Wife Approved Surf Trip

Nosara is a mellow waves, but fun on a fish or longboard. Also is rideable at any size, seen it over double over head and it is still rippable at that size. You can drive around and find some heavier waves, but not all that close. Very family friendly place and great place for the wife. Harmony Hotel is super cool, if you can swing it go there. Rent a longboard and relax.

 

Damn! May not be the place I'm looking for. It's first and foremost a surf trip for me and am looking for a good, safe location but its just as important to have quality short board waves. Any tips? Been digging around and can't quite find a confirmed girlfriend-safe location that has quality performance waves...

 

Rancho Santana, Nic. fun beach break out front. good waves all around the area. wife can sit by the pool or in the clubhouse sippin cocktails while your out getting barreled. also have activities n tours the wife might dig. horseback riding, etc.
el sal, panama and costa are good options too. cant go wrong that time of year in central america for waves.

 

Thanks for the tips! I hear Nicaragua is awesome for surf but I hear it can be sketchy/dangerous. Worried about the girl being with me...

 

That's not inaccurate.

The bigger, better waves are usually found in the stretch from the second beach entry point (which is just down the road 5 mins walk from Harbor Reef) on up to the 'last' beach entrance located near Gilded Iguana.

The surf schools are typically located between the second & third beach entry points. It's easy to figure out once you're there. You & your gf will have a great time in the water & out at Guiones. Beach Dog cafe has very good food. As does Gilded Iguana. Robin's has good lunch sandwiches. Do some exploring in town, you'll find good stuff. Have a great trip, it's a cool little surf town.

 

Thanks a bunch for the input, Yankee. Thats a huge help.

 

While Guioness is great for long boards, it is good for short boards as well. My last five trips I only surfed a 5'10" short board and had a blast. When it gets really small (waist) that is the only time when a longboard was probably a better call. That can be the case with many spots. When it gets bigger (head), a short board is the call in my opinion. Most of the guys I know down there all shortboard and they can rip. Additionally, the recent earthquake changed the break a bit and made it even faster. Look on the www.surfingnosara.com website and you can find some videos of guys getting barreled. Also, you can drive 20 min north to Ostional and find some world class shortboard waves as it is a much faster break. Is it Pipeline? No, but it's pretty good.

 

Yes, I have done the coaching program with Pureline. Helped me out tremendously. I consider myself a strong intermediate surfer and new there were certain things holding me back to get me to the next level. Did a couple coaching sessions with Pureline where they video and then critique. I would have never been able to figure out my bad habits on my own. Totally worth it. Breaking those habits, well that's another story.....

 

All true.

The Guiones wave(s) are what you would call 'friendly.' You'll see when you get there. If you bring a shortboard & the surf is down (which happens, occasionally) you can choose from a pretty wide variety of boards from the rental places. 15-20 bucks per 24 hours.

BTW, May is a good month to go. Good waves & less people in the water: way less gringos, due to the start of summer around Mem Day wknd.

As others have noted, plan on tropical rainstorms coming through.

 

Thanks for the tips fellas. Nosara sounds like the spot!

 

If you want more of a performance wave you can explore some, I found one South of Samara, but had to cross a river, not sure if it will be passable that time of year or if there is a bridge now. Mal Pais is more of a performance wave and is good for the wifey, Manuel Antonio is super nice and has a punchy wave, but is always smaller. Dominical is nice too, but could see you getting bored there. Don't think you will be disappointed with Nosara, just rent a car and explore or settle for ripping on a longboard or fish as if it were a shorboard.

 

"! Love your children because surfing and marriage don't mix. " Not true, a big part of any relationship is managing expectations, do it well and you can go surfing any where.