- Playa Grande beachLong open sand. Get in only on a small day. This is not the sheltered side of Tamarindo. Shade is scarce, so use the early or the late hour.
- Las BaulasThe park around that beach. Ask the hours that day, and walk only where they allow. Nesting sand is protected. Day is not the night tour.
- Leatherback nestingFrom about October to March, at night, with a guide. Outside those months the beach is a walk, not a tour. Keep white lights off the sand.
- The estuaryQuiet water and birds between here and Tamarindo. Crocodiles use it, so you do not swim. A small boat crosses when it is running. Walk the edge.
- Playa Grande surfA heavier beach break than the lesson wave in town. Morning has the cleaner face. If you are learning, do not start out the back. Watch a set.
- TamarindoAcross the water: dinner and the noise. Sleep on this quieter sand. The road around takes longer than the boat. Go for the evening, not an errand.
- LangostaPoints and coves south of Tamarindo, a separate beach from this long sand. Give it its own hour. You will not read those rocks from here.
- The mangroveThe park mangrove: birds, a boardwalk or a boat. Not a swim. Morning is when the birds work the trees. Stay in the boat or on the walk.
- Sunrise walkEmpty sand, still cool. In nesting months do not step on tracks, and do not use a light on the way out. The point is the empty beach.
- Sunset at GrandeThe long beach faces west. Get there with time to spare, not as the light goes. Less shade than town, so this is the kind hour. Bring a layer.
For breaks and seasons, see best surf spots in Costa Rica.
The landscape is a long open beach, an estuary, and dry forest behind the sand. You are likely to see leatherbacks in season, howler monkeys and mangrove birds. The plants around them are tropical dry forest, red mangrove and beach vines.
Around Playa Grande, look for howlers in the first hour of light. The turtles, if they come, are after dark with a guide.
Las Baulas National Marine Park protects the leatherback nesting beach and the estuary beside it.
In Playa Grande, night visits in season need a guide and no light on the sand. On the trails, stay on the marked path.
The climate is tropical dry. It is hot, about 28–33°C. Little rain falls from December to April. Afternoon showers fall from May to November. Playa Grande sits at sea level.
In the greener months the morning is still usable, and the rain tends to wait until afternoon. The countrywide calendar is in the best time to visit Costa Rica.
The nearest airport is Daniel Oduber in Liberia. Juan Santamaría in Alajuela is the other option. From either, you come through Tamarindo and then around or across the estuary.
The last kilometers are slower than the map says. Arrive in daylight. Buses, shuttles, and rental cars are compared in getting around Costa Rica
