LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa

3.0 star property
your current months are December, 2024 and January, 2025.
December 2024
January 2025

Photo gallery for LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa

Outdoor pool
Outdoor pool
Lobby
32-inch LCD TV with satellite channels, TV
32-inch LCD TV with satellite channels, TV

Reviews

7.0 out of 10

Good

Popular amenities

  • Bar
  • Gym
  • Pool
  • Breakfast included
  • Housekeeping
  • Laundry

Explore the area

Map
Playa Guiones Nosara, 1KM de Cafe de Paris, Nosara, Guanacaste, 85-1000
  • Frog Pad
    3 min walk
  • Nosara Beach
    5 min walk
  • Safari Surf School
    10 min walk
  • Nosara (NOB)
    14 min drive

Room options

Standard Room 2 Queen Beds

  • 40 sq m
  • Sleeps 4

Suite

  • 109 sq m
  • Sleeps 4

Suite

  • 104 sq m
  • Sleeps 4

Standard Room 1 King Bed

  • 40 sq m
  • Sleeps 2

About the area

Nosara

With a stay at LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa in Nosara, you'll be a 3-minute walk from Frog Pad and 5 minutes by foot from Nosara Beach. .This hotel is 15.4 mi (24.8 km) from Samara Beach and 0.5 mi (0.9 km) from Safari Surf School.

What's nearby

  • Frog Pad - 3 min walk - 0.3 km
  • Nosara Beach - 5 min walk - 0.5 km
  • Safari Surf School - 10 min walk - 0.9 km
  • Guiones Beach - 10 min walk - 0.9 km
  • Playa Pelada - 17 min walk - 1.5 km

Getting around

  • Nosara (NOB) - 14 min drive

Restaurants

  • ‪Howler’s Beach Lounge - ‬3 min walk
  • ‪The Restaurant and Bar at The Gilded Iguana - ‬4 min walk
  • ‪La Luna - ‬13 min walk
  • ‪Beach Dog Cafe - ‬9 min walk
  • ‪Café de Paris - ‬9 min walk

About this property

LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa

Hotel in Nosara with free breakfast and a fitness center
LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa offers 32 air-conditioned accommodations with safes and coffee/tea makers. Beds feature Select Comfort mattresses. 32-inch LCD televisions come with satellite channels.

Bathrooms include showers and hair dryers. Business-friendly amenities include desks and phones. Housekeeping is provided daily.

An outdoor pool and a children's pool are on site. Other recreational amenities include a fitness center.
Make yourself at home in one of the 32 air-conditioned rooms featuring refrigerators and LCD televisions. Your room comes with a Select Comfort bed. Satellite television is provided for your entertainment. Bathrooms have showers and hair dryers.
Take advantage of recreation opportunities including an outdoor pool and a fitness center. This hotel also features complimentary wireless internet access and tour/ticket assistance. Getting to the surf and sand is a breeze with the beach shuttle (surcharge).
At LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa, enjoy a satisfying meal at the restaurant. Quench your thirst with your favorite drink at the bar/lounge. A complimentary continental breakfast is served daily from 7 AM to 10 AM.
Featured amenities include multilingual staff and laundry facilities. Free self parking is available onsite.
A complimentary continental breakfast is served each morning between 7 AM and 10 AM.
LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa has a restaurant serving breakfast, brunch, and dinner.

Property amenities

Internet

  • Available in some public areas: Free WiFi

Parking and public transport

  • Free self-parking on site
  • Airport shuttle at scheduled times
  • Beach shuttle (surcharge)

Food and drink

  • Free continental breakfast available daily 7 AM–10 AM
  • 1 restaurant
  • 1 bar

Things to do

  • Children's pool
  • Fitness centre
  • Outdoor pool

Family friendly

  • Children's pool
  • Laundry facilities
  • Outdoor pool
  • Fridge

Guest services

  • Daily housekeeping
  • Front desk (limited hours)
  • Laundry facilities
  • Multilingual staff
  • Tour/ticket assistance

