www.CostaRicaTicas.com

“Sarcastic” : implies an intentional inflicting of pain by deriding, taunting, or ridiculing.

Paco mi amigo… I have no beef with you or your Post as I agree that the “Customer is Always Right” and as your claims are Very Valid to you and we read that Others have had similar issues with Service at the Hotel. My Lame Attempt was to lighten the pending doom that is building for a “Bash El Presidente” Thread…

As usually Lame begets Shame.

I try not to judge the Book by the Cover or allow myself to be swayed by hear says. Although impressions are important to judge the content it’s not all that makes it a Good Read or Not. There are many Chapters to a Good Book, some will make you happy, some will make you cry and others will Just Piss you Off but the Ending is what Makes It or Breaks It for me.

I have had nothing but good memories of my travels and the folks that I have met in Costa Rica and at the The Prez. This Hotel has been ground zero for many first time introductions and renewed acquaintances. It’s a Place I feel safe and comfortable and very relaxed… I am first to make a bitch if something is not proper or I feel that I have been jaded and I’ll admit that I have had minor issues with the Hotel that I took up with Administrators that were Corrected Immediately.

The Hotel doesn’t need me to Tout for it’s worthiness’ and this Was Not My Intentions, I go on vacation to get away from everyday issues and decisions that I must be involved with. To have Issues or Hassles would be/ IS unacceptable but I will go through the proper channels to amend any wrongs. As the pages turn and chapter move towards the end I find that for me the Hotel Presidente is a Very Good Read…. Even with a few mixed up chapters that sometimes makes no rhyme or reasoning.

Ok…. That’s my two cents however more often than not it really equals No Sense!!!

Johnnie B.

I'm sorry to say if the Prez employees are surly it's probably from the abuse they have received from the occasional ugly gringo's I've observed there.

Stayed at Prez my first two trips and usually sit at their rail for breakfast. What's up with their one girl upstairs policy? It's stupid.

Signed up at Sportsmans for Superbowl and looking forward to the new Colonial hotel being built.

As a frequent travler to CR and a constant guest at the Prez..I have to agree that the place (Prez) has always been good to me ..from the staff to the Mngmt.

Admin 1 will adress the Marvin issue with the Mngmt and all will be fine.

Dino...the reason they always cop and attitude with you is that you always bring in these colombians with double FF's to the front desk dressed to the nine's. They are just jelaous of you.

JB...you have to get out of my room 803 sometime...seems that you always have that one booked when I call.

ShowerHead

My take on Marvin "The Ice Man" security guard ........ is that he is only trying to do his job in a serious and dedicated manner.......Although, I think he is at times making-up some of "HIS OWN" house rules. I've had no more problems with him after a short discussion we had together, to make sure we were both using the same book of "HOUSE" rules.

I now make it a point of mine to always greet "The Ice Man" with a big smile and a firm hand shake whenever our paths cross.
Lately, I've even been successful at getting him to respond with a big smile on that always serious mug of his.
Capt.

Hey Captain I heard you can check him in for a cien..

Hey Captain when you shake his hand are there any colones being exchanged real slick-like?

Jus kiddin' with you man....

Hey Latino !! ......I just spoke to Marvin......and he knows all about your "Fetish".
He wants to see your face when you go to sign-in a Chica at the side-desk and she finds out that he has your name at the top of the "Chica" black list ........for stealing dirty towels out of the maids cart at the Prez.
Capt.

I've never understood the extreme attitudes that many members here seem to have about various aspects of CR. Some say one should NEVER rent a car in CR while others LOVE self-driving and think EVERYONE should try it. One should always take a CAB when going between the BM and the Prez or security fears are OVERBLOWN. And here this hotel or that hotel is THE best place to stay and the other places are just poor seconds.

JB: How long have you been coming to CR and staying at the Prez? How many times in just the last year have you stayed there and how many little gifts have you distributed to various hotel staff? Could it be that, as a regular, well known and friendly guest, you just might be getting a little friendlier service in return? Could it be that, as a relatively new visitor to CR, you might be missing the often times subtle changes that would only be apparent to those who have been staying at the Prez for years? For that matter, what other CR hotels have you stayed at as a basis of comparison? Does the fact that you've never had a problem at a particular place necessarily mean that others have never had problems there (YMMV)? And, as a corollary, does the fact that one has had a problem at other hotels (lets say, for example, lost reservations) mean that most other guests at those places must have had the same problem?

It is hard for me to believe that ANY place exists in CR where there aren't at least occasional problems, though if you read some posts you wouldn't think so. Why is it so hard to believe that just because some place seems perfect to one person it isn't necessarily perfect for everyone else? It almost seems like Prez apologists are conveniently making excuses for them.

I agree with TMan and others that finding good help in CR can be as much if not more of a problem as it is here in the US (but remember the same problem applies to other hotels before you bash them). The bigger issue is how the management deals with it. The bigger question is how widespread and common the problem really is at the hotel in question and whether one really wants to have to bother correcting employee behavior by having to complain to management rather than just get good service to begin with. Tman is absolutely right sometimes that is all you can do and then decide for yourself whether the problem is addressed properly or whether it is necessary or advisable to take your business to one of the MANY other options.

I also agree with Goal that there may be OCCASSIONAL ugly gringos that are rude and abusive to the staff and agree with Shower that there may be a bit of JEALOUSY that we can afford these beauties and they can't, but is that really any sort of excuse. And why wouldn't that resentment be channeled where it is deserved rather than haphazardly and erratically at a polite gentleman like Paco with a relatively discretely dressed chica.

