tripTX

I believe HCC's Costa Rica location was opened for use a couple weeks ago. If any DCFMs members have visited (or plan to this summer), I'd love to hear some feedback on the setup, the resort, the beach club, nearby activities. In one of the posts from May, someone said that the beach club might not be completed until December. Would rather hold off on my trip there until I know everything is up and running.

Thanks to all you guys for this great forum to share info. Just finished my first year at HCC, and all the tips here have been very helpful. Here's to many more good years!

baylor1

We are going at the end of July and I will post a review if no one else has by then. I am not a novelist so don't expect the detail some people give but I will do my best. Also we have been told the beach club is complete and open.

vineyarder

Has anyone seen (or taken) any photos of the new HCC Costa Rica residence? If so, I'd love to see them as I am looking to go there...

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GregGH

Has anyone been able to figure out the developers web site??
Interactive Map of Reserva Conchal Guanacaste, Costa Rica

HCC says Terrace Condo # T1-3 - just call me fussy on wanting to see a location -- where is Ted's maps when you need him :-)

Also air port mentioned as 45 minutes ... hmm ... with a 7:45 am departure from LIR ( Liberia ) to IAH for way home - lets see how smooth that goes.

BTW - have 1st week in March - found Continential was cheaper from DTW (detroit) thru Houston than it was starting in Houston ...so we grabbed them

Greg - the newbie HCC guy ( first trip in planning stages )

3DH

Greg... is Continental going to cancel your entire itenerary if you don't check in for the DTW-IAH leg??? (I can honestly say that have never looked for airfare in that way... maybe I should start, if it works!)

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LTTravel

How are you getting to the airport? Do you have car service or are you renting a car?
I had an early flight out of Liberia also and was afraid about the drive because I had a rental. But I was there in July which is rainy season. The roads in Costa Rica have improved and many are paved, but they don't do a great job of it. So when it rains, you get many potholes immediately (which they try to fill the same day) But in dry season I don't know if that happens. The roads are very easy to drive during the day but there are no lights so it will be difficult to drive in the dark- but do-able (but very difficult if dark and rainy with potholes) The sun rose a little after 5 AM in July so I would suspect that in March it will be a little later. You will probably have enough light to get going. It is a good 45 minutes. The airport is very small and did not take much time to get through. You do have to pay a departure tax. At the ER residences, the staff took care of that so that saved you 15 minutes in line at the airport. So see if they can do that for you at Reserva Conchal also.

vineyarder

They absolutely do have the right/ability to cancel your entire itinerary if you book DTW-IAH-LIR but do not check in at DTW for the DTW-IAH leg... I'm not sure how efficient CO is at that, but AA would definately catch it and cx your entire itinerary... I have booked flights where it is cheaper to fly A to B to C than just A - B, then just got off at B (with only carry-ons), but IME, that only works these days one way, and only if you check-in at your original ticketed origin... And even then, they might pull your FFM for the segment you flew but didn't complete... Or even (rarely) carry a charge-back if you book in the future for the fare differential...

I'm sure that Kage (our FT expert) can weigh in on this...

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willmyclubmakeit

Be careful booking with an extra leg as airline's do tend to cancel these as its against their fare rules....also it makes it tough to check bags especially on the way home (unless you go to Detroit to pick up the bag). Good luck. You maybe able to call and cancel the first leg but not sure.

Tedpilot

I would like to know too. I should probably go in and see what I can do to add some more maps where applicable. Some of these places are hard to find...

GregGH

sorry for confusion --I live close to Detroit --so I go DTW-IAH-LIR. The reason I looked at IAH to LIR is I wanted to verify I I saw all the flights from IAH to LIR - that is when I noticed that it was MORE MONEY than my flight...:-)

BTW -- found this link .... Liberia (LIR) - Airport details
it shows the main links to LIR are :
Delta from Atlanta, New York & Los Angeles
Continental from Houston & Newark
American from Dallas & Miami
US Air from Charlotte
& I think Air Canada from Toronto (unconfirmed)

Greg

GregGH

I wonder if this is the general area - see attached map --the blue pin is the Four Seasons Resort on Peninsula Papagayo. An article said you can take a boat north to the Four Seasons for $70. And the 'fuzzy' map from the developers site (I linked in an earlier post) is similar.

WHY do they skrimp of good maps ... or maybe it is just me -- love to see the general area

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baylor1

We are headed to CR soon. We also have a 7:00 am ish flight out when we leave. We decided to take a shuttle to not get suprised by the drive. We will rent a car in Tamarendo. We will let you know our opinion of the road and drive. But my thought is better safe than sorry.

I don't think I have seen anyone post their own photos on the forum. Is that considered bad form?

stevenhcc

Hello all. Just back from Costa Rica, staying at the HCC unit there (T1-3) in the Reserva Conchal.

