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Casa Serena, Playa Grande. A recently refurbished private beachfront property!

Casa Serena, Playa Grande. A recently refurbished private beachfront property!

Photo gallery for Casa Serena, Playa Grande. A recently refurbished private beachfront property!

Property grounds
5 bedrooms, in-room safe, desk, iron/ironing board
Fridge, microwave, oven, stovetop
Shower, hair dryer, towels, soap
Interior

Overview of Casa Serena, Playa Grande. A recently refurbished private beachfront property!

Reviews
8.6

Excellent

Popular amenities

  • PoolPoolPool
  • Pet-friendlyPet-friendlyPet-friendly
  • Breakfast availableBreakfast availableBreakfast available
  • KitchenKitchenKitchen
  • Barbecue grillBarbecue grillBarbecue grill
  • Free WiFiFree WiFiFree WiFi

Explore the area

Map
Playa Grande, Guanacaste
  • Popular LocationGrande Beach13 min walk
  • Popular LocationTamarindo Beach39 min drive
  • Popular LocationPlaya Langosta48 min drive
  • AirportLiberia (LIR-Daniel Oduber Intl.)75 min drive

Space details

5 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, sleeps 18
5000 sq ft
Bedroom 1
    2 queen beds
Bedroom 2
    2 queen beds
Bedroom 3
    1 king bed
Bedroom 4
    2 queen beds
Bedroom 5
    2 queen beds
Bathroom 1
    Shower
Bathroom 2
    Shower
Bathroom 3
    Shower

About this property

Entire place

You'll have the entire home to yourself and will only share it with other guests in your party.

Casa Serena, Playa Grande. A recently refurbished private beachfront property!

Villa Casa Serena is a sanctuary to enjoy the beauty Playa Grande has to offer. Along with miles of soft sandy beaches, and wildlife, it makes this beach house rental a tropical paradise. It is a perfect choice for guests looking for privacy during their vacation in Costa Rica. Once you enter Casa Serena, you drive along a well-lit driveway until the Villa comes into view. Upon entry into the enclosed walled entry, you walk along a path full of tropical trees and plants into a spacious living/dining area.

Outdoor dining with ceiling fans provides comfortable breezes. An informal dining area, hammocks, and lawn chairs allow you to pick the perfect spot while watching the sunset or dining al fresca.

The main living area encompasses an outdoor living space with furniture that your body will melt into; as beautiful plants line the pathways. Hungry? Open up a world of cooking opportunities, as it is always prime outdoor grilling season. Cooking outside is part of the fabric of the culture in Costa Rica.

Villa Casa Serena has 5 uniquely designed bedrooms accommodating up to18 guests, each with a private bathroom and full view of the swimming pool and lounge area. The master bedroom has one king size bed (sleeps 2), the remaining 4 bedrooms each have two queen beds (sleeps 4). Each bedroom has closets, ceiling fans, air conditioning, enclosed ceilings, and tiled floors.

As you enter the self-contained kitchen you will notice that it boasts white flat panel cabinets with black countertops. Top-of-the-line appliances, sensor lights under each cabinet, and the built in stove top have been carefully thought out. Inspiration for an industrial kitchen has been designed to fit this custom made configuration.

Evenings in Playa Grande are quiet so the outdoor areas make it a great spot for eating, lounging, and entertaining. The lighting features throughout the property give the house a warm ambience at night.

Casa Serena has had extensive upgrades to the property and it was remodeled and updated with an impeccable, and unique design, preserving the rustic feel of a Costa Rican home. With the beauty Playa Grande has to offer, we believe an escape to Villa Casa Serena will be one of the most memorable vacations of your life. We hope you learn to escape the day-to-day by creating unforgettable memories that will last a lifetime.

Events: If you would like to hold a celebration or wedding at Casa Serena, please contact me directly as the pricing does vary based on head count and what is being requested.

