The 15-Day Surf Intensive course hits the best surf spots on the Nicoya peninsula – and we keep the schedule flexible to take advantage of the best waves! Located on the North Pacific coast of Costa Rica groups traditionally set up base camps at both Playa Avellana and at the Witch’s Rock expedition site for 5 to 7 days.

Avellana has a good beginner beach break with a sandy bottom with a lot of safe whitewash. Further north of the beach break there is an A-Frame (breaks both left and right) reef break at a river mouth, which breaks over a shelf and picks up more than the beach break. Surfing is best here at mid to high-tide. A little north of the river mouth is a break called “Little Hawaii.” It is a predominant right that breaks off a reef, which is best at low tide and picks up a lot of swell, holding up to head and a half to double overhead.

Witch’s Rock is a very remote, now-famous surf spot was a long time closely held secret by Costa Rican locals until it was “discovered” in the surf movie Endless Summer 2. It has a main beach break at the river mouth that breaks right. It also has a beach break called “El Burro” (The Donkey), which is a peak with a really good left. Predominant offshore winds hold up the waves, so they’re really hollow. There are big tubes and great barrels break both left and right. Since the beach is part of a National Park with environmental protections, there is limited infrastructure making it a hard hike in to the camp site.

Of course your total surf time will not just be spent at two beaches. Depending on where the good surf is your group will decide where to take day trips. From Avellana your group will have access to:

Playa Tamarindo, which has another good beginner beach break with slow rollers.

Playa Negra, which has a strong hollow break over a reef that is mostly a right, and it also has a nice beach break called Sandies that is good for beginners.

Junquillal, which has a nice beach break and a solid left off the rock point when the swell picks up.

Marbella, which has another nice beach break that breaks with a good offshore wind.

Santa Teresa, which has a consistent beach break that picks up a lot of swell and peaks with both lefts and rights with regular head-high days.

The 15-Day Surf Intensive Course Itinerary has to be flexible to go to where the waves are best for the group. That being said, it is definitely an Outward Bound course, and students will be part of a self-sufficient group (setting up camp, cooking meals, be part of group discussions) that will have holistic instruction (learning about lunar phases, wave formations, coastal ecology, mangroves, etc) and partake in some other non-surfing “downtime” activities (which may include the Solo experience, Beach Olympics, Capoeira, Yoga, Fitness Routines, Leadership Development and Group Dynamic Challenges, Team Building Activities, etc)