Ylang Ylang Beach Resort

We chose Ylang Ylang for our (one year late) honeymoon and it was everything we could ever ask for. We are both vegan, so we started our search for vegan friendly resorts and countries, and Ylang Ylang fit the bill perfectly! The biggest kudos I have to give is to the staff, especially the restaurant staff. My husband and I are both kind of awkward, but they took great care of us while also interacting with us as people. We took a special liking to Franschesco and were so happy when he was our server for our private dinner the last night! But there wasn’t a single staff member that was nothing short of warm and friendly to us. We both legitimately cried at our last dinner and while packing up to check out because of how grateful we were to everyone and how peaceful our stay was. The food was also so delicious and fresh; we love to eat and were always left satisfied! We stayed in a Cabina for the first half of the trip and the Tree Top Canopy for the second half! Both rooms were so clean (we loved all the towel shapes!) and we had no issues with bugs. Yes, they are around, but you’re also partially in the jungle, and quite honestly I got much less bug bites in a week than I normally get in a single night outside in NY! It was also really nice not having a TV in the rooms. It made us spend more time out and about on the property and also made the room our relaxing place to nap in the AC, lol. The entire property is absolutely beautiful and you can tell that they take pride in their grounds as well as in their conscious effort to be environmentally friendly. Native animals roam the property not because they’re trained to or because they know they’ll get human food (although I’m sure it happens by accident sometimes), but because they feel safe in their habitat! We are huge animal lovers so we never got tired of seeing them, nor the two cute kitties that recently chose Ylang Ylang as their home :) We booked the zipline tour, Curú wildlife tour, and Cabuya sunset tour through Ylang Ylang - the front desk was always so helpful in giving information about each and we had no issues. We also booked transportation to and from Cobano airport through them. All of the tours and experiences were amazing as well and we need to come back to do the other ones as well as experience the spa and yoga :) the prices really don’t differ too much from booking directly through the partner providers, so it was nice to just be able to do it all in one place. The town is also super safe and we got to experience some local events since it was Mother’s Day during our trip! This was our first time in Costa Rica (also our first actual relaxing vacation together after almost 8 years) and we are already trying to plan when we can come back. We miss everyone already!!!

This place is a unique experience that may not be for everyone. The jungle atmosphere and beach views are incredible. There were monkeys, birds and reptiles everywhere. The staff did a great job and very accommodating. Meals were very good and the views at dinner were great. We didn't see anyone in the water off the beach I think due to the large waves hitting the rocks. The sand is pretty soft and kind of grainy but not bad. The only downside would be for anyone with mobility issues. It can be a decent walk to your accomodations up and down some small hills. Also the walk to town is not for everyone, but a shout-out to Eric for his shuttle services. This place would be great for couples wanting to disconnect from thing with limited distractions. Overall we had a great time.

The staff is the hardest working most attentive helpful people we’ve encountered traveling to date! The ambience of just walking to your room from the restaurant is what people pay for during jungle excursions! We saw monkeys so often! Fresh tuna and banana pancakes! They allowed us to practice our Spanish and we fell asleep to the crashing waves! This is the literal PURA VIDA