JW Marriott Guanacaste Resort and Spa

Terrible. My family booked 3 nights over Spring Break (3/31-4/3). When we arrived with our rental car, no one helped us with parking or luggage. There was a long line of guests checking in because it was 2:50pm when checkin is 3pm and there was 1 person working the desk. Once it was our turn, we were told our room wasn't ready and wouldn't be for another 20 mins. There was no apology and no effort made to accommodate us while we had no room. After 45 mins, we asked for a status... only then were we given the key to our 1st floor "ocean front" room. The view was of plants, not the ocean. My child went to the bathroom and the toilet didn't flush, went to wash his hands and the sink didn't work. We called the front desk and asked for a different room. This took another 3 hours and multiple phone calls. And we had to use the public restroom in the meantime. The next day, we left our room before 9am. At 2pm, I called and asked to have our room cleaned because housekeeping did not come. Again at 4pm, I had to call and ask for housekeeping. They came at 5:30pm after we got showered for dinner. The next day, same thing. I had to call and ask for housekeeping at 2pm. This room cost close to $1K per night (and did not include breakfast). We stayed at much less expensive hotels while in Costa Rica and the service was 1000x better. I would not recommend this hotel and will most likely not stay at any Marriott in the future. And the same person who checked us in also checked us out and didn't ask about our experience. Perhaps if he did, I wouldn't be complaining on Tripadvisor. And no one offered to help with any luggage at any point. Definitely not a 4 star hotel.

Many aspects of this hotel exceeding our standards. The service, atmosphere, luxury rooms, and a beachfront location all contributed to a wonderful stay. However, the food is EXPENSIVE and overpriced for the quality and taste delivered, with the exception of the breakfast buffet. Also, be advised that this hotel is very remote which makes it hard to do excursions. In the end, I would 100 percent recommend this hotel to anyone looking for a relaxing and luxurious stay, but be prepared to pay for very expensive food.

This place is not a JW Marriott level. What a disappointment. We just checked in. Don’t book here

Absolutely top notch experience!! Beach access was so nice, pool was fantastic! The service at the pool was outstanding, shout out to our server, Elian and the fish tacos!! Our king room was so spacious and the property is very clean. Highlight for our trip.

This was our second stay. Our room was on the third floor walk out (garden view). To be honest, it really wasn't much of a garden. I called it a "tired garden". I was disappointed as I was expecting much more from the Marriott (we are platinum members and stay at many). Our check-in person wasn't very welcoming (same as first stay in 2020). However, the rest of the staff was great! I have to say the food was amazing at the 3 restaurants (Bar and Grill, Asian, and Italian) and the presentation of the food was great. The staff at the restaurants were wonderful as well. Food has been added to the Rum bar and the second breakfast area was open for us for members. It was quiet, and I liked it better here than the other breakfast area in the main square. It was busy with it being March Break and as with resorts, you had to get your lounge chair early. Most people start leaving around 1:30 and by 3, it's getting quiet. The music wasn't loud or terrible. Free drinks at the beach at sunset for I don't know what reason, but that was a bonus. No free water bottle on check-in, like they had years ago. Looks like a lot of development going on right near the resort. I think it will make it a lot busier around there which is too bad. It is a nice, quiet community. We found a beach too with no one on it (Langosta Beach I think). Of course you have to drive down a gravel road. Speaking of which, the road to the resort was quite terrible. We did not want to go out more than we had planned because of it. Overall, we had a really nice time - again!

This was our first time at the Marriott. The hotel was so clean and comfortable and the rooms were big. More importantly the staff were amazing. At the pool we had a gentleman by the name of Luis Diego but goes by just Diego. He was attentive and a real pleasure to talk to. He hustled the entire time we were by the pool! Very nice man! The concierge staff were great especially and I can’t remember his name but the only guy there was wonderful and arranged two celebratory cakes for birthdays we were celebrating. Kevin at the Italian restaurant was super. The Italian restaurant was the best. The steakhouse was ok. The Asian Fusion was also very good! The staff at breakfast got to know us by the second day and we were a group of 8. Ivania was such a nice lady and knew two of my family memebers like a cappuccino! She made sure on the last morning that I wasn’t feeling well that she sent up some bread for me. The staff were always willing to show you where things were. I highly recommend this place if you want a relaxing vacation.

We continue to visit the JW Marriott Guanacaste and are never disappointed and this visit was even better. The hotel layout and grounds are beautiful and excellently maintained; room are spacious with large bath areas. The pool is perfect and the magnificent ocean view is available to many rooms or the pool or from Azul restaurant. What makes this JW special is the outstanding staff at every level e.g. Front Office; Bellmen; Housekeeping; each and every Restaurant and Bar; people are professional, courteous and so very warm to each guest. Dining can tend to be expensive but the food is really good and the service is first rate! We will continue to visit this hotel!!!We will be recognizing the many people that made our vacation great in a specific note to Marriott and the hotel.

