Pros

  • Affordable hotel with an easy-going ambiance
  • Direct access to Playa Tamarindo beach
  • Great location, close to Tamarindo’s dining and nightlife
  • Cozy rooms feature free Wi-Fi and flat-screen TVs
  • Some rooms have terraces or balconies, plus coffeemakers and mini-fridges
  • Studios and apartments have kitchenettes with hot plates
  • Delightful on-site bakery offers coffee, pastries, and other snacks
  • Appealing, open-air bistro serves dinner and cocktails
  • Gravel-covered sundeck with hammocks and loungers
  • Free Wi-Fi and free self-parking
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Cons

  • No pool
  • Trail to beach can flood in the rainy season
  • Showers aren’t always hot
  • Some bathrooms lack privacy
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Bottom Line

Hotel La Laguna del cocodrilo is a low-key, two-and-a-half-pearl property located on Playa Tamarindo beach. The hotel’s eight rooms and suites are basic but inviting, and some offer private balconies or patios. The direct access to Playa Tamarindo is the property’s stand-out feature, with a little bakery and a quality restaurant further enhancing its appeal. Although there’s no pool and the path to the beach isn’t always easily accessible, La Laguna represents one of the best deals in Tamarindo. Budget travelers may also want to check out Casa Cook, but La Laguna’s rates are usually better. 

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Oyster Hotel Review

Hotel La Laguna del cocodrilo

Scene

Relaxed, budget-friendly hotel with unfussy rooms and a prime location

Hotel La Laguna del cocodrilo offers excellent value for guests seeking clean, affordable accommodations in Tamarindo. While far from luxurious, the hotel’s guest rooms are nonetheless tidy and practical. Guests can grab coffee and snacks at the bakery, and eat dinner or enjoy happy hour-priced cocktails at the bistro in the evening. Otherwise there’s not much of anything to do on the property, but the entertainment of downtown Tamarindo is only a few minutes’ walk away. 

Guests are mainly couples, along with a few families. The owners are French expats, and the hotel tends to draw a lot of French-speaking guests (although staff speak adequate Spanish and English as well). The property is usually empty during the day, with most guests returning here only to sleep at night.

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Location

Quiet beachfront location on the northern end of Tamarindo

La Laguna’s setting is ideal for guests who want to be close to the conveniences of Tamarindo, without staying directly on the town’s busy main strip. Situated at Tamarindo’s northern entry point, the hotel’s location is peaceful, yet the town’s main hub of shops, restaurants, and bars is only about a 10-minute walk down the road. 

La Laguna offers direct access to Playa Tamarindo, plus the uncrowded beaches of Playa Langosta and Playa Avellanas are 10-, and 30-minute drives away, respectively. Rincón de la Vieja National Park can be reached in two and a half hours by car, and it’s a little over an hour’s drive to Liberia’s airport. 

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Rooms

Homey rooms have flat-screen TVs and free Wi-Fi

Guest rooms at La Laguna del cocodrilo are simple and tidy, with terra-cotta tiled floors and thin, white bed linens. Bright pillows and bed runners add pops of color, and some rooms also have interesting pieces of art like tribal-inspired sculptures or batik wall hangings. All rooms have wooden shelving units that hold personal safes, with some featuring full closets. Flat-screen TVs and free Wi-Fi are standard. No-frills bathrooms have round sinks and showers only. Off-brand bars of soap and packets of shampoo are presented in small baskets. Note that some bathrooms have saloon-style doors that offer minimal privacy. Hot water is advertised, but we were only able to get cold water during our stay. 

Ocean View Rooms add lovely stone terraces overlooking the ocean and estuary. Pretty latticed wooden dividers separate each guest room’s terrace. Junior Suites include roomy balconies with dining tables and chairs, along with comfy floor pillows or sofas. Junior Suites also add mini-fridges and coffeemakers, and some have four-poster beds as well as larger bathrooms with magnifying mirrors. Studios and Apartments feature kitchenettes with hot plates, full-size fridges, and microwaves.

See More Rooms

Features

Quaint bakery, breezy bistro, and access to Playa Tamarindo

La Laguna's features are a short list, but the amenities it does offer add to its charm. The hotel’s cute French bakery opens early. It serves coffee, pastries, empanadas, croissants, and tasty quiches, among other items. The bakery’s tiny interior only has one table, but guests are free to eat bakery items at the tables in the adjacent restaurant as well. Open for dinner most nights, the hotel’s restaurant is a charming, open-air bistro with a beautiful white bar. It has some good happy hour cocktail deals. Expect to pay for all meals here (breakfast isn’t included in the room rate).

