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Nosara and the Guanacaste Coast

Long summer days and beautiful beaches are two phrases that best define what Guanacaste is all about. A province for the active soul, Guanacaste draws visitors with its world class surfing, incredible beaches, bird watching, amazing horseback riding, superb snorkeling and pristine jungles. With so much to do, it’s easy to understand why so many people come to visit this amazing province.

Nosara is a small town located slightly inland from the Pacific Ocean. It is a vital little town with the paved airstrip running right through the middle of the town. There are hostels, a few hotels, a clinic, schools, two super markets and a few bars in town. About 3 miles from Nosara you will find the ocean and Playa Guinoes where Casa Montana is located. Playa Guioines is a 6 mile long crescent shaped beach with great surfing, a few restaurants and hotels and a small commercial strip that includes a bank, three surf shops, a gift shop, and a few hotels and restaurants. This is a sleepy little town, there is only one disco (in Nosara) and the place is more about surfing hard, eating and drinking great food, and chilling out with friends. If you are looking for Spring Break style parties and lots of drunk Gringos this isn't your kind of place. Likewise, there are a few tiny gift shops, so don't come expecting to spend hours and hours shopping. For that kind of a place please check out Tamarindo which is about 1 1/2 hours to the North and which IS worth a visit for sure.

Forming the eastern borders of Guanacaste are a chain of volcanoes that stretch out to join the Cordillera de Guanacaste and Cordillera de Tilaran mountain ranges. Offering some truly terrific hiking facilities, tourists can trek their way to the summit of a number of volcanoes. Passing through lovely lush dense forests, which play host to a fabulous array of exotic plant and wildlife, many rare and endangered animals and birds live here including jaguars and tapirs. From these mountains also flow various rivers that roll down to form an alluvial plain drained by the Rio Tempisque. This river in turns nurtures the province before emptying itself into the Golfo de Nicoya.

A region steep in culture, the name Guanacaste is derived from the word quahnacaztlan, which is a native word for the guanacaste tree. This tree is the national tree of Costa Rica.

One of the easiest ways to get to Guanacaste is to fly into the Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia. A major reason why tourism has boomed in this region, this airport receives flights from all over the world especially the continental U.S.