These villas a lovely, but have a few problems. They are currently completing additional hotel rooms at the rear of the property and the work started at 7am every morning. These works over look the pool, and therefore you have the workmen staring at you while you sunbath. The villas are very very nice and very clean, there are bugs, but you get that is most places. Its a 100m walk to the beach, and there are not so many places to eat near by, but you have a kitchen which is great for cooking.
Great place on the north side of town, 2 minute walk to the beach. Was the best looking place I saw in the area ( unless you want to pay 500 a night ). Rooms sleep 4 comfortably and had a kitchen, fridge etc. Very nice!!!!!!!
We ended up in Santa Teresa last year after a 6 hour drive through the country. Had the lady with me, so no $10 a night rooms this time. We found the Esencia, beautiful grounds, nice pool, weight room palapa, kitchens, A/C which we didn't need, 2 minute walk to the surf, excelente. The staff were very nice, professional. Can't wait to return, it will always be a special place!
This place is amazing. 1/2 minute walk to the beach (99% of hotels in santa teresa/mal pais are NOT on the beach the government has restricted building on the beach). Close enough to walk to any number of food establishments (if it hasn't been pouring rain the mud makes it REALLY hard to walk rent some sort of vehicle like a bike). Each room has a kitchen and private bath. Hanging out on the porches was a great way to meet people. There is a little bar which I hear is open in the high season Stefano let us watch tv there the day it rained for 24 hours straight. Speaking of... Stefano and Camillo the two guys who work at the hotel are the most helpful people ever. They arranged car rental, day trips, told us the best places to eat, where the parties were, you name it they can help you with it! The pool was great, basically everything was GREAT! I can't say enough about how wonderful a time I had at this hotel. You won't regret staying at the Esencia!
We enjoyed our stay at Esencia during a recent trip to Malpais. The town was ravaged by rain, but Esencia remained a little oasis in the middle of it all. Despite some landscaping issues (the rain basically caused a mudslide throughout the property) Stefano, the manager, was apologetic and very gracious. The cabins are new, spacious and well-appointed, with full kitchens, nice bathrooms and a patio. The pool is set atop the hill and is also well-kept. We saw monkeys in the trees just behind the property and iguanas sunning themselves on the rooftops. We'd like to return to Malpais when the waves are better and the rain hasn't wrecked the roads and property. When we do, we'd definitely stay at Esencia again.
The setting: There are lots of beautiful vegetation: palm trees, mature, tall trees, etc. You look out the window and you see green all over the place, and it's very shady.
The hotel: It consists of several individual cabins (bungalows). They have a very nice architecture and are painted in a nice shade of yellow.
The cabin: The front porch has wooden furniture. It has a bedroom, kitchen/dining, a sofa bed, and a bathroom. It has high ceilings with beautiful woodwork. The bedroom can be made private by pulling some roman shades. The windows have the same kind of shades, made of a material that imitates bamboo. The bathroom is nice, with nice light fixtures. The kitchen is equipped with sink, fridge, stove, pots and pans and some china and utensils. It also has a coffee maker. You should be aware of the following: The hotel only provides toilet paper and liquid hand soap. You have to bring your own body soap, shampoo and conditioner. There is no phone in the room. Also no TV (if that is important to you).
The front desk: It is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. They can help you with tours and transportation.
The town: Santa Teresa, where the hotel is located, is a remote town. The restaurants can hardly be called restaurants. All of the paid phones had been removed by the electric company, so the only way to talk on the phone was to rent one at an internet cafe. There are several internet cafes. The whole town smelled like trash or sewers, not sure what. It seems they're having some kind of problem. There are a couple of super markets. One of them just opened and it's about five blocks from Esencia if you go right when you leave the hotel. Super markets were a life saver since the restaurants are so bad. Most people are young (25 and under) and they are surfers.
The beach: It is beautiful if you just want to watch it. The ocean is too rough to swim/wade in it. I would not dare to let kids swim in that ocean. It is great for surfing, though.
Hotels Mal Pais 
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