Nosara

Nosara is without a doubt one of the most beautiful and special places top go to in Costa Rica. Somehow it has managed to escape the ravages caused by development. Nosara town itself is still as sleepy as ever, a typical small fishing village with a couple of bars, a grocery store, cheap cabinas and slightly rough but simpatico looking disco.

The town was created in 1962 when an American bought most of the land along the beaches of Nosara, and started the Nosara Project, with 500 residential lots and commercial sites, parks and a golf course. He established a private water system that is still in use today, and installed electricity. But his dream never went too far due to lack of funds. He had, however, “paved the road” for his successors. Today, the Nosara Civic Association (NCA) is fighting hard to keep their little community free from mega development, pollution and extreme tourism - and they are winning!

Very often, visitors are confused at first because the most popular beaches are all quite a distance away from the town center of Nosara. Nosara beach itself is worth a visit, as it has a unique tico atmosphere and it is the best place to be if you want to watch local fishermen at work, using old fashion and ancient methods. There are kayaking and canoing trips on the Nosara river, as well as exploring the mangroves nearby, horse riding and hiking. Nosara beach has pure black sand and offers an incredible variety of flora and fauna.

Nosara is not the easiest place to get to. The lazy easy way is to fly straight from San Jose to Nosara's Domestic Airport, which is great as long as you do not look down as you are landing and that you have a good stomach for this sort of thing and like small planes. The flight itself is lovely, and does save so much time and energy.

If you are driving from San Jose, the whole trip will take you about 5 to 7 hours and is an adventure by itself, a very enjoyable one if time is not a problem, but make sure you are driving a 4x4 SUV, as you will be driving over rocks, into potholes and fording rivers. You first get to Nicoya, and follow the directions for Samara and Nosara. From there the road is in good shape. Pass a gas station on your left, the turn off to Nosara comes into view on the right. You have about 60 kms and over one hour of dirt road to go through before you hit Playa Garza, then Playa Guiones, and Nosara. It is fine ride in the dry season, but unmanageable during the rainy season. Not only are many bridges completely immersed but sometimes there are no bridges and one has to drive right through the rivers, which is ok when they are almost dry, but another story when they suddenly rise and you have to drive through them, or in them! Alternately, there is also a very good bus service from San Jose.

Playa Guiones is probably the nicest beach to go to and it has a great selection of really stylish, friendly hotels. The community of Playa Guiones, as it is for Nosara in general, is made up mostly of foreigners, with lots of Swiss, Americans, and other European countries well represented. It has also escaped huge developments and the community forms a very tight but friendly circle, which, if you ever go, will welcome you with open arms.