www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I will not repeat, at least not soon, but there are a many great things about this place:

Very nice, classy furnishings in the room (bed, bureau, nightstands, everything).
Free safe (unlike the Presidente, where there is an extra charge).
Big shower with big tub (I took several baths).
Air conditioning (at least in my room).
Lots of TV channels, including an adult channel.
Wireless internet (and if you don't bring your own computer, there are several near the restaurant-bar area).
View of woods/park from my room.
Great restaurant area, with big fat beautiful red bougainvillea flowers
framing a dining area.
Lots of TVs for sports events, in a nice internal forum (a classical look) where people can hang out.
The place just looks classy from the outside, and the neighborhood is classy.
The walk to New Fantasy and Zona Blue is short and pleasant. The walk to the Del Ray is not bad at all.
Lots of fellow mongers willing to share info and hang out.
Very friendly and competent bar maids/waitresses (I fell in love with Asta from Lithuania- not sure of spelling).
Room-cleaning staff were friendly and efficient.
Bill the owner was friendly.
People would leave you alone, if you wanted to be left alone (this is important to me).
No hassles are experienced when you bring back the chicas (there is this subtle criticism
you experience at the Presidente when you bring back a chica during
the day when the French tourist couple are behaving like French
people and when the tour-selling girl does not want to be associated with
putas) (but at Sportsmen's there is no sense of being criticized).

Despite all these good things, I will not repeat, at least not soon. I made a phone reservation with Joanna the manager, who speaks very good English. She was clear as can be that the 4–day rate would be $289 after taxes and after the CRT discount. I wrote it down, along with my reservation number. When I checked out, she gave me a bill for $372. Naturally I complained. She showed me her book where she recorded that I was supposed to stay in an expensive room. She said that the room I stayed in has a set price, and I countered that I did not know the price and no one told me that I would have to pay more than what I was told over the phone. After long bloody discussion, she said she could reduce the rate to $331, and she gave an elaborate explanation of why some room (neither the room I stayed in nor the room I agreed to stay in, in advance) is worth that. I gave up, shook my head, and paid the piper. Sometimes you get cheated out of $42, but it is better than getting cheated out of $83. How was I supposed to know that the room I was given was worth more than the room I was quoted in the first place? It’s not like I walk around in life with an internal document of the Sportsmen’s room-pricing schedule.

Other feedback for Bill and Joanna (take it or leave it):
Include the itemized list of restaurant and minibar charges when you present the bill to someone, and give them a chance to look it over (this is Costa Rica).
The room had a strong odor of cleanser or disinfectant.
Taxis cannot find the place, and it takes some time to learn how to direct them. The newbie needs something to give to the taxi driver.
Given the clientele, I think mirrors in the room would be appropriate (I like to see the chicas from every angle possible).
I sent an email about airport pickup that was never replied to.
Two different people complained to me that I did not meet the driver at the airport even though I had called the Sportsmen’s from the U.S. and clearly stated that I did not want to pay $18 for a ride that I could get for $12 from a taxi.
One of the chicas (not Joanna) who work the desk has a bit of an attitude (she seems to have very important things to do when you have a simple question, as in a request as to location of the newspaper).

Overall, I had a good time at the Sportmen’s, but I could not return soon, as a matter of principle. The room might have been worth the tariff, but it was not what had been agreed to. Why Joanna thought that was my fault is another example of the chica mind in action.

_________________
Same river, new water

Just a quick question. If the price would have been what you agreed on, would you stay there without a doubt, or stay there, but look for other options?

Every time I stay at the SL, they give me my price of my room before checking in, so it is very unusual for a mistake like this to happen but they do.. I would have taken it to Bill he is always willing to resolve issues of this nature.

PS THE Presidente has Electronic Safes with NO CHARGE... and has had them for well over a year.

Thanks for the honest assessment.

_________________
The Boss of All Bosses!!! Hey I'm a drunk alcoholics go to meetings!

That's a hard one to answer. What kind of a room would I get in my
preferred price range? Also, I am awfully curious about what it would
be like to stay at Zona Blue.

Part of this is my fault. I do a lot of travel, and I consistently get
the rate, type of room, and amenities in writing via email. I did not
do that on this trip to the Sportsmen's. I had it in my head that
everything would be taken care of, easily, and I hope this review
is helpful to people who want to pay a little more and stay at a
great place, without a last-minute hassle: especially in Latin America,
get it in writing.

