Advice on Tamarindo Costa Rica?

[nalu-sup]

Hi all. We are leaving in a couple of weeks for our first surf trip to Costa Rica. We are going to be staying in Tamarindo, and would appreciate any knowledge or advice on the area, both SUP surfing and anything else. We are hiring a local SUP guide (Marco) to drive us to different breaks each morning, and then will be on our own for afternoon and evening sessions. We are staying on the beach at the Hotel Diria (no car), and don't mind paddling a mile or so to find uncrowded waves.
Any thoughts on: best breaks to be sure to get to (particularly rights), tides, uncrowded waves to paddle to near town for afternoon or evening sessions, restaurants in the area (not fancy or expensive), whether or not to exchange money, tipping, anything culturally to be aware of when interacting with the locals, anything special to pack, etc.
Thanks for any advice.

[southwesterly]

Good choice of hotels nalu-sup. I’ve stayed at the hotel Diria a couple of times. Perfect place with no car as there are lots of waves close by in this area. The Hotel has an outstanding breakfast buffet. My surf buddies and I would surf early right out in front, then come in dripping wet before the 10 am cut off time for breakfast.

The wave right in front of the hotel is really fun. The Rivermouth, a classic right and left is just a short paddle away. Once on the other side of the river, it is not a long walk to Playa Grande with a mile of empty peaks along that beach.

The tidal change in this area is huge. The surf spots change rapidly with the different depths of water. Once you are there a day or two, it’s easy to figure out where to be on what tide.

You can also arrange a boat trip to Witch’s Rock and Ollie’s Point from the hotel.

Enjoy yourself, it’s beautiful part of the world.

[nalu-sup]

Thanks southwesterly; good info. I was thinking that Playa Grande looked like a good option for an evening session if the river mouth was crowded. Our guide Marco tells us that he times our morning sessions in time to get back for that awesome breakfast buffet. We'll see; if the surf is awesome, we just might have to skip the breakfast. https://www.standupzone.com/forum/Smileys/default/grin.gif
Nice to hear that the hotel can arrange a boat for Witches Rock and Ollie's. I was planning on asking Marco about the best options for checking out those spots.
It sounds like figuring out the tides for each spot is going to be a priority. We actually planned the timing of our trip around Marco's advice on tides. We were originally asking about going a couple of weeks ago, but Marco sent us a list of the prime weeks for tides, and we scheduled around that.
Can you give us a quick sense of the best tides for out in front of the hotel and the river mouth. We might try to get in a session at one of those spots the afternoon or evening we arrive, before meeting our guide the next morning.

[808sup]

Went there in 1989 and 1991. Tamarindo was a sleepy little town back then. It was an adventure of a lifetime. Here in Hawaii we may have sharks, but we don't have any crocs! 
http://www.ticotimes.net/2015/03/11/crocodile-attacks-surfer-in-tamarindo
Be aware that they like estuaries and Do venture out into salt water as well. Stay safe and have fun.

[Floridasup]

If you are talking about Marco Pacheco as your guide then you have the best advice of anyone in him.  He shapes SUPs and know tamarindo and Avellanas better than anyone.  If it is Marco you already hired the best.   He is a great person as well.  Now for the Breakfast at the Diria, it is awesome and can be your best meal of the day.   I have been to the Diria many a time for surf then SUP.  Have a great surf trip.

[nalu-sup]

Actually we are signed up with Marco Salazar of Costa Rica Stand Up Paddle Adventures. Read lots of great reviews from people about him.

[APPST_Paddle]

Yeah, I've met Marco on my first trip there, I was pretty inexperienced at the time, but he definitely knew where to go, nice guy.

I love Costa Rica, but we typically stay at Avellanas, nice mix of breaks there, about 30 minutes from Tamarindo, some great restaurants too - Mauna Loa and Beach Box, highly recommend. Lola's is cool but more just to drink and hang out on the beach.

At Avellanas, I would head towards the Rivermouth, just watch going left anytime +/- 2hrs of low tide.

I'm envious, have fun, PM me if you have any specific questions.

[southwesterly]

Can you give us a quick sense of the best tides for out in front of the hotel and the river mouth. We might try to get in a session at one of those spots the afternoon or evening we arrive, before meeting our guide the next morning.

High tide in front and low tide for the Rivermouth as a general rule.

[surfafrica]

Have any of you guys surfed at Playa Negra?  (45 minutes south of Tamarindo)

[joelcr]

Sounds like a good trip. I've surfed all around there. This is their main wave season.
At avellana there is an outside bigger wave called Golfo Persico, they say it's very good on a sup. There are big tidal changes, so mid-tide is usually the best.

Also if there is a good south swell, it would be worth a drive south to Boca Barranca one morning, fun lefthander and very long ride on a sup. About 2 hours away. 4 foot at 16 seconds  @195 degrees would be happening.

Make sure you keep you stuff locked up, and have someone watch your things outside of the hotel. Petty larceny is a big problem. Most places will take $ and give you change in colones. Easy to do, and/or change money at the hotel. I think the rate now is about 565 to the dollar. A beer is between 1000, and 1500 colones.

As for Playa Negra, it's the best wave around. Probably better for a surfboard, and the local and expat surfers don't like sups too much. But.... I talked to a guy once who said you can sup it at high tide when it's too fat for surfers. Too shallow at low tide. Needs offshores in the morning. Hollow and fast over reef. 

[PabstSUP]

Playa Negra is a great wave but is steep and hollow breaking over a shallow reef (a local surfer and SUPer's board snapped when I was there).  I surfed it this last winter but made sure that I was there early (pre-dawn) before the crowds showed up and had the break with a handful of people. My wife passed on it when she saw the conditions. When the crowd showed up I stayed about 30yds off the main peak and picked off waves that weren't being taken. The surfers out there saw I could handle myself and was respecting the lineup and not hogging set waves but I'd be careful about paddling out when there's a large crew of locals around. Have a great trip!  I was in Tamarindo about 18yrs ago when it was a pretty mellow spot but I've heard a lot has changed since then...