We’d been trying to plan a surf trip ever since Colin and I got together (2014). Every year something came up, and it got pushed to “next year”. This year we finally made it happen. And just in time too. It was our last trip before Covid-19 grounded the world.

If you’re like us, then you like to have activities on the agenda but also like your mellow days. We don’t structure our days too much because we like our freedom and spontaneity to enjoy things that aren’t on a list.

Our visit to Costa Rica started in the mountains, Monte Verde, with some incredible adventures zip lining, climbing trees, hiking, and riding horses. After a few cold, wet days in the rain cloud forest, we made our way down the mountain, taking the ferry across the bay, and drove the last leg of the trip to the beaches of Santa Teresa.

Santa Teresa

Santa Teresa is the coolest little beach town, nearly off the grid. The main street is still a two-way dirt road, so it really has an old surf town vibe. Restaurants and surf shops line the main road. Dirt bikes and four wheelers pass by about as often as vehicles. Everyone is beautifully tan and unique and tattooed. Seriously, everyone has tattoos! It’s basically the culture there. I loved it so much. I’m still feeling the itch to get some ink after that trip. Nearly everyone living or working there is actually from another country. We chatted with all our servers and discovered they were from: Germany, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Australia, our hotel hosts were Israeli, and we met a guy in the street who was from Sweden! The languages are flowing and it’s the coolest thing!

The beach front is protected and no establishments are allowed to be in front of the natural tree-line. It’s crazy because the Costa Rica beach line looks so remote. All you can see are sunbathers and surfers looking both ways.

Food

Oh my word, Santa Teresa has some of the best food we’ve ever had! Each meal was the experience of a lifetime. Veggie burgers, sushi, poke bowls, burritos, tacos..my mouth is watering just thinking about it again. We’re vegetarian so that can be hard to find sometimes when you’re traveling to other countries. This place is loaded with a wide variety of options, all incredible. One tip, expect US city prices. We were all excited expecting cheaper costs of living once we got to Santa Teresa, but that was a big misunderstanding. It was all pretty worth it though.

Here are some of our absolute favorite Santa Teresa Restaurants :

Tosto Metro | If you’re into authentic tacos and killer margaritas, this place is for you.
Corner Taco | This place has he best puke bowls, fish tacos and dipping sauces; we came back for seconds and thirds.
The Bakery | This one’s for the coffee shop lovers. It is one of the very few coffee shops; pastries galore; picture perfect. It’s ideal for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or regular coffee shop vibes.
Koji’s | Looking for a great little spot for dinner? Look no further. I’m not a huge sushi person but this place is bomb. Also the drinks are a masterpiece.
Amici | We went for dinner, but it’s also perfect for lunch with pizza and pastas options. I was in heaven with my Aperol Spritz, while the boys selected a cold beer from the menu.
Drift Bar | This place is a phenomenal plant based restaurant, Los Angeles quality. It has the best veggie burger I’ve ever had; fantastic bar menu; and it’s an art gallery! We went there a couple of times for dinner.
Banana Beach | If you want a little beach bar action, this is a cool spot to hang out with a fruity cocktail or cool beer in your hand.
Mal Pais Surf Camp | If you find yourself a little out of town, this place has casual drinks, outdoor pool table and games to keep you entertained.
Eat Street | It's a really cool new development with several restaurants and a bar built out of shipping crates. Featuring a lovely outdoor atmosphere with games and covered lounge space, we liked this spot for a lunch or evening hang out.

Lodging

Our solid go-to is always Airbnb because we like to experience places as genuinely as we can. Airbnb’s usually give us that local vibe. But when that’s not available, we like to look into boutique hotels. And we found the perfect place for our Costa Rica exploration vacation. Horizon Hotel, a surf and yoga retreat came highly recommended from friends who’d stayed there before. This hotel has little cabins scattered on the hillside that looks down to the water. It’s nestled on the inland side of the main dirt road through Santa Teresa. Each bungalow is tucked into the jungle-like greenery. When selecting your cabin, you have an option of an ocean view or private pool. We chose the ocean view and lucked out because there was never anyone in the pool right next to our cabin. We basically had a private pool too.

Another option is Mal Pais Surf Camp. We met up there one night to grab drinks with a friend who was randomly in Santa Teresa the same time we were. Mal Pais Surf Camp has a laid back vibe, just a little out of town. They have villa and hostel options, surf packages including rentals and instruction based right out of their surf camp if you’re looking for something a little more casual.

If you need some more inspiration, check these out!

Hostels

Hostel World

Happy Mediums

Villa Santa Teresa
Hotel Horizon | Santa Teresa Hotel + Yoga Center - highly recommend this place!
Airbnb - Villa AMOI "N" 2 min walk to the beach

Luxurious Stays

Transportation

We decided a car rental was our best option after flying into Liberia. (*Side note, our initial plan was to stay in Tamarindo, but later decided on Santa Teresa. Flying into San Jose would have made travel options easier. San Jose is a solid hub for connecting flights within Costa Rica, and we may have been able to eliminate some of our driving) Our freedom is important to us when we’re exploring new areas, so we like to have a car if possible. We also started in the mountains, and renting a car wasn’t more expensive (for 4 people) than buying flights within Costa Rica.

Uber doesn’t really exist down there.So plan on lots of walking if you don’t have other arrangements. We didn’t rent four wheelers like many of the locals and other tourists had. Next time, I’d totally recommend a four-wheeler to zip down to the beach quickly. Carrying our surfboards up the hill to our hotel got old, but was a good workout.

SurfBoard Rentals & Local Shops

If you don’t want to haul your own boards around everywhere, then you’ll have a few options when it comes to renting surfboards. Most of the hotels and resorts have their own rentals (at a higher cost). We rented from a couple places off the main street. Cactus Surfboards was our favorite. The owner was friendly and had a good variety to choose from. And he didn’t try to rip us off, like the Nalu surf shop did.

Waves

The waves were breaking out a decent way from shore. For the guys, it wasn’t a big deal. But it was pretty heavy for me, at beginner level. Most days the morning and evening swells were too big for my comfort at 5-6 ft. I caught a few waves here and there, but I prefer conditions to be a little smaller. If you’re comfortable in the water, this place is straight up heaven.

Some days while the guys surfed, I wandered around the local shops. There are so many cool clothing and jewelry shops with boho, tropical vibes. One place I did have to hop into frequently was Kriya. If you love crystals and unique stone jewelry then you will love this place too!

We hope this helps guide you through your vacation planning to Costa Rica. Or, maybe even persuade you to visit, if you weren’t thinking of it before! We loved this trip so much, and can’t wait to get back out there.