Outdoors

  • Garden

More

  • Designated smoking areas

Room amenities

Bedroom

  • Air conditioning
  • Select comfort bed

Bathroom

  • Hairdryer
  • Private bathroom
  • Shower

Entertainment

  • 32-inch LCD TV
  • TV/satellite channels

Food and drink

  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Fridge

More

  • Desk
  • Phone
  • Safe

Policies

Check-in

Check-in start time: 2 PM; Check-in end time: 10 PM
Minimum check-in age: 18

Check-out

Check-out before noon

Special check-in instructions

This property offers transfers from the airport; to arrange pick-up, guests must contact the property 72 hours prior to arrival, using the contact information on the booking confirmation
The front desk is open daily from 6 AM - 10 PM
Front desk staffed during limited hours

Renovations and closures

The property is closed between October 1 and October 31.

Access methods

Front desk (limited hours)

Pets

Pets not allowed (service animals welcome)

Children and extra beds

Children are welcome
Children up to the age of 10 years can stay for free if using existing beds when occupying the parent or guardian's room
Rollaway/extra beds are not available
Cribs (infant beds) are not available

Payment types

Important information

You need to know

Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card, or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
This property accepts credit cards
Noise-free guestrooms cannot be guaranteed

We should mention

Only registered guests are allowed in the guestrooms

Property is also known as

L'acqua Viva
L'acqua Viva Nosara
L'acqua Viva Resort
L'acqua Viva Resort Nosara
l Acqua Viva Hotel
l`Acqua Viva Resort And Hotel Nosara
LAcqua Viva Resort Spa
LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa Hotel
LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa Nosara
LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa Hotel Nosara

LAcqua Viva Resort & Spa Reviews

Reviews

7.0

Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 9 out of 30 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 9 out of 30 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 4 out of 30 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 3 out of 30 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 5 out of 30 reviews" "

8.6/10

Cleanliness

7.8/10

Staff & service

7.4/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities
Very pretty but empty and eerie
The property is beautiful and the rooms are big but we were possibly the only guests staying there. The pool looked like it had not been used in weeks. It was really a shame because the staff were very friendly and helpful and the place itself is gorgeous.

6/10 Okay

Chris, Pittsburgh PA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Disliked: Room comfort
Cute concept but empty
In the hot and humid Costa Rican climate, it was nice to relax in the hotel room, but the set up in little houses are odd. Be sure not to get a room on the first floor on any of the houses as animals can creep in. I was disappointed because it felt like we were the only guests there, even though it is not necessarily the tourist season. The service was slower than in the US and you must ask for the check. The room had wifi for free, but it was only on ¼ of the room, nearest to the window. This was a pain as we had to put all of our devices on that one side. Also, be sure to lock valuables in the safe, as there is very little liability in Costa Rica.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Quiet, lovely hotel
This is a very nice hotel located between Playa Guiones and Pelada. Its quieter and more upscale than other Nosara hotels and the setting is beautiful. Rooms are very spacious and well kept. Pool area is great but the "gym" is very rundown and the spa appeared to be closed during our visit. A hot breakfast is included every day; delicious but the same each day.The staff was very pleasant. Best way to get to the nearby beaches is by car; it's a long walk otherwise.

6/10 Okay

Lora, East hampton, ny

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Balinese style retreat
Beautiful property however the standard rooms can be noisy as near main road. Staff very attentive and accommodating. Nice breakfast. A bit far from the beach to walk however a 5 minute drive

6/10 Okay

teambailey, Southern California

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
L'aqua Viva
The hotel itself is nice. The staff was outstanding. Expedia screwed up my reservation and the hotel, on Christmas day provided me a room with some manuevering. They were more than accomodating and so very nice. The pool is nice also. The restaurant was just ok. If I had known that the area was so incredibly dusty, I would never have gone there. It is really bad as far as the constant dust from the unpaved roads. Also takes forever to get there as the road signs are not always there.

