My son and I are planning our next surf trip to CR in April. We’ll rent a car, and chase waves for about 6-7 days and explore in between sessions when we are “totally blown”. Tips or advice?
From: reefbreak
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Surfing Costa Rica.
Date: 8 Dec 1996
If you are interested in in-depth surf travel information for Costa Rica, there’s a great book entitled “A Surfer’s Guide to Costa Rica.” Mountain & Sea distributes it to surf shops, or you can order it direct through their catalogue. The number is (310) 379-9321. Good luck!
From: rochelle
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Costa Rica and Panama
Date: Thu, 12 Sep 1996
CR is divided N and S, since the airport and capitol is in the middle, you have to go 4 hours any direction to get to a beach.
We went south, and I had a lot of fun at Dominical. The beach is rustic and untamed, and there’s a killer hotel up on the cliff overlooking the whole area. There’s the beach break, then around the point is a bay, which looks like it would be a lot of fun, but we didn’t go out there.
La Hermosa can get good if it’s not too big and outta control. Pavonnes is neat, a pill to get to (I’d recommend flying to Golfitas and taking a boat. The drive consists of a tom-sawyer type ferry across a river, lots of possibilities to get lost, farm animals that don’t give right of way, and washed out roads.) If there’s a swell (we should have flown; would’ve gotten it good there) it will be the longest left you’ve ever surfed. There are various other breaks along the stretch of coast as well.
From: Karl
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: COSTA RICA
Date: 8 Jan 1996
This is a reply to the surfer that was on his way down to Costa Rica on the 8th of January. I don’t know if you’ll get this in time, but if you’re going down and you’re going to take a tent, most places should be fine with that. You might not be able to camp, say at Playa Hermosa (beautiful breaks) or a lot of the other spots but you should be able to pitch your tent nearby. If you get a chance, log onto the Costa Rica surfing page on the Web, there is a lot of useful info there (sorry I dont’ have the address).
I just came up from up there and the weather and the surf sure beat what’s going on in NYC right now.
Best of luck.
From: SSurfer256
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Costa Rica Rent a Car RIP OFF!
Date: 17 Dec 1995
I just returned from Coasta Rica for the third time. I run the shit out of the cars while i am there. However, the trick to a hassle free return is a clean car!! Always wash the car COMPLETELY before you return it especially under the hood and fender wells. Always video tape the condition of the car while in the presence of the rental agent, and there will be no arguments when the car is returned.
From: jona
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Costa Rica Beta Wanted
Date: Thu, 23 Nov 1995
A surfer from Washington state recommended this book to me about 5 years ago. I looked at it and it looks OK:
The New Key to Costa Rica by Beatrice Blake/ Beacher.
This surfer recommended the following: Nice place to visit: Volcan Arenal COAST: Surf at: Playa Bonita, accomodations 26$/ngt Cocari? Tamarindo, surf spot on Pacific coast $16/ngt “Cabanas Pozo Azul” Manuel Antonio, small wave river mouth
I was in Costa Rica a few years back so I’m not sure how much things have changed. However you should check out the Monteverde Cloud Rain Forest if you have an extra day or two. Tamarindo has some good breaks and decent places to stay. If you go south you can stop at Playa Hermosa which is south of Jaco Beach. I did’nt care much for Jaco as it was crowded with Canadian tourist groups and kids with no transportation. The park at Manuel Antonio is also worth visiting if you want to take a break. There is some good information about Costa Rica breaks at the WWW site http://www.centralamerica.com/cr/surf/
Most of the people we met were very friendly and the roads are in decent shape until you get to the smaller villages. You should definitely rent a 4WD vehicle to get to the better breaks. Good luck.
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Costa Rica Clue
Date: 3 Nov 1995
The Hotel Del Pacifico in Hermosa is a great place to home base. It’s just outside of Jaco Beach. The beach break in front of hotel is great and empty. There are numerous breaks N & S depending on swell. Try calling Surf Express for maps of breaks, info and great deals on everything. We were very happy with their service. You can find their ads in the back of any surf mag.
From: Bill W.
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Surfed COSTA RICA?
Date: Wed, 23 Aug 95
My favorite spots in the Central and Northern West coast of Costa Rica:
Damas Rivermouth: Located 3/4 mile south of the harbor in Quepos, this spot is home “the big fucker” a 14 foot reptile that has been known to troll the river mouth. There are some sick, barreling rights that break on the sand bars just south of the rivermouth itself. Extreme currents, you will always be fighting them. Rarely crowded, for obvious reasons. No trip to Quepos is complete without surfing Damas Rivermouth.
