Encantada Guest House

We stayed in the Parrot Room of the main B&B rather than the holiday cottage, but wanted to leave a review of our amazing stay with Marty, Nita and their pets Wonderful hosts who have thought of everything in the home they’ve designed, built and clearly love. The parrot room itself has all that you need for the stay, including fridge with some welcome drinks, a comfy (massive) bed and other essentials (binoculars, sunscreen, poncho etc). The shower is powerful and just needs a little second to warm up and water from the taps is drinkable. We also enjoyed sitting right outside with the little table/chair or the hammock swing with the nature sounds and views. Breakfast each morning was one of the nicest we have enjoyed, prepared freshly by Priscila. The best omelettes I’ve had with such good taste inside and out, plus a full range of other options (you select the night before whatever you fancy) Nita and Marty encouraged us to enjoy the property “as our home”, and we had a lovely day staying by the pool with the idyllic volcano views. There is a little trail on the property that runs down to a creek and we enjoyed seeing various wildlife (birds, lizards, frogs) right on the doorstep We also took advantage of the ability to arrange massages on-site with Julie which was super relaxing with the natural soundtrack of the forest. For Christmas dinner, we arranged for Mira to cook for us as offered for a private dining and again, we had a delicious set of courses which left us stuffed and ready to roll back to our room The road to the property will be easier in a SUV/4x4 (like many in Costa Rica), but again Marty/Nita planned everything and have blocks to help with traction when wet and we saw motorbike and sedan make it fine - the flip side of being closer to the forest out of the village. That said, it’s a quick 5min drive to a number of great restaurants locally (we tried the full list of suggestions during our stay and had great food everywhere) Overall a fantastic stay with wonderful hosts, delicious food, private nature and volcano views from the doorstep. You don’t need anything else!

My family of 5 stayed here for 5 nights and had an amazing time. Marty and Nita, the owners, were very hospitable and extremely helpful with recommendations and directions. There was plenty of space for my family and luggage. Everything was clean and neatly organized. The water pressure and temperature were both adequate and steady (My #1). The beds were comfortable (Wife's #1). There was a nice basket with some coffee, fruit, pancake mix and some other treats in it. We felt very safe and that our belongings were safe while we were away. When we weren't out on adventures the kids loved getting in the pool just outside the guest house. Evey night and morning there were beautiful sounds coming from the forest. In the mornings we were lucky to see monkeys move through the trees just outside our bedroom's window. There are so many beautiful plants to see around the property and awesome views everywhere. My family and I would recommend this location to anyone looking for a comfortable place to stay, it was accommodating and a great value. Thank you for a terrific stay. We hope we can return one day!

I had the pleasure of staying with Nita Kemsley and her husband at their perfect guest house last night and I must say that they have nailed it. The place is immaculate, the views are beautiful, the breakfast is perfect. If you find yourself wanting to avoid the busy area of Nuevo Arenal, if you love nature and beautiful finishes surrounding yourself, visit this wonderful place. You won't be disappointed!

My family of 4 stayed at this cottage for 2 nights, ZERO PRIVACY to say the least!!! Our shower was not working so I was directed up stairs to the main house where I was able to use the shower at another guest room, as I was in the middle of my shower, I heard a mans voice outside the window asking if my shower was going ok?? Uuuummmm excuse me? I was Instantly creeped out and felt extremely uncomfortable while finishing my shower, I felt like the whole time I was being watched. Meanwhile while I was showering Marty went downstairs to our cottage and walked right in while my husband was taking a dump without knocking or announcing himself. As a woman I felt uneasy and uncomfortable the whole stay!! We had scheduled a massage the morning we were leaving but Instead of contacting us via phone we got a hard knock on the door to tell us that our massage was here early at 8:40am, our massage was at 9am, the tone in Marty’s voice was unpleasant because he was worried we would not be out by 10am because other guests were coming, we felt scolded like children. We left the place very clean and organized!!

If you value privacy and respect this is NOT the place for you. The Good: our family thoroughly enjoyed the Arenal area. Los Lagos was great for kids and adults. Hot springs,water slides and lunch, all for 100 bucks US. It’s a must visit. The area is gorgeous, if you have an extra couple of days it’s a great way to end your trip before flying home.The bad: This is ALL true. We arrive at 7 pm, told not to use AC unless all windows are closed, some windows are impossible to close because they are high and we have no step ladder. Marty basically says we would be silly to use it. Night one, hot and sweaty, AC would have been nice. Marty also entered our cabina that night while we were gone at dinner. Weird. Shower does not work, go up to another room, my wife begins to take her shower and guess who’s outside her shower window? Marty! Asking my wife how her showers going. Again weird. I’m no female but as another man, I would not stand outside a woman I just met shower window asking her how she’s doing in there. My wife said she felt extremely uncomfortable. Next, the toilet didn’t work and over flowed. We were told not to put toilet paper in the toilet and it still over flowed, oh and Marty walked into our cabina unannounced and into the bathroom while I was taking a dump. No lie. No knock, no hello just straight in. No privacy. Finally on our last morning, Marty came POUNDING on our door at 8:41 telling us we needed to be out by 10. I’d write more but out of space.