in terms of the tour. Christian was an awesome tour guide. He was very knowledgeable about his country and his english was very good. He made the tours very interesting because he shared alot of things about Costa Rica.

Date of stay: May 2010
  • Trip type: Travelled as a couple
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3  Thank Annishia
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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