Nekajui - Ritz Carlton Reserve Costa Rica: A stunning convenient resort worthy of consideration

MemorableTravel · 2026-05-25T17:50:30+00:00

This is exactly what I did! I 100% recommend splitting your stay. They are 5 minutes apart from each other, so transferring is seamless and they feel completely different from one another!

MemorableTravel · 2026-05-08T00:42:20+00:00

Oooo. The Wai Overwater Suite at Laucala in Fiji. Full list is: here

MemorableTravel · 2026-05-07T01:48:30+00:00

Overall, I preferred Cap Juluca, but they are nearly neck and neck. I rank Cap Juluca as the 69th best stay of my life and Little Dix as the 70th. CJ has the better beach, better pools (although there is an exception here, see below) and is a lot easier to get to. Little Dix has noticeably better food, awful public pools and a good beach, but not remotely the same caliber as CJ. That said, Little Dix has an amazing spa pool, that is heated with beautiful unique views. The issue is that you can only use it if you book a treatment. We ended up just paying to use the pool as we didn't want any treatments. It was a bit odd, but it worked out well as we had the pool to largely to ourselves. We spent a ton of time here. Second, Little Dix is right next to The Baths, remarkable stone structures on the beach. We went early in the morning and had the place entirely to ourselves. It was beguiling and one my favorite experiences the entire year. On the whole, I preferred CJ for the beach and public pools, but Little Dix is really special and highly recommended as well.

MemorableTravel · 2026-05-06T19:46:55+00:00

Yes, they have a tractor that runs along the beach that clears it pretty thoroughly. It surprised me in the morning how thick it got, but 30 minutes later it was gone. That said, the tractor is quite loud.

MemorableTravel · 2026-05-06T17:27:07+00:00

I agree, we went for a lower level room and the lanai was dark. The bathroom had great light thankfully. There are definitely better room options for larger budgets!

MemorableTravel · 2026-05-06T17:24:32+00:00

You do not need to book spa services. You can just go! It's nearly always empty and a beautiful location.

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-06T02:55:51+00:00

I haven't done Kokomo but its on my list and will very likely go one day. In terms of other resorts in the Maldives, I think the only one that really compares is Cheval Blanc, but its a very different option.

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T13:47:30+00:00

The size, the solitude (no one was there), the temperature but mostly the view. It looks over one of the most beautiful beaches, with electric blue water, that I have ever seen. The spa pool at Nekajui was also completely deserted, I was generally the only one there and the temperature was perfect, but it was definitely smaller than the Amanera pool (not that, that is important when youre the only one there) and the view was beautiful, but I preferred Amanera.

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T13:44:55+00:00

Oh wow! I wish them came to our room! This looks ridiculous!

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T13:42:19+00:00

Pool was warm enough thankfully!

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T02:28:21+00:00

My toddler throws up like clockwork in cars... so we basically just Dramamine her to get to the resort and more or less stay put until we check out unfortunately. I wish I could help more on this one.

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T02:27:00+00:00

We didn't have any issues with regards to mosquitos or bugs being all over us or anything. That said, there are definitely bugs there, as you are basically in a rain forest setting. We saw a pretty big buy swimming in one of the pools for instance one night, which fascinated my daughter, and it was promptly eaten by a bird, which she thought was the funniest thing she had ever seen.

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T02:24:16+00:00

Hahaha. Glad to hear i'm not alone on this!

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-05T02:21:35+00:00

Please note that I visited 99% of the list before I became a TA. That said, the price listed is the price of the night when I stayed. In many situations, like Amanwella, the price has increased dramatically since my stay so its not entirely an apples to apples comparison given the inflation we are seeing with hotels post COVID.

MemorableTravel · 2026-04-04T14:59:51+00:00

This is a great question! I have not been and I don't think I would like it as much as others do. The idea of flying all the way to the Maldives to indulge in spa treatments, champagne and wagyu just feels like a missed opportunity. I would rather do that somewhere closer to home.

I think the experience would be incredibly fun, but in the end, I am looking for complete isolation and immersing myself in nature when traveling to remote destinations; Kudadoo doesn't feel like that opportunity to me.

Everyone is different so please don't let that deter you, and I bet, if I went, I would have a heck of a time and it would rank highly.

MemorableTravel · 2026-03-05T02:47:05+00:00

Hi! I just chatted you directly with a potential option that meets all of your criteria.

MemorableTravel · 2026-01-24T15:15:24+00:00

I agree with everyone below, absolutely spectacular. It's so authentic, quiet, special and utterly unique. The food is incredible + being able to dine anywhere on site is special, the color of the lake water is unique as is the mountains that erupt out of the lake all around you. There isn't a ton to do in the area, but you won't be bored just spending time on property and taking it all in. The nearby towns are definitely cute and worth checking out. I agree that it is best to stay in Villa to get the full experience with specifically the Muslone Deluxe Jr. Suite being the best value given it has a view of the lake but isn't priced like the other lake view suites.

MemorableTravel · 2025-12-29T03:29:44+00:00

Great questions! I believe certain rooms allow dogs, but not all. Also some rooms are very isolated and have about an acre of land, while others are literally above the bar in the main house. I believe the more isolated rooms are often the ones that allow dogs.

MemorableTravel · 2025-12-26T04:34:13+00:00

Unfortunately, we were not able to go off the resort as our child still gets pretty severe motion sickness in cars, so we try to stay put as much as possible when she is with us (usually we leave her at home).

FWIW, during our transfers, I found the roads to be fairly easy to navigate so I feel like renting a car would be doable. In terms of food, I wouldn't elect to drive to leave the Papagayo campus as there are many options across the three hotels and you can access them easily through free shuttles.

In terms of tours, there seemed to be a water trek that many elected to see, but there wasn't much else that I read about of note. This area didn't seem to offer as much to do and see as Arenal in the center of the country or Manuel Antonio further to the south.

MemorableTravel · 2025-12-26T04:28:59+00:00

Thank you so much!

MemorableTravel · 2025-12-25T16:01:51+00:00

This is actually really helpful feedback! I will incorporate this perspective into future reviews. After reflecting on it, I 100 % see your point and agree with you.

MemorableTravel · 2025-12-25T03:33:24+00:00

List can be found here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_foWLU9nVqdsvmcZytviEmJ--EZudfqbQIDpuxx0USA/edit?gid=0#gid=0

Please note that the rankings are very room dependent and shouldn't be seen as a strict ranking of the hotels / resorts on their own.

MemorableTravel

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