Santa Teresa surf camps are now some of the very best in Costa Rica. Great consistency of waves and access to all-level breaks make them so, plus some epic locations on the jungled hills of the Nicoya Peninsula. Let’s take a look at the best…
Santa Teresa has firmly established itself as the thinking traveler’s alternative to Tamarindo. Both places are blessed with continuous surf off the SW Pacific swell channels, but Tamarindo is now a pumping party place that’s as much for bachelor shindigs as it is for serious surfers and learners. Santa Teresa has started to fill that gap, offering boutique and luxurious surf camps, but also classic backpacker hostel stays close to the waves.
This guide to the best Santa Teresa surf camps runs through a handful of options that we think are the very best in the town right now. It’s got budget choices with dorm rooms but also exquisite surf lodges tucked onto the jungle-covered mountainsides.
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
This is just one part of our complete overall guide to surfing in Costa Rica
This is also a part of our complete guide to surf camps
El Chante Surf House
- Location: Playa Hermosa, Santa Teresa
- Price: 7 days/6 nights starting at $1,837 (£1,486) per person
Right now, it’s the El Chante Surf House that’s topping the bill for us in Santa Teresa. It’s not quite as well known as a number of the other places in the region, but therein lies the charm. The place is a proper boutique surf lodge with plenty of character and a lovely location.
It’s tucked into the palm jungles just back from Playa Hermosa beach. You’ll wake to the calls of howler monkeys and the rustlings of lizards in the cottonwoods. Then, the day goes something like this: Wake up, head to the beach for sunrise, stretch out with a yoga class, fill yourself on healthy local fruits for breako and then hit the waves for a guided surf class. After, it’s chill by the pool and hang with other guests.
The fact that you’re literally two minutes’ walk from the beach at Hermosa is the real joy at El Chante. It’s arguably the best beginner beach on the Nicoya Peninsula and it’s right there, steps from the door.
A note on why we partner with BookSurfCamps.com: Book Surf Camps are probably the biggest online aggregator of surf camps and surf-yoga packages in the world. We sounded out a quite a few potential partners before we affiliated with them. But, in the end, the abundance of choice for beginners, intermediates, and female-only surfing sealed it. We also love the simplicity of their booking system and the trusted brand name, along with the focus on connecting with homegrown local businesses on the ground.
Pura Vida Surfers
- Location: Playa Santa Teresa, Santa Teresa
- Price: 7 days/6 nights starting at $1,619 (£1,309) per person
Pura Vida Surfers have moved to a pretty nifty new location just five minutes’ walk back from Playa Santa Teresa. It’s a great base for those who really want to push the number of hours that they’re on the waves during their time at the end of the Nicoya Peninsula, especially since you can just grab a board and hop across the street to paddle out whenever you want.
The backbone of their 7-day camp option is a series of four fully curated surf lessons. They’ll be run by one of three local instructors, but usually headed up by Victor St. Clair, a Costa Rican surfers who hails from the Caribbean coast. Lessons are very detailed, do in-water and out-of-water drills to improve the basic technicals, and are heavy on the feedback.
What’s great about the package with Pura Vida is that it’s really flexible. You can chop and change your surfing from morning to night to fit in yoga sessions if you want, and match up lessons to fit with the best incoming swells and winds.
La Posada Hostel
- Location: Playa Carmen, Santa Teresa
- Price: 7 days/6 nights starting at $1,049 (£848) per person
We’ve already waxed lyrical about La Posada over on our guide to the best surf camps in Costa Rica as a whole. It deserves the plaudits because it’s staying true to the classic idea of low-budget surf stays that prioritize fun, fun, and more fun over just about everything else.
Okay, so you won’t get the uber-chic interiors and Balinese design styles here. What you will get is great surf tuition with a super nice crew. The 7-day package at La Posada offers five days of guided surf lesson, use of all their in-house equipment, and transfer to the various spots (though the best surf is right over the road). Basically, it’s the basics all covered, all for a pretty affordable price tag.
The accommodation itself really gels with the vibe that this is about having a good time. It’s a proper hostel sorta’ pad with shared dorm rooms. Everyone will meet at the communal pool, groups usually dine together, and there’s plenty in the way of sunset beer drinking to be done.
Jakera Jungle Surf Camp
- Location: Santa Teresa
- Price: 4-week surf stays with Spanish lessons starting at $3,300 (£2,668) per person
If you’re keen to learn your buenos noches and your por favors while also getting to grips with the waves, then Santa Teresa has an option: The Jakera Jungle Surf Camp. Part language school, part adventure camp, it’s got a four-week package that promises to get you on the green waves and also speaking like a local.
The price – which is a pretty penny at nearly $3,000 per person, though that is for four whole weeks – includes a whopping 16 surf lessons and up to 40 separate language lessons. The great thing is that it’s aimed at beginner surfers, so you’ll share that camaraderie on the water with other novices while also testing your Spanish vocab and whatnot.
The Jakera Jungle Surf Camp itself is pretty cool. It’s tucked into – as the name implies – the jungles and has large, dedicated classroom areas and communal hang spaces.
The Green House
- Location: Santa Teresa
- Price: A week’s surf stay starting at $1,429 (£1,155) per couple
The Green House is a little different to the proper package surf camps offered here. It’s more of a DIY surf base, well suited to more advanced surfers who want the freedom to surf where they choose and surf couples looking for something a little more upscale.
There are only about three units on the site. Each is a proper eco villa built from natural materials, but oozing luxuries and mod cons from the inside. Spaces come with stylish fitted kitchens, wrap-around verandahs with views of the jungles, and even bubbling splash pools that are amazing for watching the sunset from.
As we’ve mentioned, this is a DIY surf hotel more than a surf camp. You’ll need to book your accommodation on its own (we use Booking.com for that) and then plan your own surf trips. For that reason, a 4X4 car rental is recommended – staying in the hills behind Santa Teresa beach often means navigating potholed roads, but it’s worth it to stay in the company of endangered howler monkeys, no?
We might use affiliate links in this post. Basically, you click em’ and we get a little something from your booking or purchase. They help us keep offering more and more in-depth surf guides to awesome places all around the globe. So, thanks for that!
