Hilton Makes a Splash with Three New Hotels in Costa Rica

Hilton Hotels Corp. has entered the Costa Rica market in a big way, with three Hilton- and Doubletree-branded properties debuting this year and more in the works.

Hilton signed a multiyear agreement with the Caribbean Property Group to manage two properties: the Hilton Papagayo Resort, formerly the Premier Fiesta Resort and Spa, and the Doubletree Resort by Hilton Puntarenas, formerly the Fiesta Resort.

In addition, Hilton branded a former Melia property in San Jose as the Doubletree Cariari by Hilton San Jose. The Doubletree Cariari by Hilton San Jose, a few minutes by car from the city airport, opened in 1973, but you’d never know it thanks to extensive renovations as part of its rebranding in January as a Doubletree.

The 222-room hotel features spacious accommodations, some with vaulted ceilings and beautiful woodwork. As part of the conversion to the Doubletree brand, guest rooms have new bed linens, flat-screen TVs and wireless Internet. The hotel is wrapping up renovations to the swimming pool and meetings space.

The 315-room Doubletree Resort by Hilton Puntarenas, less than two hours west of San Jose by car, received a refreshing renovation for its January debut. All guest rooms now feature Doubletree’s signature Sweet Dreams beds.

The property is well laid-out for various types of vacationers, with one building facing an adults-only pool and another building, which has family-friendly suites, adjacent to the children’s pool.

Of the many improvements made when the Hilton Papagayo Resort converted to its new brand, the Spa Vida might be the most enjoyable. The newly expanded spa is set next to the resort’s quiet, adults-only swimming pool. Its 13 private treatment rooms are a mix of open-air and enclosed spaces.

The resort, set scenically along a lush hillside and beach area, is located in Guanacaste, the northwestern state that is Costa Rica’s fastest-growing vacation spot. The Hilton’s 202 rooms are set in groups of small buildings. There are also 71 bungalows with private terrace or balcony and great views of the ocean.

All guest rooms feature the Hilton Serenity bed with 250 thread-count linens plus high-speed Internet access, two telephones, hair dryer, in-room safe, coffeemaker, minibar and flat-screen TVs with cable.

Hilton’s new additions in Costa Rica won’t be the last for the company. Still to open is the 160-room Hilton Garden Inn Liberia Airport, which will be the most convenient hotel to the international airport in Guanacaste when it opens in November. The property will be the first Hilton Garden Inn franchise in Central America.