disappointment in Costa Rica
Don't waste your money with "Costa Rica Dive" and the Ocotal Beach Resort unless you want to be disappointed with your travel experience. My husband and I booked a diving and adventure trip with Costa Rica Dive from Nov 4-11, 2006. We spent 4 nights at the Ocotal Beach Resort followed by 3 nights in the Arenal Volcano region. The room we were given the first night at the Ocotal Beach Resort probably wouln't even pass as a Motel 6 room. The level of cleanliness in the bathroom especially would not pass any health inspectors lowest rating. Since we did not arrive at the hotel until late Saturday night, we were unable to do anything about our room until Sunday. We were told that no other rooms were available at the Ocotal Beach Resort. We contacted Rolando Arburola, the owner of Costa Rica Dive, who sent us on a wild goose chase for more appropriate lodging. At first, he told us there was little he could do because it was a Sunday and reservations in Costa Rica were closed on Sundays. Then, he was able to "arrange" for us to view another hotel, but when we arrived at the other hotel, the front desk staff knew nothing of his arrangements, so we returned to the Ocotal Beach Resort. To top it off, we had to pay $60 for a taxi ride to the new hotel. When we got back to the Ocotal Beach Resort, low and behold, a new room was found for us. The new room was much more acceptable in terms of cleanliness, but we did end up wasting half a day chasing around for more suitable lodging. Rolando even called us once we were settled into our new room and generously offered to refund us the hotel portion of our trip for all our troubles. The problem is, 3 weeks later, he has yet to refund us the money - claiming that the resort upgraded us from a Standard room to a Suite without additional charge, yet Rolando never mentioned that refunding our money would be dependent on what the Ocotal Beach Resort would do. As far as the rest of our trip, we were pleased with the dive operation at the Ocotal Beach Resort. They were quite professional and we did get to enjoy the diving. We also enjoyed our adventures in the Arenal Volcano region. Costa Rica is certainly a beautiful country. I just would not recommend staying at The Ocotal Beach Resort or using the services of Rolando Arburola at Costa Rica Dive.
Don't waste your money with "Costa Rica Dive" and the Ocotal Beach Resort unless you want to be disappointed with your travel experience. My husband and I booked a diving and adventure trip with Costa Rica Dive from Nov 4-11, 2006. We spent 4 nights at the Ocotal Beach Resort followed by 3 nights in the Arenal Volcano region. The room we were given the first night at the Ocotal Beach Resort probably wouln't even pass as a Motel 6 room. The level of cleanliness in the bathroom especially would not pass any health inspectors lowest rating. Since we did not arrive at the hotel until late Saturday night, we were unable to do anything about our room until Sunday. We were told that no other rooms were available at the Ocotal Beach Resort. We contacted Rolando Arburola, the owner of Costa Rica Dive, who sent us on a wild goose chase for more appropriate lodging. At first, he told us there was little he could do because it was a Sunday and reservations in Costa Rica were closed on Sundays. Then, he was able to "arrange" for us to view another hotel, but when we arrived at the other hotel, the front desk staff knew nothing of his arrangements, so we returned to the Ocotal Beach Resort. To top it off, we had to pay $60 for a taxi ride to the new hotel. When we got back to the Ocotal Beach Resort, low and behold, a new room was found for us. The new room was much more acceptable in terms of cleanliness, but we did end up wasting half a day chasing around for more suitable lodging. Rolando even called us once we were settled into our new room and generously offered to refund us the hotel portion of our trip for all our troubles. The problem is, 3 weeks later, he has yet to refund us the money - claiming that the resort upgraded us from a Standard room to a Suite without additional charge, yet Rolando never mentioned that refunding our money would be dependent on what the Ocotal Beach Resort would do. As far as the rest of our trip, we were pleased with the dive operation at the Ocotal Beach Resort. They were quite professional and we did get to enjoy the diving. We also enjoyed our adventures in the Arenal Volcano region. Costa Rica is certainly a beautiful country. I just would not recommend staying at The Ocotal Beach Resort or using the services of Rolando Arburola at Costa Rica Dive.
