Accommodations - Our Villas - Dining - Rates & Reservations - Location - Services - Contact - News

email reservations: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  

News and Awards

Among other accolades, the hotel’s recent awards include:

Read unbiased opinions about hotels and vacations at TripAdvisor.

CONTACT:

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tel: 011(506) 8849-8569 (Costa Rica)
Fax – Costa Rica: 011(506) 2642-0891
Fax – New York: (646) 417-5171
Fax – Los Angeles: (213) 402-3893

Skype: traveltocr

“INCREDIBLE PLACE”

The villas and grounds are stellar and then Chef Rob does his magic in the outdoor kitchen/dining area. WOW! This spectacular facility is difficult to describe in words. Never have I stayed at a place that was this superb. The ambiance is so sublime that it worked its way into our souls and transformed the entire vacation. I will return!

“OMG-Heaven on earth...didn't want to leave!!”

We absolutely loved this place!! Best hotel we stayed in overall in Costa Rica! Perfect for honeymooners and romantic getaways. Staff was fantastic. Rob the chef was excellent. Suites were amazing. Plenty of privacy and seclusion. Don't let the road to the place fool you...it is worth the rough ride. You will not be disappointed.

“Absolutely Amazing!”

I can't believe it has been almost a year since our trip to Casa Chameleon and that I have yet to write a review. Currently, we are searching for where we will go on our honeymoon and I keep looking for places that are just like Casa Chameleon. If only we did not want to travel to a new place we would be back in heart beat...and we still may! Finding something to beat Casa Chameleon is going to be truly difficult. We were on a brief tour of Costa Rica and selected to stay at Casa Chameleon during our birthdays - which Yua and Rob made it one of my best birthdays to date.

Casa Chameleon is amazing in every way...it is off the beaten path yet close to a fun beach town, rugged yet completely refined, private, and absolutely beautiful. Yua, Rob and the staff also provide the BEST Customer Service I have received anywhere I have ever traveled...although I have a lot of traveling yet to do I have been to 15 plus countries and have stayed in a range of properties.

For individuals that are use to run of the mill accomodations and large resorts this is absolutely not the place for you. If you enjoy adventure, boutique accomodations, privacy, amazing food, incredible views, amazing Customer Service and impecable grounds I would highly recommend a visit.

My ONLY gripe is that they did not accept credit cards when we visited...I know that Yua mentioned that they were working to change that and that may not even be a problem now.

“Yes it is as good as the other reviews”

As always, was slightly skeptical of how good this place could be, we have been disappointed before with trip advisor reviews, however the reviews are true casa chameleon was a fantastic destination for our honeymoon.

The hotel is small only 3 villas, there is an air of exclusivity and privacy to the whole, place.

My wife and I stayed in The villa vista for the first two nights and then villa Palma 5 nights, villa palma is slightly nicer with a bigger shower and the plunge pool gets sun all day. We also had a quick look at the ultra villa, it is as slick as the website sets out. While we were there there was also a 4th villa being finished off, looks really cool.

The rooms are well finished, the beds were comfy, the only suggestion we would have is perhaps the doors could be more flush with the ground as there are slight gaps and the odd insect does get in, but there harmless!.

The staff clean the rooms extremely well every day, the whole hotel is very clean and very well kept.

The food was excellent, the chef rob cooked up great breakfasts and dinners, rob is also hilarious company. Yua the manager, is SUPER efficient and nothing is a problem, a pleasure to deal with.

If staying there you will need a 4x4 or ATv to get around, the hotel is a 5minute drive to town, the surrounding areas are beautiful and worth exploring during the day. There are also 3good restaurants in town.

If you want a unique experience in one of the coolest boutique hotels you should stay here, one of the best we have been to.

“Best vacation of our entire lives.. No clue how we're going to beat it”

While the accomadations are amazing, Yua and Rob are what make this place unforgettable. We thank you both so much for making our vacation the best we've ever experienced.. We're now worried that we may never experience anything like Casa Chameleon / Mal Pais anywhere else.

