Santa Teresa & Nicoya Peninsula Itineraries

Santa Teresa is where a Costa Rica trip slows down. Most of our travelers come here last, after the volcano and the cloud forest: of the Anywhere trips with a stay on the Nicoya Peninsula over the last two years, about three in four also included Arenal, and more than half ended on the peninsula. The catch is the journey. Santa Teresa is 5½ to 6 hours by road and ferry from San José airport (SJO), or a 30- to 35-minute flight to Cóbano airport (ACO), so how long you stay matters more here than almost anywhere in the country.

Below: how many days to give it, how to get there, and the three trip plans I use most, each with a couples and a family version.

How many days in Santa Teresa?

Four or five nights. Our travelers' median is four nights on the peninsula, and that's the minimum I suggest. Three nights means one travel day in, one out, and only two days in between. Five nights gives you beach days, Isla Tortuga and Cabo Blanco without rushing. With a week or more, don't add more Santa Teresa: split it with a second, quieter beach such as Nosara or Sámara.

Getting there: fly, ferry or drive

The Nicoya Peninsula is across the Gulf of Nicoya from the mainland, and every way in is a trade-off between time, money and luggage.

My rule of thumb: if you land in San José early enough to connect in daylight (the Cóbano airstrip closes at 6 p.m.), fly straight on; if not, spend the night near the airport and fly in the morning. By road, aim for a midday ferry at the latest so the last stretch is in daylight: the sun sets between about 5:15 and 6 p.m. More on every option in getting to Santa Teresa and the Puntarenas ferry guide. Door to door with a driver: San José airport to Santa Teresa and Cóbano airport to Santa Teresa.

5 days: Santa Teresa and the Gulf side

Route: SJO → Cóbano → Santa Teresa, 4 nights → SJO. The short trip, or the beach end of a longer one: one base in Santa Teresa, with the calm Gulf of Nicoya side for your day trips.

1. Day 1: Fly in. San José to Cóbano (30 to 35 minutes), then 25 to 30 minutes to your hotel. Walk to the beach for the sunset.
2. Day 2: Slow day. The tide pools in Malpaís at low tide (water shoes), a yoga class or a first surf lesson, dinner in Santa Teresa.
3. Day 3: Isla Tortuga. A full-day boat trip, about 7 hours with pickup in town, to snorkel in calm, clear water.
4. Day 4: Cabo Blanco and Montezuma. Cabo Blanco, about an hour away, is open Wednesday to Sunday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.: the easy 1.5 km Danés loop, or the Sueco trail to the beach (about 4 hours round trip, start by noon). Lunch in Montezuma and a swim below the waterfall, a 20-minute walk up the river.
5. Day 5: Leave. Fly back from Cóbano, or go by road: stop at Curú, 6 km before the Paquera dock, for monkeys and a swim (day visits 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., cards only), then take the ferry to San José.

Total travel time: about 2 hours if you fly both ways, plus the day trips. See things to do in Santa Teresa.

For couples: add a fifth night and leave it empty. Book a beachfront bungalow or a plunge-pool villa away from the main road, and do the Tortuga trip early in the stay in case the sea gets rough later. For families: the tide pools, Tortuga's calm water and the Danés loop are the kids' highlights. Stay near Playa Hermosa for the gentlest surf lessons; some schools take kids from about 5, and under-12s do best in a private lesson.

8 days: Arenal to Santa Teresa

Route: SJO → La Fortuna (Arenal), 3 nights → Santa Teresa, 4 nights → SJO. The classic shape and the most common one among our Nicoya trips: volcano, hot springs and rainforest first, then the beach to slow down.

1. Day 1: Land and drive to La Fortuna, 2½ to 3 hours from San José airport. Hot springs in the evening.
2. Days 2–3: Arenal. The volcano trails, the hanging bridges and La Fortuna waterfall, and another evening soak.
3. Day 4: La Fortuna to Santa Teresa, 6 to 7 hours by road and the Puntarenas–Paquera ferry. Leave by about 7 a.m. and aim for the 12:00 sailing from Puntarenas; you'll reach Santa Teresa by mid-afternoon.
4. Days 5–7: Santa Teresa. A beach morning, the tide pools at low tide, Isla Tortuga one day and Cabo Blanco (Wednesday to Sunday) another, and a sunset every evening.
5. Day 8: Home. Fly Cóbano to San José (30 to 35 minutes) in time for an afternoon flight, or drive 5½ to 6 hours by road and ferry.

