Surfing Playa Grande

Meet Nova at her new Restaurant

Please check out the new restaurant in Town, located just across the street from the Pura Vida Real Estate Office.  Cafe Playa Grande is one of the only restaraunts in town that is open by 7:00am offering free coffee with the purchase of homeade pastry.  In addition, they have a great selection of ice blended coffees (vanilla, banana, chocolate, cinnamon, coconut) and wifi to get you going in the morning.  For lunch, tasty sandwiches and refreshing smoothies (papaya, watermelon, pineapple, cantelope)  are served at a great price.  The restaraunt then turns into a great authentic Peruvian Restaraunt for dinner.

Thanks to Ian Bean of Frijoles Locos Surf Shop, he has posted a video clip of his latest trip to Ollies Point.  For those of you who don’t know, you have to take a boat to Ollie’s point to surf the break.  Luckily you have Frijoles Locos to help you set up your next trip out there.  If you would like to inquire about surf rentals, surf apparel, surf lessons, surf trips Frijoles Locos is the place to go.   Please check out their website at www.playagrandesurfshop.com

For those of you have been away from Playa Grande for a while, the roads here from Matapalo to Playa Grande received striping.  Not really big news but I don’t believe Playa Grande’s roads have ever been stiped so people have been a little about this.  Now if we can just get everyone to drive on the correct lane that will be amazing!

“By Eddie Davis”

Tamarindo vs. Playa Grande

As a Guanacaste real estate broker and Costa Rica transplant, many clients ask me to compare Tamarindo and Playa Grande.  There are some similarities but many differences as well.  Here’s a comparison, to which many will want to add I’m sure…  Feel free to send your comments.

Better Beach

Playa Grande wins this one hands down.  Both beaches are light colored sand.  Tamarindo has a nice view of Isla Capitan, but Grande’s lack of visible construction makes it the more appealing aesthetically speaking.  Tamarindo has many buildings built right to the maritime zone (and some in it), and Grande has been protected as part of the leatherback turtle national park.

Better Night Life

Tamarindo has been a tourist destination for many years now, and is home to bars, clubs and two casinos.  Grande has some bars that are part of restaurants, but none stay open after midnight.  For those looking to party, Tamarindo wins.

Better Access to Commercial Goods

Grande has a few surf shops and two small supermarkets.  Tamarindo has the Automercado, a full size supermarket with imported goods.  There are also many clothing boutiques, jewelry stores, souvenir stores, small office supply stores, book stores, pharmacies and other speciality stores.  There are also many rental car and tour booking companies.  There is a video rental as well.  Tamarindo wins this one.

Better Access to Services

Tamarindo is home to most major Costa Rica banks, many attorneys, doctors, architects, builders and other professionals.  Grande is starting to have a few.

Easier Road Access

Grande and Tamarindo are both about the same distance from Liberia International Airport.  Once you arrive in both, the main road is paved but many places are off of paved roads.  Grande actually has a higher percentage of paved roads.  Slight edge to Grande.

General Cleanliness and Organization

Tamarindo has sort of grown up as the “capital” or “hub” of the area, and thus had very little urban planning implemented.  There are homes next to surf shops, next to bars, next rental car agencies, next to offices.  Grande is mostly organized between two large residential communities, Palm Beach and Playa Grande Estates, and thus has more clear commercial and residential areas.  Grande is generally cleaner as well.  Grande wins.

Real Estate Pricing

Tamarindo and Grande both saw prices skyrocket during the real estate boom and now prices are declining somewhat.  However, Grande has much more room to go up as prices are half to a third of what they would be in Tamarindo.  For appreciation potential (when the real estate market comes around), Grande should eventually catch Tamarindo prices, and that would be more appreciation there.  Grande seems to be the better deal except when looking at commercial property, where Tamarindo has much more traffic at this time.

If you are looking for some quality custom made furniture or cabinetry here in Costa Rica you don’t have to look no further than Matapalo.  Matapalo is roughly ten minutes from Playa Grande.  We have received high recommendations from Tom and Freda Rothermel.  Tom and Freda have had several pieces of furniture made by Alvaro Carvajal Ortiz.  If you are looking for some authentic furniture and/or cabinetry to add to your house, condo or office, please contact Alvaro.  Below is his contact information.

Alvaro Carvajal Ortiz

Matapalo de Santa Cruz

Telephone - 2653.6259

Cell - 8866-1636

We want to put your photos on our website.  Do you have some great photos of Playa Grande?  Surf, beach, sunsets, animals, nature, people etc…Submit them to surfingplayagrande.com and we will post them.

Dear Clients,

We hope you are well and headed our way in the near future. Here is some news on the happenings in our area.

Parque Marino Las Baulas and Construction:

There have been a lot of rumors floating around recently regarding Las Baulas National Park and the SALA IV (Supreme Court) decision regarding the buffer zone. Eddie and Johnny attended a meeting in Playa Grande last Saturday where Emel Rodriguez, director of SINAC-MINAE, was the main speaker. Don Emel is in charge of the national parks in this part of Costa Rica.