To keep it short and sweet:

- The grounds/plants are immaculately kept
- The rooms are well kept / well designed / well decorated
- Yua is an amazing host and took care of all of our needs, extremely friendly and knowledgable
- Rob is an excellent chef (we live in New York City and consider ourselves foodies, and Rob far exceeded our expectations!)
- The nearby 'towns' have so much personality

Do NOT come here if you are expecting:
- "all inclusive" feel
- lots of people around you
- developed towns
- a Four Seasons hotel

Do come here if you are seeking:
- relaxing/sleeping
- being pampered by Yua and Rob
- eating fantastic food
- adventure (ATV, ziplining, surfing, horseback riding)
- exploring unpopulated areas nearby
- privacy on a beach you get to via ATV
- a unique experience

My favorite part of the trip was taking our ATV to Playa Carmen for some surf lessons, picking up some beers and snacks, finding a deserted beach nearby, and hopping off our ATV to watch the sunset together on the beach while drinking some beers... priceless.

To sum up, thank you Casa Chameleon for far exceeding our already high expectations! We will definitely be back someday.

“The staff is very attentive”

We liked our room and enjoyed having our own private pool. The view was very nice. The staff Yua, Rob and Oscar were very attentive. Thank you guys for all.

“The perfect place for a relaxing, quiet couples vacation”

My husband and I went here for our honeymoon after reading the reviews on this site. We were the only guests there for the whole week. It was the perfect place for our honeymoon. We aren't the partying, "all-inclusive", "drink all you can because it's 'free'" type of couple, so we opted for this boutique hotel in place of the Sandals all-inclusive package that some people recommended for a honeymoon, and we couldn't have been happier. We ate the personalized meal with Rob only once, and I wish we could have afforded to have him cook for us for every meal that we were there. It was excellent and he was really receptive to our personal tastes and tailored a dinner specifically for us. Yua, the manager, was so awesome. He gave us great recommendations for things to do and places to eat in the town. One day he took us in his car for a tour around the area. I also dropped my camera off of our balcony and into the jungle one evening and he searched in the pouring rain and pitch black for about 30 minutes until he found it. I couldn't believe that he would do that. His favorite phrase is "no worries," He scheduled zip-lining and horseback riding for us, and called the hotel we were staying at in San Jose on the way back to the States for us to make sure someone would pick us up at the airport. The only drawback to Casa Chameleon is the location, if you are wanting to do a lot as opposed to just staying in your villa the whole time. You really have to rent a car if you are planning on excursions that are outside of Mal Pais. Many people rent ATVs, but that would have been impractical for us because of the horseback riding and zip-lining that we did. Also, if it rains you are kind of out of luck on an ATV. The town itself is quite a trek from the hotel, as well as the beach areas. Also, because the villas are open-concept, there will be some small bugs in your room at night, even if you keep the doors shut.

Casa Chameleon is perfect if you are looking for a quiet, relaxing honeymoon. It's great if you want the option of either participating in activities or staying in.

“Superb service and food, luxurious rooms”

Both Yua and Rob are very passionate about their work. In my experience, when someone is passionate about what they do, they do it better than anyone else. This is exactly what my wife and I experienced at Casa Chameleon- better service and food than we could have imagined.

My wife and I were on our honeymoon, and we stayed at Casa Chameleon for 7 nights- 4 in the Villa Vista, and 3 in the Ultra Villa. Both villas are amazing. The new plunge pool attached to the porch of Villa Vista (FYI a new plunge pool was also just put on Villa Palma) was the perfect size and temperature to relax and cool off in the hot Costa Rican sun. The full pool set-up of the Ultra Vista is extraordinary- I can’t imagine anything more luxurious.

Yua’s service was simply outstanding. I don’t think “no” is in his vocabulary! He was always available to answer questions about the area and Costa Rica and help us with anything else we needed. He helped set-up all of our activities for the week… he made all of the necessary phone calls/reservations for us. For example, he set-up ATVs and a canopy tour in Montezuma, surf lessons, helped us find a yoga class, and set-up a couples massage- in our room! We were very happy with all of his recommendations. In addition to his excellent service Yua is very friendly- my wife and I talked for many hours with him over the course of our stay. We learned a lot about Yua and Costa Rica from our dinnertime conversations.

