We spent a week at Casa Sonrisa at the beginning of December....it was all I had hoped for and more. Our main goal was enjoying the wildlife and beauty of the Osa Peninsula, and that could easily be done without leaving the comfortable outdoor living room deck. Waking to the call of the howler monkeys every morning was a treat, and trogons, scarlet macaws, toucans and innumerable other birds surround the house. We hired William to take us on a tour of Corcovado one day, and also took morning birding/waterfall hikes, and a night hike with him. He is is super knowledgeable guide and a delightful person. Leda and her sister came and cooked for us several nights (a luxury we highly recommend!), leaving with the table set with multiple dishes and a clean kitchen. And Kirk answered all our questions and was extremely helpful both pre-trip and during the trip. The beach (a very short walk from the house) was lovely and a great way to cool off after a hike. The house is just delightful....you feel as if you're outdoors. Comfy beds, complete with mosquito netting and fans and a well-equipped kitchen, made this lovely house even better. We'd go back in a heartbeat and highly recommend Casa Bambu!

We spent a week at Casa Bambu and stayed in Casa Linda. We couldn’t have had a better time. With an ocean front view, monkeys, McCaws, and toucans right above your head (sometimes the monkeys are in your window), and such accommodating hosts it’s hard to have an unenjoyable time. Kirk was so helpful with giving us all the information we could ever need. A tour guide named William lives on the property, he grew up there and took us on a few hikes. We highly recommend using him, he can spot any wildlife you want to see. The cooks who will make you dinner for a small price are amazing! Every meal was delicious. My family and I can’t wait to visit again and even thought about extending our trip this time. If you’re visiting Costa Rica we highly recommend staying at Casa Bambu.

We spent 11 nights at Casa Sonrisa and absolutely loved it. Just sitting on our deck was like being in wildlife central — from there, we regularly saw (and heard) all 4 kinds of monkeys, macaws, toucans, hawks, pelicans, vultures, agoutis, trogons, iguanas, lizards and more. Our bamboo casa was lovely, clean, comfortable and perfect. The walk down to Playa Pan Dulce took maybe 3 minutes. The beach road continues south to almost the tip of the peninsula, where it dead ends at yet another beautiful beach. There are a bunch of beaches in between, each special in its own way. Kirk, William & Leda took really good care of us and responded to our questions and needs quickly and kindly. One night we hired Olive (not sure os spelling) to cook for us and she made the most amazing fish tacos with from-scratch tortillas. I highly recommend staying here and taking advantage of the many opportunities offered. I would certainly love to stay here again.

We stayed a few days in Casa Linda, which sits right atop Pan Dulce beach and has a great view of the waves wrapping into the bay. Good choice if you want to sit on the deck and wait for perfect conditions before paddling out in the surf. The beach is also an ideal place to learn to surf for beginners, as the waves on the inside are very gentle and peel nicely. My girlfriend took surf lessons here and I think she is hooked now. (A great relief to me; we're now engaged). We were going to stay four days, but ended up cancellig our plans to go elsewhere and found it hard to leave after a week! The grounds are beautiful and well-manicured. Casa Linda is one of four rental vacation homes on the property, all constructed mostly of bamboo. The attention to detail in their design makes them very comfortable places to stay, cool day and night without the need for A/C. Linda has high ceilings and feels very spacious. There is clean and potable well water, refrigeration, a modern septic system, and a fully functional kitchen with well-maintained, high quality equipment. The pots were heavy-bottomed and the knives were kept sharp. The house operates a bit like a vacation rental, but it is cleaned every couple days and the staff can provide a number of other services (such as preparing meals, leading tours, etc.) as needed. At the same time, despite the modern conveniences, because the house has an open construction, we felt very close to nature here, like camping but without the bug bites and sleepless night (the comfy beds beds are enclosed in mosquito netting). Our stay was almost entirely free of man-made noises, and we fell asleep most nights by 8 or 9 to the sound of the waves, wind, rain, and jungle creatures (even though we are both normally night-owls). We woke up early to the sounds of howler monkeys and flocks of colorful scarlet macaws that frequent the almond trees outside the house. Most nights we were exhausted from surfing, kayaking, hiking, wildlife watching, or exploring the neighboring Corcovado National Park. Our days were very full, physically exhausting but spiritually restorative. I think this is the definition of "pura vida." Kirk, the owner, Elena, William, and all the staff were very kind and helpful. On the way in, we had investigated going on a tour of Corcovado with a highly rated tour operation in Puerto Jiminez, but for the sake of simplicity we decided to visit the park with William, who is the caretaker at Casa Bambu and also a licensed guide for the park. We are glad we did. William has an incredibly sharp eye and has close relationships with the rangers and other local guides, which enabled us to see a wide variety of animals on our tour, including tapirs, anteaters, sloths, coatis, agoutis, monkeys, and all manner of birds. My Spanish and William's English are both rudimentary, but much of the tour was hiking and nothing was lost in translation. We loved our trip to Corcovado, and William pointed out things we would never see on our own, but if you hang out at the house long enough, you may eventually see a lot of these animals. An anteater lumbered across the lawn the morning after our hike, for example. This was my fourth or fifth trip to Costa Rica, which is my happy place. I feel like each time I get a little closer to perfection. In the past, when I have mostly traveled alone on surf trips, I have wanted to go to Cabo Matapalo but stayed away because there is not a lot of budget accommodation in the area, especially for a solo traveler. This time, with two people, Casa Bambu made a lot more sense, and although it's more expensive than staying in Puerto Jiminez, it still strikes me as a fantastic value, from the perspective of location, quality of accommodation, and the excellent staff. It would be an even better value for larger groups (Linda has four bedrooms and was much bigger than we needed). In sum, I doubt I can get any closer to my paradise than Cabo Matapalo, and we're looking forward to our next trip to Casa Bambu.

Top location, beautiful house in front of the beach/ocean. Friendly owner Kirk and Manager William, we made a trip to Corcovado national park with William: very good, a lot of animals and nature. The house: a lot of space, good kitchen, and bathroom, fans etc