Luxury Couples Trip to the Four Seasons Resort in Costa Rica
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We planned to sprinkle in some adventure with our relaxing luxury trip to Costa Rica’s Peninsula Papagayo, but ended up with more adventure than we’d planned — and we loved it. We took a catamaran cruise to a deserted island, enjoyed a private cabana, went on a monkey-filled hike, and went zip lining through the cloud forest in Guanacaste.
Many of our trips are (sometimes surprisingly) very budget friendly, and we spend a lot of time making sure that we’re getting the best deals possible. We’ll share a lot of those tips in the coming weeks on that front, but this trip is different. It’s about luxury, having fun, and incredible experiences. It’s about our honeymoon experience at the Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo. By the end of this post, we think you’ll agree that it sounds like an excellent destination for a second honeymoon, too!
Accommodations
Let’s start with accommodations. We stayed in a 1-bedroom villa overlooking the Pacific Ocean. This was actually the first time that Shannon dipped her toes into the Pacific, so it was a bit of a turning point in our travels. The travel bug bit us hard! But, back to the resort. When we arrived, the front desk greeted us with a welcome drink, and we were escorted to our room via golf cart.
Remember the note about about our typical budget friendly accommodations? We were blown away when the golf cart brought us past the more normal hotel rooms (to the extent we should refer to the rooms at the Four Seasons as “normal”) and down a few more pathways. Our villa was located in a secluded spot, with a covered porch complete with a hammock. The gentleman who escorted us to our room took the time to walk us through the room and point out a few features, drop our luggage off in the massive closet, and noted that the sunrise views were incredible. We can confirm this in the amazing pic at the end!
We enjoyed our honeymoon arrival treat of champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries, then headed out to explore. A massive iguana the size of a dog (now lovingly referred to as the “doguana”) shuffled across the path in front of us as we left our villa. He didn’t bother us or even really acknowledge us, but he was SO cool. One of the reasons that we selected Costa Rica as our destination was to see the wildlife. We had to see more of this place!
In our walk down the path, we saw a butterfly garden (buzzing with hummingbirds) and a troop of sleeping Howler monkeys. You guys. MONKEYS. Shannon nearly died with excitement. We’d never seen monkeys in the wild, and this was literally the #1 item on Shannon’s “To Do” list. We’d heard that both Howler and Capuchin monkeys frequented the area, and we were determined to see both. Shannon was particularly DETERMINED to see the Capuchin monkeys. Blame the movie industry and the prevalence of these monkeys in nostalgic movies, but we were absolutely not leaving until we saw the Capuchin monkeys. Remember this for later. :)
Catamaran
The second day, we went on a private catamaran tour to a deserted island. Quick tip: We went at the beginning of April, which is just avoiding peak season. This did save a bit on peak-season room fees, but it also meant that the resort itself was much less busy than it otherwise could be. When we booked this catamaran tour, it was marketed as a group event. Buuuuut, no one else signed up!! Being the incredible brand that the Four Seasons is, they took us anyhow, and we had the best time! The driver provided fun tropical drinks, we went snorkeling over a reef, and the driver took us to the coolest deserted island where we got to walk through an ocean-flood cave. If you know us, you know that any one of these items would’ve made the tour for us. But all of them?! Swoon.
Hiking
The third day, we decided to hike around the resort. By “we” I mean “me” because Michael was less than thrilled about the excursion. It’s so ironic now reflecting upon this situation, because this was actually one of the most memorable moments from our trip, and one that Michael references frequently as a goal experience for future trips (more on this in future posts). It’s funny how things work out when you let yourself stray from your comfort zone.
We asked the staff about where to hike the day prior, so we were totally prepared with exactly which way to go. We thought. The staff said that Capuchin monkeys (which we still hadn’t seen) were sometimes along the path. To Shannon, that was the push she needed to ensure that we did not return to our room until we’d seen them. And we were off. We walked through the resort and started down the dirt path that the staff indicated. We quickly saw more Howler monkeys, which were plentiful at the resort. Their calls are so unique—it’s one of those sounds you can easily distinguish.
And then, it happened…we found the Capuchin monkeys. A huge group of them. Shannon was so excited, she was screaming with delight. Do you know what you probably shouldn’t do around a huge group of wild monkeys? You probably shouldn’t scream at the baby monkey in the group (a BABY Capuchin, gah!) and bare your teeth in an ear-to-ear smile. It went as well as you might imagine. Michael watched through his viewfinder as the (we presume) parent monkey rocketed down from the canopy toward Shannon.
