Costa Rica Home to World Champion Surf

Costa Rica was recently crowned the world champion surf capital. Last week Costa Rica’s team won a gold medal in the International Surfing Association (ISA) 2015 World Surfing Games held in Playa Popoyo, Nicaragua. It was another historic moment for this team. Costa Rica continues to hold it’s legendary reputation as the world surf capital. There is great surfing in places popular with tourists as well as off the beaten path places you can trek to for mind-blowing breaks and legendary tubes. Surfing and Costa Rica are synonymous.

Here are some of Costa Rica’s best surfing destinations:

DOMINICAL

Known as the gateway to the southern zone is Dominical, a surfing capital and a must stop for all surfers headed to the remote Osa Pensinsula. Dominical is very laid-back and the surf is consistently good here. It’s a beach break with a river mouth, and when the swells are strong the waves can get pretty huge.

PLAYA HERMOSA

Playa Hermosa located in Jaco, the central Pacific region of Costa Rica, is a daring surf adventure. With strong swells and waves getting as high 13 feet, the surfing is for experts, not beginners. Every year, it attracts pros from all over the world. It is also home to the International Quicksilver Surf Championships.

PLAYA TAMARINDO

Playa Tamarindo is probably one of the most heavily trafficked surfing destinations in Costa Rica. It is perfect for beginners, surfers getting a refresher and child friendly. Close by there are a few more challenging breaks in the area such as Ollie’s Point and Witches Break more suitable for pros. The general area is home miles of beach breaks friendly to both beginners and experts.

CARIBBEAN COAST

Along the Caribbean Coast, there are many top surf spots. Just offshore from Porto Limon is Isla Uvita an incredible barrelling left wave that peels around the islands reef and is quite a sight to behold. There is also Cahuita, home to the largest coral reef in Costa Rica and accessible only by boat or foot.

PLAYA JACO

Playa Jaco is a world-renown surf destination and home to some of Costa Rica’s most famous surfers. The small beach town is filled with surf shops and surf camps. The surf attracts both beginners and experts, and it is the first stop in everyone’s surfing itinerary. This popular spot gets crowded but a great place to land and get your footing in Costa Rica’s legendary surf. Jaco features a small beach break with lots of peaks and waves here can get as high as ten feet.

MAL PAIS

Along the southern tip of Nicoya Peninsula are Santa Teresa, Playa Carmen and Mal Pais. These are some of the Pacific Coast’s best beaches. Mal Pais is the most rustic of the three areas and offers incredible surfing. This rustic destination is also very popular with younger crowds. There are several excellent surfing spots in the area. Suck Rock is a right-hand break that can get pretty big with eaves as high as 20-feet. Playa Hermosa is never crowded and has a great right-hand point break that works well in medium and low tides. Playa Carmen produces the most consistently good waves in the region. La Lora is also consistently good and home to several surfing competitions.

PAVONES and MATAPALO

In the southern zone in the Osa Peninsula bordering Corcovado National Park and across the Golfo Dulce is Pavones. This area is known as the edge of the world. The area is home to several legendary breaks that for a long time were only known through word of mouth by surfers in search of the ultimate wave. Accessible only by boat, this surfing mecca attracts surfers from all the over the world. It also home to this year’s world surfing champions. It has a left-point break that is the world’s longest wave in the world. On a good day, it can last as long as two to three minutes. Puerto Jimenez is also a not to be missed legendary break in the region. At the southern tip of the Osa Peninsula is Matapalo with three right point breaks.

If you are looking for world-class surfing and adventure, there is nowhere in the world that can top Costa Rica. It is the best of the best and a place not to be missed.