The peninsula, town by town
Where on the peninsula?
The southern Nicoya Peninsula is really a string of distinct places — a party-surf town, a quiet fishing end, a waterfall village, a strict nature reserve. Here's where each one sits and what it's for.
Santa Teresa
The center of gravity for the southern Nicoya Peninsula — a sand-road surf town that grew into a full-blown scene of beach restaurants, design hotels, yoga shalas, and a wave that breaks all day.
Mal País
The quieter, fishing-village end just south of Santa Teresa — rockier, calmer, and more local, where the road bends toward the Cabo Blanco reserve.
Montezuma
A bohemian beach town on the peninsula's east side — waterfalls, a tight village core, and a slower, artsier rhythm than the surf coast.
Playa Carmen
The crossroads beach where the Santa Teresa road meets the sea — central, walkable, and home to the town's most consistent beginner peak.
Playa Hermosa
The long, open beach just north of town — emptier sand, big sunsets, and the area's workhorse surf when the swell is up.
Cabuya
A tiny, off-grid village at the tip of the peninsula by the Cabo Blanco reserve — known for its low-tide island cemetery and end-of-the-road calm.
Cabo Blanco
Costa Rica's oldest protected area — the absolute-reserve rainforest and coastline at the peninsula's southern tip, reached from Cabuya and Mal País.
Nicoya
The historic inland town that gives the peninsula its name — a Blue Zone hub of longevity, colonial history, and the gateway you pass through by road.