Hey everyone, I'm seriosly looking to plan a surf trip possibly to Costa Rica. I was wondering if anyone has ever been. Want to know whats the best time to go? And i been checking out some of these surf camps and wondering if they are worth staying there or if im better off just doing mhy own thing? Any information will help, thank you.
www.surfcosta.com check the 'surf trips' part of this website. some good info on there. pm me if you have questions/interest.
Better surf during the rainy season, which is our summer. Smaller, less consistent surf during the dry season - our winter. Either way you'll get fun waves, though...
I just went to CR in early August. We stayed in Playa Guiones, near Nosara. We had 8 people in our group, but only two surfers. I can't speak to the surf camps, but my wife and sisters took lessons from Christian at Coconut Harry's and liked it and we rented boards from there. They had a decent selection and there are a bunch of other surf shops with tons of boards as well. We rented a house which was a 5 minute walk to the beach. There are a fair amount of restaurants in the area within walking distance, but you would may want to rent a car to explore the area a bit. As for the waves, while we were there it was chest to head high with occassional overhead sets rolling through. Honestly, I had just gotten back into surfing after a long hiatus and found the paddle out to be pretty challenging. Once out there though, it's a fun wave. As far as the best time to go, the "rainy season" runs from April to November, but peaks in late September and October. While we were there, it rained for a total of maybe 2-3 hours in 8 days. I don't know if we got lucky or what, but it was an awesome time. Great people, good waves, and good food. I would definitely go back. Oh...if you rent a car, definitely get the GPS. Some of the roads are not marked well if at all. If you have any specific questions about the Nosara area, let me know. Also check out surfingnosara.com for a surf report and rental info.
Pura Vida brother!!!! My wife and I own a condo in Jaco and have been travelling to CR for over 8 years and love the entire country. We spent 2 weeks in Pavones in June for the first time and LOVED IT!!!! It's a magical place. We spend most of our time around Jaco and Hermosa. I've got contacts for rental vehicles and places to stay. Get in touch with me and I'll be glad to give you any info you want. Jon
I am by no means a pro surfer, I can hold my own prolly up to head high. So I was looking into one of these surf camps to possibly improve on my surfing. I am hearing that Tamarillo I believe it is called has alot more famous spots like Witches and Ollies Point that are great waves and fairly easier surf as opposed to Jaco. Since it will be my first time traveling there I would be more comfortable being with a group, and being shown the ropes of the cou ntry and next year traveling into the jungle by myself. Plus the prices im seeing for these camps isnt bad. Around $900 for a room, board rental for the week and free breakfast everyday. Airfare is not included but the airfair is cheaper than I thought to fly to Liberia from Newark.
Yea I have been to CR 8x's over the last 15 yrs. If your going by urself I would recomend a surf camp even if its ust you and a bud wil llittle knowledge of the breaks a camp is a good call. First few trips I went and got a rental and had a map and explored it was great but then few yrs later I was back and going solo I stayed at a camp and scored! So all depends on what you want to do a camp will help your surfing some intermediate lessons would be good also. Imperial. Do you have contact for transpo to Pavones? What would be a good way to surf pavones traveling solo?? I know its not as hard to get to now but still a bit of a drive and a rental isnt economical on a solo trip. Thanks
In that case, I agree with bauer...check out a surf camp. They'll be able to turn you onto some waves and you'll probably meet some cool people. If you want to do your own thing though, you'll be fine. The locals are pretty cool and there will likely be a lot of surfers from the US (and other countries) there. If you go during the rainy season, use caution on the roads. Some of them are not passable during the rainy season unless you have a crazy 4WD truck. We learned this lesson the hard way and got stuck.
