Tamarindo or Playas del Coco: Which Beach Town Fits You?

Tamarindo or Playas del Coco? If you want to surf, walk to twenty restaurants and have a town buzzing around you, pick Tamarindo. If you want the shortest airport transfer, calm water, boat days and a town where people actually live, pick Playas del Coco. They are both in Guanacaste, both served by the Liberia airport, and they feel NOTHING alike.

I have lived in Coco and I just spent time in Tamarindo on a research trip, so this comparison is one I care about getting right for you.

Here is how I sort them. Tamarindo is the resort style trip. It works beautifully for a first international vacation, because it eases you into Costa Rica with everything close at hand. Playas del Coco has a relaxed expat feel, and it has very few hotels, so a luxury villa is typically the better choice there.

How far is each one from the airport?

Coco wins this easily: It is roughly half an hour from LIR. Tamarindo is about an hour and a quarter, sometimes closer to an hour and a half. Neither is a hard drive, and both are paved.

The difference shows up on short trips. On a four or five night stay, the extra time each way to Tamarindo is small but real, and a private transfer costs more the farther you go. On a week or longer, I would not let the drive decide it.

Which beach is better, Tamarindo or Playas del Coco?

They are built for different things.

Tamarindo is a long, wide, light colored beach with consistent waves. It is one of the friendliest places in Costa Rica to take a first surf lesson. Because of those waves, it is less ideal for small children or anyone who wants to float around without paying attention. There is also an estuary at the north end, home to crocodiles and a lot of birdlife, and that is where the wildlife boat tours go.

Coco is a horseshoe bay with dark volcanic sand and a fleet of fishing and tour boats anchored offshore. The water is usually calm. It is a lovely place to watch the sun go down. It is not the prettiest beach on this coast, and people who chose it from one flattering photo are sometimes let down.

If the look of the sand under your towel is the most important thing to you, tell me that, because there are beaches near both towns that beat either one.

What is there to do in Tamarindo, Costa Rica and in Playas del Coco?

• Surfing: Tamarindo, no contest. Coco’s bay is flat.
• Scuba diving: Coco. It is a main departure point for dive sites in the Gulf of Papagayo.
• Sportfishing and boat trips to small beaches: both offer them, and Coco is especially boat focused.
• Sunset catamaran sails: both.
• Wildlife close to town: Tamarindo has the estuary boat tours and, in season, guided turtle nesting tours at nearby Playa Grande (the season starts around October and runs through the winter months).
• Volcano day trip: Coco is closer to Rincón de la Vieja, which makes that day shorter and easier.

Which town has the better atmosphere?

Tamarindo is a visitor town: Surf shops, boutiques, smoothie bowls, yoga, live music, bars that go late. Lots of dining choices at every level. It is easy, social and energetic, and you will hear a lot of English.

Coco is a local town that welcomes visitors: It has a main strip with restaurants and bars, and it has its own nightlife, but the feel is more everyday Costa Rica. Supermarkets, hardware stores, kids in school uniforms, a big community of foreign residents who stayed. A little rougher around the edges, and more real for it.

Neither one is quiet. If quiet is what you are after, I will point you to a smaller bay near either town and you can visit the busy one for dinner.

Do you need a car in Tamarindo or Coco?

In the flat, central part of either town, no. You can walk to the beach and to dinner and book tours with pickup. Both towns also have hillside neighborhoods with gorgeous views and steep roads, and up there you will want a car or a taxi number saved in your phone.

What some of my guests do benefit from is a golf cart rental. It is not a need, but it makes the short hops easier: the grocery run, dinner on the other side of town, or the ride back up to a villa that sits a little outside the center. It is a good middle ground when you do not want a rental car for the whole stay.

Uber is also available in both Tamarindo and Playas del Coco, which covers the nights you would rather not walk or drive.

That is why I keep repeating myself about checking the exact location of the property and not trusting the town name on the listing.

Who should skip both?

Here is my call. I talk people out of BOTH towns when what they really want is one of these.

Rainforest: This is the dry northwest. In dry season it is golden brown and windy. If you want green jungle and waterfalls, look south or inland.

A sealed off all inclusive week: Tamarindo gives you a resort style stay with a town at the door, and Coco is villa territory. The large all inclusive resort areas along this coast are their own category, and I will happily go through them with you.

Solitude: These are two of the busiest towns in the province.

If you would like me to match the town, the exact property and the route to how you travel, see how I plan Costa Rica trips.

So which one should you choose?

Choose Tamarindo if you want to surf or learn, you like options and energy, you are traveling with teens or a group of friends, or shopping and nightlife are part of your idea of a good trip.

Choose Coco if you dive or fish, your trip is short, you want calm water, you like a town with local life in it, or you plan to do day trips inland.

And if you cannot decide, you do not have to. They are close enough to visit one from the other for a day.

Questions people ask me

How far apart are Tamarindo and Playas del Coco?
Plan on about an hour or a little more by car. Fine for a day visit, a bit much to do repeatedly.

Is Tamarindo or Playas del Coco better for families?
Calmer water points to Coco or one of its neighboring bays. Kids old enough for surf lessons usually vote for Tamarindo.

Is Tamarindo more expensive than Playas del Coco?
Both have a wide range of places to stay and eat. Rates in both climb in the dry season and around the holidays, so the dates and the specific property matter more than the town name. Compare real quotes for your dates.

Should I split my stay between them?
I would not. They are too similar in climate and too close together to justify packing up. Split your trip between a beach and a volcano instead.

Want help choosing?

Tell me how you like to travel and I will match you to the right town, the right property and the right route. Start a conversation with me here, or bring your questions to my Costa Rica Travel and Vacation Planning group on Facebook.

Still early in your planning? Download my free guide to the 7 Costa Rica planning mistakes travelers regret most.