The Retreat Costa Rica - Wellness Resort & Spa

It was my second stay at The Retreat and it is a spectacular place. Every detail is very well thought out, the landscape is wonderful with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains and the Gulf of Nicoya. The hotel truly reflects the dedication and philosophy of its founder, Diana Stobo and is a place for body and soul restoration. The rooms are very comfortable, quiet, clean, and have spectacular views. It has cozy common areas where you always have access to a variety of teas and coffee. The personalized attention and customer service are excellent at every level. The treatments at the "Vida Mia" spa are amazing. Food was creative and delicious. A special mention to Bryant and Emerson for making this stay an unforgettable experience.

My husband and I spent a week at The Retreat in a luxury loft. It was life changing! We experienced healing from the meals to the spa treatments to the mountainous hikes. Executive Chef Sergio prepared Michelin restaurant level of meals and the wait staff such as Jose served it perfectly. I can keep eating some of my favorite foods because of the cooking lessons from the heavier set female chef. We especially enjoyed the Spa. I received Vida Abhyanga Equilibrium treatment from Amal Michael that was exceptional. His knowledge and expertise transformed my body from being stiff to pain free and limber. Shaveta’s “Self Love” workshop and praynyama classes gave me new insights into myself and breathing skills. Cynthia’s yoga classes were also extraordinary! I can go on and on about our experience but will stop for now. I highly recommend you go and see for yourself.

This is my 4th stay at The Retreat. Every day, every meal, every moment hiking on the mountain has been new, surprising and awe inspiring. The services and the accommodations are as professional, creative and beautiful as described on The Retreat website. For me, what sets The Retreat apart is the staff. I have experienced the Pura Veda generous and welcoming demeanor in shared encounters in each of my visits to this mountain oasis. I have enjoyed the solitude of my solo retreats as well as the opportunities for social engagement at meals, yoga and pool amenities. I am leaving my stay feeling restored, nourished and connected to the land and to the people of Costa Rica. Muchas Gracias!

For my first visit to Costa Rica, I'm spoiled: The Retreat is the epitome of non-fussy, luxury. Stunning views, excellent rooms, amazing *vegan* restaurant - I plan to make this an annual ritual. Due in large part to the wonderful staff: Jimena (Sales), Emerson, Berny and Luis (Front Desk), Lindsay D and Ninfa (Kitchen) and Jonathan, Karina & Alex (Restaurant) all made my stay truly wonderful. The best part is the attached spa: and all the lovely wellness workshops. I booked the Emotional Healing Package, meeting daily with Dr Shaveta. A truly special Ayurvedic doctor: she was kind, patient, so available. She and Aman make for a wonderful team. I can't wait to return!

By far the BEST hotel near San Jose. Saturday morning we left from San Jose at around 11am and arrived at the property at 11.35am. As soon as we arrived, they always receive us with a smile and the most delicious welcome mocktail :) yum! On this time the room was already ready, but on previous visits we left our bags at the lobby and enjoyed the pool. The food here is the MOST AMAZING. You definitely won't find better food than this. Every meal (breakfast - lunch and dinner) is better than the other. We always look forward for the food, really each plate is an experience! The pool's are amazing - the climate is amazing - we really are fans of this hotel!! No regrets :)

This is a MOUNTAIN resort. Meaning there are very steep hills and to stay here you need to be very fit to be able to climb those hills to spa, restaurant, pool. Felt very bad for older people who had difficulties doing that. There’s no room service. Rooms are located on steep hills. Breakfast starts at 8:30! This is the latest breakfast we’ve ever had to have - we wake up at 5 and like to start our day early. Spa is nice. Steam room is very cold, can’t even get a steam higher. There was power outage one day for a couples of house and you’d think that a 5 star hotel would have a generator, but had to take a cold shower… Internet was out during those few hours and if you still need to do some work - you can’t.

I stayed at the Retreat for a yoga retreat, and it was phenomenal. The staff was incredible (special shout out to Alejandro at the front desk who took us on the best excursion to town). The food is super healthy and fresh, and all the accommodations were breathtakingly beautiful and comfortable. If you want a luxurious resort while in Costa Rica, stay here! Two great pools and peacocks roam the property! Heads up-- the incidental charge is quite high-- $1500-- and it's a very steep driveway to get to the property, so coordinate transit with the staff. It's about an hour away from the beach and volcanoes and from San Jose-- wonderful spot all around!

I had never been to a more relaxing hotel than this one. It is really peaceful and the premises are beautiful. Food is delicious and staff is super friendly as well. If you are looking for a mind and body reset near San José, this is the place. Hope to visit again in a while.

I booked a 7-day "boot camp" experience, hoping to get back on track in terms of exercise, diet, and personal priorities. I was also expecting to loose a few pounds for all this effort. My daily personal trainer Alejandra was outstanding. She challenged me with an entirely different set of "functional mobility" exercises incorporating weights and bands each day. I left feeling definite improvements, along with the desire to continue training. The "pre-set" all natural, no gluten/sugar/dairy meals were varied and I'm sure my gut biome is grateful. However, the dining hours were not convenient. Breakfast didn't start till 8:30 and my fitness training started at 9. I needed nourishment but not a full stomach. Not an option here. Also, I had expected to lose a few pounds given the huge boost in exercise -- not just training, but also up and down the hills to get to the restaurant, spa, gym, pool. However, the restaurant menu is not focused on low calorie, and I ended up not losing even so much as an ounce. The Spa offers a variety of massages, and the Thai massage was particularly authentic. Likewise, a variety of facials are offered and the Radiant Sunshine one was wonderful. Some of the other "infrared sauna" and Bemer therapies (included in my boot camp package) were not as satisfying, but they did give me an hour or more to lay quietly and meditate. Really enjoyed the "free" Restorative Yoga practice at 4 pm each day. A great way to stretch and meditate/contemplate. Never made it to the 8 am active Yoga practice because they had me scheduled for 9 am fitness (with no time whatsoever for breakfast). The room was lovely. The views were delightful. The staff were all extremely friendly. I left feeling healthy and rejuvenated. And I would consider returning, but would probably book exactly what activities/services I wanted -- when I wanted them -- and skip paying for things I did not enjoy but were included in the package.