8/10 Good

Belle, Norwich

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
An interesting hotel but relaxing
The hotel was amazing but not like many hotels we had been to in the UK because it came across as a retreat because we came at the beginning of the peak season. We became familiar with the hotel staff at the reception and restaurant. This was a blessing because my husband and I did not speak any Spanish so we had to speak to the hotel staff for booking transport which they happily organised for us at fixed price even though tut tut taxi are fairly scary at first but you get use to it and the cheapest way of transport. Even though the hotel beautiful & amazing, our room did not get wifi so we had to go to the reception area every time we need the web so we went there everyday just to plan our day activities. For me the pool and jacuzzi was freezing cold but my husband love jumping in after he finish baking in the sun. I feel in love with my air conditioning in our room but hated our mini fridge was fairly noisy at random times during the day. Unfortunately, the hotel is off a busy road which you will notice early in the morning because I was woken up by traffic between 5am to 7am everyday - be prepared for early morning wake up calls. However breakfast starts at 7a.m. The restaurant was pricy and the menu was poorly translated into English so the descriptions were not accurate or made any sense. We found out the hard way so I would suggest eating out for more choice and better food.We went to local cafes and restaurants instead for food.

10/10 Excellent

JC Ruiz, Los Angeles

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Love the Bali style hotel
Our family love the hotel, the service, the breakast, everything. Highly recommend this paradise to travelers to Nosara only ,6 km from beach very nice . Would definitely stay again,

8/10 Good

Esteban04

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Esteban04
I like the hotel, it's surrounding buy nature, but the road to arrive it's to bad

8/10 Good

Esteban04

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Good hotel
I Like the hotel, it has a very natural enviroment, but the road ti arrive three has to be improve,

10/10 Excellent

kathy, jacksonville fl

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Warm and wonderful...
We went to L'acqua Viva with friends for a surf trip. Originally, we were concerned about the hotel as the ratings were not complimentary. All of that concern vanished when we arrived. We were met with friendly faces, a cool smoothy, attentive concierge, and a clean room. We had a driver (arranged by the hotel) pick us up at the Liberia airport. Upon arrival we rented a car. Between 3 families, we rented 2 cars and a golfcart. That is a recommended plan as the hotel is a few minutes from the beach. The food all week was exceptional at the hotel, La luna, Pacifico Azul, The Paris Cafe, and the Guilded Iguana. We were able to relax, visit with our friends, and give our boys a generous amount of freedom to explore. Additionally, the hotel set us up with wonderful surf instructors, kayak/paddle board guy, and restaurants. The staff was hard working, attentive, fun, and consistant. L'acqua Viva's food was perfect all day...breakfast, lunch/fish tacos, and late afternoon ceviche and dinner. The other guests were also enjoyable and interesting. We were just pleasantly surprised every day and we look forward to returning soon. Maybe the next time we will go in the rainy season.

2/10 Terrible

david vox, nosara

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Worst hotel in Nosara
For the price you pay here, the hotel and service should be good.Spa Hotel? There is not something you would call a spa... It`s dirty, dusty and noisy.I could not sleep, because of the hotel was next to the dusty road, everythign got dusty .. The service was bad, and the restaurant a joke. It was a major restaurant, with no people eating there trough my 7 day stay! Go somewhere else, where they have a view, not a dustry road and a restaurant with fresh food!

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Worst hotel stay I have had - ever.
Its high season - And the beautiful location in Nosara is like a paradise. Many pools, beautiful buildings and .. No people. Its an empty town. Nobody at the pools. Nobody at breakfast. Nobody at the enormous restaurant. Ever. Once. I sat here working from 0700 and many hours each day - and at the evening.. And I saw a maximum of 2 other hotels guests one time, and a family of 5.. People don`t come here, for a reason: 1. Food is terrible: NEVER eat here. NEVER ever ever ever. My stomach hurt so bad after eating here. Its not fresh food.. One of the people told me himself: eat somewhere else. During breakfast, I order 2 extra eggs instead of the bread. Cost? 3$. Don`t give the customer anything extra here! 2. Don’t ask for something during breakfast: They are busy looking at their phone, talking to each other etc. You literally have to scream to get attention. 3. Don`t swim in the pool, its dirty. They placed this beauty 2 meters from the dirty sand road = there is sand EVERYWHERE. In the air (Wear a mask like the locals do when they drive at the same road) 5. The gym is, not a gym.. 6. No internet connection at the rooms. And in the reception is so bad, if there where more than me online at the same time it did not work.. Great for work, not. Even if I was the ONLY one using the internet, I could not watch a video on youtube! 7. FAR from he beach! No shuffle, no trip arranged form the hotell.. (Car broke down they told me after 3 days, its on service.. well, then fix something? Cab? You can drive many, since nobody is doing ANYTHING at this hotel without watching TV, at their phone and waiting for customers in a restaurant that is empty.. Had to rent an ATV for 200$ extra so I could move around because of there poor service. 9. Did i mention the whole thing is 2 meters from the main road in Nosara? That means its NOISY 24/7. The cars drive like crazy, and since there is no sound proof wall, and the hotel have thin walls you hear everything! Did I mention this is a luxury hotel with expensive prices? DONT STAY HERE!

