Montezuma Beach on the tip of the Nicoya Peninsula is a gorgeous white sandy landscape with Montezuma, Costa Rica’s amazing green topography as a backdrop.

Montezuma is in the Puntarenas province of Costa Rica, and has the first protected area in all of Costa Rica. Cabo Blanco Nature Reserve was first conceived of when Olof Wessburg (Nicholas in Costa Rica) and Karen Mogensen emigrated from Sweden to Costa Rica in the 1960s. By 1963 they were able to convince the authority of Costa Rica to preserve the land from development.

There is a thriving local and tourist population in Montezuma, Costa Rica. The town features an annual film festival (Costa Rica International Film Festival) that happens in May. The town and beach are frequented by artists, yogis, eco-tourists and Ticos among others. The tropical forest and beach make for great jumping off points to start an adventure.

There are plenty of tour operators in the area who can help you plan your daily excursions. As to some of the tours and activities that might be of interest there is waterfall and zip line tours, snorkeling at the Tortuga Islands, horseback riding, surfing and fishing. Yoga has become very popular along with other healing arts with the local expat community.

You may want to bring yoga pants and a mat, hiking boots, sun screen, a surfboard, a swimsuit, snorkeling gear, a camera and a water bottle. The area has an ATM, but you won’t find a post office or bank in town. There are lots of souvenir shops where you can pick up postcards and other nic nacs.

The closest port of call being Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport in Liberia, Costa Rica is three hours and twenty two minutes from Montezuma, Costa Rica. Montezuma is four hours and thirty minutes from Juan Santamaria International Airport in Alajuela, Costa Rica. San Jose is six and a quarter hours away.

Hotels in Montezuma are both economically friendly and extravagant with places like Ylang Ylang Beach Resort, Hotel Amor de Mar and Kalapiti Luxury Jungle Suites. It isn’t difficult to get to Montezuma via taxi, rental car, hotel or private shuttle, bus and by air via the airport in Tambor. Nature Air and Sansa both serve the local airport, and flights from most locations in Costa Rica are around fifteen to thirty minutes.

Location: Montezuma Beach
Items to bring: yoga pants, yoga mat, hiking boots, sun screen, a surfboard, a swimsuit, snorkeling gear, a camera, a water bottle
Distance from San Jose: 6 hrs 15 mins
Distance from Liberia: 3 hrs 22 mins
Hotels nearby: Ylang Ylang Beach Resort, Hotel Amor de Mar and Kalapiti Luxury Jungle Suites
Ways to get here: rental car, private shuttle, hotel shuttle, plane