As a group of 9, we decided that we wanted to have a longer stay so we looked into booking a cheaper property. After looking into it and reading all of the reviews as a group we collectively chose this one.
Pros: The grounds are very pleasant and serene. Offered extensive views of the volcano from all of our rooms. Helpful staff. Nice complimentary breakfast. The rooms were much nicer than I expected for $89.00. The pool is small, but very relaxing and Donald the bartender was really awesome. It's a really wonderful setting. The housekeeping was fantastic. The rooms are very clean.

I feel like for the price, you can't complain much. But if I was super picky I'll list a few of our problems.

We had to change rooms because our A/C broke. Staff was very prompt in assisting with all of our needs.

The rooms are quite noisy if your neighbor is home. Our door key had to be reset several times. Very minor things. The staff was always very nice and helped us immediately.

There is so much to do, we were barely in our rooms. It's just a place to lay your head and wash up and it's perfect for that. If your looking for a room that your going to be in a lot instead of outside out on adventures, you might want to try somewhere else if noisy neighbors annoy you. Personally, that is my biggest pet peeve.s However on this trip, being so active and cheap it didn't bother me.

I would definitely stay there again. I really loved the place, the Concierge (Salene) it's terrible I forgot his name- but he was awesome! We loved him. He booked us a really cool tour to Nicaragua for the day. It was a really great experience. Nicaragua was hot, but on the boat it was lovely. He was really great at suggesting the zip lines, hot springs, La Fortuna Waterfall etc. He even arranged to have a birthday cake made for me. He was fantastic! The whole staff was.

We stayed at Arenal Springs Resort as part of a 10-day tour through Caravan Tours. While perfectly fine, it did not match up to the exotic character of our Tortuguera jungle lodge or our Pacific all-inclusive resort. But - it was fine.

The resort is located between Tabacon Hot Springs and the village of La Fortuana. When we turned off the main road onto a dirt road into the country, I thought we were in for "rustic," but the resort is quite modern. It’s cut right out of pasture and is still surrounded by fields with cows and horses.

The 26 cabins are actually duplexes, with two rooms each. Every room has a covered patio facing the volcano, complete with two rocking chairs. The rooms are not well soundproofed and we could hear the couple in the next room – not enough to bother us, but enough to make us wonder if we might be bothering them!

As mentioned in a previous review, inserting your room key in a slot as you enter the room turns on the electricity. I wish I had this at home - very green! The bay window in each room is fixed, but there are two other large windows that slide open. These windows do not have screens which was not a problem for us since there weren't any bugs, but it didn't feel real safe to sleep that way at night so we closed them and turned on the A/C.

The rooms are basic but clean and very serviceable. The garden shower is a nice touch - and wait 'til you see what they do with your towels. ;-)

Many in our group praised the landscaping and the resort did do a good job with planting lots of interesting plants and labeling them, but I found it rather uninspiring. I prefer paths through tropical vegetation and the landscaping here was much more open.

It was too cool to use the pool but it looked fine and there was a swim-up bar. I think it is designed so you can lay in the pool or jacuzzi and see the volcano at night.

Our tour group ate at the restaurant for breakfast and 2 dinners - typical yummy Tico fare , very well prepared considering it was all buffet. The restaurant is airy with a good view of the volcano.

Ah yes, the volcano. All the views in the resort focus on the it. Unfortunately, the most we ever saw of Arenal was the bottom third as it was cloudy the entire two days of our stay. Bummer.

We saw lots of birds on site and one of our group members had toucans on her patio!

We took two great side trips arranged by Caravans - a wildlife-viewing boat trip into the Cano Negro Wildlife Preserve and a visit to the much nearer Baldi Hot Springs. We saw lots of animals – especially monkeys and birds - on the river tour and had a great guide. The hot springs were almost empty when we got there in the late afternoon. We were the only people in several of the pools. Magical!

If you go to the resort website, it lists a variety of tours including rafting, caving, hiking, canopy tours, and horseback riding – plus the ones we did – all within a short distance. It states that the tour operators will pick you up at the resort.

We also toured La Fortuna but it's really pretty much a tourist town and did nothing for me.

If I were to go back to Arenal, I'd probably stay at a more rugged place with more of a nature feel to it, closer to hiking trails and the volcano. But this resort is nice, clean and comfortable – and a good deal.

We booked our stay on very short notice while in Costa Rica.

The complex is very unique, private and about 1-km off the main road. It consists of a few dozen two-unit cabins on separate lots, similar to a small subvision. The reception area and restaurant are at the entry point, and you can walk, drive, or ride a golf cart to your unit.

The cabins look quite spacious from the road, but in reality they are smaller than most hotel rooms. They are new and modern, but there is no sitting area (not even a single chair or couch). No other complaints, except for the weather.

The reception staff, bell captain, concierge, and restaurant staff were all very professional, friendly and helpful. All spoke very decent English. Food served was good and reasonably priced. The included breakfast was American-style and very good. We ordered room service one night due to the weather, and the burgers were just great. They were delivered by car.

Shopping and restaurants are available in La Fortuna, about a $6 cab ride each way. The many tours and Interbus pickup right at the resort.

It was too rainy and cloudy to view the Arenal Volcano, and the lava flows are on the opposite side, away from Arenal Springs.

In summary, it was quiet, relaxing, and a decent value.

This hotel was great. It was off the main road, so it was peaceful and you could hear the howler monkeys in the distance. The grounds were amazing. The swimming pool looked small, but we were too busy to use the pool. Besides why would you want to hang out at a swimming pool when there are so many other neat things to do. Don't bother booking activities in advance (at least during the rainy season). The hotel has a wonderfully informative tour desk that can book everything for you depending on the weather. I would only recommend the horseback riding offered by the hotel for someone experienced. I would also recommend not renting a vehicle. I would recommend the hanging bridges, but if you really want to see wildlife, go on the safari float tour.