Rob is a superb chef. The hardest part of our stay at Casa Chameleon was deciding what to have for dinner the next night! We had breakfast from Rob every morning, and dinner 5 out of the 7 nights- I wish we could have afforded dinner every night! We had a wide range of food styles, from American to Greek to Indian… all at our request, and all perfectly executed. The only limitation is your imagination and the ingredients available in the surrounding area. Rob even takes the time to present the food very well- it was always expertly arranged and garnished with a tropical flower or a sprig of herbs! Rob is very friendly as well, and we were very lucky to have him cook for us.

THE only thing I would change is to have credit cards accepted to pay for the meals/drinks. I did not ask why they are not accepted, but I think whatever the credit card surcharge, it is worth it to avoid the hassle of the Costa Rican banks!

At Casa Chameleon, with Yua and Rob at your service, you’re guaranteed to have a wonderful experience in Mal Pais.

“Exceptional Service, Wonderful Food, Beautiful Villas”

Based on Trip Advisor ratings, I selected Casa Chameleon as the destination at which I would propose to my girlfriend. We stayed in Villa Palma for 5 nights and the Ultra Villa for 5 nights. Both were perfect and offered something unique to the experience.

The grounds of Casa Chameleon are based on a hill side which enables its breath taking views of the forest canopy and the ocean below. Everything is extremely well maintained, with lush walkways and colorful flowers/plants everywhere. The grounds feature a waterfall pool for the guests and a couple hideaway bungalows with day beds/tables if you want to sit in the shade.

Villa Palma is situated higher on the hill side. The rear of the villa opens up to a wonderful patio and private plunge pool. We spent many hours relaxing on the back patio watching countless song and humming birds, enjoying the iguanas/geckos, and relaxing in the sun poolside. The villa itself featured a stone based rain shower with a glass door overlooking the pool and ocean. Our canopy bed was very comfortable and although it had netting, we never used it because there were almost no bugs in the entire resort. Everything was very clean and well maintained. The wall mount air conditioning did just fine and we were comfortable for the whole stay.

Ultra Villa is located down the hillside deeper into the trees. This villa is a small house with a full kitchen, separate living area, bedroom, and bathroom. The real selling point is the full length private pool which extends across the entire rear side of the villa. It featured a carved stone tub, tiled shower, and king size bed. The living area was well decorated with daily fresh flowers and very comfortable. Since we were lower into the trees we were able to watch a family of white faced capuchin monkeys and even a howler monkey too.

The service was amazing. Its worth repeating. The service was amazing.

Yua & Rob are such nice people and really made our stay wonderful from beginning to end. My girlfriend has severe food allergies. I notified Casa Chameleon in advance and the response was exceptional. When we arrived, Rob had a customized menu ready to go from day one. He was able to make the most delicious dishes all specifically tailored to avoid any allergic reactions. This is no small accomplishment, especially since we stayed for ten days and consistently ate at Casa Chameleon for breakfast and dinner. Rob and Yua would bring in fresh ingredients daily (seafood, beef, pasta, chicken, fruits & vegetables). The meals were were made from scratch and absolutely delicious. We always returned to our villa completely satisfied. Yua was a fantastic host and arranged anything and everything that we asked for. He went out of his way to make sure we felt comfortable and happy. He even drove us around the area so we could see the ocean front at Playa Hermosa and the fish market in Mal Pais. When we went out on our own, Yua made sure we had an rental ATV waiting and provided us with maps to help guide us.

Outside of the formalities, its worth saying that Yua, Rob, and the rest of the Casa Chameleon staff are warm, happy people who we formed friendships with from day one. The whole experience was a good one. Even before we arrived, Susana was great to work with while booking the trip, she was friendly and sincere, made sure we felt safe and organized a private driver to bring us in from Tambor.

Casa Chameleon is a fantastic escape with wonderful people, lush and relaxing environments, exemplary service, and a personality unique to Costa Rica. Our engagement could not have occurred in a better place. We will always have warm, magical memories of this experience and we can't wait to return.

“We loved Casa Chameleon”

We are repeat travellers to Mal Pais, and this was the finest boutique hotel we visited.

The good:
-Wonderful private casitas, designed and built by the owner with care and attention to detail. great views
-Quiet, secluded, beautiful, but close to beach and "downtown"
-Friendly staff
-Private chef available, while pricey, we did enjoy room service one night

The bad:
-You're not on the beach, but very close. You will need to rent a 4x4

Accommodations - Our Villas - Dining - Rates & Reservations - Location - Services - Contact - News