Looking to set up a trip to Costa and I'm looking for the best beach breaks. Sand bottoms but with decent waves possibly even barrel's. Little sketched by reef breaks even though they are better. Anyone surf any decent sand bottom breaks in costa?
Check out... Playa Hermosa - Heavy Beach Break, sand bottom. Playa Esterillos - As big as Hermosa, less heavy (there are a lot of breaks at esterillos) Dominical - Remote and far but a great place, less crowded, much like Hermosa Jaco - Dirty "Miami" like vibe but alot of clubs and surf shops. Few ok breaks, closes over head high Manual Antonio - If you wanna teach a GF to surf this is the spot. Small mushy waves, ton of surf instructors.
like dsull said, PLAYA HERMOSA. there are many places to stay right there pretty cheap (i assume they are still cheap as its been about 7 years since ive been there), with a huge lineup right out front. and there are lots of beachbreaks within an hour or so drive from there if you rent a car for a day or two. i stayed at a place in hermosa called cabina brisas del mar. just found the website and yes its still cheap. even cheaper when you can fill the room with a few guys. http://www.cabinasbrisadelmar.com/
If ur looking for a heavy consistent beachbreak, Hermosa is it. Lots of barrels, can break very hard, and seemingly almost always has waves I like grande better when it's breaking good, but it's not quite as consistent. If you want a more mellow sand bottom beachbreak, playa guiones (nosara) is a lot of fun also. Doesn't break that hard, even when it's got decent size. At head to a few feet overhead it's playful, whereas Hermosa at that size can get thumping. I think grande is somewhere in between. I equate jaco as a costa rican version of seaside heights... I wouldn't bother surfing there since Hermosa is better, and a stones throw away
