Review of Hostel Las Mariposas in Playa Samara - 6-21-2012



Hostel Las Mariposas in Playa Samara, Costa Rica



Hostel Las Mariposas in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

Looking for a bright, fun, spacious, clean, airy hostel directly in Playa Samara with a great hostess? Look no further! Hostel Las Mariposas is the only hostel actually inside the town of Playa Samara (Casa Brian is about one mile outside of town -- see review here). The hostel's proximity to the Intercultura Spanish language school makes Las Mariposas a great place to stay if you're going to be studying at the the school, by the way. Leonie, a friendly and outgoing Dutch woman who I befriended on my 2009 trip to Costa Rica before she owned Hostel Las Mariposas, is the owner and your hostess. She knows all the events going on in town, can give you directions to local beaches or other towns, and is an all around delight to talk with. The hostel even has a guidebook available about Samara and its surroundings that will give you information on local restaurants, things to do and tours to take.




The first thing you'll notice about Las Mariposas is how airy it is. The front of the hostel has a large and colorfully painted and tiled covered patio with a communal dining table and three hammocks. The space is breezy, which is important in Costa Rica's heat, and frequently has people hanging out. There is a second communal dining table and another pair of hammocks underneath a roof further back in the hostel past the sink, freezer and garden. All in all, you will find plenty of space and plenty of opportunity to meet other folks, or to find a quiet spot all to yourself.






Free hugs!

Hostel Las Mariposas in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

The second thing you'll notice is how pretty the grounds are. The hostel's countless flowers and private garden give Las Mariposas a homey feel. The reward is endless blooms of pink, red, orange and yellow that add to the hostel's relaxed, welcoming atmosphere. Also be sure to ask about the mango tree that gives hugs. It gives mangoes, too.






The third thing you'll notice is how cool everyone here. Leonie herself is endlessly patient and unremittingly friendly, as are the folks who help out around the hostel. Living in paradise will do that to you, I guess. The hostel's relaxed feel seeps into everyone who stays here. It's easy to spend an extra couple days here lying in the hammocks and chatting with other guests before you notice you were supposed to be in Tamarindo yesterday. I stayed at Las Mariposas for eight days in May 2012 and was impressed by the friendly and interesting people who flowed through. The coolest thing is that me and the other guests barbecued fresh fish and meat together twice. Beat that, Holiday Inn!

Your author on the left with new friends

Hostel Las Mariposas has one private room with a private bathroom (no sink, though) for $38 per night, one room with three beds for $15 per bed per night, and an eight room dorm room with beds for $15 per night. I only stayed in the private room, which gets stuffy at night but does come with a fan. Breakfast is $4; I suggest you go for the pancakes. The hostel accepts volunteers, which means you can stay for free if you help check in guests, change sheets, sweep up and such. I definitely recommend contacting Las Mariposas in advance to work out any volunteer arrangement; don't just show up and expect to stay for free in exchange for working.



Hostel Las Mariposas in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

So, how do you get here? First, there are signs all through Samara and the main road into town directing you to the hostel. I found the following to be the easiest way to find Hostel Las Mariposas. Walk down Samara's main street all the way to the beach. Turn right along the beach and walk until you reach the Intercultura campus; it's on the beach about 200 yards from the main street. You'll know you've found the campus because it's big, grassy and is filled with young North Americans and Western Europeans sitting on the grass or lounging in hammocks "studying" Spanish. Keep walking along the beach until you've reached the end of the campus. You'll see a dirt road that runs from the beach inland next to the school. Take that road and follow it another 100 yards. Hostel Las Mariposas will be right in front of you.



Check out the hostel's website at www.hostelmariposas.com and its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/hostelmariposas. Get in contact directly by hostel.lasmariposas@gmail.com

Review of Casa Brian in Playa Samara - 5-12-2012

You should stay here. Really.

In 2009, I was going to stay here for four days and stayed for 19. That's how amazing the atmosphere here is. This time, I stayed for a full three weeks before moving to my other friend's hostel (post is forthcoming) to support her business. Casa Brian's owner, Brian, is a late 50-something Canadian ex-commercial fisherman, brewer, wild mushroom picker, logging camp cook, and God knows what else. He's almost deaf in one ear, so don't freak out if he's yelling at you. He's not angry; he's hard of hearing.

Brian himself is an amazing man with too many funny, tragic, adventuresome, and interesting stories to count. You may ask, “are his stories real?” The answer is yes...he's lived a more full and interesting life than damn near anyone you've met. Even better, he tells his stories with such detail and aplomb you'll think you were right there with him traveling Morocco, on a fishing boat off the Queen Charlotte islands, or going door to door in Southern California.