Dominical: Plenty of beach break lefts and rights. Wide open, west facing beach gets more swell than most spots. Cheap accommodations on the beach. Not much to look at, but plenty of high-quality beach break.
Playa Hermosa: 2 Miles or so of Rock reef and Sand Bar breaks. Less crowded and better quality than Jaco beach. Also, if your feeling adventurous, check out Roca Loca, located between Jaco and Play Hermosa. There are a couple of hotels right on Playa Hermosa, one of which I always stay at (refrigerator, safe, cable TV, good beds, nice pool, good restaurant with free breakfast, rooms with ocean view, outdoor shower, right on a killer peak). Can’t remember the name, but it is all white with a brick road leading down to it, and a guard house at the entry, right of the road. Also, you can stay in Jaco, where you will find plenty of cheap food and accommodations, as well as overpriced resorts and small casinos. Check out the American expatriots here, a collection of freaks from Florida and Texas, who will gladly pound beers and watch the Tampa Bay Bucs get humiliated with you on Sunday afternoons.
Tamarindo Rivermouth: This sleepy little resort town has it all: hotels, food, good waves, good waves, and more good waves. A couple of reefs in the area as well as the 8 mile long beach, which gets real good just south of the rivermouth.
Ollies Point: This place I have only seen in Endless Summer 2. It didn’t look too crowded. But it is a little remote. I was told by locals in Tamarindo that it was possible to fly in the rainy season and drive in the dry season.
Now, the best Wave in Costa Rica is not a right at all…
Pavones: This is it. The longest ride I have ever seen. Considered by some to be the second longest left in the world. DO NOT MISS THIS SPOT. It is located at the southern tip of the west coast, just inside the mouth of small gulf. This wave races… it is fast. It can be hollow. It holds its size. IT IS THE SHIT! Pavones is remote. The roads wash out. It is an 8 hour drive on the Pan American highway from San Jose, and then a two hour drive from Golfito on dirt roads that wash out, bridges that wash out. You WILL NEED 4Wheel drive in the rainy season.
Stay at CASA IMPACT about a mile south of Pavones. It is a surf hut run by a drop-out from Florida named Ted (also known as Tator). Three square meals, plenty of hammocks, and uncomfortable bunk beds. $30 a day per person. 1 Shower, 1 toilet, 2 doberman pinchers, a couple of horses, and MOST IMPORTANTLY A ROOF OVER YOUR HEAD when it POURS for days. Camping is an option… if you have a really, really good tent.
Enjoy Costa Rica, it is a safe and comfortable place for Americans. Late…
From: MC
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Costa Rica
Date: Wed, 14 Dec 1994
I have been to Costa Rica 6 times in the past 6 years, unfortunately being a senior in engineering has stopped me the last year and probably the next year coming. anyway thought some tips may help.
1. Call surf line before you go b/c the N., like witches rock may be firing and the S., pavonaes, may be flat. or vise-a-versa.
2. Stay away from Jaco, it the cocoa beach of costa rica (very touristy)
3. Dominical has just as good beach break as jaco but much nicer and low key and there is a point just south of dominical called “Playa Dominical” i think
4. If you do go to jaco, do NOT miss escondidas, it N. of jaco and you take a boat(very $) out of Herradera. not sure on the spelling.
5. If you are a goofy-foot. Go to Pavoanees, it is what everyone makes it out to be if there are waves, if there are no waves the dirt is pretty cool to play with.
6. If the E. coast is big and you can handle big thick waves that pitch out farther than they are high, that go to Porto Viejo, S.E. tip. Salsa has taken three boards of mine, two on the same trip and two with .25″ stringers. but that wave has the nices tube I have ever sat in. and explore b/c there are other points to be found, shhhhhhhhhhh!
7. Have fun and respect the locals and people living there, and try not to run over the dogs.
keep surfing MC
From: JG
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Subject: Re: Costa Rica: Buy or Bring Stick
Date: 25 Sep 1995
I would recommend bringing your own board. When I went 2 years ago to Tamarindo down to Jaco, there were not very many good used boards. Most were pretty dinged up. You might want to buy a used board in the States and sell it down there when you are done. They like name brand US boards. You can get at least $100 for a board that’s in mediocre condition. By the way stay away from Jaco and head to Playa Hermosa or stay north around Tamarindo. Good luck.
