Guanacaste is a gorgeous peninsula on the Pacific side of Costa Rica. In its center are mountains and jungles, its coasts home to an assortment of resort towns, surfer towns, unbelievable shows of bio luminescence, and lots of fresh fish.
The main locations:
In the north you have Playa Hermosa (lots of these around Costa Rica), Coco, Playa Flamingo, and Tamarindo.
Along the coast are legendary beaches like San Juanillo, Playa Nosara, and Samara.
In the south is Santa Teresa (our favorite), Montezuma, and Paquera (home to the year-round bio-luminescence).
The Best Beaches:
Beaches we went to:
Playa Conchal
Playa Hermosa (near Santa Teresa)
Beaches recommended to us that we didn’t get to go to:
Nacascolo
San Juanillo
Playa Nosara
Samara
Getting Around:
Getting around the peninsula can be tough. Most of the roads are terrible-condition, dirt roads that may or may not be impassible due to rain (but certainly warrant a high-suspension vehicle). The main road runs through the mountains along the northern coast. That makes many of the western beaches pretty inaccessible. We had planned to beach hop our way to Santa Teresa, but came to understand that the main road does not go that way. Just look at Google Maps:
This part seems to be un-passable (potentially due to the river):
The Quick Recommendation:
We found the north much less appealing than the south. It is more expensive than the south. In the south we found some beautiful airbnbs for a decent price (app. $100; take into consideration we were there during May). We didn’t love Tamarindo. Besides the sunset cocktails and fireshow, we didn’t find a great night-life vibe and the town felt dirty and touristy in not an appealing way.
Stay up north for a couple of days and check out the beaches (Nacascolo and Playa Conchal – make sure to go to the beach near the Marriot, as that side of the beach has the whitest sand and clearest water). Then head south!
South, center yourself around Santa Teresa. It’s a vibing, up-and-coming town with lots of digital nomads, yoga studios, shake shops, affordable luxury villas, and surf shops. It also has amazing surfing. If you’re a beginner, go surfing in Playa Hermosa (this is where most of the lessons happen…for a reason). For more on Santa Teresa, read our guide here.
From Santa Teresa, go to a bio-luminescence tour in Paquera. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and literally the best thing we did in Costa Rica (honestly maybe in my life). Read more here. Book a tour with Vigdis and Thomas. Amazing! $30 per person.
Also, take a day trip to Tortuga Island for incredible snorkling. We went with Zuma Tours – $70 per person.
When you’re ready to get back on the mainland, take the ferry from Paquera to Punta Arenas.