Nosara & the south · Costa Rica
Surfing Playa Guiones
A beach break in Nosara & the south, Costa Rica, for beginner and intermediate surfers.
Playa Guiones is the main beach in Nosara, with consistent, well-shaped beach-break peaks that work at all tides. At the north end there's a right over sand and reef that gets better as the swell picks up.
It's one of the most popular places in Costa Rica for improvers, with surf schools, cafés and board rental, but no high-rises: the town sits back in the forest along dirt roads. It's best on a south-west swell. Don't leave valuables on the beach.
The dry season, from December to April, brings the cleanest mornings, and the green season brings bigger swells.
When to surf
Playa Guiones
Playa Guiones is at its best from December to April. Conditions it likes: Swell SW, all tides.
December to April: Prime
Dry season, offshore mornings, sunshine, clean NW-fed 3-4ft waves almost daily
May to July: Good
Green season begins; bigger SW groundswell, afternoon showers, fewer crowds
August to October: Good
Peak SW swell and empty line-ups, but the wettest, muddiest roads
Nov: Quiet
Transition, rains easing, swell easing, a quiet shoulder month
The year across Guanacaste
Waves near Playa Guiones
Nosara (Playa Guiones N)
5 kmNosara & the south · Beach Break · Beginner
Ostional
10 kmNosara & the south · Beach Break · Beginner / Intermediate
Playa Negra
34 kmNosara & the south · Right Reef · Intermediate / Advanced
Straight-line distances. By road it is usually further.
Getting there
Where to stay: Base around Playa Guiones for the most consistent beachbreak, schools and cafés; Playa Negra puts you on the reef but is a bumpy drive south. This whole coast suffers petty theft, never leave anything on the beach or visible in a car.
Transport, costs, where to stay and the rest of the waves in the area are in the Nosara & the south guide.
Nosara & the south surf guideSurf it often and something here is wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.