The Villa Tekla was everything described and beyond. The property was clean, well stocked, and conveniently located to most things, especially the supermarket which was barely a half a block away. We went as a family of 3 generations, and the property accommodated all of our needs very comfortably. We had several daily visitors that came on to the property, such as iguanas, monkeys, birds, among many others. We did not see any sloths, but I've heard they do visit. There was a frog that came to visit us every morning, and a dog that just appears in the kitchen. The dogs in general all over Costa Rica are sweet and mild tempered, and some have collars and some don't. They roam about freely and seem to just pleasantly co-exist with humans. We welcomed all doggy visits, and they welcomed us! The caretaker of the property told us about a nature walk on the property that I did not get the opportunity to explore. But I hear there are many other creatures to see that have taken up residence. If only I had more time! The hosts were attentive, accommodating, and quick to respond. They really know what they're doing and run a fabulous VRBO. They hooked us with a private chef, and we had the most amazing meals right in the living room of our amazing house! Our stay was beyond any of our expectations, and we highly recommend this VRBO without hesitation. We spent only 4 days there, but left with a lifetime of memories! We LOVED it! Thank you, Rebecca and Daniel!!!

If you love a natural experience, this is the house for you. The lack of glass windows has its pros and cons with the pros outweighing the cons. You can hear the howler monkeys in the morning but have to safeguard against the racoons at night. The pool is excellent and the house airy and cool. Monkeys visited on 3 days. Rebecca, the property manager, is the best! It may not be for everyone, but we enjoyed it immensely..

This is a wonderful open-air villa a short walk from the supermercado and multiple restaurants. Rebecca helped arrange tours with reputable guides, and our kids spent hours in the pool every day. A great visit to Costa Rica and Manuel Antonio!

We really enjoyed our time here. The open air home was really lovely. It is hot and humid in this part of Costa Rica so be aware that having no air conditioning can be difficult during the hottest parts of the day. We ended up being gone at those times or spending lots of time in the pool, which was so wonderful. Rebecca, the property manager, was excellent to work with, very responsive. We loved the soda and market across the street. We also loved (most of) the wild life we saw right on the property - capuchin monkeys, geckos, iguanas, and on the last day a sloth. I do think there are some things I didn't realize before booking that I would have liked to have known. There are bugs, of course, which we expected and weren't too worried about. I didn't realize there would be scorpions which is a bit more concerning than mosquitoes and spiders. We saw 3, one was perched on my bare shoulder one night while I cooked dinner. Luckily my husband swiped it off before it could sting me. But we were on high alert after that. The other thing I didn't know about ahead of time was the raccoons. We followed all the rules and kept the kitchen clean and garbage empty. But the raccoons stalked the house at night, again keeping us on high alert because I definitely wasn't interested in having them in the house. To conclude, the house, location, and communication are all wonderful. But we didn't always feel "vacation relaxed" because of some of the critters that had easy access to the house.

Our family of 5 enjoyed our month-long vacation in Manuel Antonio staying at Villa Tekla. It truly felt like our home away from home. The house was equipped with everything we needed to feel at home, cook, and enjoy the area. The location was great- Cerdo Feliz became our favorite spot to grab a bite- and the bus to Quepos and the beaches was a quick walk up the road. Villa Tekla felt like a private retreat while also being easily accessible to all that the Manuel Antonio area has to offer. Rebecca, the house manager, was wonderful to work with- she was able to answer all of our questions and ensure that we felt settled in. I highly recommend Villa Tekla to those looking for an authentic coastal Costa Rican experience. We enjoyed the animals that visited on a daily basis- monkeys, lizards, geckos, birds, butterflies, iguanas, and more! It is an experience that we will never forget. If and when we travel back to the area, we would be sure to stay here again. Thank you for sharing your lovely home with us!

Wow, this was an experience! The house is gorgeous and like nothing you'd ever find in the US. So many beautiful details; this home was clearly built with love. From both the inside and outside, all you see is jungle. If you are squeamish about bugs, though, you would not enjoy it here. Most don't bite and the netting around the beds was effective, but they are an inherent part of the property and like everything else in the jungle, insects run large. Same with geckos/anoles - they're cute and harmless, but you have to be ok with seeing them run around the walls and ceilings at night. And if you're worried about animals outside (iguanas, monkeys, agouti, raccoons), well, you're probably not looking at houses in Manuel Antonio in the first place. 😊 The same iguana hangs out in the same corner of the deck every day...we named him Pool Boy. If the prospect of no air conditioning worries you, it was really hot during our stay (high 80's with 90% humidity) and with all the fans running high we were still pretty warm until well into the evening even though the sun sets at six. It was never too hot to sleep, though, and if it had been ten degrees cooler it would have been perfectly pleasant during the day. The check-in process was super easy and the house manager, Rebecca, was prompt and responsive to all our questions and needs (including replacing the propane tank when it ran out while we were cooking dinner). Finally, it is SO convenient having the Super Joseth store less than 100 feet from the end of the driveway! It had an impressive selection of products - especially considering the location - including produce and a meat counter. Bottom line, stay here if you want your lodging to be part of your adventure story, not a break from it.