We ended up literally playing monkey in the middle. Michael, Capuchin Monkey, Shannon. Apparently they are actually quite aggressive and will quickly knuckle after you on foot. Even in the moment, which was a little frightening until we realized we could outrun him on land, the humor of the situation was not lost. And, I can confirm that humor was not lost for the two locals who were doubled over laughing at us on their jet skiis. You’re welcome for brightening your day, gentlemen. ;)
We finally noticed a quasi path that Michael took to get around the monkey and join Shannon. We both ran up a large set of stairs and away from the monkey, who continued to knuckle after us for a while until we saw and heard the Howler monkeys ahead. Our pursuer was confronted by a group of Howlers in a West Side Story-style turf war, and the pursuit finally stopped. Travel/life lesson learned: Respect animals in their natural environment, and make sure you know how to safely interact with them before you encounter them. We thought we were being respectful, but the Capuchins clearly did not!
We continued on our hike and found the most incredible views! As we’ve found with most of our hikes, it was completely worth it. Shannon is pretty sure (Michael is positive) we took a wrong turn somewhere along the way, and we ended up re-entering the resort through the front gate. This also taught us another important travel lesson: Sometimes the best experiences are found when we get lost. This is a great thing, because it seems we get lost a lot! If you’re going to take this hike, please note that there were about 1,000 stairs, you’ll want to have plenty of water with you, and maybe mind the Capuchins.
Cabana
The next day, we enjoyed some relaxation in our private cabana. We weren’t really sure what to expect, and Shannon readily admits to not being one to relax well. Apart from being absolutely adorable and picture perfect, this was the most unexpected luxury experience of our trip. The Four Seasons does a great job with surprises and going the extra mile. Staff members stopped by to clean our sunglasses, give us foot massages, teach us how to make these mouthwatering 18 on the Green adult beverages, and deliver drinks and lunch to us. We also had a main attendant, and we spent a ton of time just enjoying conversation with him about living in Costa Rica (which is our thing, but they’d be totally okay if you prefer just some time to yourself). The pool was nearby enough to take a dip, but secluded enough to have a very peaceful experience. This was one of those things that we thought, “hey, let’s try it, but we’re not sure we’ll like it.” We LOVED it, and we would absolutely do this again to add a luxury element to a trip.
Zip Lining
We added a bit more adventure to our experience by going zip lining through the Monteverde Cloud Forest. It was fun to get off the resort and see the surrounding area. The zip lining guides were safety conscious yet had great senses of humor. When Shannon was slightly nervous about one of the rope bridges that connected two of the treetop platforms, the guide responded by shaking the bridge. :) They made the whole experience more fun! If you’ve never been zip lining, we recommend it. We were there during the dry season, so the waterfalls weren’t gushing like they would be during the rainy season, but we also weren’t getting rained on. The staff takes photos and video for you while you zip through the clouds, and you can purchase this from them after your excursion is over — which we did.
Food
Let’s also talk about the food. Spoiler alert: There is not much that we can point out as being inexpensive at the Four Seasons, and the food aligns with this. However, it’s also INCREDIBLE. Dinner our first night was at Caracol (now Nemare), a steakhouse affiliated with the Four Seasons. The dinner was everything we could’ve imagined, and set the tone for the dining we enjoyed during the rest of the trip: Fresh coconuts to drink from, yummy cappuccinos, fresh seafood and pasta to eat, and impeccable service.
One dining experience that deserves a review in its own right is our private dinner for two on the beach. Oh, my adventurous, luxury, romantic honeymoon dreams come true!! This dinner fulfilled everything. We enjoyed a gourmet dinner, surrounded by a mobile carpet of hundreds of shuffling hermit crabs. Shannon kept her feet up. :) The resort surprised us with a live band as well as three unexpected guests — a family of raccoons who spent the majority of our dinner begging for food! This was definitely a splurge, but something that we loved so much and would definitely do again to celebrate a special event. We don’t want to give too many details to spoil the experience for others, but we loved this experience the most of the entire trip!
Beaches
When we weren’t adventuring or enjoying the special elements we’ve noted above, we spent a lot of time at the pool and beach, taking in as much of the incredible sunshine as humanly possible. The beaches are private, and we were often the only people on them. We watched the frigate birds glide far above us, checked out seashells, and just enjoyed the sights and sounds of this beautifully natural location. The sunrises and sunsets were incredible — we tried not to miss any of them. One evening, we grabbed tropical drinks and headed to the beach for the sunset. The resort always had plush lounge chairs available, and each time we sat down, a staff member appeared to see if they could bring us anything. If you’re looking for a luxury trip, in our experience you’ll find what you’re looking for with the Four Seasons.
