Yoga Festival in Costa Rica to be held April 16-19.

Yoga lovers will definitely not want to miss the National Yoga Festival in Costa Rica in April.
The capital city of San Jose, Costa Rica will host the 7^th annual National Festival of Yoga from April 16 to 19, 2015 at the National Culture Center (CENAC).

The festival is promoted by the Costa Rican Association of Yoga Teachers (ASOYOGA) to spread the practice of yoga throughout Costa Rica.

Activities at the festival will include yoga classes and workshops, talks, meditation, documentaries, games, healthy foods, handicrafts, cooking classes, massages and artistic activities. On Thursday, April 16, there will be free yoga classes in various yoga centers around San Jose. The official festival opening is Friday, April 17, with activities open to the public in San Jose parks and a gala presentation at 7:00 p.m. at the Theatre of Dance in San Jose. During Saturday and Sunday, April 18 and 19, activities at the National Culture Center (CENAC) will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

After the festival, you should escape to the beach to one of Costa Rica’s hotspots for yoga and surfing – Santa Teresa Beach. Famous for yoga, some of the best surfing in Costa Rica and spectacular Pacific Ocean sunsets, the friendly beach town of Santa Teresa, Costa Rica is the place to go for Costa Rica yoga retreats.



You’ll want to plan at least a few days if not a whole week in Santa Teresa. On the southern Nicoya Peninsula, Santa Teresa is known as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, and was once again named a top beach in the TripAdvisor 2015 Traveler’s Choice Awards.



The place to stay in Santa Teresa is Hotel Tropico Latino. The beachfront hotel in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica is located on the light sand beach of Playa Carmen, which was recently awarded the Ecological Blue Flag by the Costa Rican Tourism Board for being one of the cleanest beaches in the country.



Read our blog article on the best ways to get to Santa Teresa Beach in Costa Rica from San Jose.

Article by Shannon Farley

The best ways to get to Santa Teresa Costa Rica

You want to visit Santa Teresa, Costa Rica – named one of the most beautiful beaches in the world with some of the best surfing in Costa Rica. But where is it and how do you get there?

Santa Teresa Beach is located on the Pacific Coast of Costa Rica on the southern Nicoya Peninsula. There are three ways to get to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica: driving, domestic flight or boat taxi.

Hotel Tropico Latino is a Santa Teresa beachfront hotel at beautiful Playa Carmen. Hotel Tropico Latino specializes in Costa Rica surf holidays and yoga retreats in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica. They feature a charming property of four acres of lush gardens right on the sand, comfortable and luxurious accommodations, a beachfront spa, yoga classes and an award-winning restaurant.

How to get to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica by car or bus

To drive to the beach towns of the southern Nicoya Peninsula – Santa Teresa, Mal Pais, Montezuma and Tambor – you take the ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera. Be sure not to take the ferry to Playa Naranjo. The ferry takes about 75 minutes to cross the Nicoya Gulf. Arrive to the ferry terminal at least one hour early if it is high tourist season or a holiday.

In Paquera, follow the signs for Cobano and Mal Pais. In Cobano, drive straight through town and turn left after 1 kilometer, toward Mal Pais. The road turns into dirt. After 8 km, you will arrive at the Mal Pais crossroads; turn right to Hotel Tropico Latino and Santa Teresa. Drive time from Paquera is about 90 minutes.

Ferry schedules can be found here. Maps can be found here.

Buses: There are public buses daily from San Jose to Santa Teresa / Mal Pais.

How to get to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica by plane

There are many daily flights from San Jose to Tambor on Sansa Airlines and Nature Air; flights are a quick 35 minutes. From Tambor, Hotel Tropico Latino can arrange taxi transport for you or you can rent a car; drive time is about 40 minutes.

How to get to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica by boat taxi

Zuma Tours operates daily boat taxis from Herradura Beach near Jacó to Montezuma. This is a good transportation option in summer season. Boats travel in the morning, when the weather is usually nicer. Travel time is one hour. Boats range in size between 26 and 30 feet long and carry 12 to 30 passengers with luggage. From Montezuma, Hotel Tropico Latino can arrange a taxi to Santa Teresa.

Article by Shannon Farley

Learn how to surf in Santa Teresa Costa Rica

Learning how to surf can change your life. Maybe it’s the powerful rush of catching a wave and the feeling of flying on water as you race across the wave’s face. Or that it doesn’t matter how old or young you are, whether you are a beginner or a pro, the thrill of being out in the ocean is still the same.

Always wanted to try surfing? Or tried it, love it and want to get better? Come to Costa Rica on vacation and do it. Water temperatures are usually 83-85°F; no wetsuit needed, and the sun shines most of the year.

Santa Teresa Beach, Costa Rica is a hot destination for surf in Santa Teresa Costa Rica. Santa Teresa is frequently named one of the most beautiful beaches in the world for its warm Pacific Ocean, great waves, empty beaches, tropical palm trees, friendly locals and picture-perfect sunsets. You’ll be star-struck by the beauty of the jungle pouring down from coastal mountains to white sand beaches and the clear blue sea. 

Famous for year-round surf, you can find awesome beach and point breaks with uncrowded easy-to-ride waves.

