Our friends and favorite places
Nobody knows a coast alone. These are the neighbors, guides and hosts we've traded tips with over the years, and the spots we'd drag a visiting friend to first, each with a few words on why.
Friends of the site
Cabuya CR
Where the cemetery is an island and your commute depends on the tide.
An English guide to Cabuya, the small fishing village at the very end of the road past Montezuma, right where Cabo Blanco reserve begins. It covers the island cemetery you can walk to at low tide, the local beaches, and places to stay and eat. If Santa Teresa ever feels too busy, Cabuya is the slower answer, and this is the guide to read first.
Costa Rica Scuba
Because some of the most interesting neighbors here have gills.
A diving portal for the whole country, with dive spots, sea life and dive companies sorted by region, including a section on southern Nicoya around Montezuma, Tambor and Paquera. We like it because it's run by people who clearly care more about rays and turtles than about selling you anything. Handy if you want to see what's under all that water you've been surfing on.
Del Mar Adventures
She traded one surf camp for the whole country and kept the wetsuit.
Old friends of the site knew this as Del Mar Surf Camp. Founder María del Mar Alfaro, who grew up surfing in Costa Rica, now runs retreats and custom trips around the country and beyond, with a strong welcome for women traveling solo. If you're planning a bigger Costa Rica trip with surfing, yoga and wildlife in it, she's a good person to ask.
Bahía Rica
Where the paddle strokes glow in the dark and the fish stories are mostly true.
A small lodge and tour outfit on the calm Gulf of Nicoya side, just east of the Paquera ferry landing. They run bioluminescent kayak trips, sport fishing, paddleboarding, whale and dolphin outings and boat days to Tortuga Island. It's the opposite of the Pacific side's crashing surf, which is exactly the point, and it's an easy stop if you're arriving on the ferry.
Fuego Lodge
Hot name, cool pool.
A family-owned hotel on a quiet lane in the middle of Santa Teresa, a few minutes' walk from the beach, with gardens, a pool and a jungle deck for yoga. We like how it gets you close to everything without putting you on the busy main road. Read our full Fuego Lodge profile.
Costarican Vacations
Someone has to sort out the beach house. Might as well be them.
A local team renting out a hand-picked set of vacation houses along the coast from Manzanillo to Mal País. They also help guests arrange surf and yoga lessons and day trips such as horseback rides and visits to Cabo Blanco. Good to know about if your group has outgrown hotel rooms.
Don Jon's Surf and Yoga Lodge
Treehouses for grown-ups who never really grew up.
A Santa Teresa lodge with treehouses, private rooms and apartments about 100 meters from the waves, plus surf lessons, surf camps and yoga in the treehouses. It sits right in the thick of the town's restaurants, so dinner is a short walk. It's been part of the Santa Teresa surf scene for a long time, and it still has that easygoing, barefoot feel.
Escuela Futuro Verde
Homework, but with howler monkeys heckling from outside the window.
A bilingual, international school in Santa Teresa that's become a real anchor for families who live here year-round. Its teaching leans into curiosity, the environment and community, and it welcomes visiting students and volunteers. We love it because a town is more than its waves, and this is where a lot of the town's kids grow up.
Funky Monkey Lodge
Leg day is included. The ocean views are at the top of a lot of stairs.
A relaxed surf and yoga lodge in the heart of Santa Teresa, with everything from small budget rooms to treetop apartments, plus a big pool and a jungle yoga studio. It's friendly, fair and a short walk from the beach. Note the new web address: the old one now belongs to an unrelated blog. Read our Funky Monkey Lodge profile.
Luz en el Cielo
Light in the sky, eggs on the table, waterfall down the road.
A jungle eco-B&B and hostel just around the corner from Montezuma village, with dorms, cabinas and full rental houses, a pool and an organic breakfast cooked to order. The Montezuma waterfalls are a short hike away. It's a cheerful, unfussy base for travelers who'd rather spend on adventures than on thread counts.
Ranchos Itauna
Bed to beach in bare feet, with Brazilian food on the way.
Beachfront cabinas and a suite right on Playa Santa Teresa, between the beach's 2 main breaks, with a restaurant serving Brazilian and international dishes looking straight at the sunset. They offer surf lessons too. It's one of those places that feels like old Santa Teresa, in the best way.
Romelia Wildlife Refuge
The turtles' gated community. Strict door policy, excellent beach.
A small national wildlife refuge on the coast just north of Montezuma, behind the long beach walk toward Playa Cocalito. It protects coastal forest and the beaches where sea turtles come ashore to nest, and a turtle project there has relied on volunteers during nesting season. The refuge's own website is still marked "coming soon," so for now we link to its encyclopedia page.