Finally, as to what the DR strategic plan might be, I really have no idea. Bombero covered this area pretty well. Yes, whorticulturalists as group have contributed heavily to the recent success of the Prez (but so has the fact that they finally updated their rooms, which was WAAAYYY overdue). I'm sure that in private meetings witht our Admin they have assured him that they will continue to welcome their core constituency. What else are they going to tell him? However, I suspect that they also wouldn't mind broadening their customer base so they aren't so dependent on us. First there are the outside social pressures against our type of tourism. Once they get a rep as a fullfledged whorehouse, it would be very hard to lose it and be able to attract other types of tourists. There are also governmental pressures. What would happen to them if the government really got serious about cracking down on sex tourism and that was all the Prez had? Besides, as Bombero pointed out, part of the appeal of the Prez, even for him as a monger, is that it isn't just another Del Rey, with a seedy reputation.

The mgmt at the Prez have to walk a tight rope between accomodating an important part of the clientele and not becoming just another whorehouse. Unfortunately, one can only walk a tightrope so long before one falls one way or the other. How to walk this fine line is not always so easy to decide. Is it by having a dress code (informal or official)? Is it having a one-chica-at-a-time policy? Is it by not allowing hookers at the News Cafe or allowing guests to bring girls up to their rooms that they picked up in the lobby or blacklisting girls that have violated some other unspecified rule? Do they become like the DR/BM by charging what the market will bear such as insisting one spends more money for "high rent" spots like along the Rail? Are the reports of staff periodically enforcing "policies" cases of independent action based on their own personal attitudes, resentment or simple fatigue and frustration or is it their way of carrying out the basic precepts of management to keep things within certain bounds such as appearances of propriety? Alternatively, how many complaints have they gotten from some of their family visitors about squeeking bed noises and loud moaning coming through the walls of their rooms at all hours of the night? How many times have they been told by uptight gringa guests that they had no idea what type of whorehouse the Prez was and how they would never stay there again? You get the idea.

Is the Prez starting down a slippery slope or are they starting to teeter on that rope and heading for a fall or are all these reports overblown? I don't know. I think the complaints ARE somewhat overblown. I'm sure one still gets generally top-notch service here. But I've seen other top-notch monger hotels slip very rapidly from the recommended list. I have to wonder how long it will be with all their success before they start to take their guests for granted. Maybe it has already started and then the next question is how long will their exisitng reputation carry them before guys realize how much has changed (if you drop a frog in a pot of hot water he'll jump out, but if you put him in pot of water and slowly raise the temperature he'll cook). I also have to wonder why guys clamor for a room at a place that is usually fully booked up when there are other probably equally nice and accomodating places that are also hungrier for their business. Actually, I know why. Its because they have read on some board that the Prez is THE place to stay and they haven't tried those other places at any recent time. They in turn recommend the only place they really know and a cycle begins. Why not give one of those other places a try? Giving the Prez some competition for your dollars might be just the recipe to keep them fighting for your business.

I'll close with a much more depressing thought. Could it be that this gradual decline in some Tico's attitudes and behavior towards Gringos as reflected in the way they act towards guests at the Prez is symptomatic of a larger more widespread decline in attitudes of Tico's towards Gringos (or at least sex tourists) throughout CR? I hope not, but I have my concerns.

WOW, Prolijo what a great post.

As a lurking newbie I have often wondered how the Ticos must feel about the Gringos coming down to their country and using their young and most beautiful women for our own pleasures.

I am reminded of how I felt through out the early and mid eighties when South Florida seemed to be filled with Rich Iranians riding around in limousines throwing money around that seemed to be unfathomable, phucking the most beautiful, young Norte American women. I thought the women were a bunch of whores and I wasn’t very pleased to see these foreigners pillaging my country with total disregard. They would indulge in every debauchery here (whether legal or not) that was totally unacceptable in their homeland then return like the innocent young boys they reputed to be.

I wonder if we gringos don’t resemble that scene to the Ticos of CR.

Curious lurker,

Apparition

_________________
Interested newbie lurking and learning

I should ad. I am looking forward to my first opportunity to visit the land of honey and dipping my wick into the honey pot.

With the help of the Brotherhood here at CRT, I hope I can do it with style and grace leaving behind pleasant experience to all I find.

Apparition

_________________
Interested newbie lurking and learning

Interesting how true the Old Saying “Opinions are like A*sholes Everyone has One”….

Pro…. I take no malice from your comments or inquiries, you thread was as usual one filled with words that strike a Harmony of Intelligence and Experience. The facts relevant or not of how many times I’ve been to CR or stayed the Prez or what perks are received, or even graft distributed means nothing to my personal situation. Actually has no bearing to this Thread, which identified an Employee of a Business that should have been reported and then reprimanded if found to be conducting inappropriate behavior to a registered guest. As I stated before, my trite attempt was to lighten some of the negatives… Negatives that had Valid Concerns but not a rubber stamp of what I have perceived to be a very good Hotel Experience…

Hey Bottom line here each has to make decisions for themselves, lucky for all there are options that are always available. We use forums such as this to convey opinions, communicate ideas, and offer suggestions. The Words are Only Good if somebody takes the time to type them out…..

Maybe I’m not a realist to think that everything can be Positive but always felt that if you do have a negative it should be countered with at least two positives…. Maybe I went overboard in my own thoughts…. Or maybe thoughts should be kept to oneself that way not to upset any apple carts.

Hummm...???

I do know this that the success of any site is it’s content and it’s membership. We have many benefits offered by several different sponsors for our members <Who Understandably have their Favorites that they do frequent> and I say thanks to our Admin’s for making this possible for us. However the ratio of Membership to Actual Contributors is very small. I noted this on another Topic about posting Pictures in our VIP Galleries. Maybe the Precedent has been set and is one that should be considered….

Pay your Money Get your Discounts and be done with it until renewal…

JB