In 2004, the forests and beaches of the Peninsula Papagayo,
on Costa Rica’s northern Pacific edge, were transformed into
a refuge for the harried man of means — a place to soak in an infinity pool while staring over the Pacific, or to share a moment of amused aggravation with your golfing buddies as a monkey swiped your Titleist Pro V1x from the fairway. That place was the sybaritic Four Seasons Costa Rica, replete with an Arnold Palmer Signature course and an assemblage of fanciful armadillo-backed villas. It was, upon its opening, arguably Central America’s finest.
Staying there for a few days was merely a matter of scheduling. But even the most acquisitive deal pros who fell so deeply in love with the area that they never wanted to leave — well, they still had to. Unless, that is, they wanted to live in a hotel for the rest of their lives. With the opening this year of Exclusive Resorts Poro Poro, that dilemma has now been solved.
Adjacent to the Four Seasons, perched on the same dramatic stretch of Pacific Ocean coastline, each of Poro Poro’s 21 new cliffside residences is set on an acre of land. Jungle refuges with the amenities of Park Avenue apartments, they boast four bedrooms, four and a half baths, plasma televisions, outdoor showers, Jacuzzis, nearly 4,000 square feet of private dipping pools, ocean-view terraces, Rivolta Carmignani linens — even designer cutlery, should the dealmaker opt to be dinnermaker for the night.
There are in-residence cooking, spa and massage services, which should make your wife happy — and, by extension, make you happy. And if the urge should arrive to actually venture outdoors, your concierge can arrange for you to play on the nearby 6,788-yard Palmer course, the benefit of a joint agreement with the Four Seasons. Carved from an ancient lava flow, it features no fewer than 14 holes with ocean views — which surely leaves those other four holes with clinically extreme inferiority complexes.
"Jungle and a lot of hills mean more and better views,' says Exclusive Resorts president Brent Handler, who cofounded his company — now with more than 300 luxury residences in 34 destinations across the Americas, the Caribbean and Europe — while sitting (where else?) on a sunny Hawaiian beach. “The resort is isolated; the fastest way to get to town is by water taxi.” Indeed, one would never guess, from Poro Poro’s secluded setting, that Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport is a mere half-hour away.
Like all great investments, this asset comes with a price: Exclusive Resorts membership is a requisite for Poro Poro properties, and runs from a one-time fee ranging from $460,000 for Elite membership (with 45 days’ stay) to $350,000 for Executive (25 days) to $240,000 for Affiliate (15 days), with annual dues of $34,900 to $13,900. Members also have access to any of their other residences, from Maui to the French Alps.
But that, of course, presumes you would ever want to leave. Which, as we’ve already established, you won’t.
866-863-2688; exclusiveresorts.com
