Hotel El Pequeño Gecko Verde

This is a cute and quiet, if a bit rustic, little location. The outdoor showers are cool. The beds are comfortable compared to others in Costa Rica. AC works well. Staff are very friendly and helpful. We enjoyed the covered deck where we read and played cards during the rain. The best part is the beautiful tropical environment. It’s like being nestled in a little jungle cottage. It is farther from town than I realized though, and coupled with a very poor road (not the hotel’s fault) the drive or walk into town wasn’t fun. If that doesn’t bother you, or if you will be visiting with a high clearance car or in a dryer season, this may be a good choice for you.

Absolutely wonderful owners, staff, accommodations, breakfasts, grounds, and pool. Thank you Muriel, Hanna and Sergio for your amazing hospitality. I highly recommend your beautiful, jungle hideaway and look forward to returning. Brian from Canada

So much better than I had imagined. Everything about the unit we stayed in (3 bedrooms, dip pool, AC in bedrooms) as well as the hotel was perfect! BOOK. You won’t be disappointed. My 11 and 12 year old loved it so much, especially waking up to the sounds of howler monkeys, watching the hermit crabs at the hidden beach a close walk away, and spotting the iguanas around the property. The shared pool was a favorite was well! We swam in it every day.

We stayed in a well-equipped little hut with air-con (necessary), a kitchenette with all you need to make simple meals, and a beautiful porch with chairs and tables and a hammock, all tucked away and seculded in the jungle garden but 2 minutes from the pool. Bautiful beach is 15 mins walk away through the jungle, and Sámara beach - and others - are a short car ride. Breakfast was delicious - tried everything on the menu over our stay - and coffee was the best I've had. The staff were super helpful with everything; via them we booked the whale and dolphin tour with Octopus Tours, which was a superb way to spend a morning.

We recently stayed here for two nights, we were a group of 5 so we had two different rooms. My family had a larger bungalow with a queen and twin bed, we had a small kitchenette in our room with a large refrigerator. The room was spacious and comfortable. Our bathroom was pretty cool, it had a shower outside (very private). We could see monkey’s in the trees and lots of lizards. The hotel owner and reception staff (Paula and Kevin) are extremely friendly and welcoming. Paula helped us reserve a golf cart to go into town one day and reserved us massages in town. The staff really engaged with us, such a great experience that we love when we travel. The pool was nice and refreshing. There is a private beach about a 10 min walk through the jungle and it is really nice and our husbands had good luck fishing from the shore. Breakfast was included for the smaller rooms and had a variety of choices. The larger room with the kitchenette did not include a free breakfast. There was plenty of assigned parking. We were in Costa Rica for 12 days and stayed at 6 different places throughout the country and this was by far all of favorite place. One thing to note is that the monkey’s like to throw things on the roof of the bungalows in the morning! No need for our alarm clock!

What a great environment. The bungalows enjoy great privacy and are surrounded with a beautiful tropical garden with various local fauna species: coaties, paccas, howling monkeys, iguanas… Muriel is an excellent host, always willing to share her stories, experience and advice at breakfast. The rest of the staff is also super friendly. Kevin, the receptionist, prepared excellent cocktails and brought beers poolside at night. You can walk to the village in 20-25 min, either through town or through the beach at low tide, or drive in 2-3 min. There are several activities at Samara that makes this location the perfect spot: HorseJungle (Amazing 3h horse back ride), Belen waterfall (20 min away), surf lessons, boat trips… Wish I could stay longer!