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
pretty hotel going down hill
i think the management of this hotel is killing a potentially really good hotel. the building and the rooms are really nice but the service and food and the energy of the place is dead. its a shame because this could have been an amazing place to stay had it been managed correctly.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Room comfort
Disappointment !!! Be careful
We stayed at this hotel for five nights, if you are going to stay here make sure your room is near the pool area. The others face the road, the amount of noise and dirt is unbearable. It is under new management and I must say he tried to go above and beyond to accommodate us, if he could physically move the hotel he would but unfortunately there is only so much he could do. A car is a must given that the hotel is not an easy walk from the town and beach. Nosara is a great place, we really enjoyed are time there, you must go to La Luna restaurant and Pacifico Azul(best ceviche in town)

2/10 Terrible

Enrique, Trondheim, Norway

Liked: Room comfort
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Neither resort nor spa
We arrived with great expectations as this was our last trip before we left Costa Rica. We were taken upon by a nice employee who helped us with the luggage and the receptionist who showed us to the room. As we arrived at around 4pm we decided to stay and eat dinner at the hotel. The restaurant looked nice. Regretably, the food and the service did not corresponded with the cost of the food. The waiter and waitress gave us the wrong food (some of us don't like tomatoes and lettuce, for example). The food was lukewarm and not good. We didn't have great expectations about breakfast since it was american, but again the service was below average. If we asked for fried egg, they came with scrambled. If we asked for more toasts instead for "Gallo Pinto", they came with "Gallo Pinto". If we asked for no papaye, they came with papaya. This happened everytime during our stay. The rooms was nice, but the hotel is full of dust from the main road, sitting in the terrace is impossible. The spa is closed and the training room is abandoned.It is not possible to swim/train in the pools as they are shallow. The general manager told us that the problems they have are because of the earthquake in 2011, and he wasn't at all understanding to our situation. It was like talking to a wall and talk only of the problems caused by the earthquake. We left with the feeling that we would have had a better stay in a cheap cabin for a 1/4 of the price we payed here. We expect a refund accordingly!!!

10/10 Excellent

Ruben, San Jose

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Worst hotel!!!! Avoid if possible
The hotel rooms and facilities look lovely in pictures but it is built right beside the main dirt road highway and all the trees and shrubs are covered in grey road dust which they hose down. Instead of a peaceful beautiful experience we were woken up by trucks and motorcycles at 5:30 am passing the resort 40 feet from our room. We couldn't open the windows at night due to noise. There was only about 5 rooms booked out of 3 dozen so the resort was empty and felt very sad. We were the only ones in the pool, bar and dining room. We felt sorry for them so had dinner there which was a big mistake. The cheapest bottle of wine was $48 (when wine at finest restaurants in Tamarindo started at $20). We ordered Filet Mignon medium rare and it came well done with only mashed potatoes - no vegetables. The server did not speak english well and when we asked if there would be vegetables she kept nodding but I guess she didn't know what we were talking about. However the worst thing is the hotel is a 1 hour walk to the beach or 7 minute drive. All the other hotels in Playa Guionnes were in walking distance of the beach and restaurants. They would have been a much better choice. I wouldn't be surprised if this place goes bankrupt soon. Very depressing.

