Tamarindo Costa Rica – What to do in this amazing beach town

In my opinion, Tamarindo Costa Rica is the best place for a beach vacation in Costa Rica. It’s a lively town where you can go everywhere on foot. You have a big choice of restaurants, cafés, and even a food truck area. There are excursion options, you can scuba dive or go on boat trips. Yet, the best thing is just to spend your days at the beautiful, long stretch of light brown sandy beach.

What to do in Tamarindo Costa Rica

If you are a beach lover, you will be happy in Tamarindo. You can take the best pictures at low tide when there is a lot of sand. The higher the tide gets, the less the sand will be visible. Therefore, don’t leave your things too close to the water and never leave anything at the beach unattended. It might be washed away a few hours later.

Go on a morning walk

If you walk or jog along the beach in the time after sunrise until 8 a.m. you can enjoy several advantages at once. Firstly, it’s not too hot yet, and feeling the sunrays will be purely agreeable. Further, the beach is almost empty of people. You have the whole stunning view to yourself and can take great pictures.

Get a massage by the ocean

There are several tents along the beach where you can get a massage. One hour starts at $23, going up to $35, depending on where you ask. The massage I had was wonderful, and I felt very relaxed afterward. It was even better because I heard the waves of the ocean and felt the salty breeze on my skin while being massaged.

Watch the sunsets

The beach gets the busiest during sunset and you will know why, once you have experienced your first sunset in Tamarindo yourself. The sky changes through the whole color palate. You could book a horseback tour up and down the beach, a sunset cruise, or you can just sit on the sand or on a beach chair at your resort. It even is warm enough to stay in the water during sunset and enjoy it from the waves.

Go surfing

Tamarindo Costa Rica has waves for all kinds of surfers. Consistent reef breaks for advanced surfers, or waves that also break quite evenly away from the reef (between Langosta Beach Club and Capitan Suizo Hotel) for intermediates, or beach breaks for beginners in front of Capitan Suizo Hotel.

To rent a board I would recommend Langosta Beach Club as they had good equipment and the best prices at 6000 CRC for two hours or 9000 CRC for the whole day. The more days you want your board, the cheaper it is probably going to be.

You can easily access Langosta Beach Club via the beach but be aware that the whole beach is flooded during high tide. Then, it might be better to come via the road entrance.

Where to stay in Tamarindo Costa Rica

For tranquil luxury by the beach: Capitan Suizo Boutique Hotel

Situated at the left end of Tamarindo beach this hotel is directly in front of the best beginner/intermediate surf spot. The hotel has soft beach chairs from which you can watch the action in the water or get up yourself and take a bath in the warm ocean. If you don’t want to get salty, Capitan Suizo has a beautiful pool that looks like a real laguna. It is surrounded by a pretty green garden in which you can watch squirrels, colorful birds, and sometimes raccoons. The rooms are spacious. The four-poster bed and the Costa Rican coffee maker are a dream. The breakfast was the most varied I have encountered in Costa Rica so far. I attribute that to the Swiss ownership 😀 I enjoyed my beach time here and hope I will be back.