Top 5 Adventures in Nosara, Costa Rica

Nosara is located on Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula on the Pacific Coast. Local laws prohibit development within 550 feet of the shore, leaving pristine jungle beaches. Consistent year round surf break makes Playa Guiones the areas most popular beach. Playa Guiones is a 2.5 hour drive from Liberia airport on paved roads until the last hour, where you are on dusty dirt roads.

We were a group of 10 arriving at Liberia airport together so we arranged for a van pick-up through the hotel. The driver stopped along the way at a local supermarket for some snacks and Imperial. We stayed at the Gilded Iguana Surf Hotel which is located right infront of the main access to Playa Guiones. Check out a full description of the Gilded Iguana Surf Hotel HERE.

Contact me to book your stay in Nosara. You can also check out hotels HERE.

Gilded Iguana Surf Club

Becoming a member of the Gilded Iguana Surf Club provides you with access to surf boards, boogie boards, and hybrids. Members are able to use the lockers, changing rooms, bathrooms, surf lounge, board caddies, fresh water showers and short path to the beach. As a member you also receive discounts at the juice bar, spa, retail shop, surf lessons, and restaurant.

The surf club made is super convenient for taking boards out. The kids were able to easily change their mind about surf boards and boogie boards and shower off after beach fun. Not having to carry and store the boards at the hotel was such a nice feature. My kids and I took a surf lesson one morning which I found very helpful in pinpointing my bad habits and receiving pointers in the local beach break. My kids dad is usually the one to assist in surfing but since we separated I needed someone to build our confidence. Maria was very patient and great with the kids.

We spent a lot of time at the juice bar sipping smoothies and coffee after each beach adventure.

Sea Saw Fishing

Chase is an avid fisherboy. This was his choice for the trip. I read a lot of reviews online and booked this one ahead of time. The fishing boat leaves from Playa Garza which is about a 25 minute tuk tuk drive from Playa Guiones. Sea Saw Fishing arranged to meet us at a local grocery store near the beach. Juri met us with his green pick up truck and the 6 of us piled in. He brought us through a local property to a beautiful beach with about 10 fishing boats anchored off shore. A small boat with an outboard engine picked us up and drove us to Juri’s boat where his mate was waiting for him. We had arranged for a 1/2 day tour since we had 3 kids with us so we were unable to go far offshore. Juri captained the boat while Dari was in charge of rods and bait. Juri was so friendly with Chase and went out of his way to build his confidence with fishing. We caught black tuna (skipjack), mahi mahi and a large jack cravalle. Dari filled the fish which we later brought to Pacifico Azul restaurant where Carlito cooked it 3 ways for us. This was definitely Chase’s highlight for the trip.

We booked another last minute fishing trip from a tour office on the road. It was TERRIBLE. TERRIBLE. The captain and crew make all the difference in the world.

Pipin ATV

An ATV tour was Dylan’s choice. We booked the trip through a tour office near Gilded Iguana. I think most of these tour offices just call friends who have ATV or boats or whatever you need. It worked out well though. We had a group of 8, 3 adults and 5 kids. Kids need to be 18 to drive alone so we needed 2 guides to drive with kids. They picked us up at the hotel and we ventured off down the dusty roads and into the jungle. There was a sketchy bridge to cross and some rivers to splash around in (although it was pretty dry). Dylan, who is 8, was able to sit in front of me and drive which he was PSYCHED about.

Playa Ponies

The whole group, kids ages 8-13, joined on this horseback ride. The owner of Playa Ponies matched the horses very well with the riders. The bossy girl who wouldn’t let anyone pass her was matched with Jyoti. Eric’s horse Elvis wouldn’t stop eating. Dylan was taunting it with leaves. Anya, the youngest rider, was placed on a pony that the head guide led. The walk on Playa Pelada was awesome. There is something about horses on a beach that is beautiful to me. We walked passed many local homes as well as many neighborhoods that have tons of new development.

Playa Guiones Sunsets

The sunsets at Playa Guiones are BEAUTIFUL!! We were there in April and sunset was at 6pm. A lot of tourist and locals come down for sunset and many surfers are still in the water which makes for great pictures.

EAT!!

There are so many great places to eat in Nosara. I ate WAY too much during our stay. From ordering guacamole at the pool of Gilded Iguana to smoothies after each beach session. Walk down the dirt road near Playa Guiones and you will find many delicious options.

Nosara was a great family vacation. The surf was perfect for beginners. Chase and Dylan were both psyched with their choices. The Gilded Iguana was in the heart of the town, walking distance to restaurants and the beach. In my next visit I will definitely visit the SIBU Wildlife Sanctuary , Ostional Wildlife Reserve for the sea turtles, and San Juanillo for snorkeling.

I like traveling to expose myself to new experiences, new ways of life, new people and culture. I had a little bit of a hard time with the divide I felt between the tourists and the locals. I felt like the life of locals is so vastly different from the life that is experienced by tourists during their stay, that I do not feel it was authentic. I did not get to experience the life of a local … and I do not know if I would ever be able to. Perhaps our lives are too different to be able to truly feel, as oppose to seeing it through traveling eyes.