Why Nosara Is the Perfect
Family Surf Destination

We moved our family from New York to Nosara in 2018. At the time it felt like a leap. Looking back, it was the most straightforward decision we ever made. And the families who come to Nalu every year — many of them returning for the third or fourth time — tend to describe the same feeling. Nosara gets into you. It works on kids just as much as it works on adults.

Here's what makes it particularly well-suited for families travelling with children.

A surf break built for all levels

Playa Guiones is one of the most consistent beach breaks in Central America. Six kilometres of dark sand, no development on the shoreline, no crowds relative to the space. The wave works year-round — beginner-friendly during dry season (December through April) when conditions are smaller and cleaner, and more powerful in green season (May through November) for families with experienced surfers in the mix.

For kids who have never surfed, Nosara is an ideal introduction. The beach is gentle enough for beginners to stand up on their first session, and there's a community of patient, skilled instructors who have been teaching here for years. Our concierge team works with a handful of trusted names — people who know the break, work well with children, and genuinely love what they do.

Private villas with space to spread out

Hotels with families are a compromise. Your kids are in the same room, the pool is shared, and dinner requires a reservation at 6pm sharp. At Nalu, every villa is a fully self-contained home — private pool, fully equipped kitchen, separate bedrooms, a living room big enough for everyone to actually use. You set the schedule.

Several of our villas are built specifically with families in mind. Villa Lani and Villa Jardín both have bunk rooms — proper teak bunk beds that kids love and that sleep a group without anyone doubling up. Lani sleeps up to 14 across its four bedrooms, which makes it well-suited to multi-family trips where cousins travel together. All villas include cribs and high chairs on request, and there are books, toys, and games in each home.

A playground steps from the villas

The Nalu compound includes a proper playground on the property — swings, climbing, space to run. After a morning at the beach, kids who are done with the pool have somewhere to go. It's close enough that parents can watch from the pool deck.

Beyond the property, Nosara itself is an unusually good town for children. The roads are quiet, the jungle is full of wildlife — howler monkeys, scarlet macaws, iguanas, and during the right season, sea turtles nesting on the beach at night. Our concierge team arranges guided turtle tours, wildlife walks, waterfall hikes, and river kayaking — the kind of experiences that become the stories children tell for years.

A pace of life that works for everyone

Nosara sits in the Nicoya Peninsula Blue Zone — one of five regions in the world where people measurably live longer, healthier lives. Part of what makes it a Blue Zone is intangible: the pace. Things move more slowly here. There's no nightlife worth mentioning, no shopping centres, nothing demanding your attention. Kids decompress fast. Adults follow.

The rhythm tends to sort itself out quickly. Surf in the morning while the conditions are best. Pool or playground in the late morning. Lunch at home. Afternoons for naps, reading, or a quick trip to the beach before the light changes. The Nalu concierge team can pre-stock your villa with groceries before you arrive — local fruit, snacks, whatever you need — so the first morning is already sorted.

Practical things worth knowing

• Best age for surf lessons: Kids as young as five or six can start. The instructors here work with children regularly and know how to make it fun rather than frustrating.
• Best season for families: Dry season (December–April) offers the calmest conditions at the beach. Green season is lush, quieter, and significantly less expensive — good for families who are flexible on dates.
• Getting here: Nearest airport is Liberia (LIR), about 2.5 hours by car. The local airstrip at Nosara (NOB) is ten minutes from the property — a 30-minute flight from San José that kids find genuinely exciting.
• Multi-family trips: Several Nalu families book two or three villas together. The Nalu collection has five villas in a shared jungle compound, which works well for groups who want private space but easy access to each other. Our concierge team handles everything — one point of contact for the whole group.