Occidental Allegro Papagayo Hotel All-Inclusive
03/11/2009 Reviewers Rating: Good
Having just returned from the Allegro Papagayo in Liberia, Costa Rica, I think I should advise you of the hotel. First we chose Air Canada Vacations over Signature Vacations (Skyservice) because of the flight times and other reasons. We took the red eye from Edmonton Alberta to Toronto arriving at the hotel in Liberia at 3:00pm only to find our room not yet made up. When the room, a Superior room, was ready an hour and half later, It was lacking (missing) a refrigerator and had no telephone (missing) and no spare toilet paper. Also we could not get the wall vault until the next day so we had to carry our money around for 24 hours. Also the room in the #8 building the Lanai faced the back of another building only 20 yards away across a road. After three days of pressur,e we got another Superior room in building #15 down by the pool and close to the Buffet. Only to find it had a running toilet. I tried to fix it, but somebody beat me to it, by tying garbage bag around the shut off, so I did not disturb.. Air Canada only had a small bus of 15 persons going, when we transferred, but Signature Vacations had 4 big busloads. Therefore they got the better rooms; I visited one of their rooms, same type of room but better position and view. We noticed that the hotel is isolated from everything and is situated on a bay off the Pacific Ocean. As we traveled so far we always stay for 2 week in the resorts, which was a mistake. Spoke to others who where there for 2 weeks and they all agreed. Talked to one couple who wanted to move out, but Signature wanted $1,000 to upgrade for a week. Being isolated it, cost a minimum of $25.00 per person to leave the resort. A shopping trip to Coco beach ($25.00 pp) left at 10:30 by the time it left and arrive Coco beach at noon. We were told to be back at 2:30. Another 1/1/2 boat ride back The line up at the bank was ¾ of an hour, Take your original passport (will not accept a copy), if you wish to cash traveler cheques there is a $5.00 commission. Pros. Hot 30-35 C The Italian restaurant is excellent and the Mexican is good. Thank goodness we were with a couple, who also got 2 tickets a week like us for the la carte. So we where able to eat at the restaurants 8 time out of the 14 night stay. Later why! The staff are great people. They have a medical center on site #1501 The pool was vacuumed every morning, but about the water line, but you could scratch your name in the waxy scum. Excellent ice cream when it was available about every other night. Cons Dec 15 – Feb 15 is summer holidays in Costa Rica, so there were lots of children at the hotel. Take empty water bottles, as there is only a jug and glasses for water in the room,water you pick up outside, at places Everyone seems to be bitten by a no seeum mosquito. The bites sure itched. Take sting medication. On girl we saw was just cover on the arms and legs. Do no walk on the beach without shoes and socks, again different no seeum. The entertainment around the pool is loud and has a motor mouth on the mike. Everybody around the pool has to listen to!!!! The nightly entertainment was good for 3-4 nights; the rest of the time was guests on stage, making fools of them selves. Also to hear the same motor mouth, it was better to listen outside the building for the loudness. But then you have to stand the septic field smells. The wall safes in an all-inclusive establishment came at an addition charge of $2.00 per day. There is lots of climbing to the rooms and from the bottom road there are about 40 steps down to the pool and Buffet. Now the food at the Buffet. Breakfasts were fairly good. In a tropical country do you expect Orange Juice from concentrate that arrives in plastic bottles? If the attendant was there you could get a pineapple, watermelon, banana smoothies mixed fresh. Lots of eggs (no poached) half cooked bacon and Costa Rica sausages (small hotdogs like). Now if you like pineapple jam on your toast,. there was always some, it took a week for strawberry, and others to appear, no orange marmalade every appeared. In 14 days grapefruit showed up sliced. Well it was dry and pulpy. Lunches were Ok, the snack bar had fries, burgers, chicken wings, pizza, Deserts we repetitious at lunch and dinner. Consisting of Rice pudding, Choclate cake, white cake with lots of icing, flam and custard. Jell-O showed up near the end of our visit. Dinner. We could have eaten at the buffet 14 nights but opted for the restaurants. Since we had the restaurant tickets we walked through the night buffet, to see if it was appealing and not once night did we stop. Except one night they had a roast of pork and Roast Duck. Being a frequent visitor to Cuba and Mexico they always had a roast beef, pork, turkey, shrimps.. The main fare was tough thing little beef steaks pork chops, except one night we actually had a good T bone steak. Seafood night. Well as lovers of seafood all 4 of us that was a disappointment. A few split prawns, some clams, mussels and fish mixed with lots of vegetables, smothered in oil. After eating, what we had taken we went to the reliable chicken. French night the only difference was 4 blocks of good cheese and the napkins folded different Costa Rica night was the same stuff, but the staff had native costumes. Would not go again to Allegro Papagayo, nor would I recommend them. There are better hotels around Costa Rica after talking with other visitors. It does not earn the rating it has. If should be a 3.
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