Hotel Tropico Latino at beautiful Playa Carmen in Santa Teresa specializes in Costa Rica surf holidays and Costa Rica surf camps. Pura Vida Adventures teaches surfing in front of Hotel Tropico Latino on Playa Carmen. The main surf break is a gentle rolling wave that is perfect for beginner surfers. More experienced surfers can go in the surf van to a variety of nearby breaks with differing challenges.

You’ll be amazed at how fast you will be up and riding waves with experienced surf instructors. Beginners will learn the basic steps of surfing: proper etiquette, water safety, wave riding skills (how to properly stand up and ride waves), and effective paddling techniques.

The Santa Teresa beachfront hotel offers comfortable and luxurious accommodations, a beachfront spa, yoga classes and yoga retreats, and an award-winning restaurant. Walk out your front door and be on the beach and in the surf in under a minute!

So, whether you are a beginner surfer or already have saltwater running through your veins, Hotel Tropico Latino can arrange the best Costa Rica surf vacation for you.

Article by Shannon Farley

Girls Rule: Women-only surf retreats in Santa Teresa Costa Rica

There are women-only professional clubs, women-only gyms, women’s athletic events, and girls also rule at Pura Vida Adventures surf retreats in Costa Rica.

Founded 10 years ago by surfer Tierza Eichner, Pura Vida Adventures brings women from the U.S. and other countries to the pristine beaches and rocking waves of Santa Teresa, Costa Rica for surfing and yoga vacations.

Santa Teresa Beach on the southern Nicoya Peninsula is a hot destination for surf and yoga retreats in Costa Rica. Santa Teresa is frequently named one of the most beautiful beaches in the world for its warm Pacific Ocean, great waves, sparkling white sand beach, tropical palm trees and balmy weather.

The Costa Rica surf camps are based at Hotel Tropico Latino in Santa Teresa. Women of all ages and walks of life – corporate executives, retirees, students, professional athletes – come to learn and improve the art of wave riding, be revitalized in yoga classes and relax under the tropical sun. The Santa Teresa beachfront hotel holds the very popular retreats all year long with Pura Vida Adventures.

Week-long surf retreats (7 days and 6 nights) are taught by professional, highly-trained surf instructors. Yoga adds the important elements of stretching and relaxation. Costa Rica surf and yoga retreats are available at Hotel Tropico Latino in November and December 2014, and January to May 2015. There are both co-ed and women-only retreats offered.

Big news is that Carve Design, makers of apparel for water girls, has teamed up with Pura Vida Adventures to make sure you look your best with your new Costa Rica beach tan. Sign up for a 2014 Pura Vida Adventures surf camp in Costa Rica, and you’ll get 20% off all Carve Designs products, designed for women by women to fit womanly curves.

Hotel Tropico Latino

At beautiful Playa Carmen in Santa Teresa, Hotel Tropico Latino is a relaxed and charming 4-star resort fronting the beach on four acres of lush, tropical gardens. Accommodations are comfortable and luxurious. Hotel facilities include a full-service beachfront spa and an award-winning restaurant. Sunsets are breathtaking.

Article by Shannon Farley

Meditation and yoga on the beach in Santa Teresa Costa Rica

In today’s busy world, being centered, balanced and at peace are much sought-after elements. People in seriously busy places are turning to the timeless Eastern practices of meditation and yoga to help them get there.

People have different reasons for wanting to meditate, but those who do so regularly say it greatly enriches their lives. Mantra meditation is one of the most popular meditation techniques.

What is a mantra? It’s a word or phrase repeated over and over during meditation – generally sacred in nature, that uplifts you and helps keep you focused during meditation. Mantras give your brain something to do to quiet all of the usual chatter, whether repeated, chanted or sung out loud or silently. Mantras have a soothing, calming effect on the mind to softly but firmly focus only on one tiny simple thing.

“With so much emphasis on multitasking, it’s not as common in our society to concentrate and focus. Mantras help build the skill to focus,” commented Nancy Goodfellow, yoga instructor at Pranamar Oceanfront Villas and Yoga Retreat in Santa Teresa Costa Rica. Goodfellow integrates the practice of mantras and meditation into her daily yoga classes at the Costa Rica beach resort that specializes in yoga retreats and vacations.

The key to building a healthy meditation practice is to start slowly with 10 minutes a day and work your way up to 20 minutes, then 30 minutes, an hour, etc.

Top 10 benefits of meditation:

• Quiet the mind and find calm
• Reduce stress
• Improve creativity
• Visualize achieving goals
• Dispel negative thinking
• Follow a faith or spiritual teaching
• Get to know yourself better
• Breathe better and improve focus and concentration
• Improve your health
• Control anxiety

Pranamar Oceanfront Villas and Yoga Retreat

Enjoy private Costa Rica villas with Bali-style flair on the beach at this Santa Teresa, Costa Rica hotel. The luxury boutique resort features tropical gardens, a healthy gourmet restaurant, free-form saltwater pool, beachfront spa, and a magnificent yoga shala offering yoga classes, yoga retreats and yoga vacations. See their weekly yoga class schedule on Facebook.

Article by Shannon Farley

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