I don't know why it's taken me so long to write this review. I guess I thought my husband was going to do it and we just didn't get around to it. Our honeymoon began exactly six months ago and I was reminiscing today and decided to take a look at the website and then Trip Advisor. I was almost in tears just thinking about how bad I want to go back.

My husband and I were married in July and honeymooned at Los Altos after lots of research. He was in charge of the honeymoon and took it very seriously. Luckily, he scheduled all seven nights at Los Altos, which was the best decision he’s ever made besides choosing me as his wife. I know some people like to spend some time in more rustic areas, but for me I would rather have luxury the whole time. And I got it.

I'm going to tell my story by going through a typical day staying at Los Altos. I'll note that we did almost every activity besides the fishing. The best was the day trip. You must do this- even if you did a zip line tour or went horseback riding already. It’s a fantastic deal for all the stuff you do and hanging out with Jaime is a treat itself. The surf lessons were also fun and you must do the spa day as well as the sunset massage. You might want to book those in advance, especially the sunset massage. It includes a long gourmet dinner but only one couple can go each day so you don’t want to miss out and risk not having an opening.

I’ll just go over a day of staying at the resort the whole day, which may sound dull but we were glad to have a couple of days like this and I could seriously live there forever and never leave the grounds. I should hope by reading other reviews you’ve pretty much decided to go here and I hope this review gives you an idea of what you’ll be doing on your trip. Even if it doesn’t, it’s kind of fun to just show up and wing it. You’ll get comfortable here very quickly. When you first arrive, it seems like the other people there are pros and know the ropes and you might worry that you won’t fit in but even just later that day, you’ll be so relaxed and you’ll just think of it as home. Halfway through the day trip, as fun as it was, we were all anxious just to get back home and lay by the pool. You might be most comfortable going there as a couple but don’t think that it will be all young honeymooners there. We had couples of all ages and we all got along great.

What I still remember vividly is waking up early because I didn't want to miss a thing each day. I started my day by walking/running with Jacqueline. If you can't handle her intensity, Calvin will bring up the rear at whatever pace you need to go. You don’t really need to use any of the exercise equipment if you do this each morning. We came up the last hill to ice water waiting for us, including a glass for Oso. Then it’s time for breakfast. I could eat only chocolate croissants for the rest of my life.

After eating we would swim for a bit and just hang out in the sun. As is typical in rainy season in Costa Rica, some of these days were not sunny and maybe even pouring down rain. I really didn’t mind because we were still entertained and I prayed for rain during massages because it really added to the soothing atmosphere. You can also go down to the spa and hang out in the hot tub since it’s covered. Be careful running through the rain down to the spa. They have umbrellas you should use. I didn’t care and then I bit it pretty hard one day once my wet feet met the slick wood floor of the spa. I think my shoulder is still messed up. I’m getting off track - I think it’s lunchtime now.

Lunch is delicious (my favorite was a salad topped with guacamole with shrimp in it). Then I might swim some more or go look at the monkeys or hang out in our room and take a nap. Late afternoon it’s time for the outdoor shower (the second of the day after the sweat you work up on the walk). It’s fun to get dressed up for dinner even if you’re not going out because you have to take pictures in front of the sunset. Then you need to sip some wine and talk to the other guests for a bit. Dinner is spectacular, although I don’t recall exactly what we ate except that is was really delicious. After a few more glasses of wine you are pretty tired from the long day and you will be ready to go to bed much earlier than you thought. You can hang out for as long as you want with everyone by the pool or at the big table.

We made some great friends at Los Altos. Three of the couples we still keep in touch with. We had the pleasure of attending a wedding (congrats Ryan and Megan!). I keep in touch Annie, John, Kristin and Richard on Facebook. We are trying to plan a trip to Chicago so we can visit you guys! It’s hard to forget people you shared your honeymoon with and got to know so well. Not that my husband isn’t the most fun person in the world, but I think we might have been bored if it was just the two of us all week at some huge resort where you can’t always get to know the other guests or the staff.

Other great things to note are the laundry service, the great restaurants that are just a fun van ride away, and just the service! Any day, you can just let Ari or someone know that you want to go surfing the next day or on some other trip and that’s all you need to do and it’s booked. I think surfing might be the only thing that you have to pay for at the place. Everything else is just added to your bill. If you wake up in the morning and you don’t actually feel like going to beach like you said you would, it’s no problem and they’ll just bring you a smoothie instead.

I loved that everything at the resort was so close together. If you’re hanging out by the pool and you forgot your lip balm in the room, instead of packing your bag and heading back into the hotel and taking the elevator to your floor and then walking to your room, unlocking the door, etc. . . all you do is stand up, walk ten feet to your room- where your door is probably still open if you didn’t bother to close it like us- grab the lip balm and you are back to tanning in under 30 seconds.