We sincerely hope you; your friends and family can get away to experience the beauty of Costa Rica in this beautiful beachfront property, your vacation home is waiting!

Pura Vida!

Property manager

Máximo Alvarez-Garmón

Languages

English, Spanish

Property amenities

Beach

  • On the beach
  • Beach towels

Pool/Spa

  • Massage
  • Private pool
  • Spa tub

Internet

  • Available in the villa: Free WiFi

Parking and transport

  • On-site parking
  • Limo/town car service
  • Car required

Kitchen

  • Fridge
  • Stovetop
  • Microwave
  • Oven
  • Dishwasher
  • Electric kettle
  • Coffee/tea maker
  • Toaster
  • Cookware/dishes/utensils

Dining

  • Breakfast available for a fee
  • Chef service
  • Dining table

Bedrooms

  • 5 bedrooms
  • Bed sheets provided

Bathroom

  • 5 bathrooms
  • Hair dryer
  • Shower only
  • Soap
  • Toilet paper
  • Towels provided

Living spaces

  • Living room

Entertainment

  • Pool or billiards table
  • Ping pong table
  • Games
  • Books

Outdoor areas

  • Balcony
  • Barbecue
  • Garden
  • Outdoor furniture

Laundry

  • Near a laundromat

Work spaces

  • Desk

Comfort

  • Air conditioning
  • Ceiling fan

Pets

  • Pet friendly

Suitability/Accessibility

  • If you have requests for specific accessibility needs, please contact the property using the information on the reservation confirmation received after booking.
  • In-room accessibility
  • Designated smoking areas

Services and conveniences

  • Concierge services
  • Safe
  • Chef
  • Iron/ironing board

Location highlights

  • Near the ocean
  • Near the sea
  • In the city centre
  • Near a health or beauty spa
  • Near a hospital

Things to do

  • Golf privileges
  • Fitness facilities nearby
  • Sailing nearby
  • Golf nearby
  • Hiking nearby
  • Parasailing nearby
  • Birdwatching nearby
  • Mountain biking nearby
  • Ecotours nearby
  • Hiking/biking trails nearby
  • Wildlife and game walks nearby

Safety features

  • Carbon monoxide detector not reported (host has not indicated whether there is a carbon monoxide detector on the property; consider bringing a portable detector)
  • Smoke detector not reported (host has not indicated whether there is a smoke detector on the property)
  • Fire extinguisher

General

  • Unit size: 5000 sq ft (465 sq m)

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Policies

Check-in

Check-in time starts at 3:30 PM

Check-out

Check-out before 11:00 AM

Special check-in instructions

You will receive an email from the host with check-in and check-out instructions

Pets

Pets are allowed
Restrictions apply; for more information contact the property on the number on the booking confirmation

Children and extra beds

Children are welcome
Note from host: We love kids!!

Important information

You need to know

This property is managed by a professional host. The provision of housing is linked to their trade, business or profession.
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
Parties and events are allowed on site
Host has not indicated whether there is a carbon monoxide detector on the property; consider bringing a portable detector with you on the trip
Host has not indicated whether there is a smoke detector on the property
Safety features at this property include a fire extinguisher
This property is managed through our partner, Vrbo. You will receive an email from Vrbo with a link to a Vrbo account, where you can change or cancel your reservation

We should mention

A car is required for transport to and from this property

Property is also known as

Villa Casa Serena Costa Rica Private Beachfront Property
Casa Serena Playa Grande Costa Rica Private Beachfront Property
Villa Casa Serena Costa Rica Private Beachfront Property
Casa Serena Playa Grande Costa Rica Private Beachfront Property
Casa Serena Costa Rica Private Beachfront Property