Great staff that went above and beyond to facilitate our Costa Rican vacation. Wonderful home exactly as described filled with wildlife encounters and beautiful grounds.

This really is a wonderful house. We really loved our stay and would love to stay here again.

We had a wonderful time at Villa Tekla, we saw many types of wildlife including toucans, monkeys, and iguanas. Nature is loud so you may need ear plugs for the night. We weren’t too warm though, the open air is cool enough to sleep comfortably. We appreciated the cooler and beach and pool toys. Rebecca was lovely and gave us great information. The soda restaurant around the corner was wonderful. The open air bug situation takes some getting used to but we managed just fine.

Villa Tekla is a beautiful property. We all loved the pool (my kids especially), and the open air kitchen and living room. We saw a sloth and monkeys on the property (and some devious racoons :) ). We could have relaxed all day in the hammock, but it was also close to lots of fun activities. The kitchen was well-stocked for cooking and eating in too. All and all, we had a fabulous stay.

We were a family with kids from 8 to adults of 65, we all found the house ti be comfortable, it has everything we needed to cook, we were surprised you do not feel hot inside the house even when the noon sun is burning outside. The pool is warm all day long. Beaches are nearby by car. We loved the place. The dog had so much fun exploring the property. We would definitely go back

Villa Tekla was a wonderful place to stay. Our family of four spent a fantastic week at the house and we would recommend it! It is spacious and has a really lovely pool, although the pool has little shade for most of the day, so we didn’t use it as much as we were hoping to (we just couldn’t be in the sun all day between the beach and the pool). We used the pool In the morning and late afternoon and spent the heat of the day in the living room playing games and reading. There were no beach towels or beach items we could borrow even though a main activity in the area is to spend time at the beach, so we had to buy a cooler and towels and such. It is best to do so Near San Jose before you arrive in Manuel Antonio. There is a corner store and meat counter right across the road which made it so easy to cook meals at the house. The gardener was really wonderful to speak with (in Spanish) and left us with the most amazing grapefruits from the property, which is full of fruit trees of all kinds. The property feels very private even though it is on a busy road - we were extremely comfortable and very much enjoyed our stay!

The villa was a perfect stay for the group of 6 friends. This was our last accommodation and the end of our leg of the trip. Communication was excellent with Daniel (owner), always keeping us posted until our arrival. Rebecca the host and manager greeted us and gave us loads of useful information. There were no classic windows which took me a couple of days to get accustomed to and loved the idea of open air concept. The 6 of us had enough room to be in separate areas of the villa. The lap pool was incredibly ckean warm and wonderful to swim in. The backyard was well manicured but beyond was the jungle making full of noises at night which was amazing. We were fortunate to see capuchin, tita monkeys, a sloth, iguanas, and hear howler monkeys at night and the many colourful birds. Beaches are close by. Thank you again Daniel for sharing your home to us. We had a fantastic time and a great memory to treasure forever.

We were very comfortable at Villa Tekla. Rebecca was very helpful, as was the owner. There were excellent restaurants and activities nearby. All of the bedrooms are now screened, and the upper two bedrooms also have bed nets. The screens on the middle bedroom had gaps, so we used the bed net. We had no problems with mosquitoes or other critters. There were geckos in the house, but that did not bother us. We heard the monkeys at night sometimes, but they did not keep us awake. We never saw a raccoon in our 7 day stay. It was fun to sit by the pool or in the living rooms and watch the monkeys leap through the trees. The iguanas were also a treat. If you are looking for an air conditioned tourist hotel, this is not the place for you. If you want to stay near Manuel Antonio Park, see animals right outside your window, swim in the lap pool, and sleep comfortably near nature, this is a great property.

We absolutely loved our stay at Villa Tekla. What an amazing house in beautiful surroundings. We have travelled around the World quite a bit but this was our first time to stay in an open house and it was a truly unique experience. All sounds — be it birds, monkeys, rain or thunder — are amplified in the house, especially at night, and we have not felt so close to nature in years. The pool area is perfect not just for an early swim or for relaxing in the afternoon, but also for wildlife observations! Overall, we enjoyed our stay very much and we are grateful to Daniel for letting us to stay in his wonderful house and to Rebecca and Maria for their kind assistance upon our arrival.