_________________
Same river, new water

And thank you for the clarification about El Presidente's safes. It's been
well more than a year since I stayed there, so I am glad to hear that
there is a change of policy.

The first thing I did to address the problem with Joanna was to ask to
speak with Bill. She said he was unavailable at home, and not to be
disturbed. Indeed, I would have sent him an email instead of posting
on this Board but I could not be sure that he would receive it, given
that I had sent a prior email that was not responded to.

And, yes, another mistake I made was not to confirm the exact
cost of the room on check-in. The big event at check-in was being
told that I should have found the Sportsmen's driver at the airport
even though I had called from the states in the morning and told them
I did not want to pay $18 for a $12 ride.

_________________
Same river, new water

I don't understand the 18$ taxi ride when 12$ is the cost from the airport taxis.

At one point, I was sold on the SL, but the noise and the difficulty getting reservations and reservations without getting switched from room to room to room during my stay put me back in the Presidente. I don't mind the dress code at the Presidente and I love the breakfast there and well the safes and they answer all of my emails fast. Presidente is a class act and with the CRT discount a bargain.

No big deal - the SL won't miss me.

*

Well, you know the hotels all try to make a few bucks on it too, SL is not the only one doing it. Your best bet is to either call for a real taxi or get the number of a cabbie and arrange with him personally. There is a thread of dependable drivers on the board. Try using one of them.

This last trip, I took a taxi from ZB to SL right before the airport. So I asked the guy if he'd drive me to the airport, and I paid only $12.

I know a few dollars difference isn't much but it adds up quickly. I needlessly wasted a lot of money this trip. I will be much more aware of my spending habits on future trips. Those $3-4 cab rides from HDR are a joke!

When I made my last minute reservation at the Hotel Morazan two weeks ago Alan asked me if I needed a taxi from the airport for only $20!

I'm sure some guys have they're favorite drivers but I don't see any reason to try and find a particular guy in the crowd when you can grab a taxi for $12. I've never had a problem getting to the gulch and I never have to waste time looking for someone.

As for them finding Sportsmen's Lodge, that's what the San Jose map on the VIP page is for. Also you should get the address and directions to anyplace you know you will be staying at or visiting BEFORE you leave home.

Doing a little planning up front can save you a lot of time and frustration later.

Yeah, when I leave the HDR, I ask how much before getting into the cab and usually the price is inflated so I say no way too much and then I'll ask loudly who will take me to whatever for what I know is the real fare.

You are right, Orange, one has to watch these people from nickel dime(ing) us to death.

Actually, though, considering the SL is American owned, I expect them to protect us from being ripped off. On an early morning trip to the airport, a driver from the SL tried to charge me 20 dollars! I told him no way and then gave him 15 (figured 3 more for the early morning wake up).

Witling, the cabbies can't read maps! I kept two different maps in my
wallet, but I might as well have shown these guys the equation for
polynomial regression. And some of the maps do not
show the 1-ways clearly. What I finally did was to reverse-walk
the trip from the SL to the HDR (up over the railroad tracks, a right
at the Hosptial Juan Calderon, down 7th Avenue. Then I could direct
the clueless cabbies.

I really have to laugh at one cabbie's attempt to read the map when
I wanted to get to Idem Bar. He insisted on holding the map for a long
time, and we drove around all the worst sections of the city of San Jose.
It was trial and error, with his nose dug into the map. Finally, I got it
out of his hands, luckily saw a couple street signs, and directed him
to the place, with his trying to take two wrong turns at the last minute.

_________________
Same river, new water

I never had a problem getting back to SL, I just say over by cafe mundo, and they usually know where Im talking about. Worse case they drop me off at the bottom of the hill and I walk up.

Do not know of any taxista who does not know where the Hospital Calderon is located. Just tell him to take you to the hospital and then direct him from there.

_________________
Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

A good way to give a cabbie directions to the SL is to give him the intersecting streets right before it. I have used this many times and just told them the rest once they get there.

Here is what you tell a taxi driver to get to SL:

"Dos cientos metros oeste del Hospital Calderon Guardia"

200 meters west of the hospital Calderon.

It may not get you exactly there, but close enough to where you'll recognize the area and point him to where to go.

If you are at the SL, ask Bill for one of his business cards. On the reverse side is a map to the SL, with directions in Spanish.

I keep the card in my wallet when in San Jose. In six stays at the SL, the card has gotten me back safely regardless of the taxi driver's skill (or lack thereof) with map-reading.


Osogrande