About the area

Playa Grande

Located on the beach, this villa is in Palm Beach Estates, a neighbourhood in Cabo Velas. While the natural beauty of Conchal Beach and Tamarindo Beach can be enjoyed by anyone, those looking for an activity can explore Hacienda Pinilla Golf Course. Travelling with kids? Consider Las Baulas National Marine Park and Monkey Park. Make sure you get close to the area's animals with activities such as game walks and birdwatching.
Visit our Playa Grande travel guideOpens in a new window
View more Villas in Playa GrandeOpens in a new window

What's nearby

  • Grande Beach - 13 min walk
  • Las Baulas National Marine Park - 7 min drive
  • Tamarindo Beach - 39 min drive
  • Hacienda Pinilla Golf Course - 44 min drive
  • Playa Langosta - 48 min drive

Getting around

  • Tamarindo (TNO) - 30 min drive

Restaurants

  • Nari - 32 min drive
  • Patagonia Argentinian Grill & Restaurant - 33 min drive
  • Pico Bistro - 32 min drive
  • Medusa Bar - 33 min drive
  • Bamboo Sushi Club - 33 min drive

Reviews

8.6

Excellent

Rating 10 - Excellent. 15 out of 27 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 7 out of 27 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 3 out of 27 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 2 out of 27 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 0 out of 27 reviews" "

8.0/10

Cleanliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Paula R.

Liked: Cleanliness
Beach Beauty
This is our second visit for our group of 5 couples!! We were totally thrilled once again! The property is in the BEST location! The beach is to die for! The beds are super comfy, and we love the outdoor living!! I will say that the local restaurants have doubled in price since our last visit in 2022....and chatting with others at the airport who visited different areas...this seems to be the general consensus in Costa Rica . Not a deal breaker, but would perhaps consider cooking at the property more frequently! The staff, Simon and Saray are incredibly sweet and accommodating! Using a translation app worked very well! We had Saray prepare a meal for us which was absolutely delicious! Maximo, the host was super quick in his responses and very helpful when we needed anything! We love this place and enjoy returning every couple of years for sure!!
Stayed 8 nights in Mar 2024

4/10 Poor

Ronaldo

Stayed 6 nights in Dec 2023

8/10 Good

Bruno D.

One of the best beach vacations! If you want quiet, here it is!
In summary, the house was not perfect, but the quiet sandy beach, staff service and overall quietness of the area made our trip one of the best beach vacations. We were 10 people, kids/adults. Let's start with the bad: 1. What the pictures don`t show is the wear and tear. 2. The house is large and has a lot of outdoor living spaces out into the elements! It’s worn out, over-used, a lot metal is rusted. 3. Kitchen needs some TLC (broken cabinet doors, leaking DW and fridge) 4. Bathrooms: 4 out of the 5 BRs had issues (broken doors, blocked drain). 5. Land is large, lot of unkempt areas and pile of garbage lying around, not inside the house, but around the grounds. Not a showstopper. 6. Rental might be a bit expensive for what you get. 7. And of course, ants and crawling bugs, but it is a tropical forest after all! Now the good: 1. The owner, Maximo, seems very nice, is very responsive and answered all our questions. 2. Access to the beach was just amazing. 100 feet off the main gate. Easy flat access, very private and nobody around when we were on the beach. 3. Beach: Beautiful 5-km white sand beach, with perfect waves for swimming or surfing with at very few people around (40-50 people on the whole 5-km long beach!) 4. The house keepers, Simon and Saray, were absolutely amazing. They live on the grounds in a separate house and are around day and night. They responded to our requests in a timely fashion, fixing what was broken, providing additional towels when needed, even setting up a beach tent for us on the beach, helping to carry some of the chairs to the beach, and even helping pack up the car when we left. They made a huge difference. There were always notifying us if they had to leave for different reasons. You forget about the bad with them! 5. We got one meal prepared by Saray, very tasty! It was enough for 2 suppers and 2 lunches, and some. 6. They kept the common grounds and pool clean in the morning but didn’t go into the bedrooms unless requested by us. 7. There are a few small stores and restaurants less than a few hundred meters away, very affordable. 8. From the house, you can reach Tamarindo in about 15 minutes by foot and a dinghy across the crocodile infested Tamarindo Estuary (for $1-2/person). Dinghies run from about 8AM to 5PM…or drive to Tamarindo, in 30-40 minutes! No bridge across the estuary. 9. Tamarindo is a beautiful town full of grocery stores, restaurants, shops, hotels, and nightlife.
Stayed 7 nights in Mar 2023

8/10 Good

Natalee J.

