Jacó & Playa Hermosa · Costa Rica
Surfing Playa Jacó
A beach break in Jacó & Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica, for beginner and intermediate surfers.
Jacó is Costa Rica's busiest surf town, full of hotels, surf shops and bars, about an hour and a half from San José airport. The beach break in front of town is average, best at high tide, with soft peaks that make it a popular place for lessons.
The beach is long, so the crowd thins out as you walk away from the main access points. Playa Hermosa, a few minutes south, has much stronger waves for when you've outgrown Jacó.
It's at its best at high tide on a south-west swell, from May to November. Surf schools line the beach, and the town has every kind of place to stay.
When to surf
Playa Jacó
Playa Jacó is at its best from May to November. Conditions it likes: S-SW swell, high tide.
December to April: Good
Dry season, cleaner conditions and WNW pulses, though smaller than the summer swell
May to July: Prime
Green season SW groundswell fires the points and beachbreaks; offshore mornings
August to October: Prime
Peak S-SW swell, most consistent and biggest, but the wettest months
Nov: Quiet
Transition, rain and swell easing into the dry season
The year across Golfo de Nicoya
Waves near Playa Jacó
Roca Loca
2 kmJacó & Playa Hermosa · Right Reef · Advanced
Playa Hermosa
6 kmJacó & Playa Hermosa · Beach Break · Advanced
Playa Escondida (Hidden Beach)
7 kmJacó & Playa Hermosa · Reef Break · Intermediate / Advanced
Straight-line distances. By road it is usually further.
Getting there
Where to stay: Jacó town has the hotels, board hire, ATMs and nightlife, with everything walkable; Playa Hermosa (10min south) puts you on the heavier beachbreak. Rent or buy boards here, it's cheaper than the airport towns. Stay south towards Esterillos for a quieter base.
Transport, costs, where to stay and the rest of the waves in the area are in the Jacó & Playa Hermosa guide.
Jacó & Playa Hermosa surf guideSurf it often and something here is wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.