Tamarindo, Costa Rica

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Tamarindo and beach "Playa Tamarindo"

Tamarindo, located on the Pacific Coast, is a popular vacation destination in Costa Rica. Tamarindo is surrounded by national parks to its north and south, and mountains to its east.

The beach is a long stretch of white sand and warm blue water. The town stretches along the beach and shops and restaurants are within a short distance.

Tamarindo is well known as a surf town with ideal conditions for surfing and windsurfing. Turtle watching is also a popular activity which occurs in the northern part of the bay when Leatherback Turtles come at night to lay their eggs.

1 Nearby Beaches
2 Surfing
3 Nightlife
4 Cuisine
5 Lodging
6 External links

[edit] Nearby Beaches

To the north of Tamarindo is Playa Grande. Playa Grande is an excellent surfing beach that has many of the aforementioned turtles. There are two ways to reach Playa Grande: swim across the Tamarindo River with the local cayman (alligators) or drive far inland to cross the river and continue to Playa Grande using a bouncy, dirt road.

To the south of Tamarindo are the beaches Playa Langosta, Playa Avellanas, and Playa Negra. Playa Negra is an excellent surfbreak featured in Bruce Brown's Endless Summer II. There is a small resort with a pool and cabinas owned by an Italian man. Petty crime is a common occurrence in the public parking lot at Playa Negra. Getting to Playa Avellanas and Playa Negra is difficult. The rough, dirt road requires four-wheel drive and is extremely difficult to pass in the rainy season.

[edit] Surfing

The surfing at the beach in Tamarindo proper is not that great. The short walk to the estuary is worth it to surf the breaks at the mouth of the river. Beware of the local cayman (alligator) population. A 20 minute walk and swim past the Tamarindo River brings you to Playa Grande. Playa Grande is an excellent surfbreak because the beach is a swell magnet. When Tamarindo is flat head to Playa Grande. The rigorous, offroad drive to Playa Negra is worth it. It is a reef break with dark, crystal-blue water. When there is enough swell Playa Negra will provide excellent barrels. Don't leave any valuables in your car, as petty crime is common here.

[edit] Nightlife

Tamarindo has a good nightlife with locals (often prostitutes and other unsavory characters) mixing tourists and expats. Just a few of the excellent choices of nightlife in Tamarindo includes the ever popular Babylon night club located near the main square.

[edit] Cuisine

Local fish are abundant, but not as cheap as you would expect in a Costa Rican beach town. The Costa Rican national beer is Imperial. Expats have opened up a few eateries throughout the town, serving Italian, Chinese, and other popular cuisines.

[edit] Lodging

Tamarindo Vista Villas (aka Best Western Tamarindo) is a nice hotel. The rooms are fairly-sized with all the comforts of home. Views of the beaches, river, and beyond to the north are beautiful. There is a large pool with a pool bar. On Friday nights, the pool bar nightlife is popular. The hotel is gated and vehicles are generally safe. There is a monkey and parot cage behind the hotel where you can feed the animals. The hotel marks the beginning of the busy part of Tamarindo.