Liked: Cleanliness
Like your own private resort
We a large group of 14 stay at the property and we truly enjoyed the stay! The on-site property managers (Simon & his wife) were absolutely fabulous. They did not speak English, so we used our broken Spanish & Google translate to communicate, but they were so helpful and friendly. They cleaned the outside areas every morning, and were helpful with anything we needed. When we checked in, we realized that laundry was not onsite as listed & this was the second half of our 2 week vacation - we had all planned on using the on-site laundry. Simons wife (I wish I remembered her name) offered to do our laundry since we couldn’t, so we gave her a load and she ended up doing it by hand for us! Had I read the reviews and listing a bit more intently I may have realized this - but there is no indoor space to hang out. The only way to get away from bugs is to be in your bedroom. It worked out fine with lots of bug spray & citronella but we all left with a lot of big bites. That comes with Costa Rica, however, a netted area or a place to escape for a little while as a group would have been nice. That being said, we loved all of the games and activities available on site. The beach was beautiful and that private entrance was awesome for us to have, we loved being able to catch sunset nightly. We also liked that we were away from the busyness of Tamarindo. The town is about a 40 minute drive, or about a half mile down the beach you can jump on a water taxi to take you across the river for $2. Overall it was a great stay & we were sad to leave
Stayed 5 nights in Dec 2022

6/10 Okay

Kathryn E.

Disliked: Cleanliness
"Luxury" Beachfront Property quite rundown. Pictures not fully accurate
This is a unique beachfront property, with wonderful potential, but is quite rundown. I messaged the host first in hopes of getting some helpful feedback, but it was not, so I will just give you fair warning. Background: I am an ex PeaceCorps nurse who worked and lived in Costa Rica. My husband is Costa Rican. We are part owners of a lovely hotel across the street and friends with all the other business owners there. We have rented at least a dozen homes at Playa Grande over the years for our friends and family and have only had fantastic experiences. This year we made a late decision to come before Christmas and this was the only property of this size available. Briefly, the place needs TLC. Moldy, and rotting decks and Supporting posts to main room. Broken and decayed light fixtures, ceiling fans dont work, leaking refrigerator, plugged and overflowing dishwasher, no items at all in kitchen( not even soap, trash bags, salt or pepper. Broken cupboard doors. No beach equipment whatsoever, ( Beach chairs, umbrella, sand toys) No information info upon arrival ( WiFi code, info on house, nearby activities, tours, stores). A completely rusted and corroded BBQ which was not safe to use. Finally, there is no Irene, wonderful cook on the premises. Instead a new couple from Nicaragua who had no idea about anything in the house, cooking, cleaning, laundry. I told them that it was not their fault that they had no training and that I would clearly not blame them, but the owner. The positives: The rooms are small, but adequate. Each is independent and opens to the outside only (no connecting) The pool is small but heated . There is an upstairs cabana built with views and sounds of the beach and monkeys. Beachfront. We had a beautiful time at the beach and in the pool with our family and friends. We ate out most nights and truly enjoyed the the area, as always. I have photos of all these issues if anyone wants to see them
Stayed 4 nights in Dec 2022

10/10 Excellent

Sierra S.

Liked: Cleanliness
Unique beach front home great for family
We enjoyed our stay at this wonderful property that had plenty of room for one large family. We especially enjoyed cooking at the outdoor kitchen while the kids played ping pong and swam in the pool. Having the beach just outside the door was an absolute treasure and we loved waking up to the howler monkeys in the trees each morning. Playa grande is a wonderful quiet area with all the amenities to make your stay comfortable. Would definitely recommend to others.
Stayed 4 nights in Jun 2022

8/10 Good

Holly K.

