Villa del Cielo (Sky Villa) is a one-level (no stairs) elegant, modern-style home built in 2016. It is open and airy, well-stocked, and has views from every room. There is expansive outdoor space to enjoy.
VIEWING DECK: A 360 Viewing Deck was completed in May offering incredible opportunities for wildlife viewing, especially over morning coffee or afternoon cocktails. Views in all directions of jungle, mountains, the ocean (more so during dry season), and an expansive dark sky. Both the sunrise and sunset can be enjoyed! There are extensive wildlife viewing opportunities (see below description and photos under "garden").
HOME LAYOUT- The Villa has three bedrooms (1K, 2Q), each with an en-suite bathroom, AC, blackout blinds, and sliding glass doors to the exterior. Open kitchen, living, and dining room floor plan with sliding glass doors throughout for ease of outdoor access. Recently updated, including new sofa set. Outdoor covered seating area for six alongside lap pool. The kitchen is fully accessorized. TV is in the air-conditioned living room (bedrooms do not have TVs). The Master bedroom is located at the opposite end of the villa from the guests' rooms for additional privacy. The surrounding property is all flat. The home is level without steps. There is ample room for kids to kick a ball.
LOCATION/ACCESS: The property is located on a hilltop above the small surf village of Samara, hense the incredible views!. The paved driveway is very steep at the start. The walk up the drive takes 2-3 minutes. It is a great motivator to jump in the pool when you reach the top! That said, walking up this driveway is not recommended for individuals with physical challenges while pulling luggage or while pushing a baby stroller. We recommended securing a car or golf car for individuals with these circumstances.
RENTALS: Car, ATV, Golf cart, E-bike, and bicycle rentals are available daily in Samara. Some companies deliver. Surfboards and Boogie boards can be rented at any one of the 5 or 6 surf schools located on Samara Beach.
MAINTENANCE: Felix, the Gardener, attends to the pool and garden daily (except Sundays). He quietly arrives first thing in the morning to have the pool ready for your morning swim! Gardening occurs late morning intermittently throughout the weekdays. The lawn is mowed once a week. These services are essential to maintaining the quality and enjoyment of the pool and property. While they cannot be opted out, the timing may be adjusted with advanced notice.
WILDLIFE: There is a variety of resident wildlife (i.e., birds, iguanas, geckos, pisotes/Coatis, ducks, lizards, squirrels, ) and passing-through wildlife (i.e., howler monkeys, fruit bats, etc.). As the monkeys are not full-time residents, there is no guarantee they will visit, but they pass by the property most mornings or evenings, grazing the treetops surrounding the villa. Keep a careful ear (to hear the trees rustling) and an eye on the surrounding trees, including the largest tree across from the entrance (also where the sun sets). The most reliable time to see the monkeys is at cocktail hour from the Viewing Deck, just before dusk. The bird watching is excellent- parrots, parakeets, motmot, falcons, hawks, etc. THIS IS A BIRDERS PARADISE! The fruit bats used to arrive nightly as they were attracted to insects on the pool water illuminated by the pool lights. While fascinating to watch, they limited some guests' outdoor evening enjoyment of the property. As such, we have disabled the pool lights that attracted the bats. The ambient outdoor lighting makes the back patio and yard very enjoyable for cocktails, dinner, cards, or an evening swim.
PESKY WILDLIFE: Please note that pesty wildlife is common in Costa Rica, and the Villa is no exception. The Villa is fumigated quarterly, but this doesn't always help with weather or barometric pressure-related guests. For example, sometimes there are short-lived flying insect hatches (gnats, mosquitos, flies, flying ants). During the rainy season, tiny ants can be a problem. They can get into the house and may be attracted to food left on the counters. Spiders appear intermittently. Also, there are resident geckos in the Villa that stay near the ceiling and do not cause any problems. Frogs sometimes visit the windows, and an occasional snake may pass through the property. small Halloween crabs have appeared in the showers. We recently had our first appearance of horses grazing the grass by the pool. Scorpions show up every now and then. We can only hope that guests visiting Costa Rica are tolerant of these wildlife occurrences and don't let their appearance influence our rating, as we do not have control over these situations.
