Costa Rica on Points – Trip Recap
My family spent 4 nights in Costa Rica for part of our 2024 summer break.
Here’s what we booked and how we booked it…
Quick Points/Cost Breakdown
**This Hyatt has since gone up in category and will require more points
having said that – still an amazing option for your points in my opinion 🙂
4 nights at Hyatt’s Andaz Papagayo, 84K points – saved: $3324
3 direct flights on Southwest, Denver – Liberia 34,228 points + $72.15 – saved $615
3 direct flights on United, Liberia – Denver $1107* (We had a canceled flight credit & travel bank credit which we applied to these flights – but I’ll show you how you may be able to get them on points below)
For the Hyatt stay, we transferred Chase Ultimate Reward points to Hyatt, then booked directly with Hyatt. My strategy to earning points for more Hyatt award stays.
For the Southwest flights, we have 1 companion pass and used Southwest points for the other 2 flights. How we earn a Southwest Companion Pass EVERY year!
Booking Hyatt’s Andaz Papagayo
Our family had never visited Costa Rica before and it’s always been high on our list. And when I saw a Hyatt property that I could easily book on points, I knew we had to make it happen.
We were able to book 4 nights at the this property about 5 months out. I feel like 4 nights here is the perfect amount, as that is enough time to enjoy the resort but also gives you time to do excursions and experience Costa Rica.
Because this is a super in demand property, finding award night availability can be tricky. I used MaxMyPoint to find availability. Here’s an example search for April 2025 showing availability (this will vary):
It’s important to note, that I use this as my 1st step in my search. But then I went over to the hotel website and confirmed availability.
For my specific stay (and this happens A LOT!), 3 nights were available in 1 room type, and 1 night in another room type. So if you aren’t finding availability, search day by day to see if that shows availability.
For our stay, the resort automatically combined both reservations and we didn’t need to change rooms. Sometimes you will need to make this request though.
Flights
Because we have a Southwest Companion Pass (meaning, my son only pays taxes when flying as the companion), we seek out Southwest flights. The flight there was an especially good deal at only 17,114 points per person. And since we had a companion pass, for the 3 flights, we only used 34,228 points for all 3 of us which is quite a steal.
Using Southwest’s “Low Fare Calendar” will always be your best bet to find the cheapest Southwest flight options…
Southwest unfortunately did not offer any non stop return flights mid week. The only option I could find was United. Which worked well because I had an expiring flight credit I needed to use. BUT… if I were using points and needed to fly United… booking a United award flight VIA Air Canada would have been a good option…
First… to search partner award flights on Air Canada, you must log in AND select “Book with Aeroplan points”…
And for this specific instance… booking with Aeroplan/Air Canada was less points than booking direct with United (same United flight, different ways to book)…
Excursions, Transfers & Food
We booked private transfers to and from the resort with Maleku Tours. They were waiting outside with a sign when we arrived. And they stopped by a mini mart on our way to the resort so that we could get snacks/drinks to bring to the Andaz. Very happy with this service.
We booked an alllll day excursion with Frank the Tank Tours.
For many of the tours, it is 60+ minutes to get to the starting point. I do not love car rides. So we decided to one jam packed day so we didn’t have to do that drive more than once. Our tour was the Mega Combo and included… Jungle Water slide (so crazy & SO fun!), hike & view of waterfall, Zip lining (we LOVE zip lining!), horseback ridging, volcanic mud bath, natural hot springs (we LOVED these, so relaxing in a beautiful setting), lunch and transportation.
This is a SUPER long day. But I am so glad we did it. We absolutely loved it.
We at all our meals at the resort (except on the day of our tour).
By far our favorite restaurant was Chao Pescao. We ate here 2 nights we loved it so much.
We also loved Meso (the restaurant at the beach) and Rio Bhongo (the restaurant at the pool).
We did NOT love Ostra for dinner (their fine dining restaurant) and we tried really hard to love it…. We ordered appetizers, 3 entrees, and dessert and nothing was amazing 🙁
Because we are Hyatt Globalists (the top tier status with Hyatt) breakfast was included.
We dined at Ostra twice and Rio Bhongo twice. Ostra is more of an experience, with many small plates offered. Rio Bhongo is your typical buffet & order from menu. We absolutely loved both. Ostra was a better “experience” but we loved Rio Bhongo food selection more.
Globalist Benefits
You are recognized as a Globalist from the very start
Check in was in private huts (WITH AC) and you were given cold towels, coconut waters, bottled water and there were cookie snacks available. They really go out of their way to welcome Globalists!
And then at our room, we were welcomed with a lovely note and a plate of incredible sweets. Plus, there are flip flops & hats in the room (I believe every guest gets these)
As I mentioned earlier, breakfast was included. Even specialty coffees and smoothies. Breakfast was SUCH a treat each day!
Andaz Papagayo Details
One thing I love about Andaz hotels is that the mini fridge in your room is stocked with complimentary waters, sodas & juices. Plus, they also stock local snacks like chips, etc. There is a charge for alcohol in the fridge, but it actually was really reasonable for a resort.
There are 5 pools at the resort. 3 of them are next to Rio Bhongo. The adult pool is next to Ostra. And then there’s a pool at the main beach area.
The pools are full service. And they have water & sunscreen stations (such a nice touch!).
Another unique thing about this property was the gym. It has 2 gyms… 1 with more cardio equipment (AND AC) in the spa area on the lower level. And then there’s the tree house gym with more free weights and completely open air. My son & husband LOVED the tree house gym!
Another feature we loved was the golf carts! When you are finishing a meal, you can ask your server to request a golf cart and there will be one waiting for you. Or you can request one from your room. Or from the pool. We enjoyed exploring the hotel on foot, so we only took advantage of this one evening after dinner when it was sprinkling out.
Monkeys! You will see monkeys every single day. In the trees near your room. In the trees at the pool. And the trees by the beach.
Speaking of the beach… there are 2 beaches. The main beach you can only access by shuttle or boat. You either catch the shuttle at the lobby or catch the boat at the other (much smaller beach). You access that smaller beach by simply walking down the stairs near Rio Bhongo.
The main beach has its own pool, own restaurant, lots of shaded seating, and included activities…
Our Overall Review
We had a wonderful 4 nights at this resort. It is stunningly beautiful. In an incredible setting.
But it is the PEOPLE that make it 10/10! Every single person we encountered was amazing and helpful and kind. We were completely WOWed by the service here.
LIR Airport
A quick note about LIR airport…
It’s about a 35 minute drive to/from the resort.
The downstairs area where you check in is not air conditioned. Luckily, we had barely any wait at all.
The upstairs area is very nice, tons of restaurants, Full AC, a kids play area and even a Priority Pass lounge.
10/10
I honestly feel like I could go on and on about our time in Costa Rica. We truly had an incredible family trip. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. Pura Vida!