The property's rocky sundeck, facing toward the lagoon and beach, offers a few loungers, and a couple of hammocks are looped between palm trees. A tree-lined trail leads from the sundeck down to gorgeous Playa Tamarindo, a wide, white-sand beach popular with surfers. The trail sometimes floods during the rainy season, making it difficult to navigate. Free Wi-Fi is available throughout, and there’s a small parking lot at the front of the hotel.  

See More Features

Oyster Hotel Review

Hotel La Laguna del cocodrilo

Scene

Relaxed, budget-friendly hotel with unfussy rooms and a prime location

Hotel La Laguna del cocodrilo offers excellent value for guests seeking clean, affordable accommodations in Tamarindo. While far from luxurious, the hotel’s guest rooms are nonetheless tidy and practical. Guests can grab coffee and snacks at the bakery, and eat dinner or enjoy happy hour-priced cocktails at the bistro in the evening. Otherwise there’s not much of anything to do on the property, but the entertainment of downtown Tamarindo is only a few minutes’ walk away. 

Guests are mainly couples, along with a few families. The owners are French expats, and the hotel tends to draw a lot of French-speaking guests (although staff speak adequate Spanish and English as well). The property is usually empty during the day, with most guests returning here only to sleep at night.

See More Scene

Location

Quiet beachfront location on the northern end of Tamarindo

La Laguna’s setting is ideal for guests who want to be close to the conveniences of Tamarindo, without staying directly on the town’s busy main strip. Situated at Tamarindo’s northern entry point, the hotel’s location is peaceful, yet the town’s main hub of shops, restaurants, and bars is only about a 10-minute walk down the road. 

La Laguna offers direct access to Playa Tamarindo, plus the uncrowded beaches of Playa Langosta and Playa Avellanas are 10-, and 30-minute drives away, respectively. Rincón de la Vieja National Park can be reached in two and a half hours by car, and it’s a little over an hour’s drive to Liberia’s airport. 

See More Location

Rooms

Homey rooms have flat-screen TVs and free Wi-Fi

Guest rooms at La Laguna del cocodrilo are simple and tidy, with terra-cotta tiled floors and thin, white bed linens. Bright pillows and bed runners add pops of color, and some rooms also have interesting pieces of art like tribal-inspired sculptures or batik wall hangings. All rooms have wooden shelving units that hold personal safes, with some featuring full closets. Flat-screen TVs and free Wi-Fi are standard. No-frills bathrooms have round sinks and showers only. Off-brand bars of soap and packets of shampoo are presented in small baskets. Note that some bathrooms have saloon-style doors that offer minimal privacy. Hot water is advertised, but we were only able to get cold water during our stay. 

Ocean View Rooms add lovely stone terraces overlooking the ocean and estuary. Pretty latticed wooden dividers separate each guest room’s terrace. Junior Suites include roomy balconies with dining tables and chairs, along with comfy floor pillows or sofas. Junior Suites also add mini-fridges and coffeemakers, and some have four-poster beds as well as larger bathrooms with magnifying mirrors. Studios and Apartments feature kitchenettes with hot plates, full-size fridges, and microwaves.

See More Rooms

Features

Quaint bakery, breezy bistro, and access to Playa Tamarindo

La Laguna's features are a short list, but the amenities it does offer add to its charm. The hotel’s cute French bakery opens early. It serves coffee, pastries, empanadas, croissants, and tasty quiches, among other items. The bakery’s tiny interior only has one table, but guests are free to eat bakery items at the tables in the adjacent restaurant as well. Open for dinner most nights, the hotel’s restaurant is a charming, open-air bistro with a beautiful white bar. It has some good happy hour cocktail deals. Expect to pay for all meals here (breakfast isn’t included in the room rate).

The property's rocky sundeck, facing toward the lagoon and beach, offers a few loungers, and a couple of hammocks are looped between palm trees. A tree-lined trail leads from the sundeck down to gorgeous Playa Tamarindo, a wide, white-sand beach popular with surfers. The trail sometimes floods during the rainy season, making it difficult to navigate. Free Wi-Fi is available throughout, and there’s a small parking lot at the front of the hotel.  

See More Features

Best Rates

Amenities

  • Air Conditioner

  • Balcony / Terrace / Patio

  • Basic Television

  • Beach

  • Cribs

  • Internet

  • Kids Allowed

  • Pets Allowed

  • Separate Bedroom / Living Room Space

Disclaimer: This content was accurate at the time the hotel was reviewed. Please check our partner sites when booking to verify that details are still correct.