Upon landing in San Jose we opted to have our own car. The MeadBrown team not only provides directions, even included options where to eat along the way as well as warnings of potential speed traps. Upon arrival we had booked a villa within the Los Suenos community. While the physical lodging was quite impressive (understated luxury), it was the service which was truly the icing on the cake. The welcome basket, wine, the stocked refrigerator (with various juices and edibles), the orientation and a personal favorite, the golf cart to travel to the marina area for meals if we desired.

Mark and his team was also instrumental in arranging various tours including a Rainforest and offered advice when we decided to head over to Jaco Beach on our own to explore. As a travel agent I usually travel anonymously and with my spouse as I want to be sure the service I receive will be the same for my clients. I am proud to advise I suggest Mark Mead and MeadBrown to clients and my peers in the industry. While there are many vendors in Costa Rica and I assume many are very good, I believe Mark Mead and MeadBrown truly set the standard for which others should strive to attain.

The orientation tour with Don of Vacation Buggy was outstanding. He was so personable and made us immediately comfortable with the surroundings and the highlights of Quepos and Manual Antonio. He helped with restaurant recommendations (which all turned out great) and provided help on ATM usage (which came in handy) and he told us a lot about the area and history. We would not have started our week so well without that starting tour. It was great! Don was great!

The tours you lined up were all SUPER HUGE HITS. The family LOVED every single one. The ATV tour was really enjoyed by the kids. The white water trip with Unique Tours (Kannuto and Ezikiel) was my highlight. The horseback trip was terrific and the guides were great to the family. The Eco Tour thru the park with Mop was a highlight too. So glad we arranged the private tour. The last day, my wife and two of the kids went on the zip line and waterfall repel trip and thought IT was their favorite. Two of the trips provided pictures that were outstanding and were a great way to have the activities captured by someone outside the family group. We have some terrific photos now.

The house was amazing. We loved staying there and tried to treat it with respect as if it were our own. It is a lovely place. Juan and Flor were terrific and met every need we had. So pleasant and so polite. Your help with the tours and updates and changes was most appreciated.

All in all a wonderful experience that we would highly recommend to others. On the plane home, everyone agreed this was one of the best family vacations ever.

Thanks for all you did to help. And thanks to everyone else at La Reserva and Mead Brown. Great experience, great vacation. We hope we can return some day.

Greg

I just wanted to drop you a line and let you know what a great time we had in Costa Rica. This was not my first time visiting and I plan on going back again each year. I plan on using your services moving forward. I’ve already recommended you to several workmates and friends and just wrote a great review for you on tripadvisor.com.

Outstanding service and accommodations gentlemen.

Have a great weekend,

Stephen Pitt

First, Mark Mead (and his team) of Mead-Brown provided my family and me with the best vacation that we have ever experienced, and we have traveled to many places around the globe. If you want elegance, supreme convenience without any hassles whatsoever, adventure when you want it, pure relaxation, phenomenal dining and a team that is literally at your beckon call, then Mark Mead is your man!

While perusing Conde Nest Traveler magazine, I came across an impressive review about Mr. Mark Mead, co-owner of Mead-Brown in Costa Rica. The wonderful review and favorable comments are very well-deserved. He and his business partner, Michael Brown, along with their staff, live in Costa Rica and handle virtually every detail of the vacation. After reading about them in Conde Nest Traveler, I researched the internet on Trip Advisor, general information sites regarding travel, as well as their own site at meadbrown.com

Then, I e-mailed Mark. He was expeditious, friendly and professional in all of his responses. He answered all of my questions and gave outstanding advice on all aspects of the vacation. Per my request, he suggested a five bedroom villa for the seven members in my family. This villa, named Sietemietros, is built into the mountainside within a coveted area of Herradura (near Jaco) on the Pacific Coast and enjoys full amenities of the adjacent Marriott Los Suenos Resort.

A driver was waiting for us at San Jose International Airport in an air-conditioned Mercedes van for the 90 minute drive to our villa. Our driver, Martin, was our first “contact” in Costa Rica, and he was terrific! He speaks Spanish and English and gave us great information. My son said that he saw a “famous” bridge over a river” on television which was home to a slew of crocodiles, so Martin made sure to stop by that very same bridge so that we could get a look at the incredibly large and numerous crocodiles.

