Colours Oasis Resort is the brainchild of James Remes, who decided in 1990 to bring the very successful guest house Colours of Key West (called Colours because of the multi-colored stained glass panels in the shape of a fan above the main entrance of the hotel which he opened back in 1983 – to San José, Costa Rica as a haven and takeoff point for the nascent gay and lesbian travel industry.
Colours Oasis Resort
At the time it was a bold and adventurous step which has since paid off handsomely for founder James Remes, for gay-friendly travel in Costa Rica, and for the many guests of Colours: gay, lesbian, bi, transgender and straight alike who have enjoyed its openness, hospitality, superb service and conviviality for more than 20 years.
Colours opened modestly in the high-end district of Rohmoser, but always within the style of a classic Key West guest house. Beginning with nine rooms and four baths, it now boasts, after several expansions and redecorations, 20 rooms on two stories, each with private bath; a cozy bar; full restaurant with an inviting and attractively priced lunch and dinner menu; relaxing pool and sun terrace; Jacuzzi and gym/exercise room. Each room is distinctly and individually furnished in good taste and elegance; several have cooking facilities, and several can be confined into a self-contained two- or three-room apartment with private sitting room for groups of up to six and more.
Colours Oasis connects all the dots of gay travel in Costa Rica. It has a special affiliation and working relationship with gay and lesbian friendly hotels – many of them gay- and lesbian-owned themselves – which have since sprung up in Costa Rica’s most popular tourist destinations. As a trailblazer in opening and expanding gay travel in Costa Rica, Colours and owner James Remes have been an inspiration and respected bastion of support, good advice and and assistance for many of these flourishing hotels and B&Bs.
