Planning and directions

Activities in Guanacaste

Our front desk can help you arrange full and half-day tours near the Sugar Beach Hotel, including ocean kayaking, catamaran/sailing, zip-line canopy rides, ATV tours, horse-back riding, visiting our national parks, surfing, scuba diving, sport-fishing, visiting Nicaragua, river-rafting and more.

Surfing

Surfing is one of the most popular activities in Guanacaste, and there are several beaches both north and south of the Sugar Beach Hotel that offer breaks for the novice and experienced surfer alike. Playa Pan de Azúcar, where the hotel is located, has a small beach break that can reach overhead range on bigger south-westerly swells. Flamingo beach, just 15 minutes south, has a left point break at the south end and a beach break as well. Playa Grande, 40 minutes south, offers 7 kilometers of varying breaks for all levels of surfer, while Tamarindo beach, across the estuary (also a 40 minute drive from the hotel) is popular among beginners. Playas Avellanas and Negra, south of Tamarindo, welcome more advanced surfers. Witch's Rock, north of the Sugar Beach Hotel, is accessible only by boat, which can be chartered for the day from both Tamarindo and Playas del Coco.

Inshore and offshore fishing are excellent all year, and fresh yellow-fin tuna, mahi-mahi and red snapper are served daily in mouth-watering dishes, while sport-fishers enjoy the thrill of hooking sailfish, marlin and roosterfish for later release. Sport-fishing boats can be chartered for half- and full-day excursions, and for those who prefer to fish from shore, the Potrero beach estuary near Potrero's soccer field is a favored spot for line fishers in the early morning and dusk hours. Whatever your catch, our chef is happy to prepare it for dinner!

Guanacaste's Pacific waters are also a mecca for scuba diving, rewarding divers with plentiful sightings of manta rays, reef sharks, sea turtles, whale sharks, seahorses, octopus, rays, eels and a myriad of brightly colored fish. Visible from the Hotel Sugar Beach are the Catalina Islands and Sombreros, which offer excellent diving year-round. North of the hotel, Ocotal Beach also offers excellent reef diving, a relative rarity on the Pacific side.

Snorkeling

Snorkeling also offers rich rewards in the warm coastal waters, which can reach crystal clarity, especially during the dry season when there is no river runoff to stir up sediment. The southern point at Playa Pan de Azúcar, where the Hotel Sugar Beach is set, offers year-round sightings - among others - of colorful parrotfish, cornetfish, Moorish idols, snowflake eels, and seasonally octopus, spotted eagle rays, stingrays, and sea turtles. North of Hotel Sugar Beach lie several pristine beaches with small reefs and rocky points that are well worth exploring; some places are accessible only by boat or kayak.

River-rafting

River-rafting in Guanacaste is fun for all ages, as the province has several rivers of classes I-IV; the higher classes are best navigated in the rainy season when the rivers roar to life. A gentle river 'float' down the Rio Corobici (Class I-II) is a great opportunity to observe the wildlife that gathers on the banks, including howler monkeys, river otters and a host of resident and migrant birds. For a bit more adrenaline, the Rio Negro (Class I-II) is ideal for an fun inner-tube ride, mixing long scenic stretches of calm water with bursts of white water rapids and miniature falls. The Rio Colorado (Class II-III) offers a bit more of a challenge as it winds deep through canyon walls, and for the more adventuresome the Tenorio (Class III-IV) river is a thrilling 15 miles of heart-racing twists and drops.

Bird-watchers

Bird-watchers flock to Guanacaste to catch sight of the more than 400 species of birds, both resident and migratory, that live in the mangroves, wetlands, dry tropical forest, mountains and rainforest across the province. This rich diversity of habitats is what gives rise to the incredible density of species, making Guanacaste a true bird-watching paradise. From the elusive quetzal and the three-wattled bellbird, to the colorful scarlet macaw and king vulture, a good pair of binoculars and an upward gaze are all that are needed to feast the eyes.