Four Beaches in Costa Rica

  Tamarindo, Costa Rica
Friday, April 4, 2008

Bus to Jaco Beach

Jaco Beach

The next day I took the bus to Jaco Beach on the Pacific coast. Jaco is  the next hot development spot in Costa Rica. Rumors are flying that Donald Trump is building there, and that the government will improve the highway and shorten the drive from San Jose from 3 hours to 1 hour. These are popular rumors. I have heard them with various twists in three different towns that I have been in. The developers in Jaco got the four story height limit deleted from the zoning codes, and they are now building tall condominiums and hotel developments.

Jaco Beach and Carlita´s Restaurant

The town itself has a bad reputation, with overpriced hotels and  restaurants. The in town bars are sleazy, but the hotel bars are safe enough. I especially enjoyed Carlitaīs Bar and Hotel, it is on the internet if you want to see some pictures. It is definitely a gringo bar, but the women behind the bar are ticas.

Jaco Beach to the south

North end of Jaco Beach

The only beautiful thing left in Jaco is their two mile long beach. Perhaps that is the natural course of development, a sleepy little beach  town is turned into Miami south. Perhaps someday all of the beaches in Costa Rica will look like this, and then people like me will go somewhere else to get the authentic Latin experience, and the rest will enjoy there safe California experience in Costa Rica.  

Restaurant in Jaco

Bring plenty of water in case you get lost!

Bicycling through Jaco

There are many condo developments

Buses and Ferry to Nicoya

Man dragging a treasure in Punta Arenas

I caught a bus to Punta Arenas. The bus driver said the ferry dock was nearby, so I started backpacking down the street. The wind was blowing strong, and it peppered my face with sand. I got a picture of the guy dragging the metal while I was walking. After 15 minutes of hiking I decided that nearby is relative to whether you are in a car or not. I finally found a taxi and got a ride the rest of the way. 

At the bar of the ferry to the Nicoya Penninsula

The ferry ride across to the Nicoya Peninsula  was about 2 hours long. The ferry rolled heavily in the 3 foot swells, and the wind was blowing hard enough that you had to hold onto your drink. But the customers at the bar persevered. The ferry was large enough to hold 30 trucks and cars.

Would you tie a large ferry to this?

I spent the next few hours bouncing over a dirt road on the only bus that goes to Nicoya. It was dark by the time I got there so I settled into a cheap hotel and had a huge dinner of chicken, seafood and vegetables in some mock Chinese dish.

Samara Beach

Samara Beach south

Samara Beach north

The next morning I finally got to Samara, the road to Samara is paved and about 5-6 hours from San Jose. It is a small town with a large sandy tan colored beach. The beach is protected by an offshore reef so it is safe for swimming. I walked up and down the beach, watching the newbie surfers in the small  waves.  Finally exhausted from the heat, I had a burger and liquids at Shake Joe's burger shop and napped in the hammock.

Surf School- two weeks ago there were 9 foot waves

Now this is living. My guide describes this as one of Costa Ricaīs favorite beaches. It is easy to see why. It is still relaxed with a small town feel. There are no buildings over two stories high. The people were friendly. There werenīt a lot of options for dining, and the meals more expensive than Panama. I found myself spending $10-15 for dinner and drinks.

Looking hot in the midday sun

Time for a beer and a nap at Shake Joes

Overall I felt like I was in heaven, but I am not sure if the town is large enough to provide a variety of activities and restaurants if I stayed long term.

Horses

The next morning disaster struck. I was wading along the beach and thought I would wade out past the surf line. The waves seemed small enough, but as I waded farther out they built up higher and higher until a large wave swept over my head and washed my glasses away. 


Tamarindo Beach

In Tamarindo construction is rampant

After catching two buses I arrived at dusty Tamarindo Beach. I say dusty because the main roads are not paved, though there is hope that paving will occur soon. In the meantime, the busiest hotels along the beach are crowded together, giving it the appearance of a strip mall. There was a lot of new construction going on, and every gringo I met who was staying was either a realtor or in construction.

Dusty Tamarindo - Will the roads get paved soon?

Talk tended toward what property was worth and how much their property would increase in value over the next few years. The newest building are tall and loom over older construction.

Tamarindo Beach looking south

Tamarindo Beach north

Nightlife is active and revolves around young men and women going out late to party and dance. There is a lot of action after 10 p.m. among the young Europeans and Americans.

At a fancy restaurant

The beach here is nice white sand. I walked a long ways to the south, and ended up walking around the point to another beach. It is a beautiful area.

Sea food fettuchini lunch with shrimp, tuna & crab

But overall I just didnīt like the dusty streets, tall buildings, and amount of development in Tamarindo.

Local fruit stand on the way to Coco Beach

Coco Beach

Two more bus rides and I reached beautiful Coco Beach. This was another town that I really liked. There are other nice beaches to the south and north, some of them known for their surfing. The town is large enough to have a variety of hotels and restaurants. There is also a lot of development of condoīs, but height restrictions keep most buildings down to two floors. I looked at about 5 different condo developments here. If you donīt need a view of the water you can buy a two bedroom condo with swimming pool for $105-$120k. Not bad for a winter hideaway. And it could be rented out while your gone. A view of the water will double or triple that price.

Coco Beach south

Coco Beach north

Coco Beach is a 6 hour ride from San Jose, and 2 hours from the Nicaragua border.

A catamaran getting water

All the houses are gated

 

A 120k condo that is one block from beach

Looking out over the beach south of coco

Border Crossing to Nicaragua

A $105k condo I looked at

I had an odd experience on the way to Nicaragua. I had taken a bus to Liberia, and was waiting in a long line of people for a bus that was going to arrive in 1.5 hours. A taxi driver started talking in Spanish to three Nicaraguan guys behind me, and then signaled that they were looking for one more person to share a taxi (four guys at $6 each) to the border. Moments later the four of us and the driver crammed ourselves into his small taxi and we took off.  The driver skillfully wove  back and forth across the highway as we zoomed along at 100 kph, passing slower trucks and cars.  We had almost reached the border when the taxi driver stopped, and the three guys got out of the cab. I started to get out with them, but the drier told me to stay in the car. The guys gathered their bags and slowly walked into the woods. My driver took off and drove for one minute to the border crossing. He explained that the three Nicaraguans were working illegally (or past their permitted time) in Costa Rica, and they were going to cross somewhere in the woods. Maybe they crossed that afternoon or waited for night. I hope they crossed without incident.

Tiled interior

I had my first experience of getting ripped off on my trip (other than the two items I lost from my pack during airline flights). I used a honest looking young man to change $40 worth of Costa Rica colons to Nicaraguan cordobas, and I figured out later that he had only given me half the amount he should of. I knew there was a reason why I didnīt change money at the borders before now.

Nice rounded swimming pool

But my greatest adversity is the amount of bus traveling I am doing, and trying to find a new cheap hotel every night. I am still in good spirits and looking forward to finishing my trip through Central America, next stop Nicaragua.