Since I found some interesting/useful information here posted by others I thought I would post a quick review and be happy to answer any questions anyone has about the unit/area/experience.

This I'll keep fairly brief here but feel free to ask about anything. This was our second time in Costa Rica having been on the "other side" in March (Arenal, San Jose, Monte Verde, Manual Antonio, etc...)

The condo itself is great. It's probably the nicest one I've been to for HCC (have been to New York, Turks, Big Island, Orlando, Tuscany, Keystone, Breckenridge) in part since it's brand new, but I also found the furnishings and general quality very high. Sometimes at the HCC's they are very nice but the furnishings aren't always at a high level. They did pretty well here.

The units here seem fairly empty, they are still working on some and putting in finishing touches. Definitely rent a car since the trip to the Beach Club is a couple of miles and the resort transportation while workable will slow you down. You can rent at the rental office which is what we did.

The Beach Club is excellent. Really nice. Two very good restaurants, great pool area, right next to the beach, incredible workout room and nice spa. The personnel are really helpful and the Beach Club is great.

The rental office is relatively helpful. They are mixed in their knowledge of the area and the concierge is sometimes as hard to find as the Quetzal bird.

If you rent a car keep in mind gas stations aren't exactly on every corner like here in the U.S. You have a bit of a drive to get to one and supermarkets are not up to the usual US standards. The "Super Compro" is fairly close but I'm not going to say it's the nicest store you'll ever be in. We never made it to one but have heard the Auto Mercado in Tamarindo is much nicer.

There are some nice restaurants that are close and several will come and pick you up at your unit which is nice.

Clearly there's a LOT to do -- assuming you like to be outside and like adventure. We did not spend all of our time on the resort, we got out and saw the area and did tours/trips. Sure, you could spend the days at the Beach Club relaxing but in Costa Rica you really should get out there and explore.

The people are great, friendly, helpful, etc... It's a special place.

Everything of course isn't perfect, there are some issues with the condo, though small, and the resort isn't going to cater to you like the Four Seasons. There will be a few adjustments to your expectations if you compare to life in the U.S. but this is a beautiful country, one that prides itself on its peace, education and pure living. It really grows on you as the days go by. Since we were just there in March you can see it made an impression to go back so soon.

Feel free to ask any questions.

Thanks.

baylor1

Stevenhcc - Thanks for the info. We are headed there soon and really looking forward to it. Just curious where you traveling with kids? If the answer is yes or you can take that point of view a few questions. We have 3 grade school age kids. Any specific restaurant recommendations if eating with kids? Are most pretty kid friendly? Did you try out the kids club (is that the right name)? Did you do any great activities/tours you would recommend? We have been to the Manuel Antonio area as a couple but this is our first venture to CR as a family. Anything else you think a family should know before heading down there? Any inside tips about the property? Thanks!

DC4MS

Any user photos are welcome....register for a free photo account using a service like photobucket.com or flickr.com or smugmug.com and upload your pictures there and post a link here.

Thanks for the mini-review and welcome to our forums. We would also like to hear about your other HCC travels and opinions.

stevenhcc

baylor1 -- Yes, was traveling with one child - entering 3rd grade to give you an idea about age. As far as restaurants, we had no issues anywhere. Everything is very casual, typically you're eating in an outdoor situation, or with a covered patio, etc... and they do accommodate picky eaters at least to some degree. I'm not going to say you'll have an extensive kid's menu most places but they certainly are used to the usual requests. I might butcher the names a bit buy "Mar 'y Sol" was excellent and they will come pick you up at the condo and take you to the restaurant. A super close italian restaurant "Il Forno" is very good. The two restaurants on site are good. There are a few other places in the town of Brasilito next door as well (Happy Snapper and I think one called Marie's) -- all going to work fine with kids. Perhaps the first one that's a bit more upscale you'd want to be sure the kids can stay contained at your table so use the same judgment you'd use here in the U.S.

We didn't try the kid's club so I cannot give any details on that. Your kids will love the beach club though -- other kids there as well which makes it fun for them.

It is rainy season now so everyday in late afternoon it will rain -- just prepare for it -- it's fun when you just know it's coming and enjoy it.

As for things to do some will depend upon ages and comfort for your kids. We did two zip-line canopy tours, my 8 year old loves those but it would be kid dependent. Horseback riding on the beach is easy and fun. There are some easy floats on rivers that are nice and some easy hikes that can be guided. There are also long day trips to hot springs and places like Arenal. We didn't feel like doing anything that required a 4 hour ride out and then back so that excluded a few things but we had already done those earlier in the year when we were here.

There are some age restrictions on the activities such as the whitewater rafting.

As for the property it's very well equipped. Like I mentioned, the grocery store that is fairly close could be an adjustment so you might want to venture a bit further to get to a nicer one. A rental car is a must - and I'd suggest getting a four wheel drive -- you'll be glad you did.

Hope that helps!