Zuma Tours
If it floats, zips or rolls in southern Nicoya, they've probably got a seat on it.
A tour and transport operator working out of Montezuma and Santa Teresa, running Tortuga Island boat days, sunset and bioluminescence trips, the canopy tour over the Montezuma waterfalls, ATV rides and shuttles to and from just about everywhere. Useful when you want one call to sort out a whole day.
Our favorite places
Playa Carmen
Where everyone's first wave gets a round of applause from the sandbars.
The beach at the main crossroads, between Santa Teresa and Mal País. The sandbars soften the waves, so it's where most surf schools teach and longboarders drift around all morning. We love it because it's where the whole town seems to pass through at some point in the day, wet hair and all.
Mal País
Santa Teresa's quieter cousin, who reads at sunset and knows every tide pool by name.
The rocky southern end of the coast, running down toward the fishing harbor and Cabo Blanco. There are tide pools to poke around in, fewer crowds and a more local feel. It's our pick for an evening walk when we want the sunset without the scene.
Playa Hermosa
So much beach, you'll have to text your friends coordinates.
The long, wide, flat beach running north from Santa Teresa toward Manzanillo. The waves are gentler, the vibe is residential, and there's room for everyone. We love it for long walks, beginner surf sessions and that feeling of having a whole beach almost to yourself.
Koji's (Instagram)
Raw fish, warm candlelight, and a chef sensible enough to take the low season off.
A long-running Japanese restaurant and bar in Santa Teresa, known for sushi and grilled dishes made with fresh local fish. It's our favorite special-occasion dinner, the kind of night you dress up for, by Santa Teresa standards (a clean shirt counts). It closes for a break in the low season, so check before you go.
Cabo Blanco Absolute Natural Reserve (SINAC)
Costa Rica's first protected area, and the monkeys never let anyone forget it.
The forested southern tip of the peninsula, protected since 1963 thanks to a couple who refused to watch it get cut down. A trail through dry tropical forest leads to a wild beach, and you've got a good chance of meeting monkeys on the way. It's usually closed Monday and Tuesday, which catches out a lot of visitors, so check before you drive down.
Montezuma Waterfall
Nature's shower, now with a very firm "please don't jump" policy.
A set of falls on the river just outside Montezuma village, with a big lower fall dropping into a wide swimming pool. It's the classic half-day trip from Santa Teresa, ideally followed by lunch in Montezuma. Swim, take photos, and leave the cliff jumping to nobody: people have been seriously hurt.
Tortuga Island (with Zuma Tours)
For the day you want the ocean to just sit still for once.
A pair of small, forested islands in the Gulf of Nicoya with a white-sand beach and calm, clear water. Most people go on a full-day boat trip from Montezuma with snorkeling and lunch on the island. After a week of being tossed around by Pacific waves, floating in flat water feels like a spa treatment.
Horizon Hotel & Yoga Center (website)
Downward dog, upward view.
A small hotel on the hillside above Santa Teresa, with daily yoga classes on a hilltop deck and an organic vegetarian restaurant that's open to the public for breakfast and lunch. We love dropping in for a class and then sitting over breakfast while the Pacific does its thing far below.
Hotel Tropico Latino (website)
Yoga, then a nap under trees that were here long before the Wi-Fi.
A long-running beachfront hotel in south Santa Teresa, set in gardens under big old trees with the sand right there. There's daily yoga on an oceanfront deck, a spa and an open-air restaurant with its own organic garden. It's the place we send friends who say they want to "do nothing, but nicely."
Shaka Costa Rica (website)
Surf lessons in groups of 3, so nobody gets to hide at the back.
A small surf camp with daily yoga in Playa Hermosa, built around adults who want to actually get better at surfing. Lessons run in tiny groups matched by level, and most meals are included. It's a great fit for solo travelers who want company without a party hostel.
Anamaya Resort
Sunrise yoga, sunset yoga, and a pool that seems to pour straight into the Pacific.
A yoga and wellness retreat center on the jungle hillside above Montezuma, about 25 minutes from Santa Teresa. It hosts its own retreats and outside groups, runs 200-hour yoga teacher trainings, and serves organic meals with vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. The saltwater infinity pool and the wide view over jungle and ocean are reason enough to visit.
Know a place we should love?
We're always adding to this list. If you run something good around Santa Teresa, Mal País, Montezuma or Cabuya, or you've found a spot we really need to try, get in touch. We can't list everyone, but we read every message.