When we got to Herradura, Mark was waiting for us in his office on Saturday. He and the owner of the villa met us there and brought us to the villa. WOW! What a villa! It is phenomenal with breathtaking views of the ocean and rainforest just beyond the villa’s own infinity edge beautiful large pool! There is a large living room and kitchen with panoramic uninterrupted views of the infinity edge pool and the mountainside and ocean beyond, five bedrooms, at least five bathrooms, a large media room for all of our family to stretch out at the same time and to be comfortable. The entire house is air-conditioned with individual controls for each bedroom, the media room, and the living room/kitchen. The villa is an architectural masterpiece, contemporary in design and décor. Simply stated, it is a spectacular villa with a housekeeper who lives in a separate part of the villa along with her son who is the groundskeeper, pool maintenance man as well as bar-tender. The mother/son team is there every day. The housekeeper performs daily housekeeping discreetly and completely. Her son makes drinks while you are in the home or at poolside or in the pool: whenever! His specialty is “Mohitos” (spelling?). He also ensures that the pool is crystal clear and clean and that the grounds are beautiful. Everyone was incredibly nice and had smiles virtually all of the time! If you want “WOW” factor for your vacation, this is the place! I have yet to experience an entire week of perfection in my life, but this place came pretty darned close! The only issue was the air conditioning in the living room/dining room area was not sufficient for the large space given the fact that the open air window/doors which are all glass providing the panoramic views, heated the room up too much. So, we mentioned it, and Mark stated to me that the owners are going to take our suggestion and put another air-conditioner in the area. Mark also made sure that we were given what I consider to be an appropriately generous reduction in the rental fee for the home. I want to stress that the rest of the home was perfectly air-conditioned including all of the bedrooms and the huge media room! With the addition of the extra air-conditioner, this villa will be truly PERFECT!

Mark secured a team of chefs for our six days and nights who prepared scrumptious meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. These are professional chefs. The two principal partners are Jose and Gustavo. Usually one of them along with one of their helpers, either Alexander or Elwin, were in the villa starting at our requested times, depending on the day, but usually between 7am and 8 pm. Therefore, there were always at least two chefs in the kitchen all day long! They prepared the incredible full breakfasts, lunches and dinners as well as afternoon snacks. The food was incredibly fresh, beautifully prepared and delicious! They set the table, did all of the shopping for the food/drinks, prepared all of the food, cleaned everything up in the kitchen as well as the dining table and left snack food for any late night snacks that we may wish to have. Gustavo went so far as to notice that my 76 year old mother took her medication pills in the morning. The second morning, she didn’t have them at the breakfast table, so he discreetly asked her if she needed to take medication just as she had done the prior morning. He just wanted to make sure that she hadn’t forgotten! Every morning, he made sure that she took her medication, very politely and very discreetly. Also, my 13 year old son didn’t eat the salad during our first dinner (even though it was always an incredibly delicious and beautifully presented salad, he just doesn’t like salads.) So, Gustavo discreetly asked my son if he would prefer not to have salad. So, every night at dinner thereafter, Gustavo would give a different appetizer to my son which he would eat with a huge smile on his face! The food was incredible! These guys made amazing ceviche, tuna carpaccio, tuna tartare, filet mignon, lobster, shrimp, chicken, amazing salads, incredible fruit dishes, and extraordinary desserts including the most amazing coconut flan I have ever tasted! These four chefs were simply outstanding, and they were perfectly professional, friendly, happy and eager to prepare anything and everything that we had asked for. If we wanted something and it wasn’t already there, they went out and got the ingredients, and soon there it was for us in final perfect form for us to indulge our gustatory desires! From food to beverages, to alcoholic drinks/concoctions: this was culinary bliss!

The zip-line excursion, ATV excursion and aerial tram excursion were a blast: phenomenal fun! Mark booked all of them per my request, and ensured that we were driven in style to all locations and back to the villa without my having to worry about a thing. I didn’t have to make one single call as the drivers were always at the right place at the right time without any problems whatsoever!

Once again, Mark Mead and his team at Mead-Brown are exceptional at providing the highest level of professional and personable management in high-end Costa Rican vacations. He and his team have our highest recommendations! If we needed anything, they were just a phone call away. If we changed our plans for the day or part of the day, Mark managed it immediately and perfectly! If we wanted to go somewhere that we hadn’t previously discussed, then he would have a driver in a Mercedes pick us up immediately! I never had to worry about anything, not even one time!

On behalf of my wife, two sons, soon-to-be daughter-in-law, mother, mother-in-law and myself, I want to thank Mark Mead of Mead-Brown as well as his entire team for the most outstanding, turn-key, beautiful, incredibly superlative vacation that we have ever experienced!

S.L.
The Woodlands, Texas

Upon arriving at “Unforgettable” at Vista Las Palmas, we were blown away by how amazing it was. The wrap around terrace was gorgeous and provided breathtaking views of the entire Jaco Beach, as well as a great spot for watching the daily sunsets! It was amazing to wake up and hear the ocean every day.

We spent most of our time laying by the pool and enjoying the gorgeous view of the beach/ocean. However, the location couldn’t have been better. We were a 5 minute walk to the grocery store and shops in town, while still conveniently located to make the trip to Manuel Antonio (a must – be sure to do the monkey tour on your way back!).

The daily housekeeping service was phenomenal and allowed us to truly enjoy a vacation – we didn’t even have to do the dishes and every day when we returned to the unit, it was spotless!

Overall, all of the services provided – facilitating our airport shuttles, organizing activities, stocking the pantry, etc – were more than I could have asked for.

The Mead Brown team really made this an “Unforgettable” vacation and I can’t wait to plan my next trip to Costa Rica and stay with them again!

Thanks Again,
Michele