Total travel time: about 9½ to 11 hours with the flight home, 14 to 16 by road. With a night in Monteverde added, the drive to Santa Teresa is a little shorter, 5 to 5½ hours, and the trip becomes 10 days. Getting around: La Fortuna and Santa Teresa and Monteverde and Santa Teresa.

For couples: choose an Arenal hotel with its own hot springs and a beachfront hotel in Santa Teresa, and fly out of Cóbano so the last morning is a swim, not a ferry queue. For families: day 4 is long with kids. Break it with lunch and a stretch, check your car seats before you set off (tourism vans aren't required to supply them, so ask or bring your own), or swap the drive for a night in Monteverde.

8 days: Santa Teresa and Nosara (or Sámara)

Route: SJO → Cóbano → Santa Teresa, 4 nights → Nosara, 3 nights → LIR. Two beaches with two moods: the restaurants and sunsets of Santa Teresa first, then somewhere quieter to finish, 2 to 2½ hours from Liberia airport. It's the shape I'd suggest for a honeymoon.

1. Day 1: Fly to Cóbano if you land in San José early enough for a daylight flight; otherwise sleep near the airport and fly in the morning.
2. Days 2–4: Santa Teresa. Beach days, a surf lesson at Playa Hermosa, Isla Tortuga, a spa afternoon.
3. Day 5: North to Nosara, 4½ to 5 hours on the paved road. In the dry season there's a shorter coastal road (3 to 4 hours or more), but only with a high-clearance 4x4: the Arío, Caño Seco and Bongo rivers between Manzanillo and Coyote have no bridges.
4. Days 6–7: Nosara. Yoga, long walks on Playa Guiones, and a guided visit to the olive ridley nestings at Ostional, 20 to 30 minutes away (they happen all year; the biggest are from August to November).
5. Day 8: Home. 2 to 2½ hours to Liberia airport, or about 45 minutes by air to San José.

Total travel time: about 6½ to 7½ hours by road after the flight in. Getting around: Santa Teresa to Nosara, and compare the two towns in Santa Teresa vs Nosara.

For couples, the Punta Islita version: swap Nosara for Punta Islita, a resort above a horseshoe bay on the Coyote coast, about 2 hours from Santa Teresa in the dry season and 3 in the rainy season. You need a 4x4 for the last stretch, and it's best driven in daylight.

For families, the Sámara version: swap Nosara for Sámara, 4 to 4½ hours from Santa Teresa on the paved road. Its reef-protected bay is calm enough for everyday swimming, the town is walkable, and Liberia airport is 2 to 2¼ hours away, paved all the way. Getting there: Santa Teresa to Sámara.

Where to stay in Santa Teresa

The town is one long, dusty road behind 11 to 12 km of beach, and where you stay on it changes the trip.

• Playa Carmen and central Santa Teresa: walk to the beach and to dinner. The liveliest part of town, with the banks and supermarkets at the crossroads.
• North Santa Teresa and Playa Hermosa: quieter, with the gentlest sand for a first surf lesson. You'll want a car or taxis.
• Malpaís: the quiet south end, by the tide pools.
• The hills: villas and small hotels with sea views, away from the dust, a short drive from everything.

Hotels by area are in where to stay in Santa Teresa, and family tips in Santa Teresa with kids. One practical note: the ATMs at the Playa Carmen crossroads can run out in peak season, so arrive with some cash.

When to go

December to April has the most sun and the easiest roads, and it's when hotels and flights fill first. From May to August, rain mostly comes in the afternoon and rates are lower; September and October are the wettest months, when the dirt roads are at their worst and the coastal road north is often impassable. Month by month, see the best time to visit Santa Teresa.