Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Hotel Esperanza
HOTEL
( 2656-0564;
www.hotelesperanza.com
;
d incl breakfast US$124; )
Cheerful rooms at this recently remodeled hotel are set back from a columned promenade,
opening on to the pool area. The rooms are smallish, but nicely decorated, featuring ma-
hogany furniture, excellent mattresses and tile bathrooms. All the expected amenities are
here, and you can also book tours or - even better - a massage in the lovely garden.
Located 100m west of the soccer field.
Hideaway Hotel
BOUTIQUE HOTEL
( 2656-1145;
www.thehideawayplayasamara.com
;
d incl breakfast US$145; )
Midway between Carrillo and Sámara, this attractive whitewashed place is noteworthy for
its super service and intimate atmosphere. A dozen spacious tiled suites all overlook the
pleasant pool and blooming gardens. The airy restaurant is excellent. There is a small
beach at the end of the road; alternatively Playa Carrillo is a 15-minute walk.
Getting There & Away
Sansa flights were no longer servicing the airstrip just northwest of the beach at research
time. The Traroc buses from Nicoya to Sámara continue on the well-paved road to Playa
Carrillo (US$2.50, 90 minutes, 12 daily).
Islita Area
The coast southeast of Playa Carrillo remains one of the peninsula's most isolated and
wonderful stretches of coastline, mainly because much of it is inaccessible and lacking in
accommodations. But if you're willing to tackle rugged roads or venture down the coast-
line in a sea kayak (or possibly on foot), you'll be rewarded with abandoned beaches
backed by pristine wilderness and rugged hills.
There are a few small breaks in front of the Hotel Punta Islita, where you'll find a gor-
geous cove punctuated with that evocative wave-thrashed boulder that is Punta Islita. At
high tide the beach narrows, but at low tide it is wide and as romantic as those vistas from
above. Another good beach and point break lies north of Punta Islita at
Playa Camaronal
, a charcoal gray stretch of sand strewn with driftwood and sheltered by two headlands.
