Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Review: Honest Thoughts From Our Babymoon

Considering a stay at the brand new Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica? I’m here to give you all the insider info.

My husband and I recently returned from our babymoon in Costa Rica and I wanted to give you the full scoop on where we stayed: Waldorf Astoria’s new 5-star property in the region of Guanacaste. I was so excited when I heard that this iconic hotel brand was opening a resort in my favorite part of Costa Rica, along the same coastline where I’ve spent ample time in Nosara and Santa Teresa.

Coming to this part of the world has a way of instantly lowering my blood pressure, and it makes sense—the entire country’s ethos is pura vida, meaning “pure life” or “simple life.” The Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Punta Cacique doesn’t stray from that motto, but builds upon the area’s relaxed Costa Rican culture, bringing with it an extra dose of laidback luxury.

Its opening is an especially big deal because it’s the first Waldorf Astoria property in all of Central America, giving American-based travelers who love Waldorf’s resort product something a bit more accessible at their fingertips.

In this post I’m going to get into all the details about a stay here so you can decide if it’s the right hotel for your Costa Rican holiday.

Ready to book your stay? Check pricing for Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica.

Complete Review of Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica in Guanacaste

Where is the New Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica?

Waldorf’s new Costa Rica property is located in the Guanacaste region of the country (in the Northwest corner) and is about 45 minutes from the Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport in Liberia.

Situated along the Gulf of Papagayo on a 300 foot cliff above Playa Penca, the property has a majestic cliffside position with a tiered footprint that caters to breathtaking views of the sea.

If you’re familiar with the Blue Zones, you’ll also be pleased to learn that the hotel is located just north of one of the world’s top Blue Zones, the Nicoya Peninsula.

How to Get Here:

• Option 1: Fly into Liberia’s Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport and take the hotel’s airport shuttle (around 30-45 minutes). Waldorf can easily set this up for you. The US has direct flights to Liberia from cities like Atlanta, Boston, Baltimore-Washington, Charlotte, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and more.
• Option 2: Fly into San Jose Airport and rent a car (about a 5 hour drive). I wouldn’t recommend this option unless you’re doing a bigger Costa Rica road trip and have additional stops between San Jose and Waldorf or really don’t have any good flight options into Liberia. You can find direct flights into San Jose from many cities including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles and Miami.

What You’ll Love About the Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Punta Cacique

• The staff here are exceptionally kind and welcoming and you truly get the feeling that people enjoy working there. Honestly with how many 5-star hotels I’ve stayed at for my job over the years, this is the thing now that makes the biggest difference in whether a stay is great or AMAZING for me, and the staff at Waldorf really made our stay amazing.
• So many pools! There are nine total to choose from including a kids-focused area with a waterslide and an adults-only pool to cater to different needs.
• The hotel is just 30-45 minutes from Liberia’s airport, which makes Waldorf a bit closer to access than many of the big luxury resorts along the coast.
• The hotel received Costa Rica’s “Bandera Azul Ecológica” award for engaging in positive environmental practices.
• Enjoy six unique dining offerings including their main restaurants La Finca and Tico Tica as well as their pool bar Vida (which serves lunch only), a gelato shop, coffee shop, and upscale bar.
• Experiences on property that integrate local Costa Rican culture—we did a tamale-making cooking class as well as Buena Nota’s coffee experience to learn more about Costa Rican coffee.
• For families, the hotel is super kid-friendly with plenty of shallow pool areas, a waterslide, a kids club, gelato shop and more.
• Dedicated 24/7 concierge for all guests upon arrival.

Property and Amenities

If you’ve flown into the Liberia Airport, getting here feels pretty straightforward, and you’ll be met with a grand lobby and front desk area when you first arrive on property. While checking in, you can enjoy a beverage from the terrace bar and immediate views overlooking the Gulf of Papagayo.

Once your room is ready, you’ll be escorted via golf cart to a separate building, as all the buildings that make up Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica are separated and spread out from one another.

