About Tamarindo / Langosta
Create memories of a lifetime in one of the most beautiful spots in the world -
the Gold Coast of Costa Rica.
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Tamarindo
This small fishing community of the 1970s and 80s, has blossomed into a vibrant beach town for surfers, beach goers, nature lovers and adrenaline junkies. It’s a spot that appeals to anyone who craves an authentic Costa Rican jungle and beach experience with the comfort of luxury amenities (AC, clean running water, a few paved roads, comfortable beds, wifi, massages, yoga 😊).
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Tamarindo's biggest draws is its abundance of beautiful beaches. Playa Tamarindo, or Tamarindo Beach, is a popular destination due to its beautiful scenery and the relative calmness of its waters during low tide, making it a great place to go swimming. This beach is also a popular spot for surfers, as it has waves suitable for novices at both the north and south ends.
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Playa Grande and Playa Langosta, located at the north and south edges of Tamarindo respectively, and within the confines of Marino Las Baulas National Park, are exceptionally picturesque and spotless. These two beaches offer consistent waves for more intermediate and advanced surfers.
Our Langosta Neighborhood
Langosta is a small, upscale and laid back beach community that joins Playa Tamarindo and Playa Langosta and is accessed by driving through the town center of Tamarindo. The only way in and out of the neighborhood is a paved loop road with some sidewalks. There is little car traffic, speeds are slow and you will see lots of people walking, riding bikes and driving golf carts. The rest of the streets are dirt. The east side of Langosta is a 600 acre mangrove nature reserve and National Park, while the west is spectacular Pacific coastline.
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The beaches of Langosta are a mix of sandy stretches and rocky outcroppings, wonderful for strolling, exploring the tide pools or just lounging. They are all accessible from the neighborhood street via the Alamedas. They are clean, quiet, with no crowds.
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The estuary at the south end of the neighborhood is also popular with Costa Rica surfers, though the waves are at the intermediate to expert level.
The north side of the Langosta neighborhood (7-10 minute walk) contains the south end of Playa Tamarindo with calmer waters for swimming, kayaking and beginner surfing.
This is also where you will find the Langosta Beach Club, a great spot to access this part of the beach, rent surfboards or kayaks, enjoy happy hour cocktails, or lounge and watch the sunset. We frequently use this as a meeting spot for friends where we come together to toast the day and enjoy the sunset before walking up the beach into Tamarindo for dinner.
Our Langosta neighborhood has a small grocery store, and a handful of the most wonderful restaurants such as the Tandoor Indian Restaurant, Surf Club Bar and Grill, El Sapo Ristopizza and Sofia. Walking to and from dinner is an easy and relaxing way to slow down and enjoy the pura vida. You can get to all of these within an 8 minute walk or less.
We have a neighborhood music store where you can rent a guitar during your stay for $5 a day and a small children’s library where little ones can check out a book and curl up in the hammock for a good read.
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You will also find the Revive Wellness Center in the neighborhood, a place where you can work out, take yoga classes or find wellness packages that include surfing lessons, massage, facials, body wraps, personal training, private pilates or any combination of those things! Join for a flat fee for the week and you can workout and have discounted access to yoga and their other offerings. (11 minute walk)
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If you prefer your yoga and massages on the beach, you can find that too!
There are several spots along Playa Langosta and Playa Tamarindo where you will find massage tables set up in the shade of the beach trees. One hour massages (in your bathing suit) are typically $40 US cash. You will typically find them on the beach next to Langosta Beach Club or at an Alameda (public walkway from the street to the beach). They are fabulous!
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You can also find yoga on the beach most mornings. These are usually held in front of El Be!, a beachfront restaurant in Tamarindo. You can walk there on the beach and borrow a mat when you get there. Check here on Facebook for times and days and more info. Take a yoga class on the beach and then grab a fresh fruit smoothie next door at Waffle Monkey!
Our national park neighbor
The Marino Las Baulas National Park is ideal for kayaking and hiking and features a mangrove swamp and miles of unspoiled coastline. Numerous endangered species call this national park home, including over 150 kinds of birds and a population of leatherback sea turtles that utilize the area's beaches to lay their eggs.
At low tide, you can wade across the estuary into the national park and explore!
Our weather and when to visit
For us, Tamarindo/Langosta is a perfect, year-round destination. The Christmas/New Years' period and Easter Week can be very busy and might be best avoided if you don't like crowds. Other than that, come anytime you want and enjoy yourself!
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The best times to visit weather-wise would be mid-November through August. The weather is pretty perfect during this time. This is the warmest and driest part of Costa Rica – the best weather for beach lovers.
You can expect mid-to-upper 80s F temperatures for much of the year and low humidity from December – May.
The green season is from June to November, but even then, there's not a great deal of rain compared to elsewhere in Costa Rica. Think hot and sunny most of the day with solid afternoon showers.
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Even the rainier months of September and October will see plenty of sunshine and we love to watch the thunderstorms roll through from time to time and it's not so bad getting caught in a warm tropical downpour!. Lightning puts on a spectacular show in the night sky during these months and it’s a treat to lie on the patio or even on your bed and watch the show out your window.
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Although a few businesses close their doors in September/October/November and the town might feel a little quiet, if you're in Tamarindo for the surf, it doesn't matter!. It's more about how alive the ocean feels, and the best waves around Tamarindo come between June and October. Likewise, wildlife lovers might find Tamarindo worthwhile between September and March, when the leatherback turtles come to nest.
Fishing
Tamarindo/Langosta is a fishing mecca due to the high quality of the inshore fishing and the ease of access to world-class deep sea fishing. You can reach the country's continental shelf and deep waters in just half an hour's boat ride. During the green season, offshore fishing is excellent from June to October. The rugged, volcanic shoreline and rich marine life of the islands near Tamarindo make it an ideal location for inshore fishing.
Between May and September, yellowfin tuna are the most common and significant species in the waters off Tamarindo, with some individuals weighing them in at over 250 pounds. Whether one is fishing for snapper and grouper at "The Coral," a submerged volcanic reef, or for wahoo and roosterfish off the coast of the Catalina Islands, the action never ceases.
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Bring your catch to one of the beachfront restaurants and they will cook it up for you for dinner! Or bring it home and experiment to find your own favorite Ceviche recipe.
But even if you aren’t up for catching your own, you can find fresh caught fish at many of the local restaurants. One of our favorite things is to try out each restaurants’ house made ceviche. Whether made with fresh pineapple or mango, fish or shrimp or octopus… ceviche is not to be missed!
