The best time to visit Santa Teresa, month by month
Plan your trip
For sunshine and easy beach days, visit in the dry season from December to April, when it barely rains but the town is busy and dusty. For bigger…
Getting there by road, ferry or plane, the best time to visit, the dusty road and rainy season, and the practical stuff for longer stays.
Plan your trip
For sunshine and easy beach days, visit in the dry season from December to April, when it barely rains but the town is busy and dusty. For bigger…
Plan your trip
Santa Teresa works well for remote workers who can live with the odd power cut: fiber internet reaches much of town, coliving spaces such as Outsite…
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From San José, drive to Puntarenas, take the car ferry to Paquera, then follow Route 160 through Tambor and Cóbano to the coast, about an hour and a…
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The car ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera, run by Naviera Tambor, is the main gateway to Santa Teresa, with 8 sailings a day each way and a crossing…
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The fastest way to Santa Teresa is a short domestic flight from San José (SJO) to the Cóbano airstrip (ACO), about 10 km from town. SANSA and Costa…
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Public buses run from San José to Santa Teresa and Mal País, crossing on the Puntarenas to Paquera ferry, and the trip takes about 6 hours or more.…
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Santa Teresa is a surf town on the southwestern tip of Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula, strung along a coast road with Mal País to the south and Playa…
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Much of the road network around Santa Teresa and Mal País is still gravel or dirt. In the dry season that means thick dust; in the green season, mud…
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Bring a card and some cash, since there's a bank in Santa Teresa but ATMs can run dry on busy weekends. The main risks are rip currents, ATV…
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Shared shuttles run to Santa Teresa and Mal País from San José, La Fortuna and Monteverde, taking about 5 to 6 hours. Private shuttles go anywhere…
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Most visitors reach Santa Teresa by driving or taking a shuttle to Puntarenas, crossing on the car ferry to Paquera, then driving about an hour and a…
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A water taxi run by Zuma Tours crosses the Gulf of Nicoya between Jacó and Montezuma in about an hour, with shuttle connections on to Santa Teresa…