I loved that the resort feels large and spacious but still manageable to get around as all the main places to gather are not far from each other. Most of the restaurants, coffee shop, spa etc are quite close to the main pool terrace, so you may only need a golf cart to get around to La Finca or to your room if it’s further away.

The central focus of the property is the pool terrace—and it’s wow-worthy. There are 8 pools cascading down the multi level pool deck along with several jacuzzis, all featuring stunning ocean views.

Located near the pool you’ll find Waldorf’s signature breakfast and lunch restaurant Tico Tica, the gelato shop, kid’s club, Peacock Alley bar and the pool restaurant Vida. From the pool deck you can easily walk down to the public beach within minutes where there are water sports activities like paddle boarding, kayaking and jet skiing.

Within just a few minutes walk from this central area you can reach the spa, fitness center, or Buena Nota coffee shop.

There’s even a teen’s club at the bottom floor of one of the guest room buildings that features fun amenities like a pool table, ping pong and playstations.

The Rooms at Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica

Let’s start with the numbers: There are 188 rooms total at the resort and 22 different room categories—it’s enough to make your head spin!

We ended up staying in a one bedroom king suite with an ocean view. My jaw hit the floor when I saw how spacious this room was, and they’ve done a fantastic job with the quality and furnishings. The photos really don’t do it justice. We had a full living area with a massive dining table, two separate balconies (one with a plunge pool and sun loungers and another shaded balcony with an outdoor tub and additional seating).

Then there was our bedroom, which featured floor-to-ceiling windows looking out to the ocean, a desk area and large closets for stowing away our belongings.

My favorite part of every room though (and how I judge all hotels I stay at) is the shower and bathroom and Waldorf’s did not disappoint. The finishes on the double vanity were stunning and luxurious and the shower featured double rain shower heads and a door that opened out to the balcony for an indoor/outdoor feel. Bliss!

No matter which room category you book, every single room here even has an outdoor bathtub, plunge pool, or both, which is something I’ve never seen at a hotel ever. Although my one qualm is that not all the balconies feel super private, so I don’t know that I’d actually bathe in here naked depending on the room I booked.

And if you’re someone who prefers baths over showers, you won’t find a bathtub inside the room, so the outdoor one is your only option. Just something to keep in mind!

Drinking and Dining

Overall the dining experiences here are quite good, still with a bit of room for improvement as with any hotel that has recently opened. There’s currently two main restaurants at the the hotel: Tico Tica which is more casual dining for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and La Finca, their more upscale dinner restaurant.

We were at the hotel for three total nights, but I think if we were staying for longer we may have started to get bored with the dining options. What we did have we really enjoyed though.

Tico Tica

This is where guests gather for breakfast each morning and can choose between a breakfast buffet or a la carte options (or both). While the food was good, I would have liked the buffet to have more of a selection given the pricepoint of the property. I loved that there were fresh coconuts every morning at breakfast here and given the quality of Costa Rican coffee in general, I was living for my morning cappucino.

The restaurant also serves lunch and dinner and our dinner here came with plentiful portions. We were glad we didn’t over order because it was a LOT of food.

La Finca

This was our top dining pick on property and we returned a second time for dinner, if only to order the grilled octopus appetizer again that was surprisingly addictive. All beef on property here is wagyu, and the steak we had our first night at La Finca was cooked and seasoned to perfection.

Plus, don’t miss the tomotada appetizer which is gorgeously plated and features various heirloom tomatoes infused with a variety of flavors.

Vida Pool & Grill

At Vida you’ll find more simple offerings to munch by the pool, but seafood is a standout here with items like grilled mahi mahi sourced from local fishermen and latin classics like sweet plantains.

Peacock Alley

Then there’s Peacock Alley, which is the signature bar you’ll find at every Waldorf property. As a design nerd, this was one of the most fun spaces to spend time in on the property that felt quite different than the rest of the hotel.

The bar top and furnishings feature a rich color palette of sage green, yellow and black and the peacock wallpaper pulls the space together for a slightly moody, sexy and intimate setting. I appreciated that they had zero-proof offerings that didn’t feel like half-assed fruit juice—I felt like I was drinking the real thing!