I don’t even know how long this is getting to be but if you’re still with me, thanks for reading.

If you had any doubts about booking your trip here, you can go ahead and forget them.

Please tell everyone when you get there that Morgan and Brian said hello and we miss everyone so much! As soon as I win the lottery or Brian wins a huge poker tournament, we will be back!

My husband and I stayed at Los Altos in February, 2007. Los Altos is AMAZING. The service was wonderful and the grounds are beautiful. We were pampered with smoothies, lunch, and wine as soon as we arrived. Calvin and Jacqueline were perfect hosts and the staff was helpful, but very unobtrusive. We went for my 30th birthday, and our hosts were wonderful in helping us celebrate. We also happened to be at Los Altos over Super Bowl weekend, and though it was a Sunday night (not their usual nights to serve dinner), Calvin and Jacqueline gave us a little taste of home with home cooked pizza, beer, and a wide screen TV for watching the game.

In addition to the wonderful hospitality, the spa menu is extensive and also amazing, particularly for the prices. We did the couples massage, and I also had the chance to try a milk bath, a body scrub, and a facial. All were perfect, especially in the serenity of the jungle. Thanks Los Altos for a perfect birthday! I can't wait to go back!

Every good review you've read on this site... IT'S ALL TRUE... I travel all around the world for work and this hotel has the BEST service I have ever experienced. My husband and I only stayed for three days and two nights and as soon as we left, we wished we had arranged to stay longer. Tucked away quietly outside the city, this is the place for relaxation and peace. With a firm bed in the room and an outdoor shower, the decor is quaint and cultural and there is some lovely artwork and sculpture throughout. Great pool and great views as well. You can see that the staff clearly loves working for the owners of this "inn", Calvin and Jacqueline, and they want to chat with the guests and interact as much as you'd like to. As others have mentioned, because there are only 5 rooms, you get to interact with other guests staying at the hotel while you are there, which for us, was really fun. (We had a champion scrabble match and some good ole' Texas Hold Em' goin' on...) The hotel will arrange any and every activity you could possible want and go above in beyond in terms of customer service. Greeted at the "gate" with a bottle of chilled wine, you feel as if you've found an oasis in the middle of the rainforest. (A HUGE plus... they do ALL of your laundry at this hotel for no additional cost, so since we traveled a bunch before coming here, we LOVED that...) Mostly all-inclusive (except for two nights where they do serve dinner), this place is a GEM. If you want the Four Seasons (want to pay an arm and a leg and be just a "guest"), this is not the hotel for you, but if you want to have all the comforts of home, be called by your first name and have all your needs personally met, and be pampered beyond your imagination (and also feel like you've made a ton of new friends) book a room at this hotel. Stay here if you want to visit Costa Rica... you won't regret it.

It's hard to express in words how incredible this place is.

Imagine you've just been invited to the private mountain estate of the most friendly, generous family on earth. At most there are four other couples staying with you, and all those people happen to also be friendly, interesting, and really fun to hang out with. The first woman who greets you and brings you smoothies and wine and nachos on the private terrace is also married to the man who drives you into town, teaches you about the local wildlife, and gives you the inside scoop on local life. The next woman who greets you is married to the next driver, who gives you a crash course in remedial Spanish to help you better navigate the food scene in town. Your last driver also happens to be the pastry chef responsible for the amazing croissants you get to eat every morning.

In the morning, you can either do the 5km walk around the forest, looking at monkeys, enormous butterflies, parrots, and other birds, or do yoga in the mountaintop ashram, looking out at the landscape and sometimes monkeys too, or just sit out on the private terrace by the pool with more fresh, whole-fruit smoothies... before making your way to breakfast with hot croissants, the most amazing fruit, eggs, rice & beans, and sometimes fried bananas or french toast as well.

In the afternoon, you have the tough choice of whether to stick around for the fresh, gourmet lunch or to get a ride to the gorgeous local beach (Avellanas), where you can take surfing lessons or just lie in the shade watching surfers and eat fantastic pizza and sandwiches at the beach-side restaurant. You also have to choose which day to do the spa... it would be crazy not to. With the sound of a waterfall behind you and views out across the mountains, you get the highest level of massage and body care, interrupted only by that fresh, gourmet lunch brought to you right by the hot tub.

In the evening, either you have dinner right there -- again, incredible food -- or you get a ride into town for some restaurants that are very good, and fun, but not so good you're not eager to get back to your mountain and gaze up at the stars. You've probably already seen a dozen monkeys during the day so are content to just view th smaller local wildlife... cute little frogs and geckos and giant toads and grasshoppers hanging out by the pool.

The only downside of going to Los Altos de Eros is that any future vacations will have a very hard time living up to this experience!!