Tamarindo is a mecca for Europeans and Americans to vacation. It's not just for surfers ~ but anyone looking to relax near the beach. Millions of dollars have been spent on high-class developments, but the locals that live just out of town are still the friendliest in Central America. Visit soon, before concrete and pavement cover up the natural beauty of this region. And if you surf, the dry season's Papagayo winds blow offshore all day long.
Do you need a board to rent in Tamarindo? Costa Rica Surf Club let us know that they are now a Channel Islands authorized dealer in polyester resin and Tuflite. And they also carry the whole Donald Takayama line in Tuflite and a few BING Longboards and Strive surfboards with a great price.
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CHECK OUT the 2010 Tamarindo Phone Book - online here..
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Upcoming Event: The Tamarindo Beach Marathon returns to town for the fourth time Sept. 11, beginning at 5 a.m. With national and international participants, the marathon is 42.2 kilometers and also features 21.1 km and 10 km events and a 400-meter children’s race called Tamarindo Kids. The big race, however, starts and finishes in Tamarindo and runs through Villarreal, Matapalo, Huacas and Brasilito. More than 800 runners have participated in the marathon in the past, with the same number or more expected this year. For more information, visit www.tamarindobeachmarathon.com.
If you are a resident that gets their trash collected, read this bulletin.. Si Ud. es un residente que paga por los basureros, lea este boletin.. LINK
Thanks to Joe at Witchs Rock Surf Camp for moving the recycling bins so they have a nightime watchman guarding them. This way the program can stay intact, as less thieves will pick through the valuable recyclables.
Want to learn Spanish on your own time? Diana Zimmerman offers private Spanish classes. She is bilingual and has several years of experience. She will conduct the class at her home and during a time that works for you. Email her for more information and scheduling.
For updated news of what's happening in Tamarindo, visit:
Come pick up fresh free-range filet mignon, *chicken breast, *pork tenderloin, specialty cheeses, organic wine and fresh organic vegetables and fruit for the meal your mother deserves!
Gifts of handcrafted jewelry and natural skincare are on hand as well.
(*on special sale today!)
We've got your mother's day covered! Open today, Sunday, May 9th from 10-2pm or stop in and ask for Holly whenever you have a Zephyr Eco need!
Hello Everyone - Chef Lane here. Thought you all would like to know that I've JUST STATED a catered boxed gourmet lunch DELIVERED! to you three days a week in the Tamarindo and surrounding areas.
STARTS THIS MONDAY JULY 19TH - place your order via phone or email. NEW PHONE NUMBER (506) 8701 4638 Try for a day ahead IF possible :)
Chef Lane Patrick's gourmet lunches
delivered to your office or door step!
Gourmet lunch menu:
5000 colones for any of the below selections brought right to you.
~ Pepper Seared Ahi Tuna Sandwich
with Wasabi Mayo & Asian Slaw + Side Salad
~ Avocado Lettuce and Tomato Sandwich
+ Side Salad
~ Tandoori Chicken Sandwichwith Apple mayo + Side Salad
~ Classic B.L.T + Side Salad
~ Chicken Caeser Salad - Shaved Grana Padano ,Pesto Croutons & Creamy Dressing
~ Cajun Chicken Salad - Roasted Corn, Tomato & Feta Lemon Olive Oil Dressing
Great news for Mother Nature:
Biodegradable cleaning products are now available in Tamarindo! They are not more expensive than common products and they work wonderfully! For information, prices, distribution and/or a free demonstration, please contact Viviana.
Surfrider Beach Cleanup:
Meet at the recycling tent at 9 a.m. the second Saturday of each month.
Meeting at the Surf Club Sports Bar in Playa Langosta on the last Thursday of each month at 7 p.m.
Since Tamarindo lost its “blue flag” certification two years ago, a group of concerned citizens and business people have been working hard to regain it. Participants from Hotel Capitan Suizo, Hotel el Diria, the Surfrider Foundation and Vacation Rentals of Tamarindo have been especially active in this project, which includes the beach clean-ups along with reforestation projects, environmental education at every age level, correct procedures to analyze water and remedy problems, and much, much more. Interested persons can contact this fine organization or by contacting Sonia Fuentes of Hotel Capitan Suizo at 2653.0075.
