Hotel Aranjuez

Hotel Aranjuez has been my hotel of choice for many years now when in San Jose. The area is close to the hospital and a doable walk to the downtown core. The common areas of the hotel are filled with greenery and different places to sit and relax. It's eclectic, each room different; all clean and well-maintained. The breakfast is a truly nurturing experience and one of the reasons I keep going back, although not the only reason. The prices have been kept reasonable. 24-hour desk service comes in very handy at times.

The front desk was not prepared for our early. The way its built you are inside but it had beautiful trees that are open to outside inside the building. Mosquitoes are very very aggressive. Every room, shower and ceiling fan or lack thereof is different. Some doors are made a little different. There is no pool. Apparently in costa rica there are no wash cloths so bring your own or some disposable ones. There are no tvs in some rooms either. The breakfast is ok. Nothing is really close per say. You will need to uber or walk 15-20min. Stop signs in that area are mere suggestions. Friendliness is not really existent. There's not water fountain or snacks for free or available for purchase so bring your own. There is a restaurant inside the hotel. A tad pricey but good.

This is a really quirky hotel and the staff were very helpful. Has a real feel of being in the countryside despite being in the heart of town. The breakfast was good with lots of choice, you have to get a breakfast ticket from reception at 8am to take to the breakfast room. The rooms were adequate but there wasn't a lot of soap provided. The bed was really comfy but if you are a light sleeper make sure you have earplugs as it was very noisy. Our room (31) opened onto the courtyard and we could hear every word from the reception when people were checking in at all times of the day and night. Luckily the bar which was also in the courtyard was closed the whole time we were there otherwise it would have been even noisier.

It has been the 4. time that we came here for the first night of our Costa Rica-Stay! It‘s always the best decision to stay here because the hotel is close enough to San Jose but has also enough distance to have a quiet and calm night. The breakfast is the highlight of our stay: many fresh fruits and a view of squirrels in the garden of the hotel! We recommend this hotel very much because it‘s a place with a lot of nature and authenticity in the city San José! We will come again if we visit Costa Rica in a few years again:)

Staying at Aranjuez Hotel in San José was an extremely disappointing experience, marked by disorganization, poor customer service, and a level of service far below expectations. We had chosen this hotel expecting a comfortable stay, but the reality was completely different. The check-in process was a complete disaster. The staff was rude and inefficient, especially a tall, thin man with glasses who made us wait for 40 minutes, repeatedly saying that our room would be ready “in 10 minutes.” In the end, we only got access to our room at 2:45 PM, well past the expected time. During the wait, no one even offered to store our luggage at the reception, showing a total lack of attention to guests. The biggest disappointment was discovering that our room was not inside the hotel, as indicated at the time of booking, but in a separate building that looked more like a hospital than a hotel. The room, while not old or dirty, was far from welcoming and did not match our expectations at all. The soundproofing was terrible: we couldn’t sleep all night due to the noise coming from the neighboring room. Additionally, since we were in a separate building, it was impossible to communicate with the reception in case of any issues, making our stay even more frustrating. The bathroom was also very disappointing: the sink was broken, the shower had visible mold, and the hot water was barely existent, with extremely low water pressure. To make matters worse, when we asked for directions to the city center, the staff provided very vague and unhelpful information, as if they were annoyed by our questions. The only positive aspect of our stay was the breakfast, which was served in the hotel’s garden—a pleasant and well-maintained setting. Unfortunately, this was not enough to make up for all the other issues we encountered. In summary, a completely unsatisfactory stay, far from what we expected. We had booked a hotel room but ended up in an external apartment with numerous inconveniences. Poor service and zero attention to guests. We do not recommend this hotel at all!

Very quirky hotel full of character. Positives...... Nice garden. Good breakfast. Great location. Bars and restaurants nearby in barrio, 15 mibs walk away max. Quirky decor in hotel and rooms. Negatives...... small uncomfortable bed. Shower was appalling. Noisy room next to reception.

It was OK for one night before starting the roundtrip. It's very simple and old and everything smells like mould. They don't have twin beds for friends travelling together, only double beds.

Great experience overall, and my go-to hostel in San Jose. The breakfast is worth the price in itself — great desayuno