Never in my life have I stayed someplace where so many cool, open, interesting, relaxed people congregated, only to leave and then be replaced by people equally as cool, open, interesting, and relaxed as them. When it's full, Casa Brian's residents barbecue and party together like every night is Saturday night. When the Casa is slow, it feels easy and relaxed like a Sunday morning.



Dinner with friends at Casa Brian in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

The other thing awesome about this place is that I have always met people here who were somehow directly related to the purpose of my trip. It happened last time and it happened again this time. Three years ago, I was desperate to feel free and I wanted people who could help me get there. Brian himself is one of the most freedom loving people I've met and I don't know how many hours he and I would talk about where I've been and where I wanted to head in my life. On that trip, I also met someone who strongly encouraged me to pursue my ideal life, words that carried me through the subsequent three years, and helped bring me to where I am today. This trip, I met several Brits and Canadians involved in non-traditional medicine and healing, Costa Ricans who taught me about unconditional love through their stories about missionary work in Africa, and seven awesome people from Vancouver (seriously, half of that city must be traveling in Costa Rica right now) with whom I took surfing lessons, barbequed and visited an animal sanctuary. And of course, I spent many afternoons philosophizing with Brian himself on the nature of love and freedom on this trip.

Yeah, you should stay here.



Casa Brian in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

Now, logistical details...Brian has three private rooms that sleep two. These go for $35 per night for one person and $45 per night total for two people. He has two dorm rooms, one sleeps five and the other sleeps six. Dorm beds go for $17 per night. Included in your stay is an all you can eat breakfast of the freshest and sweetest fruit you've ever eaten, toast and jam, and beans and rice. On Sundays, Brian makes banana pancakes. Yum! Four hammocks, one couch and a communal dining table make it easy to make new friends.



Casa Brian in Playa Samara, Costa Rica

The property is about one mile outside of downtown Samara. The easiest way to get here is to walk to the end of Samara's main street, turn left at the beach, walk along the beach for about one mile, walk past the last hotel this far out of town (Las Brisas Del Pacifico) and follow the path that runs past Las Brisas Del Pacifico until it turns into a dirt road. Casa Brian will be on the left side of the dirt road. It has a white metal gate and a small sign that says “Casa Brian.” Contact Brian at casabrian@hotmail.com. You won't be sorry. He's also in the current Lonely Planet guide to Costa Rica.

Just don't stay too long in the private rooms. I'll be back soon and I do enjoy the private room Brian puts me in.

First Impressions: Costa Rica Guesthouse

I'm staying at Costa Rica Guesthouse, which is the nicer part of Costa Rica Backpackers Hostel (www.costaricabackpackers.com, phone: 2221 6191). Costa Rica Backpackers is located at Avenida 6, Calle 21/23 and the Guesthouse is right across the street. I arranged for an airport pickup via the website for $18. When I was dropped off at the Guesthouse, the charge ended up being $20 but my driver Franklin was an excellent conversationalist so I didn't mind paying an extra $2.

I like this hostel. My spacious second floor room includes a king sized bed, and has three windows which look out onto a street. I share a bathroom with the other six rooms on this floor, but there are hardly any other guests on this floor so I don't mind. The bathroom is large and tiled with something like sandstone. The second story halls and rooms are nicely appointed with tastefully painted floors and mahogany-stained doors. The first story is airy and filled with natural light during the day. The Guesthouse has 24 hour reception. Across the street, Costa Rica Backpackers also has 24 hour reception, plus a reservations desk, a communal kitchen, a communal area with couches and a flat screen plasma TV, several computers for web-browsing, a pool, a garden with five hammocks, and a restaurant with decent food and which also plays movies at night. Tonight, they're showing Hancock (missed it) then bringing in three comedians at 8pm. I spent most of this afternoon talking to other travelers, all of whom were friendly and talkative. One is even from LA and her friend went to Carnegie Mellon. Small world.

I'm paying $35 per night for my room. A similar room with a private bathroom would be $42 per night. Costa Rica Backpackers has dorm beds for $12 per night and double rooms for $26 per night. Julie, the woman who checked me in and wife of the owner of Backpackers and the Guesthouse told me their business is down about 20 percent from this time last year. She further informed me that she has heard from hostel owners in other parts of Costa Rica that business is down as much as 50 percent from this time last year in some cities.