Costa Rica Vacations and Info

Costa Rica is a tourist destination well-known and well-developed for surfing especially when you take into account that there are direct flights from the U.S. This has helped increasing its popularity. The country is safe, beautiful, friendly and blessed with great surfing conditions on both coasts.
The North Pacific of Costa Rica in general offers good quality surf throughout the year. The winds from the northwest during the month of December to March and thunderstorms in the northern hemisphere create ideal conditions for the waves. The best places in the Pacific north of Costa Rica for surfing are:

Potrero Beach
It is a remote beach in Costa Rica that has very good waves and impressive breaks points that will be enjoyed by any lover of the surf. There is no road access but you can rent a boat near the beaches of Playa Ocotal, or Coco.

Naranjo
(Also known as Witch’s Rock). It has one of the best beach breaks in the country, with very strong winds from the west from December to March. This remote beach is located in the Santa Rosa National Park, about 38 km north of Liberia. To reach it is advisable to go in a 4×4 but you can also arrive by boat from El Coco.

Grande Beach in Costa Rica
It has a beach breaks situated about 20 minutes north of Tamarindo. Recently was added to the system of national parks to protect nesting sites for leatherback turtles. This beach is accessible by road.

Tamarindo Beach
Tamarindo beach and town in Costa rica is a place that has a good central location for surfing in the North Pacific. There are plenty of good hotels and restaurants. There are also surf shops well equipped.

Langosta Beach in Costa Rica
There are break points to the right and left that form near the mouth of a small river. Langosta is easily accessible and is located about 1 km south of Tamarindo.

Surf in Avellanas - Costa Rica
In the event that surfers want to choose a beach break, an estuary beach and a reef break, Avellanas is the right place as it has excellent conditions for surfing. Avellanas is located about 10 kilometers south of Tamarindo and is now easily accessible by a dirt road fixed.

Playa Negra Beach
Playa Negra in Costa Rica is has one of the best break points of the North Pacific, thanks to its reefs. Playa Negra is located 15 km by road from Tamarindo and is accessible by car, but during the rainy season is recommended use a 4WD.

Nosara Beach, Guanacaste - Costa Rica
A beach with beach breaks left and right. This area is best known for its excellent Sportfishing, but it’s not a bad trip from Tamarindo and you can also enjoy good surf.

Malpaís and Coyote in Costa Rica
You can find all the good beach breaks in the remote Nicoya Peninsula, where 4WD is a necessity because of the rivers and the heavy mud that make the roads little passable. For some people the remoteness of the place is good with long stretches of empty beaches and the nature of Costa Rica.

Junquillal is a recreational area that includes a wide white beach of great scenic beauty, very gentle waves of waters that are very transparent and slightly cooler than the rest of the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica. In this beach spawn a lot of sea turtles and very close to the place were discovered the remains of a pre-Columbian settlement of a village farmer of hunters and collectors of marine products.

Junquillal is located 46 kilometers north of the city of Liberia; you can arrive by taking the Interamericana road until the civil guard post. From there are still ten kilometers to the community of Cuajiniquil and from that community you have to continue 4 kilometers north until you get to the beach.

Junquillal beach near La Cruz in Costa Rica north pacific

The dry forest extends to the edge of the beach; there are small areas of mangrove. The Frigate bird (Fregata magnificens) and brown pelicans (Pelecanos occidentalis), which are abundant there nest on the islands and islets located off the coast, such as islands of Los Muñecos and Juanilla. During the months of December to February, it is possible to see humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), reaching up to 15 meters long, swimming at a short distance from the beach, and has also reported the presence of the harmless and giant whale sharks (Rhincodon typus).

Junquillal beach is located at 30 kilometers west of Santa Cruz and 20 kilometers south of Tamarindo. Junquillal Beach is located near the village of the same name and is the perfect escape if you want to avoid monotony and bustle of other beaches. This beach is ideal if you want to make a quiet walk alone or with your couple because their sunsets are truly spectacular. It is not the best beach to swim because its waters are dangerous, but Junquillal Beach has some nice points for surfing and an estuary in the area. For those who prefer more action there are other activities such as horseback riding, fishing and snorkeling in the open sea.

You can make a trip to the nearby Playa Negra and Playa Avellanes. In these places there are excellent opportunities for surfing or visit the National Marine Park Las Baulas of Guanacaste, a national park which is just north of Tamarindo.
The administration of this place is located 5 kilometers north of Cuajinquil, in this community there is a market. Beside the administration is the camping area with tables, toilets and drinking water. There is a service of buses Liberia – Cuajiniquil in case that you need it.