Buena Nota Bakery & Coffee Shop

Helmed by acclaimed Costa Rican barista Ricardo Azofeifa, Buena Nota is a daily must-stop for coffee lovers. They’ve put a lot of thought here into sourcing some of Costa Rica’s best beans all from regenerative coffee plantations that are committed to sustainability.

The interior is just as sleek as the rest of the hotel and we loved partaking in their Coffee Experience where we learned about the full coffee-making process from harvesting to roasting. My husband even picked up some key tips for his pour over process for when we get back home (turns out he was doing it very wrong)!

Copo y Cono Ice Cream Shop

Since my sweet tooth has been off the charts while pregnant, I especially loved that they had a little sweets shop that didn’t require a full sit-down experience.

Copo y Cono caters to both kids and adults with several gelato flavors featuring an entire toppings bar as well as other sweet treats like giant macarons and chocolate confections.

Floating Breakfast Experience

I feel like this one isn’t really advertised, but we were able to special order a floating breakfast experience, which in all of my years of travel blogging I had never done before! Since guests don’t typically start flocking to the pool deck until 8:30 am or so, this was a nice way to enjoy an intimate breakfast on our babymoon with panoramic views just the two of us.

24/7 Room Service

The hotel also offers 24/7 room service, though we honestly didn’t try it during our stay as we preferred to be out enjoying the natural surroundings of the property.

The Spa and Fitness Center

If you plan on clocking plenty of time at the spa during your holiday, then you’ll love the 17,000-square-foot wellness facility at Waldorf Costa Rica. It’s massive and features all kinds of areas for relaxation including treatment rooms, multiple seating areas, saunas, and even an air-conditioned chill room.

The real magic of the spa here though is in booking their individualized treatments and experiences like sound baths and yoga classes that are hosted on a little jungle deck that feels just remote enough to help you forget you’re on a resort with hundreds of guests.

We were able to partake in a private sound bath for the two of us, and our guide, Carlota, was phenomenal. I love that they bring in some of the spiritual woo woo elements that are quite intrinsic to Costa Rican culture. We each pulled tarot cards at the end of our session and both felt divinely timed for the season of our life that we’re in pre-baby.

The gym here is also stunning with floor-to-ceiling glass windows that look out onto the adults-pool and a plethora of lush greenery. I can’t stand a hotel gym that feels stuffed into the dark dungeon area of a hotel and this was definitely not that. I promise, you’ll actually want to work out here.

Things to do While Staying at the Waldorf

Waldorf has put together a lovely menu of activities and experiences that highlight the property’s natural surroundings and integrate elements of authentic Costa Rican culture while also honoring the heritage of the Indigenous Chorotega people.

During our stay we were able to participate in a tamale-making cooking class with a local chef, learning about the traditions of tamale making within Costa Rican families. At Buena Nota, we got to take part in their unique Coffee Experience which educates guests about the process of making coffee in Costa Rica from harvesting to roasting.

Just some of the experiences you can book at Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica:

• Yoga classes
• Meditation
• Sound healing
• Rum Experience
• Coffee Experience
• Private dinners
• Surfing classes
• Cooking classes
• Kayaking

Helpful Notes for Your Stay

• In case you didn’t know, Costa Rica’s sunsets consistently sit at about 5-6 PM year round, so it’s a good idea to rise early here to make the most of your days on property.
• The easiest way to get around is by the hotel’s escorted golf carts or walking. If you have mobility issues, I’d call the hotel and ask for the closest building to the pool deck as that’s where you’ll be spending most of your time.
• The hotel is bookable with Hilton Honors points.

So is a Stay at Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Worth It?

For the price tag, this is the type of place you want to make sure you enjoy fully—which is why it was perfect for our babymoon. We got to eat at every restaurant on property and truly experience the full scope of the resort. In fact, we never even stepped foot off property, which is not at all my typical MO, but this felt like the right occasion for that.

If you’re looking for a relaxing getaway with minimal excursions and minimal friction to and from the airport, this is the ultimate place to get R&R and soak up the pura vida life with minimal friction to and from the airport.

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