Casita Verde, 800 mts from beach

Heather was an impeccable host. Whenever we had a question or concern, she responded immediately and thoroughly. The setting for the casita is wonderful. Nestled among the trees, close enough to the beach to walk to it and to hear the waves at night. We saw monkeys and several tropical birds, including a toucan. The sound of the birds and howler monkeys brought us pure joy. The large screened windows help bring the outdoors inside, even when closing them to use the AC. The outdoor sand rinsing station was essential, and having a washer, dryer, and clothesline was invaluable. The pathway from the parking to the house is flat and short, making it easy to transport things to and from a car.

The casita is (as the name conveys) was small. While there is enough sleeping room for four, waking hours were crowded with three people. The sitting area is barely big enough for three, and the narrow door to the back porch (from which we regularly threw our fruit and vegetable debris) was restricted by the slighty-too-big refrigerator. The porch was lovely in concept (though also very small) but the large number of bats (more than a dozen) and their feces made it an undesirable lounge spot for us. Locking and unlocking the gate was cumbersome. We had several power outages that made remote working especially difficult. Keeping the casita clean was impossible. We swept and used an old towel to clean the floor but without housekeeping services or additional supplies, our long stay felt a bit like camping--enjoyable but dirty.