Nosara
Costa Rica · Guanacaste
Blue Zone wellness destination. Reliable year-round surf at Playa Guiones, world-class yoga studios (Bodhi Tree, Tica Massage), organic-leaning restaurants, and a relaxed pace. Has its own small airstrip — short flight from SJO beats the 5-hour drive.
Overview
A low-rise yoga-and-surf town on the Pacific Nicoya Peninsula — barefoot, dirt-road, no neon.
Nosara is a deliberate counterpoint to Costa Rica's resort coasts: a Blue Zone community on the Guanacaste coast where building codes preserve the jungle canopy and roads stay unpaved. The "town" is really three beaches strung along a few kilometres — Pelada, Guiones, and Garza — anchored by the surf and yoga scene at Guiones.
- Playa Guiones — Costa Rica's best beginner-to-intermediate surf, breaks at every tide
- Playa Pelada — tide pools, a blowhole, and sunset cocktails at La Luna
- Yoga capital — Bodhi Tree, Nosara Yoga Institute, dozens of daily classes
- Ostional Wildlife Refuge — olive ridley arribadas (mass nestings) just up the coast
- Blue Zone — one of the world's five recognised longevity hotspots
Best time to visit
December through April for sunny Guanacaste dry-season weather and gentler surf. May through November brings cleaner waves, lusher jungle, and Ostional's arribadas (peaks September–October) — with afternoon rain and rougher dirt roads to match.
Guides for Nosara
- Where to Stay in Nosara: Guiones, Pelada, or Nosara Town · Where to stay
- Things to Do in Nosara: Book the Surf Morning and the Turtle Night, Leave the Rest Loose · Things to do
- Liberia or San Jose for Nosara? The Hour You Land Decides · Getting there
- Where to Stay in Nosara: Playa Guiones, Playa Pelada, or the Town · Where to stay
- The Nosara Costa Rica Travel Guide: Surf, Yoga, and the Nicoya Life (2026) · Things to do
- Do You Need a 4x4 to Reach Nosara? What Route 160 Looks Like Now · Getting there
Experiences
2-Hour Cooking Class in Nosara
From $65 per person
Private Yoga Session
From $120 per person
ATV Tour from Nosara: San Juanillo Beach or Mountains
From $150 per person
Naranjal Coffee Tour from Nosara: Farm, Tortillas & Lunch
From $150 per person
San Juanillo Snorkeling Tour from Nosara
From $100 per person
Private SUP Surf Lesson in Nosara
From $150 per person
Ostional Turtle Tour from Nosara: Nesting & Hatchlings
From $75 per person
Nosara Waterfall Hike: Swim at Mala Noche Falls
From $75 per person
Nosara Birdwatching Hike with an Expert Bird Guide
From $75 per person
Surf Lessons
From $70 per person
Mangrove SUP & Kayak
From $75 per person
Zipline Nosara
From $80 per person
Horseback Riding Tour Nosara
From $80 per person
ATV Tour Nosara: Epic Jungle Ride to Pilas Blancas Waterfall
From $110 per person
See all 14 tours and activities in Nosara →
Gallery
Practical facts
- Local time
- UTC-6 · Same time as Costa Rica
- Region
- Guanacaste
- Main language
- Spanish
- On the map
- 9.97° N, 85.64° W
Near Nosara
- Samara · 16 km away
- Tamarindo · 42 km away
- Playa Flamingo · 54 km away
- Santa Teresa · 64 km away
- Playa Hermosa · 67 km away
- Montezuma · 71 km away
More of Costa Rica
Pura vida is a way of life in this small Central American republic where 28% of the land sits under protection.
Explore Costa Rica · Liberia · San Jose · Monteverde · Tamarindo · Alajuela
Where to stay
Olas de Oro
10/10 · 12 reviews
Domo Nosara Boutique Hotel
10/10 · 7 reviews
QUIN Surf Residence Nosara
10/10 · 2 reviews
Costa Rica Yoga Spa
10/10 · 2 reviews
Coco Nosara Villas Guiones Family Resort Casa José
10/10 · 2 reviews
Casas Sol y Mar
10/10 · 1 reviews
Nosara Beach Hostel
10/10 · 1 reviews
Treehouse Chilo at Hacienda Nosara
10/10 · 1 reviews
Villas Oaku
10/10 · 1 reviews
Silvestre Nosara Hotel & Residences
9.9/10 · 23 reviews