Costa Rica pt.3

Costa Rica pt.3

Days 6-8

Tamarindo – party town! As three young (ish) guys travelling we felt we needed to intersperse the nature and culture with a little night-time fun, this quaint little coastal resort did not disappoint!! For anyone used to ‘Western’ (for want of a better word) beach resorts, Tamarindo is a delightfully under-developed beach-bum surfer town. Local Costa Ricans and other nostalgic travellers that visited it 20-30 years ago often have a less rosey view as, by CR standards, it is quite developed and on the outskirts offers a number of larger ‘all-inclusive’ style hotels/resorts (which personally I abhor). However in town you can walk the length down the one high street in about 20 mins, a couple of larger hotels either side (we stayed at the very nice Jardins del Eden, the beachfront Tamarindo Diria probably being the pick of the lot) but mostly it’s small shops, surf huts, tour offices and a good selection of restaurants. Particular mention here to Bamboo Sushi Club - $25 a head a we had a couple of beers each and stuffed ourselves with some of the best sushi I’ve eaten in a long time in a very pleasant setting.

Our one activity (other than partaking in Tamarindo’s full array of night-time possibilities) was the sunset catamaran cruise: Marlin Del Rey, which turned out to be one of the highlights of the holiday. Full review here to save time/words (http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g309253-d653821-r146017232-Marlin_Del_Rey_Sailing_Tours-Tamarindo_Province_of_Guanacaste.html) but put simply it’s sun sea sailing snorkelling and unlimited booze – brilliant!!

Regarding nightlife, Tamarindo is unique in my experience in that each night of the week has a different main club/bar that sucks up 80% of revellers. The popular Sharky’s for example (Yank ex-pat hang-out/sports bar) is not open on a Wednesday however Pacifico bar/club is fantastic and was our favourite venue in town. Friday nights on the other hand is all about the opposite end of town with Aqua (not a fan) and Crazy Monkey (too noticeably attached to a hotel complex, however the live salsa band were great) being the only places to go to.

My only notes of caution would be (and this is more a ‘heads-up’ than a criticism) that it’s popularity with beach/booze orientated tourists means drug use is fairly common and if you are in an obvious target demographic (e.g. male 20-30) you will be approached a number of times to buy drugs. However it’s generally non-threatening and non-intrusive, a polite no thank-you goes a long way and you’re never bothered by the same person again. Bit like the hookers. Prostitution is legal in Costa Rica therefore whichever the main club is for the night will normally have a scattering of working girls by the bar or dancefloor periphery.

My only negative? I wouldn’t go here with American teen (15-20) girls as a parent [or at least I wouldn't let them out of my sight on an evening]. One of my biggest take-aways from the night scene there was that it just seemed to be where dumb young drunk Yank girls go to get fingered by locals. Any other nationality is probably is ok as we’re not hamstrung by draconian drink laws, girls that age will be used to clubbing, the effects of alcohol and how to deal with guys hitting on them. Americans not so much……

Haha, that last paragraph gave me a chuckle. Seems it is a place with plenty to offer whatever you are after as a tourist.