Don Emel made some important clarifications. The first clarification that he made was that there are two different issues at the moment. One issue is that the SALA IV has attempted to halt construction unsuccessfully and has asked the MINAE to submit a report stating the impact of development up to 500 meters inland for areas including, Playa Ventana, Playa Grande, Tamarindo and Langosta. There is a six month time frame that started in late December. Although the report is not complete yet, Don Emel’s comments about his work to get the national park clarified by congressional vote on a new law says a lot about the MINAE’s opinion about the situation.

Don Emel is currently working to have a law passed that will clarify the boundaries of Parque Marino Las Baulas and what will be called a zone of mixed use, which is a sort of buffer zone where building will be allowed, but with greater restrictions than a normal lot outside of this zone. Should the law pass, none of the lots in Palm Beach Estates will be inside the national park. The beachfront lots, lots across the road, the two large parks, and some of the lots going inland on the ends of the figure eight will be in the zone of mixed use.

In Playa Grande Estates and Playa Ventana, no lots will be in the national park, but the first and second row as well as lots inland as far as the eastern border of the large undeveloped portion will be in the zone of mixed use. It is important to note that the MINAE will not require alterations to building structures in this zone. Responsible use of light will be required, however.

Building permits will be granted within the zone of mixed use, but there will stricter requirements. A portion of each lot shall be left natural, perhaps 20%, low density, responsible use of light, etc. You will be able to get building permits for a lot in the mixed zone as long as they meet the requirements. Don Emel confirmed that even beachfront owners in Playa Grande Estates and Playa Ventana will be able to get building permits but shall be required to plant a heavy buffer of trees to block out ambient light towards to the beach. He also said the length of this buffer will be determined on a lot by lot basis so that all lots will be usable.

Some other clarifications that Don Emel made are important as well. He says the MINAE has no plans to expropriate as they do not feel that the national park should be in direct conflict with citizens’ property rights and also because the cost would make it impossible. The Costa Rican government has roughly $2,000,000 a year for expropriations including road expansion a year budgeted nationally, and the Leatherback Trust has roughly $5,000,000 available. To expropriate only the un-built lots in southern Playa Grande would cost more than $400 million, so it is completely out of the question.

Another clarification he made is that the SALA IV’s decision to attempt to halt permitted construction has not been received well by the rest of the Costa Rican government included Oscar Arias. Many in the government feel they are out of line and are putting pressure on them to rectify the situation.

Hidden Coast would like to thanks Oscar and Leonel Marenco, who have spearheaded a campaign to keep locals aware of what is actually going on, as well as Don Emel Rodriguez who has attended multiple meetings in the area in the last few weeks and is working with the community to reach a solution that works for everyone.

“Fe de Agua” to Film in Tamarindo and Playa Grande:

Many locals are working together to produce a short film based on the story of a local boy who becomes a professional surfer. The film will be roughly 20 minutes long and will feature local talent in front of and behind the camera. Filmmakers hope to generate enough interest to produce a feature length film.

Preparations Underway for the National Stadium:

Temporary housing is being set up already near the site of the future national stadium to house the 600 Chinese workers that will begin the project in earnest shortly. The estimated cost of the stadium is $80,000,000US, but it will be paid for as a gift from the Chinese government. Some 2,500 containers have already arrived in Puerto Caldera with supplies for the project.

As I prepared for my third trip to Nicaragua, I found myself again trying to figure out a way to get to the border. In this article, I will share with you my experience of getting to Nicaragua from Playa Grande on a budget along with some tips that may help you should you decide to head to Nicaragua from Costa Rica.

Every trip that I have taken to Nicaragua has been different thus far and somewhat a different adventure. I was lucky enough on the first two times to get a ride to the border with the people I traveled with avoiding trying to figure out which way would be the cheapest way to get to the border. Of course there are the options of taking a shuttle or a taxi to the border but I was on a budget and wanted to experience taking the local buses to the border to save money. If you are in no big rush, it is definitely a way to go and to save some money.

