How did we end up living with the monkeys at Manuel Antonio Estates?  Well, Sugar Shack was struck by lighting (a story we will share once the boat is repaired) and had to be hauled out. Once she was hauled out, we became homeless because Marina Pez Vela does not allow live aboards on the yard.

The marina arranged a room for us at the Best Western Kamuk at a discounted rate for the first couple of nights.  This was great for the weekend, as they were close to the marina.  But at $68 per night , for 3 months, it would break the already broken bank.

The first three nights we stayed in a small room over a crowded street, but the last night we moved to the top floor which notably had a great view of the beach.

The marina connected us with real estate guru, Alvin who showed us a few short term rental properties.  We ended up at Manuel Antonio Estates which offered  AC, wifi, a pool, and a full kitchen. Remarkably, most apartments don’t have ovens.  I have grand plans of baking for our boat workers so an oven was a must have.

We negotiated a lower rate which included all of the utilities, maid service twice a week, and moved in the next day.

Nestled in the trees are 9 apartments overlooking a pool and the dense foliage below.  Once you pass the guard gate, you walk up a hill, past the Rain Drop Spa (top left), to the main reception area (top right).

Then you climb up another hill to the apartment units (2nd row, left) which overlooks the pool.  We have lots of wildlife, including iguanas, geckos, monkeys, toucans, and tons of birds.

The hike up the hill in the heat often requires a dip in the pool to cool off.  With this in mind, it is not a hardship to get home.

Crazy Neighbors

The apartments are located near the Manuel Antonio Park and are nestled in the trees.  So, we have lots of wildlife around.  We’ve seen scarlet macaws fly by and one toucan sighting.  Tons of other birds, lizards, geckos, iguanas, Capuchin monkey family, squirrel monkey family, and even a few dogs and cats.

We get visitors around sunset – they are a playful bunch of monkeys.  Crawling, leaping, jumping all over the place.  The monkeys are so curious, they kept peeking over the roof and hanging from the rain gutters to look at us.  Generally speaking, they are more afraid of us then we are of them.  These are Capuchin monkeys but we also get squirrel monkey family as well.

Waterfall Hike on Property

There is a pretty challenging hike to a small waterfall on the property. The first 1.5 miles is up and down many hills on a paved road.  At the end of the road, make a left at the dirt pile, then right past the tree onto a “water runoff.”  The little, muddy trail down only takes about 30 minutes and you are rewarded with beautiful views, a waterfall, and a refreshing body of water.

Movers and Shakers

We have moved around a lot at Manuel Antonio Estates.  We started in unit 8 which is on the top floor.  After about 5 weeks we had to move to unit 5.  The top units have a better view, more ventilation and direct sun so they can rent them easier than the other units.  However, we found unit 5 to be just as fabulous.  We stayed in this 2nd unit for about a month when we decided we wanted to move to unit 2.  We had some “unusual” neighbors who smoked a lot on their patio and we wanted to move further away (plus unit 2 had a bigger couch).  As Manuel Antonio Estates busy season came to an end more units opened up.  So, after about a month we were offered unit 7 which is back on the top floor.  Sweet.  Great views from here with a cool breeze.

They were doing maintenance on the pool which is why it is only 1/2 full but normally it is a fabulous place to cool off.

We love our team at Manuel Antonio Estates!  Dorit is an amazing property manager handling everything from repairs, rental cars, tours, and local advice.  Giselle and Reina keep all the apartments clean and comfortable and Tariq runs a smooth operation.  Thank all for making us feel welcome and at home!