My family and I spend 3 nights in this house , first of everything is open and beautiful, the lay out of the house is great, but the same thing we love about it being all open changed very fast , the house manager told us they had some issues with break-ins so to not leave anything near the doors or window , well night time came and there is nothing to cover the doors only blindes at the windows in the main house that you can pull down . There are metal bars that do cover all the windows and doors, but no actual solid doors. The master bedroom is outside of the main house and it doesn’t have any blindes covering the windows , and the small curtains they have do not cover the windows neither. So it goes with out saying none of us slept at all the first night. I wish they had actual doors and windows . Also, the pool is very deep so you need to watch your kids very close . That’s the only issue we had everything else was perfect. You can see the ocean from the top bedroom. It felt and sounded like being in deep in rainforest. We had a few visitors, a whole family of monkeys will come by and eat the mangos from the trees every day, lots of iguanas near the house and macaws in the tress , overall it was beautiful . FYI we didn’t have any issues with break-ins unless you count the raccoons the came in the house at night and stole the sugar we forgot to put away lol

I absolutely loved this home. The beds were comfortable and firm. The kitchen was well equipped. Alex the Gardner picked fresh bananas for us which we used to make drinks 😀 there is literally a store about 30 feet outside the door that has most everything you could need. The pool was amazing and there are plenty of linens and a washer dryer which we were welcome to use. There are some bugs but it’s really not as at all just wear bug spray. We also sat at the table outside a lot in the evenings to play cards. I absolutely loved the feeling of the open air living. It was not overly hot at all. The hills are a lot so I would really recommend cabs especially between 9-4 when it’s hottest outside. We would definitely stay here again. WiFi worked great.

We had a wonderful vacation and loved every second staying at Villa Tekla. The location was fantastic- just far enough off the beaten path but close enough to the main road. It was also less than a 5 minute walk from a grocery story and local soda (restaurant) with local food at a local price. The house itself was also fantastic. There were multiple comfortable living and seating areas- living room (with hammock), dining area, kitchen, patio and pool area. The pool, warmed by the sun all day, felt like bath water. We swam every night until 10pm! One thing to note is that this house is open to the outdoors, so there is not air conditioning. Between the pool and the ceiling fans, we were very comfortable. The kitchen is also well stocked with utensils, pots and pans. It was also helpful to have tupperware containers and a cooler for packing lunches for the park/beach. Rebecca was also very helpful and fantastic to work with. She has great suggestions and is very accommodating to meet you at the house for check-in and check-out. Thanks for helping make our stay a special one!

First the positives. Great lower bedroom by the pool. Spacious and screened in with a great view. Wonderful pool and pool area, and loved the visiting iguanas. The bedrooms in the main house were small and the whole house including bedrooms were open and not screened so critters and, bugs etc. can visit. There was mosquito netting around the bed. Also house has a step down that wasn’t well marked and my friend fell and got hurt on the tile floor. The manager said she would put something there to make it more visible in the future. The location was good and there were great views. However it not being screened in was a drawback for us.

Beautiful house, 3 levels, great pool. Private. Nice neighborhood with a corner store and a good restaurant less than a block away. Rebecca gave us some good restaurant recommendations.

I would have given this place a 5 star if it were not for the open space invites biting bugs. Make sure you bring a potent bug spray. Placing sun block 50 will cancel out your bug spray so beware. The nets around the beds do not work. They are more like a placebo effect.The grounds are well maintained. The backyard here is better seeing wildlife than our visits to two different national parks. We saw Toucans birds, Mcall birds, Howler Congo monkeys, white faced monkeys, squirrel monkeys, Iguanas and all sorts of other birds. The sloths we saw at the national parks only. Bring your binoculars or a zoom camera lens for the wildlife. The white face monkeys come up close to the railings at the pool. The Quepos beach is a 45 minute walk from the house. Car is 15 minutes. BM market is best for Grocery shopping. The small neighborhood markets are overpriced.The water at the home is fine to drink.The water pressure is low for the showers but is adequate. Driving through the gate is a challenge when the neighbor parks their car across from it. You will have to turn one way and turn around at the intersection to get to town.You can not leave any food out. There are no cabinets to store your dry food in. We used the oven which worked out fine. The shower floor can be slippery. The DVD player is not user friendly. These items are only a minor inconvenience. The house manager was very accommodating for any request we had. Inexpensive meals $$ are at the soda restaurants which are family owned. Angels soda is close by and 2 out of three meals were great. The bar across the street from Angels is accommodating for the NFL games and is broadcast in English.The tours in the area are cheaper if you drive to them yourself instead of them picking you up. Just ask for a discount if you drive there yourself. 4wd drive is needed for several tours that are located in the Jungles.Tours recommended Brisas Del Nara horse ride,Mid world superman zip line,Rainmaker hike, Los Campernos waterfall and suspension bridge, Manuel Antonio national park without guide. Just follow a group with guide. Check with locals for the beach locations. One local beach you can rent chairs and umbrella and buy beer and food.Really important to know is if you rent a car with a credit card, call the credit card benefits department and see if they fully cover your car insurance for free. This applies with most credit cards. Do not buy car rental insurance. They stick it to you. This place is awesome

Very nice open air house. Close to good restaurants, grocery store, the beach. Private, clean and comfortable. Don't think twice about booking this house.

