COSTA RICA SURFING

SOUTHERN GOLD COAST

You will find one terrific Costa Rica playa after another.

But be warned. This ain't Tamarindo!

Driving here can be a real Costa Rica adventure all by itself.

You’re going to find dirt roads here and, during the rainy season, sometimes impassable sections. Never drive along this part of the coast without a 4X4 during the rainy season. And, just because you are in a Costa Rica rental car, be cautious.

A WORD: Though I may not speak to other activities along this coast (this is, after all, about Costa Rica surfing), there are lots of things to do here on your Costa Rica vacation. I’ll try to get to most of them in other parts of this site.

But, back to Costa Rica surfing. . .

Costa Rica surfing video, courtesy of YouTube

Playa Junquillal is about 12 miles south of Tamarindo. Certified as a Blue Flag beach for its water and beach quality, Junquillal remains largely undiscovered, perhaps because of the rough roads leading to it. There are a number of very good surfing places along this two-mile long Costa Rica playa but the strong currents are not good for swimming.

Oh, and Ridley sea turtles nest here in December and January.

Heading south. . .

In addition to Playa Lagarto and Playa Marbello (good spots south of Junquillal), there are many fabulous beaches, most of which are out-of-sight of the road. If you want to explore a bit, traipse over to the beach and maybe you’ll find that perfect Costa Rica surfing you came here for.

Remember: every Costa Rica playa (beach) is public but you may need to ask permission to cross the land to get to some of them.

As you venture farther south in your Costa Rica car rental, you’ll come to Ostional National Wildlife Refuge and Playa Ostional, where you’ll find some of the highest breaking waves in the country.

Costa Rica Sea Turtles

The refuge is one of the most important sea turtle hatcheries in the world and between July and December (August and September are the peak) you’re likely to see thousands and thousands of Ridley Sea Turtles just outside the breakers.

Sometimes, they're so thick that they literally touch one another and as many as 150,000 (yep, you’re reading that right) of them come ashore to lay 15,000,000 eggs.

Don’t be surprised to see Ticos or Ticas gathering turtle eggs. The government allows them to harvest 1,000,000 eggs a year for sale as a delicacy.

Still going south. . .

You’ll come to Nosara, 35 miles south of Junquillo, and home to some of the best beaches on the Nicoya Peninsula. You’re going to find excellent surfing beaches, bad roads, and a variety of outdoor adventures.

Playa Nosara is a very popular place to surf. Unfortunately, its water quality isn't what it used to be.

Once the proud recipient of a Blue Flag certificate for water and beach quality, that honor was lost in 2008 due to some degradation. It’s still a great beach but it isn’t one of the best of the best right now.

Playa Guiones is just a bit south of Nosara. Here you’ll find a two mile long white-sand beach and very dependable beach breaks.

Playa Samara is about 13 miles south of Nosara (152 miles west of San Jose). Unlike its northern neighbor, Samara can be reached by a paved road so it’s a popular destination for Ticos as well as foreigners. You’ll find a pretty horseshoe-shaped beach about two miles long. Arribadas, vast arrivals of Costa Rica sea turtles, click

Want a Real Road Trip?

Try driving to Playa Manzanillo (you can also reach it by airplane but what's the adventure in that?).

You’re going to be in a very, very remote part of Costa Rica.

The dirt road will deteriorate to a trail and you’ll have to cross several rivers (not to mention figure out where to go because there are several unmarked junctions).

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES DRIVE THIS REALLY RUGGED TERRAIN WITHOUT A HARDY FOUR-WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE. NEVER DRIVE AT NIGHT AND BE SURE TO AVOID THE RAINY SEASON.

(If you're lucky enough to get there by car) Don’t confuse this Playa Manzanillo with another great surfing beach bearing the same name on the Caribbean.

At this Playa Manzanillo, you’ll find nice swells breaking over its reefs. But, though this is a nice beach that once had Blue Flag certification, it lost that honor in 2008 due to water degradation.

It’s still a great beach but not among the best of the best at the moment.

Of course, if you've gone to all the trouble to drive here, you probably will want to try the surfing.

Take a Ferry and Find Really Great Surfing

And the great thing about the Nicoya Peninsula is that it has great surfing water on three sides.

Better yet, you can reach the southeastern coast of the Nicoya Peninsula pretty easily. You’re best bet is to hop an airplane or go to Puntarenas (easily reached from San Jose on good roads) by car or bus.

From Puntarenas you'll then need to catch a ferry across to the fabulous Costa Rica surfing that awaits.

Along this part of the coast, you’re going to find miles and miles of spectacular, virtually deserted beaches (I wonder why?).

Fortunately, there are buses on this side of the peninsula so you'll be able to get around once you get here. For convenience, I’m simply going to call this Playa Malpais-Santa Teresa.

I’m lumping together miles-and-miles of truly spectacular deserted beaches in a gorgeous tropical setting with outstanding surfing because I’m getting tired of writing. So bear with me.

By the way, Playa Santa Theresa has the distinction of being a Blue Flag beach and having perhaps the finest resort in all of Costa Rica.

Surfers from around the globe come to these beaches to enjoy spectacular Costa Rica surfing and a really laid-back ambience. The great year-round weather doesn’t hurt.

You can come here anytime and always be assured of outstanding surfing but, if you’re really good, come between May and December for the really big swells.

Enough. I’m developing writer’s block so it’s time to stop.

But I do hope you’ve gotten a little taste of paradise.

Pura Vida!

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