Costa Rica to Nicaragua: So I decided to leave on a Thursday and was lucky enough to get a ride from Playa Grande to Huacas. The bus arrived near 10:00am and cost 850 Colones (Approximately $1.54). Typically the trip from Playa Grande to Liberia is just under an hour, but because I took the public bus it stopped about ten to twelve times along the way to pick up other people at the designated bus stops in other towns. It took roughly 2 hours to get to the bus station in Liberia. It may take longer depending on the day and time. From Liberia, I had to take another separate bus to head to the border or what they call “Fronterra.” I was lucky enough to only have to wait for ten minutes when the bus showed up. I believe that they have buses that leave every half hour to go to the border. The cost was 800 Colones (Approx. $1.45). It took about one and a half hours to get to the border but as mentioned above it may take a little longer than this depending on the day and time. Once I got off the bus, I needed to go to the Costa Rican Customs to get my passport stamped, this is required. You need to fill out a Migration Registration form which will be handed to you or they have at the front of the line to fill out. This is the sheet that you fill out on the plane when entering Costa Rica. You then have to walk about 200 yards while your are checked by a Costa Rican and Nicaraguan border patrol man to make sure the passport was stamped to get to the Nicaraguan Customs building. They may check your luggage as well so be prepared. Once I got to the customs building I had to get my passport stamped to enter Nicaragua. To me it always seems as if the lines are longer here in all my experiences. You will also notice once you get into Nicaragua you will be surrounded by Nicaraguans asking you if you need a taxi, money exchanges, etc. This can be sometimes overwhelming especially if this is your first time or don’t speak Spanish. As I stood in line to get my passport stamped, you will get people asking you if you want to buy a Migration Registration form which is required to fill out. These forms are free but it is $1 to get from one of the people selling these. I typically just pay for one so I have it when I get to the front of the line so I don’t waste anytime. I was approached by a local to see if I wanted to pay him some money so he can cut in line and expedite the process. I call them runners and they always do this to foreigners. I have mixed feelings about this for a few reasons. I was giving my passport to a stranger, and he was cutting in line in front of 25 people or so who have been waiting there for an hour plus. I have done this before and have been taken advantage for a decent amount of money. Typically they will charge you $10 to do this. This time though the runner only charged me two dollars which was a deal. You can bargain this amount with them. I saved an hour of standing in line. I would recommend staying within 10 feet of them when they go to the front. In addition, there is a $7 entrance fee to Nicaragua. Once you get stamped and paid your entrance fee, I decided to take a taxi to San Juan del Sur which is an hour away. This is probably your best bet plus it is a cheap taxi ride for an hour of traveling. It won’t be hard to find a taxi driver as there are probably 50 to choose from. I bargained with my driver and paid $25 for my trip. Before we got to his car, we had to go through another inspection point in which they check your passport again for the stamp and charge an additional $1 municipal fee. Here is the breakdown of the cost to get from Costa Rica to San Juan del Sur.

Bus rides: $3
Migration Registration form (Nic): $1
Entrance Fee to Nicaragua: $7
Cost to pay runner to cut in line to get passport stamped: $2
Municipal Ticket: $1
Taxi: $25
Total: $39

Nicaragua to Costa Rica: I coordinated the time and day with the taxi driver on when I wanted to be picked up from San Juan del Sur on my return. The fee was $25 again. Once you get to the border you have to pay another $1 for the municipal ticket. You then have to get an exit stamp for your passport at the Nicaraguan customs building. I decided to stay in line and not pay a runner to cut in line. I did pay $1 to get my migration registration form so I could fill out when I stood in line. The exit fee for Nicaragua is $2. I then walked back through the border check points of Nicaragua and Costa Rica then went to the Costa Rican Customs building to get my entrance stamp on my passport. There is no cost to enter or leave Costa Rica. I then waited half an hour to get a bus from the border to Liberia, same cost and time duration. From Liberia I got on the bus to Tamarindo which stops in Huacas, same cost and time duration. I then got a ride from a friend of mine from Huacas to Playa Grande. Here is the cost breakdown to get from Nicaragua to Playa Grande, Costa Rica.

Taxi ride: $25
Municipal ticket: $1
Nicaraguan exit fee: $2
Bus rides: $3
Total: $31

I hope this article may help you on your travels from Costa Rica to Nicaragua. Overall I had a good experience and plan to go this route in my future trips to Nicaragua. If you have a unique experience traveling through the border I would like to hear it. Feel free to comment or write something about this article.

I want to wish everyone a happy New Year’s. Time to start the year off with a bang, start new and set some new goals for the upcoming year. This New Year’s was my first ever in Costa Rica and what a great time I had. When I first arrived here, everyone kept telling me wait until New Year’s, you’ll hardly recognize the place. Over the holiday’s, Playa Grande was filled with people celebrating their vacation, time away from the city and work. Hundreds of people came into town to get some sun, surf, enjoy the gorgeous sunny days on the coast. It literally smelled like surf wax and sunscreen for a solid two weeks. And then of course you have Kike’s Restaurant. This was the place to go celebrate New Year’s. I met so many great people here and could tell that it was a very special night. Everyone came here to celebrate the New Year’s with family, friends and strangers. I took a ton of photos and promised everyone that I was going to post them on my blog, well here you go. Take a look at the fun we all had that night. Please feel free to comment on this blog.

Anne, Jen, Amy

These three beautiful ladies from San Diego came to Playa Grande with one thing in mind. Surf! For Amy and Jen it was there third visit to Playa Grande and for Anne it was her first time here in Costa Rica. Determined to get as much surf as possible, these girls went surfing twice a day every day for about 2 hours each session. Now that is some dedication. Part of it was being that it was some of the best surfing they have had in Costa Rica to date thanks to an awesome swell that rolled through at the same time. Talk about perfect timing.

These girls definitely made a scene out there in the lineup by catching waves with the regulars. I have never seen some of the locals give up waves that easy. I wonder why…If they weren’t in the water they were out catching up with some old friends and making new ones in Playa Grande. Very outgoing, all three found it very easy to fit in with everyone that lived in town. Throw a little tequila and guaro in there and you have some funny stories and pictures to take back to San Diego. We will miss you here in Grande ladies, come back soon!