We LOVED staying here. If you are even considering this place, take the plunge and book it right now. This house is luxurious, relaxing and tucked away in the tropical rainforest. Monkeys greeted us (running through the loft of the house) as we were touring the property with Rebecca (who is lovely). We loved sitting in the house, or on the porch or in the pool and watching the abundant wildlife. We had a sloth in the backyard, gorgeous tropical birds visited all day and in the evening, squirrel monkeys came through, howler monkeys could be heard, toucans visited, and three scarlet macaws visited in the mornings and evenings. The iquanas come out when you are in the pool (and they like to eat hibiscus flowers, so my son had a blast feeding them). The house has everything you could need. We enjoyed breakfasts at the house every morning and ate dinner several evenings there. We enjoyed being able to do laundry while at the house (we were traveling in backpacks, so this made our lives easier). There is a super market in walking distance and taxis are easy to hail on the main road. Make sure you read the binder of information - we used that a lot for making decisions. We just loved it. Highly recommend.

We loved the open air concept of the home. It was fun to have butterflies float into the living room as we laid in the hammock. We really enjoyed the central location as it's close to shops and night life. Rebecca was a pleasure to work with and she had a ton of good advice for us. We loved the house and would stay again.

Had a great experience! A little hard to find but just pay close attention to the directions he has listed. The binder in the kitchen had a lot of valuable information. Make sure to read! There were guys that aren’t official workers at the beach that want money from you for a parking spot and to watch your car. Don’t go to the first guys and keep driving in and find men that are asking for no more than 4000 colones! Over all a great property and very beautiful!

This is a very cool place to get a real feel for the forest and all the wild life. It is wide open to nature concept. We had many different wildlife visitors to the Villa and we enjoyed the pool area and orchard!

The Villa Tekla accommodated 6 adults comfortably. The pool was amazing and was a cool delight each day. We liked how the iguanas would join us as soon as we made our presence by the pool with the radio playing. The openness of the house allowed us to experience Costa Rican living ! Everyday we were pleasantly surprised by the sights and sounds of the local wildlife. The house was well appointed with everything needed to prepare meals and wash clothes. Rebecca was very helpful and a nice lady. Thank you !

Sounds of the jungle and peaceful setting is all one can ask for when on vacation . Hosts were great and the location is ideal!

Home is open to outside making you feel one with nature. Equipped with everything we needed. Pool was clean and perfect temperature for taking a dip. White faced monkeys greeted us by the pool on our first day. Saw many toucans, canaries, parrots and other colorful birds white sitting on the terrace. Enjoyed reading and relaxing on the two hammocks overlooking the pool. Just a walk or drive the wonderful restaurants and ocean view bars. A short drive to Manuel Antonio National Park, but would recommend taking a tour bus there as traffic at the park is very congested. We really enjoyed our stay here and would return again!

Villa Tekla is a fantastic home and Rebecca is an invaluable resource for local tours and insights (guess that comes with living in Costa Rica for 20+ years!) Loved the open-air concept. We enjoyed the nightly visits from the local Toucans in the trees and spotted a coati and a couple of agoutis on the grounds as well. One thing: Follow Rebecca's advice to store all food in the fridge or other areas that have doors (closets/ovens/etc.). We forgot one night and a troop of raccoons paid us a visit in the wee hours of the morning. Great memory, but we remembered to store all of our food the other nights. No more visits -- at least that we knew of! Also, if you get a chance to hire Dagoberto -- a local guide -- for a 1/2 day at Manuel Antonio do it! Great guy with great insights on the wildlife. His sister also makes really good tamales (we bought 10 from her and he delivered them to the house!)

Spectacular stay. Lovely home. No ac so be prepared to sleep with ceiling fans on. Bring bug spray. Wildlife will come into the house. It is AWESOME! Pool is spectacular. Large king beds are comfy, 2 single beds not as comfy for adults but great for kids. WEll maintained and excellently equipped kitchen with grill etc. We saw a troop of squirrel monkeys come through one afternoon. Very entertaining. Birds, peace and quiet. lovely grounds on 4 acres.