8/10 Good

California Traveler, California

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice Stay
We enjoyed our stay here in December 2013. The hotel and grounds were well kept and clean. The staff members were attentive and very nice. Our room included breakfast, which was fantastic: big fruit plate, yoghurt, huevos rancheros, rice and beans, toast, juice, coffee/tea/hot chocolate.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great hotel in Nosara
Fantastic property! Great accommodations, great food, quite during the rainy season. The only downside is the hotel isn't walking distance to the beach.

8/10 Good

Kyllie, San Jose, CA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
L'acqua Viva - Nosara
This place was really quiet, but Nosara is a really quiet area. Less tourists than most places. The hotel was great but the receptionist didn't barely speak english. Luckily my friends spoke a bit of spanish, but I was completely useless. Other option is keep your iphone translator app handy....LOL Great service and very friendly staff, I would definitely recommend it. But tip here is to note that you have to get everything scheduled from town. Unlike other yoga retreat places, they don't have staff ready to handle massages and daily yoga. I'm really tough on hotels because I'm very picky, but this one gets a bad rap. Regardless property was beautiful and very private. The pool was awesome and the fruit drinks without alcohol was really cheap. The free breakfast was good too, just your standard eggs, toast, rice, and fruits. The lunches/dinners were good. Don't expect a four seasons or st regis style hotel with superb service though it's not that kind of place and you will definitely be disappointed.

10/10 Excellent

Daniel, Houston, TX, USA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
any staff problems have been resolved
As nice as it could get. I read the negative reviews and thought they were based on some personnel problems that were fixable. Indeed this was the case and they were clearly resolved. Staff was very responsive. Spa service excellent price and quality per wife, who used it several times. Our suite 205 was excellent and maybe the best - I recommend it. I did not use the hotel restaurant except for the free breakfast, and thought it was a bit expensive, but the rooms are well worth the price. There are many good places to eat very well and close by. The ambience is definitely world-class. Hollywood plans a movie in the area and star will stay there,if that is a hint about its quality. It may be time to develop a yoga program with big names from USA and India since Yoga is so big around there. A few Buddhist monks would fit in with that place really well (my wife is from Darjeeling). Suggest closer association with ancillary activities, like Miss Sky Canopy Tour, snorkel, wildlife (croc, monkey, iguana, bird, tropical fish, etc.), paddle-surf, deep sea fishing, etc.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Lovely relaxing resort
Beautiful Balinese style resort in Nosara. Rooms were big but ours was close to the road so traffic noise was an issue. The nicer rooms are away from the road and pool facing. Hotel is on the main road so easy to find and hotel staff were very friendly and helpful. Would recommend and return.

8/10 Good

Rob, Annapolis, Md

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Very Tropical, quiet.
Our stay at L' acqua Viva was great. The room was clean and big (2 queen beds), we did not have the really expensive suite, though they looked to be super nice. The drive to the beach (Playa Guiones) and "downtown" took exactly 6 minutes, I would NOT suggest trying to walk. The hotel was basically deserted when we were there, maybe 2 - 3 other couples. All service, food was great. Bartenders made awesome cocktails. Servers, housekeeping and front desk were very polite. Hotel had guard at front gate, barbed wire around complex, safe. Best part were the howler monkeys that live on the property. Pools and landscaping were 2nd to none, overall architecture was a sight to see...Bamboo averywhere, very tropical. If hotel was crowded, parking could be an issue. You definately need a 4X4 to stay here if you want to get into town and hit the beach. Roads unpaved, dusty and buuummmmpy! Playa Guiones has eipc waves EVERY DAY!

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Wunderschöne Anlage im Bali Style!!
Super nettes Personal und sehr herzlicher Empfang. Wir erhielten viele tolle Tipps bzgl. Restaurants und Strände. Die Zimmer sind sehr groß mit riesigem Bad. Sehr schöne Poolanlage. 5 min. zum Strand, mit dem Auto kein Problem. Anfahrt über Schotterpiste, besser vor Einbruch der Dunkelheit da sein, sonst evtl. schwer zu finden.