Seems discussion on this board has slowed a bit, so I'll provide a brief update from a stay a couple of weeks ago. In short: YOU MUST VISIT!

Staff: Very friendly and professional staff throughout the entire resort. Its a casual setting, so the interactions are very friendly and family like. Staff at the front-desk, daycare, pools, beach, restaurants, and bell-boys were top notch. They remembered our names and preferences throughout our six day stay. They were willing to accompany any special requests, and they have a say yes attitude. We especially enjoyed the anniversary decorations in our room one of the nights.

Activities: This is still my favorite resort. The pools are super comfortable and actually quiet large. This was perfect for our families. The sun-screen, bug spray, flavored waters, and snow-cones are all wonderful additions. All of these are offered for free, and are also located at the beaches. This is a welcome gift and makes you feel welcomed to their homes. There is no mention of charges so you don't feel nickled and dimed here. They also offer a large range of payed activities throughout the day. We took part of the Ceviche and Barista classes, and they were amazing. This is a must! We also heard wonderful things about the nature tour, snorkeling tour, and kayaking tour. Often, you are the only one to join in the tour so it will be a private experience and the prices are very reasonable.

Beaches: The beaches here are still my favorite in the world. They are carved out from the forest, so you have a very friendly, comfortable, and cozy beach hanging out under trees, monkeys, and canopies. The water isn't the clearest, and snorkeling isn't the best, but the beach is very comfortable and my family usually spent all day there. Full service is also offered at all the beaches including drink/food services, water activities, and free sunscreen/water/bug-spray as needed.

Andaz Beach House: Wow! This feature was added in December at the hotel. You take the shuttle for a 10 minute ride to another portion of Papagayo, then you take another 3 minute golf-cart ride through the jungle. After that, you have a very clean, comfortable beach setting you can easily spend all day there. Plenty of water activities available, and even beach games (soccer, bounce ball, sandbags, etc.) kept us entertained all day. Full service is also offered here. One day, there was an event at the Prieta Beach club. We were told that Prieta went through a renovation and "locked-out" hotel guests, choosing rather to keep it as a private club. The place is great, but it is "up-class", and we didn't feel too comfortable. The beach and activities at the Andaz Beach House are much better and we feel that this gives a richer experience for guests.

Food: The food at the hotel is top notch. Everything we ate was amazing. We ordered a few dishes at Chao Pascoe, and they were excellent. We also had breakfast (~$35) one day. The quality was exceptional. You can also ordered any coffee and smoothie from the menu as part of the buffet, and I didn't shy down, ordering five different drinks that morning. Saying that, the food costs could add up very quickly. So we personally ate three nights at the nearby Marina. The Marina offered excellent food as well, with great prices. A nice fish dish is about $15. Also, three years ago when we visited the resort, they had an amazing pineapple bake dish. This was an entire pineapple with plenty of toppings. We ordered the similar dish this time, and the dish was about three pieces of pineapple and icecream. It is much cheaper, but this was a bit disappointing. It is understandable though as the original dish was crazy huge.

Rooms/Facilities: The room is wonderful, very practical, and quiet spacious. We had two portable beds for my kids installed, and we still had plenty of room to play around. The bed is the most comfortable hotel bed I've ever slept on. The views from the third floor were amazing. The free snacks and drinks are also a very welcome idea. The gym/spa/lobby and all other facilities are fantastic.

Overall, we loved this resort, and look forward to going back. I would highly recommend the resort, and would put it top on your list. The ease of visiting from U.S., the affordability using points, the amazing staff, relaxed environment, and wonderful nature are all reasons to visit. Great job Hyatt, Management, and Staff.