Those people that are looking for a place to reduce its speed and live more easily will find what are they looking at Playa Junquillal. A pleasant climate, a way to live without tension, and excellent hosts to welcome you are an irresistible combination that makes Junquillal an ideal refuge. Having few restaurants, two shops, a school for 20 children is part of the attraction that makes Junquillal a village full of charm. Do not go hoping to go to the disco, rent watercrafts or looking for some kind of noisy.

Jaco Beach is one of the most popular beaches between local and foreign tourists, also due to its proximity to the international airport in San Jose. It is a small town, but at the same time very active, perfect destination for lovers of surf, the party and nightlife. When walking through the main street, you will find many surf shops, restaurants, bars, discos and a variety of accommodations. Jaco is a destination for surfers and young travelers in search of action. Jaco likes both the people from Costa Rica and the foregein tourists. This is due to the proximity to San Jose and other cities that many can drive back and forth over the same weekend, but also the people can go by bus and perhaps for this reason it is so visited at Christmas.

Central Pacific - Costa Rica - Jaco

Jaco Beach about 3 kilometers long is easily accessible and easier to be reached by taking a flight to San Jose and then drive up there. The regions north and south of Jaco are very quaint and clean, with wonderful panoramic landscapes of the ocean. Near Jaco is located Hermosa Beach that is a small community just 5 minutes from Jaco, heading south. It is famous for its big waves, hotels focused on tourism surf and small restaurants. Being an area with waves more challenging than those of Jaco, Hermosa Beach attracts surfers with more experience. Although there are some restaurants in this town, most people prefer to travel to Jaco to enjoy the nightlife, shopping and so on.

Jaco is an interesting and relaxed town with one of the most popular beaches of Costa Rica. It is located in the province of Puntarenas along the Pacific Coast, in the center of the country and with the reputation of being a city with an excellent nightlife. The Carara Biological Reserve is also located between Playa Hermosa and Jaco, along the Rio Grande de Tárcoles. It is one of the few breeding areas of the scarlet macaw, and includes various ecosystems such as wetlands, a pond, a gallery forest and primary and secondary forests fully of wildlife. The popular tourism activities in Jaco Beach are fishing, bird watching, canopy tours, horseback riding tours and kayaking tours among others. Also you need to be very careful when you swim in the beach because it is common to find reptiles along the edge of the beach, in addition the waves and tides can be extremely dangerous for swimmers.

The biggest attraction of this town is the great surfing that you will find due to big waves and their consistent and good breaks. Annually there is an important tournament nearby Playa Hermosa beach that attracts a large number of surfers from all over the world. You just need to know avoid visiting Jaco during the high season because it is very expensive and crowded with tourists if you do not like touristic places full of people, bars, party and noise, but if you enjoy this kind of environment you will love Jaco.

Indigenous villages used to be what is today Golfito, with the cultivation of bananas, and thus the banana companies have transformed this region of Costa Rica. The city of Golfito is the header of the canton of Golfito and is located about 341 km from the city ofSan Jose and 41 km from Ciudad Neily. As its name indicates, Golfito is a small inlet in the Golfo Dulce, this one is formed between the Osa Peninsula and the Punta Banco, in the course of the Panamanian border. The port is situated in a beautiful scene of wooded hills, with the Osa Peninsula visible in the distance. These hills are part of the National Wildlife Refuge Golfito.

Golfito Bay is very well protected and only close the mouth connects to the ocean, is a perfect place for a port. Here is built the main port for the extraction of bananas. The plantations extended to the border with Panama and Golfito was the ideal port.
Even today it can be seen in Golfito divided into two districts: The workers lived in simple houses made of wood at the Village Civic in the south, and the Americans administrators in green villas in the northwestern part, the villas are made from green wood painted now situated in the so-called American zone.

In 1985 the United Fruit Company and the landowners withdrew the banana plantations in Costa Rica after 72 days of strike by workers. Since then unemployment has been a major problem in this region. Many of the banana plantations were transformed into the African palm. This palm oil is used for cooking oil, margarine and soap. Many of these plantations are leased by independent entrepreneurs. In 1990 a free trade zone was established in Golfito, with the aim of creating jobs. The only condition to buy in this deposit is that you must stand in Golfito at least one night.

There are nearby beaches that are good for surfing or swimming, also there are tours for tourists on a boat for one day duration in Rio Claro that are really good for fishing or to visit the nature reserve of Golfito, located north of the town. Golfito has its own marina and is an excellent starting point for sport fishing. The free trade zone, Storage Free Trade of Golfito, is located in Golfito and is an important point which many Costa Ricans go to buy appliances for its reduced price. Many people travels from San Jose or more away to buy televisions, washing machines and many more. All the Costa Ricans in this area can buy duty-free warehouse in the Free Trade of Golfito.

There is a variety of hotels and restaurants in the locality, however there may be problems occupying only on weekends when buyers arrive at the warehouse.