santa-teresa.com is an independent English guide to Santa Teresa, Mal País, Playa Carmen and Playa Hermosa on the southern tip of Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula. We've covered the area since 2011 and rebuilt the site in 2026 with every place checked again.
What this site is
santa-teresa.com started in 2011 as a simple listings site for a surf town that most travelers had barely heard of. Santa Teresa has changed a lot since then. The main road is paved, there are more places to stay and eat, and the town now draws remote workers and yoga students as well as surfers. In 2026 we rebuilt the site from scratch, kept the guides that were still useful, and rewrote every page.
We cover the stretch of coast from Playa Hermosa in the north, through Santa Teresa and Playa Carmen, down to Mal País, plus the day trips most visitors take: Cabo Blanco, Montezuma and Tortuga Island.
How we work
Every place on the site was checked before we wrote about it, using its own website and recent listings. If a business we used to list has closed, we removed it and pointed its old page to a related section. You'll see the date we last checked each place on its page. Read more in our editorial policy.
We don't publish prices because they change often, and we don't accept payment to list or rank anyone.
Who's behind it
santa-teresa.com is part of the CRJ Network, a small group of independent Costa Rica travel guides. One of the network's owners also owns Anamaya Resort in Montezuma, on the other side of the peninsula from Santa Teresa. Where Anamaya appears on this site, we say so next to it.
Get in touch
Spotted something out of date, or opened a new place in town? Tell us and we'll check it. We read every message, though we can't promise to list everyone.