Tamarindo Recycling Day:Now Every Tuesday!
Each Tuesday morning the Municipalidad de Santa Cruz will drive through Tamarindo and Langosta picking up recyclable material at the 10 sites with collection barrels and all other businesses who have contacted us to request pick-up. Please feel free to send comments or notify us of problems at this address. To request pick-up at your business, please e-mail us.
Please note the 5 new recycling drop-off sites in addition to the 5 old ones: (
Por favor anote los 5 puntos nuevos para dejar material reciclable además los 5 originales)
1. At the MINAE building where Turtle Tours originate by the Estuary (Junto al estero en la casita de bambú)
2. At the Parque Independencia beside El Milagro Hotel (En el Parque de Independencia (cancha de fútbol))
3. Across the street from Aqua Discotech in the beach parking lot (En el parqueo de la playa en frente de Aqua Discoteque)
4. In the Circle ( En La Rotunda)
5. On the beach access-road that is near El Pescador and the Alfaro bus station (En la calle que va a la playa por el Pescador, detras de la estación de buses Alfaro)
6. In the cul-de-sac by Hotel Luna Llena (En la calle sin salida donde está Luna Llena)
7. On the road to Langosta near the bus stop (Camino a Langosta cerca de Hotel Mono Loco)
8. By the beach access in Langosta between Crystal Sands and Cala Luna (Junto al aceso de la playa entre Crystal Sands y Cala Luna)
9. At the Langosta beach access parking lot between the RPM office and the Barceló (ondos Frente al parqueo en el aceso a la playa entre la oficina de RPM y los condos de Barceló)
10. At the Surf Club Sports Bar in Langosta (En el Surf Club Sports Bar en Langosta)
If the barrels are full, please leave your bags in an orderly pile.
Tamarindo Recycles is happy to announce three new sets of barrels for community drop-off of recyclable material. All three of theses sites are located along the "Pasatiempo" road. These barrels are made of white heavy plastic and have our stickers on them. The first set is near the corner across the street from the Oveja Negra hostel. The second set of barrels, farther up the road, is in front of the empty lot across the street from La Botella de Leche. The third set is across the street from the gym on the corner near Villas Mariposa. Please help us to keep the sites clean by bringing your material in CLOSED bags. Please bring an empty bag with you when you drop off your material and donate 5 minutes of your time to collecting loose bottles etc. from the site you use. Remember: NO WET CARDBOARD. If it looks like rain, keep your cardboard at home.
Tamarindo Bay looks beautiful from a balcony at the Best Western Vista VIllas, but it also looked small. The rivermouth was waist high with 5 longboarders and 30 other friends and fiends, so I took the short paddle across the Tam. rivermouth and walked about a mile into the "park" or yet undeveloped quiet white sand beach. I sat for about 40 minutes with my board under a tree, reading a book, when I looked up and said - "DAMN !!!" The dropping tide made the wave hit the sandbars perfectly, left and right fast mini-barrels in the head high range. You can see the bottom 10 feet down it's so clear. No one was within 200 yards as I snatched a left, then a right, then a left - using a piece of driftwood on the beach to line up the sweet spot. Too big, and it closes out.
The Tamarindo rivermouth breaks better on lower tides, and the size can look smaller from the beach than what it really is. Dominated by longboarders and locals, the wave can shack up and give surfers 100 yard rights. The best swells have more west in them and it works best from waist high to 1 foot overhead. When it's bigger it shuts down.
Right in front of Witchs Rock Surf Camp is the main beach in Tamarindo where the beginners learn to surf. It is usually small, knee to chest high, and when it is bigger closes out. It is best from mid to high tide. It can be a bit polluted in the middle of the rainy season, so keep your ears clean.
Right behind the Tamarindo Diria the beach is thinner and there are a string of rocks that go out about 150 yards. Depending on the swell size and tide, a wave breaks off both sides of the rocks, producing lefts that go for about 200 meters or longer and rights about 150 meters. Watch out for rocks at lower tides and beginners at high tides. This spot is also localized, so respect the order in the lineup. Breaks best at head high to 2 feet overhead.