Liked: Cleanliness
Wonderful piece of paradise!
We had a great stay at Casa Serena! There were 16 of us (8 adults and 8 kids - 4 families total) and we fit comfortably within each of the spaces that property has. The rooms were cool and comfortable and the shared spaces were great to have to wait out a rain storm or take a break from the beach. The kids played game after game of pool and pink pong. The kitchen was ample and the grill area was nice to be able to throw on some hotdogs and make some mixed drinks! The pool and grounds were kept clean and tidy by Sergio. He also responded immediately when we had a toilet back up and continued to monitor it for us through out the week. It definitely helps if you speak a little Spanish (hey, we're in their country after all! ) The beach is steps away and it wins the prize for best part of the trip! The beach is yours aside from a few surfers! The shells and sunsets, oh my! There are restaurants within walking distance and we visited them quite frequently. We highly suggest Cafe Mar Azul - they accommodated 16 people quite often and were polite and gracious the entire time. Spent a few evenings on the roof top patio, enjoying the breeze (we went in the rainy season and the temps were lovely in the evening! ) All in all, our stay was wonderful and we'll definitely be coming back !
Stayed 7 nights in Jun 2022

10/10 Excellent

Paula R.

Liked: Cleanliness
Finally!!
We absolutely loved everything about this property! Its location, its overall vibe....we could not have been happier with our holiday!!!
Stayed 7 nights in Apr 2022

6/10 Okay

Keri B.

Awesome Location on the Beach in Playa Grande
Long story short - we 100% enjoyed our stay at Casa Serena. We were steps away from the most beautiful and serene beach, could walk to the boats to cross the river into Tamarindo but were still far enough away to have the area to ourselves. There are a few things that could be improved with the majority of our issues being solved with an updated website and a 3-ring binder with all the information we needed. The website lists that there is a washer and dryer on site for doing laundry. We only packed a few clothes thinking we would be able to do some laundry on property. I thought to ask about some of the other features on the website that weren't there, but did not ask about this and so was a little surprised to find it wasn't there. No one was at the house to greet us and we were a little unsure of procedures. Isolda (the housekeeper) and Sergio (the outside maintenance guy) were so extremely nice but speak no English and it was difficult to communicate at times. We had no phone numbers for them and didn't know where they were when they weren't on the property so it surprised us a little when we had an issue we were told to just take it up with Isolda and Sergio. Having a binder with the wifi password, phone numbers of Sergio and Isolda (or some way of contacting them), and some local information would have been extremely helpful. For the first couple of days, random people would walk onto the property peddling services and goods to us which made us uncomfortable. All of this could have been alleviated if they could leave their info in a binder for us to contact if we wanted. Our biggest complaint was the pool. It was pea green and swampy the entire time. We were told it couldn't be treated because of the water line tiles so we just had to deal with dirty water. A lot of the beach chairs and boogie boards that were there were broken and when we'd take them down to the beach, we'd have to walk them back up immediately because they didn't work. There are two fridges on property but only one fully works. The one at the bar, only the freezer works. This is a great place for a large group of people that are outdoorsy people and want to enjoy Costa Rican beaches. Aside from the pool, everything was minor and we had an overall enjoyable stay!
Stayed 7 nights in Jan 2020

10/10 Excellent

Britton W.

Liked: Cleanliness
Wonderful Property
This was the perfect property for a secluded stay on the beach. The house staff was very helpful, polite and friendly too. I highly recommend this property for anyone who is looking to stay close to tamarindo but does not want all the noise of the city.
Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2020

General property information

Check-In Time
3:30 PM
Check-Out Time
11:00 AM
Location
Playa Grande
Structure Type
Villa