My parents, my partner, and I spent five nights at the JW Marriott Guanacaste and had such a lovely time. The resort itself is beautiful – gorgeous grounds, great pools, a nice beach – and the food across all the restaurants was consistently delicious with plenty of variety. But what really made the trip for us was the staff. Everyone we encountered was kind, thoughtful, and attentive in a way that made us feel genuinely cared for. They got to know us over the course of our stay, remembered our preferences, and made sure we had everything we needed. There are so many people I want to thank by name: Vinicio, Josue, Luis Diego (who took great care of us at the pool), Erick, Maricela, Ronny, Meilyn, Andres, Isaac, Monserrat, Gilmar, Elian, Adrian, Olger, Monica (who made wonderful omelettes at breakfast every morning), and Dionicio (whose smoothies we looked forward to daily). (And there were many others too!) A few extra shoutouts. Jhonny, one of the bartenders – we asked for fresh coconuts one afternoon and they had run out, so he went to another part of the resort and picked fresh ones for us. That kind of thoughtfulness really captures the spirit of this place. Randall led a really fun cocktail class. Carlos (the supervisor) and Frank (our server) made our steakhouse dinner a great experience. And Jose, one of the EMTs on staff, deserves special thanks – when my dad took a tumble off his chair, Jose was there right away and was so kind, calm, and professional. We really appreciated it. We made wonderful memories as a family and left feeling relaxed and recharged. Thank you to the whole JW Marriott Guanacaste team – we'd love to come back!

We recently stayed at the JW Marriott Guanacaste and walked away feeling that while it has some strong positives, it doesn’t quite live up to what you expect from the JW brand. Let me start with what the resort does well. The staff, although clearly stretched thin at times, are genuinely friendly and work very hard. Every interaction was pleasant, and you can tell the team is doing their best. The landscaping is beautiful, and the massive pool complex is the highlight of the property. It stretches almost to the beachfront and offers gorgeous sunset views. The beach itself is solid for the Pacific side of Costa Rica — swimmable with decent sand. It’s not as picturesque as some beaches closer to Tamarindo, but it’s certainly enjoyable. Now, where the experience falls short. The approach to the resort is a long, dusty, bumpy dirt road. I’m not sure whether that’s on Marriott or the land ownership, but it becomes frustrating quickly — especially when you’re leaving the property for excursions. And because this resort is quite isolated, you’ll likely be going in and out. Tamarindo, the main hub, is at least 30 minutes away. Within the resort, maintenance feels lacking. Elevators creak, fixtures are faded, and moldings show cracks. While everything was generally clean, the rooms themselves felt average for what is marketed as a 4.5-star luxury property. Housekeeping was also inconsistent — on at least two occasions our room had still not been cleaned by 4 p.m. when we returned from being out all day. For a resort at this price point and brand level, that was disappointing. It simply doesn’t have the elevated feel you expect from a JW. Dining was mixed. The Asian Fusion restaurant was genuinely good. The steakhouse, however, felt like a slightly upgraded chain steakhouse charging high-end steakhouse prices. Again, service was pleasant and hardworking across all venues. Poolside, the vibe is fairly quiet, which can be nice. But during peak season it becomes crowded, and the 3 a.m. “towel on the chair” situation is real. That’s something you expect at a mid-tier all-inclusive in the Caribbean — not at a JW Marriott. Transportation is another challenge. Because of the remote location, there are no readily available taxis or Ubers waiting outside. If you don’t plan ahead, getting around becomes inconvenient and expensive. When asking for assistance, you’re typically referred to a third-party tour agency, and pricing reflects that. For example, it cost $24 just to get to a golf course two miles away. Overall, this property has a beautiful setting and a hardworking staff, but the infrastructure, maintenance, isolation, and pricing-to-experience ratio make it hard to call this a true JW-level resort. With some investment and better operational oversight, it could be significantly improved. For now, I’d describe it as a solid Marriott experience — just not a luxury-tier one.

My husband and I were lucky enough to stay here for a week. If you are looking for a DJ playing music by the pool, a conga line, pool slides and swan boats, this is not the resort for you! The resort is tranquil, beautiful, with the loveliest pool we've ever seen. It is cleverly lagoon-shaped with lots of separate areas and much room for beach chairs. Our room was an ocean-view suite on the "quiet" (non-pool) side, and we loved the privacy of it. Food was good, service was good, rooms and grounds were exceptionally clean. Location is not convenient for excursions, and we never left the resort. We loved the calm vibe, and felt as though the experience was a good value.