8/30 - The unpredictable, crazy weather continues. Last week a handfull of our guests surfed the main peak all by themselves for hours in rideable, but less than perfect, head high conditions. The swell has been around head high on the sets and smooth in the morning during high tide.
This morning (Sunday) is beautiful although it will probably rain later on today.Without the cranking off shores it never seems to be perfect, but great sessions are being reported here and there.
We have a range of super cheap rooms and apartments (as low as $12/nt for two people) if you want to take your chances.
8/29 - Knee to chest high waves with poor to fair shape (2-4ft) The swell rain is weak but the waves look better this morning. The wind was light offshore and the conditions are glassy. We currently have sunny skies with light offshore winds and a chance of rain later today.
If you have a chance, get out there soon. I don’t think it will last for long, but I’ve been wrong before.
Contact us at or give us a call at 1-888-958-SURF for your next surf trip to Playa Grande..
8/29 - We were expecting a big jump in the swell this Saturday but it never happened. Waves are waist to chest high and breaking pretty soft.
With lower tides in the morning we have had better conditions in the afternoon sessions with an incoming tide and light winds. Maybe the swell will show up later this weekend. We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Good luck Costa Rica in Panama. We'll be sending our own Christian Santa Maria to compete with the National team in Peru this October. Looking forward to seeing him compete and surf some big Peru waves. Pura Vida!!
8/30 - The surf is acting a little odd today, with waves stacking up on top of each other, making what would otherwise be fun head high surf, a bit funky. The sun is out though, so there's no complaints from me.
The tide will probably change this throughout the day, so it's going to be one of those days where you just have to check over and over to get a good session.
Getting There
From San Jose, drive west towards Orotina. Then you can either take the ferry from Puntarenas (longest route, but most scenic) - take the bridge across the Tempisque River (a quick, scenic route but watch out for the policia catching speeders on both sides!) or drive 2 hours up to Liberia and then west for another 2 hours (the safest route). During the rainy season, the trees envelope the road in a tunnel of foilage. In the dry season, the suns blazes down on a dusty tan horizon.
Sunset Sailing Cruise
Kayaking the Tamarindo Estuary
Night-time turtle watching (November-March)
Canopy Zipline Tour
4x4 Backcountry Tour
YouTube Video from Iguana Surf showcasing tours and activities in Tamarindo:
Favorite Restaurants
Surfers Sports Bar - Langosta - Drinks
La Laguna de Cocodrilo - Tamarindo - Bakery/Pizza
Other Surf Spots
Ollies Point - This right hand point break works best on low to mid tides. At high tide breaks really close to the beach, but it is still fun with southwest swells. Rides can go on for 400 meters and throw barrels. It is only accessible by boat, and you must pay an entry fee to the Santa Rosa National Park, $6 pp. Only a limited number of boats are allowed in the park so there will not be over 50 people, but that is a lot since there is only three sections to sit on. Without a swell the waves are only longboardable. Make sure your boat captain has permission to enter the park or you could lose the $250-350 you paid for the trip.
Witchs Rock, or Roca Bruja, is inside the Santa Rosa National Park. The wave is accessible by a 4wd vehicle for most of the year, with sparse camping - bring your own water and bug repellent. Lots of boats come in, make sure they are licensed to enter the park (cost $50 pp + $6 entrance fee). The waves are clean, with lots of offshore winds especially from December to April. Picks up swells from the SSW and SW and can throw barrels. Best wave size is chest high to two feet overhead, any bigger and it tends to close out. Best tide to surf it is mid to high tide. It is most crowded by the rock and rivermouth, but the whole beach has waves. Beware of crocs and a few sharks during turtle nesting season.
The Labyrinth is a sketchy right hander that breaks at lower tides when the rocks are exposed. Can throw a mean barrel and produce a workable shoulder for about 60 yards before it pounds shut on the rocks. Boat access only, make sure your captain is permitted to enter the Santa Rosa National Park.
