Montezuma

Camaronal

Bahia de los Piratas

Nicoya Peninsula (Guanacaste)

Ostional

The beach of Ostional is the scenery for a rarely-seen biological wonder. In rainy season, the week before new moon, hundreds – and sometimes hundreds of thousand sea turtles come to one specific mile of beach at Ostional to dig their eggs into the black, volcanic sand.

The Ostional Wildlife Refuge in Costa Rica was created in 1984 to protect one of the world’s most important nesting sites of the olive ridley sea turtle.

Only olive-ridleys and their close relatives, Kemp’s Sea Turtles, the latter an Atlantic species synchronize their nesting in mass emergences or “arribadas”, the Spanish word for arrivals. 

Some days or weeks before the mass nesting, the “flotilla”, an increasing number of turtles, congregates close offshore. After some days, prompted by some secret signal, the “arribada” will begin. At first, a few hundred turtles will come out on the beach, followed by a steady stream of animals for the next three to seven days.

Bahia de los Piratas

Bahia de los Piratas is home to the “Nombre del Jesus” turtle conservation project. The beach is very much “off the beaten path”, remotely located about 15 minutes from Playa Grande. The nearest (small) town of Matapalo is where volunteers get off the bus, and are picked up by a taxi to bring them to the project.

The name Bahia de los Piratas comes from the skull and crossbones flag flying in one of the signature rock islands just off shore. Activities that can be done at the beach include paddleboarding, kayaking, and snorkeling – the waters are crystal clear. And of course- it’s a prime spot to see sea turtles!

Camaronal

The Camaronal Wildlife Refuge is know for it’s surfing and fishing, but the site is perhaps best known for the important role it plays in the preservation of one of Costa Rica’s treasures, the sea turtle. The best time to view sea turtles at the Camaronal Wildlife Refuge is during Costa Rica’s rainy season, which runs from May through November.

To travel to this project site, you’ll have to go to Samara, and from there take private transport arranged by us.

 

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