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Reviews of Surf Ranch Hotel & Resort 4 stars

Empalme de El Valle, 991.5 m al Este, 48600 San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua

#34 of 34 hotels in San Juan del Sur

Guests' Choice

Review score

Based on 118 hotel reviews

6.9

Score breakdown

  • Cleanliness

    7.3

  • Comfort

    7.6

  • Location

    6.3

  • Facilities

    6.9

  • Staff

    7.9

  • Value for money

    7.3

  • Free WiFi

    6.2

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Showing 1 – 25

  • Reviewed: 2 August 2025

    8.0
    Great value and close to San Juan del sur by car.
    • Leisure trip
    • Couple
    • Deluxe Queen Studio
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    A little dirty and on the older side.

    Had all of the amenities we wanted. Pool, gym, and good vibes and staff. Really liked the included breakfast.

    Stayed in August 2025

  • Reviewed: 28 July 2025

    8.0
    Overall, it was a fun experience for the kids and relaxing for us, despite a few inconveniences.
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Standard Double Room
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    I didn’t like the location. Although it’s just ten minutes from the beach, you have to drive through a river to get to the hotel! Even though the river isn’t deep, it could be when it rains — and a small car wouldn’t make it.

    My kids really enjoyed the pool and had a great time on the water slide. I was also pleased with the staff — their service and customer care were excellent.

    Stayed in July 2025

  • Reviewed: 28 June 2025

    8.0
    It was exactly what we needed for the short trip we were making to SJDS
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Bungalow
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    It has deteriorated since we were last there two years ago.

    Nice pool, pretty good food and a great price!

    Stayed in June 2025

  • Reviewed: 15 June 2025

    7.0
    I am very pleased with my stay. And will be back again. The pool is nice and laid back when no kids are around. Kairo is
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Family Suite with Balcony
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    The water pressure is not so good. So don’t expect much.

    Very private and a good value for the money. Short drive to the city . WiFi is good for basic use. Food is very good and cheap. I would recommend for a week end visit.

    Stayed in June 2025

  • Reviewed: 26 May 2025

    6.0
    Likes and Dislikes
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Two-Bedroom Villa
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    Gift shop is limited, seems to me as if you are far from town or any mini market, you should have more available to offer guest. NO TOWELS in our room. The sheets were dirty. And the property itself needs better maintenance.

    The property is ample. The quietness is great and it seems family friendly because a lot of families seems to bring their younger kids.

    Stayed in May 2025

  • Reviewed: 13 January 2025

    8.0
    Very good
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Two-Bedroom Villa
    • Stayed 1 night

    Amazing place to visit San Juan del Surf with family- skaters and surfers like our family, we will def be back soon!

    Stayed in January 2025

  • Reviewed: 8 January 2025

    6.0
    Pleasant
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Standard Double Room
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    Deben invertir en pintar , las instalaciones se ven abandonadas

    Stayed in January 2025

  • Reviewed: 19 August 2024

    8.0
    Over all it was a nice place to stay, my family enjoyed the time we spent there.
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Two-Bedroom Villa
    • Stayed 3 nights

    Place needs a little touch up. looks old. I requested an early check in that I was told it was approved, but when I got there they said they didnt know about it. That booking never billed me for that.

    Staff is friendly and helpfull, they go the extra mile to make sure you enjoy your stay. The place is clean, Loved hearing the howler monkey is the ealy morning close to the hotel.

    Stayed in August 2024

  • Reviewed: 7 February 2024

    7.0
    Good
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Standard Double Room
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    The receptionist was not friendly she was rude. There was not hot water in the bathroom. The water park was not working.

    The breakfast was really good.

    Stayed in February 2024

  • Reviewed: 27 January 2024

    6.0
    Ok place
    • Leisure trip
    • Solo traveller
    • Deluxe Double Room with Terrace
    • Stayed 2 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    A/C was noisy, barely cooled room down. There were a few ants. Door wasn't sealed well, could see a.gap all the way around it. Not close to beach. Have to drive to it or take shuttle. For some reason they were blasting Air Supply music all day long.

    pools were pretty clean. Pizza was good.

    Stayed in December 2023

  • Reviewed: 17 December 2023

    7.0
    OK
    • Leisure trip
    • Couple
    • Standard Queen Room with Air-Conditioning
    • Stayed 2 nights

    THE LOCATION WAS NOT GOOD. WE DID NOT HAVE A CAR.

    THE POOL WAS VERY CLEAN AND MAINTAINED DAILY. THE BREAKFAST WAS VERY GOOD. EVERY MORNING THE CREW WAS WORKING TO CLEAN .

    Stayed in December 2023

  • Reviewed: 16 December 2023

    7.0
    Surf hote
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Deluxe Double Room with Terrace
    • Stayed 3 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    I didn't like that for 2 days we asked for towels in our room and toilet paper. We had to buy towels and toilet paper. Plus they did not clean our room until Sunday late afternoon. Plus when ordering off their menu for food they were out of alot of things. To be honest they should credit me for a 1 1/2 days.

    The staff over all was great. It was clean.

    Stayed in December 2023

  • Reviewed: 1 December 2023

    7.0
    Exceeded low expectations
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Bungalow
    • Stayed 2 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    Opening the door was a learning process that I almost mastered after 2 days. The water in the shower didn't drain requiring a sea shower to avoid stagnant water.