Playa Grande is a beachbreak that works best from chest high to 3 feet overhead. When it's big it tends to break way outside and then reform about 100 yards off the beach. Lots of barrels and fun sections to smack. Best tide is mid tide coming in. At dead high there's some backwash, low tide has mostly closeouts. The break can get most crowded from June-August and December to April, but there are empty peaks up and down the beach. Do not leave stuff in your car as there is a lot of theft. Best place to stay is Hotel Las Tortugas, right on the break with secure parking, great food, and a pool.
Playa Langosta - The waves break over a rocky shelf, with more sandy stretches to the south of the rivermouth. Watch for the boils at lower tides to find a hollow peak. Best size is chest high to 3 feet overhead, when it's bigger can close out. The main break is behind the Barcelo Langosta, but they have made it nearly impossible to park near there. You'll find a few spots to park about 200 meters north. The rights during a swell with a lot of west in it can go for over 200 meters. The crowds are a bit lighter here due to the poor access, but the Barcelo guests think they own the peak, and the locals don't give up many waves.
Avellanas - Little Hawaii - At the northern end of Playa Avellanas, well past the rivermouth, are a series of rock outcroppings that at the right tide produce some great lefthanders. It's best when many other spots are closing out because it is too big. Very remote so do not get injured, and don't leave your stuff unattended.
Avellanas - Beachbreak - When you pull up to the beach you will see a giant hog. She has been there for years greeting visitors and lying in the shade under the mangroves. There is semi-secure parking, but don't leave stuff in your car. To the south are a bunch of rock shelves, so be careful during all lower tides. To the north is the beachbreak, which works best at waist high to a foot overhead. Waves are easy to catch, have some fun sections, and sometimes throw a thin lip to duck under. When it is any bigger it usually closes out. The crowds thin out the farther north you walk, and the best tide to surf are higher tides. There is only one hotel here on the beach, Cabinas Las Olas, which has trails through the mangroves leading to the shore leaving the view unspoiled by development. Other small hotels are across from the the road, about 1/2 kilometer from the beach.
Playa Negra -
Negra is a mostly right breaking wave and my favorite tube ride on the Pacific. The water is a deep blue, and the barrels are formed perfectly when the tide and swell are right. It works best from head high to double overhead, any bigger and it closes out. A few lefts come through if it's smaller, but you end up in the rocks which at low tide is sketchy. Speaking of sketchy, don't leave stuff in your vehicle as theft is rampant. Best tide to surf for many is lower to mid tides, but at high tide can also be fun if there is some size. John Lyman is usually on the beach everyday taking photos for locals and turistas. (His photo is above)
I have caught the best right tube of my life at this break. There were about 15-20 people out, 10 foot faces with bigger sets. I was the farthest outside (the best spot in that lineup) - sharing it with some Venezuelan locals who ripped. The ideal situation is to shell out the $55 clams a night and sit on it. (Or camping is cool) Get up at dawn and surf a couple of hours before the first ten 4x4s from Tamarindo shows up with 4 surfers each. You'll be rewarded with a fast makeable drop (on occasion) that sets up a perfect right tube over deep enough water and rocky reef in crystal blue water with no civilization in sight except for the hotel bungalows right back where you parked. There are other points to the north and south, but this one sets up best with most any swell. After the tube, you can do 2 or 3 big-ole gouges before it closes out on the far inside. A little channel helps to slip you out between meatier sets.
Playa Junquillal - is a remote stretch of salt and pepper sand and empty waves south of Playa Negra and north of Marbella. It is not surfed a lot since the peaks come at different tides and disappear when the tide gets too high or too low. At lower tides you can see the rock ledges that make the waves break farther outside.
Marbella - has two main breaks. A beachbreak to the north that works best at mid to high tides and can break bigger when other spots are small. It also gets hollow and can provide some quick rights. The second break to the south is a left point break off a rock shelf that works best at lower tides. Waves can go for about 200 yards with a big shoulder for cutbacks, but not tuberides. The crowd is usually heavier at the beachbreak and there a lot of locals that surf it so give them respect.