    The pool and slide were entertaining for the kids. Most of staff was helpful. The breakfast was delicious and exceded expectations

    Stayed in November 2023

  • Reviewed: 14 October 2023

    7.0
    Good
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Standard Queen Room with Air-Conditioning
    • Stayed 2 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    Dirt road

    Stayed in September 2023

  • Reviewed: 11 October 2023

    8.0
    Very good
    • Business trip
    • Family with young children
    • Bungalow
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    Limited menu from the kitchen. Less than one towel per guest! Needs a little maintenance.

    Very nice staff. Fun family stay with the pool and water slide.

    Stayed in October 2023

  • Reviewed: 14 August 2023

    8.0
    Good
    • Leisure trip
    • Couple
    • Standard Double Room
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    Needs better maintenance

    Overall concept

    Stayed in June 2023

  • Reviewed: 9 July 2023

    7.0
    Decent experience - come in with tempered expectations and you won’t be disappointed.
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Deluxe Double Room with Terrace
    • Stayed 3 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    Even with the mediocre booking.com score and the price, we were a little let down by the level of maintenance of the rooms. Also the climbing wall had so many loose or broken holds that you could only do 5-10 minutes because so few holds were useable.

    Staff were absolutely tremendous. Just so helpful with weird requests and issues, working around missing ingredients and being generally so amable. Also the AC units worked great. Room temperature was great. In general, the whole concept was awesome for the family. We skated, we played volleyball, we road the water slide and relaxed in the splash of (when it was working). Also the free coffee was surprisingly better than expected. Not great at all but by hotel coffee standards very serviceable.

    Stayed in July 2023

  • Reviewed: 1 July 2023

    7.0
    Good
    • Leisure trip
    • Couple
    • Standard Queen Room with Air-Conditioning
    • Stayed 2 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    Low maintenance, need to be keep up

    Nice entertainment area

    Stayed in June 2023

  • Reviewed: 6 June 2023

    7.0
    Jungle fever.
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Deluxe Double Room with Terrace
    • Stayed 2 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    The AC wast working properly, the door was hard to unlock, the road to get to the hotel was horrible a 4x4 vehicle will be perfect for the road condition, the swimming pool was to shallow about 3ft deep, good enough for kids, one of the days in the hotel there was no water, everything was so expensive, the only currency they want is dollars.

    Is like being in the middle of a jungle, Breakfast was good.

    Stayed in June 2023

  • Reviewed: 28 May 2023

    6.0
    as a group with children this place is perfect and they will have the time of their lives!
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Bungalow
    • Stayed 2 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    a little run down

    perfect for kids to run free

    Stayed in May 2023

  • Reviewed: 15 May 2023

    8.0
    Very good
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Bungalow
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    The pool needs a water change or be cleaned more often. Also the water is pricy.

    It has great facilities such as the pool, restaurant, bar and the slide! It is surrounded by nature, we got the chance to see monkeys which was great! Some closer beaches that are better than San juan can be done walking, like between 3-5km. The Taxis are expensive to move around since it's a bit remote. Overall everything was great! Great breakfast!

    Stayed in May 2023

  • Reviewed: 27 March 2023

    6.0
    Overall, a decent, comfortable stay. The kids loved it.
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Standard Queen Room with Air-Conditioning
    • Stayed 3 nights
    • Submitted via mobile

    The locking mechanisms on the doors were a bit weird- they lock from the inside as soon as you close them and they can be a bit tricky to open! On more than one occasion we had to slide a key through the door for someone to unlock it from the outside. The pillows had some weird plastic cover thing on them, which was a bit weird but not the end of the world. Overall the rooms were comfortable, the air con worked and there was hot water and a television as advertised. There's no housekeeping, but I don't think they claim to offer this. No this is not a 5 star resort, but it's great for the price and the location. We did have some complaints about the service (it was honestly quite atrocious aside from the ladies at the front desk), but my bf has messaged the owner privately and he seemed to be well aware and quite receptive towards the constructive criticism. Overall, you kind of just have to go into it without crazy high expectations. The service is not necessarily what you are going to be used to, but overall it's a pretty cool spot in the area. There's not too much that is family friendly right close to the beach anyways. It seemed like they were doing some construction work while we were there, so it definitely seems like they are working on things! :)

    Honestly, some of the reviews make this place sound awful, but overall this place has a ton of potential and we didn't have a bad time at all. The place is very kid friendly and the kids loved the waterslide and pool etc. It was cool to see their skateboard night on Friday. I won't lie, our first impression was kind of omg where are all the people, this place looks abandoned - but come the evening there were tons of people there having a good time! A lot of reviews mention the 'lake' you have to cross, but it was a complete non issue for us. It's a big puddle, and none of the taxis we took had an issue with it whatsoever. The location for us was good, a short taxi ride to the beach and the front desk was happy to arrange this service (I should mention the beach shuttle that is advertised is apparently not a thing). The food we had was good, the pizza was exceptionally yummy, however the service was quite poor. On one night we had asked what time food service was ending and we were told 10pm.. we tried to order food at around 9 pm and were told we could no longer order so that was a bit of a bummer as there's nothing super close.

    Stayed in March 2023

  • Reviewed: 13 March 2023

    8.0
    Very good
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Standard Queen Room with Air-Conditioning
    • Stayed 1 night
    • Submitted via mobile

    The location was a little tough to get to. Might be more difficult for smaller cars. The facilities were still under renovation when I arrived.

    The staff was very friendly and welcoming. They addressed all of my concerns and made my stay very enjoyable.

    Stayed in March 2023

  • Reviewed: 6 March 2023

    8.0
    Very good
    • Leisure trip
    • Family with young children
    • Bungalow
    • Stayed 2 nights

    skatepark

    Stayed in March 2023

Showing 1 – 25

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