I can finally stop chasing the dream of experiencing the best beach vacation–it’s been caught. A four day jaunt to Montezuma beach met all the requirements of my personal holiday wish-list: gorgeous beaches, great food, yoga, and the ultimate horse back ride.

Even though my camera only survived long enough to grab a few of these highlights, the memories will always remain to meet me in my sleep one cold night in the future, when we decide it’s a great idea to move to Germany.

My sister and nephew joined us on our excursion to the Nicoya Penninsula. The extra arms were definitely necessary, as I forgot BOTH of my baby carriers! We decided to rent a car from a friend-of-a-friend-type situation for $20 a day, and rolled off with high hopes of making it to Montezuma from Grecia in about three hours.

SEVEN hours later–after taking the slow, scenic route to Puntarenas, boarding a seventy minute ferry, and lastly bumping our brains out on the rough roads on the peninsula–we found ourselves at the Luna Llena Hotel in Montezuma.

Thank goodness. It was pouring rain, and I had to run around the windy inclined path around the jungle cabins, finally finding the reception area at the top of the property.

Even though I was thoroughly soaked, I was impressed with our new digs. There were howler monkeys in the trees, lizards scampering around and a general ~cool~ vibe flowing through the place.

A German lady named Milly owns the Luna Llena, and she is a combination of bad*ss yogi and sweetheart animal lover. Her tatted muscles proved her dedication and she had just taken in a homeless kitten. I liked her.

Since living in Costa Rica, we had only visited the Playa Hermosa and Manuel Antonio beaches. Though they are lovely, Montezuma’s beaches are stunning.

There is a quaint cove at the corner of the small, artsy, town that is convenient for just one afternoon in the area. However, if you walk along the road that borders the coast (going left from town), you’ll witness some of Costa Rica’s most dazzling beaches.

The boys booked a surf lesson that was hosted at the Playa Grande beach, about a twenty minute walk from town. I straggled far behind the rest of the group, snagging pictures of rocky waters, smooth sands, sea-shell shores, and stony rivers along the way.

Playa Grande is really the only safe place to surf, as it is a huge stretch of clear and beginner-sized waves. While our baby slept under the palm trees (exhausted from all the carrying, I suppose), we played in the sand and waves and watched hundreds of hermit crabs race for a fallen chip.

I had an expectation that the food would be better than Costa Rican-average here, in a place commonly known as MonteFuma. And yes, a few times in the evening air, we noticed an extra “herbal” scent floating about, .

The food exceeded my hopes! If you closed your eyes, it was like eating in a high-end restaurant in the States, but when you opened them, you are in a rickety soda, sitting on plastic chairs. Our favorite place in town is Soda Naranjo (Orange). The prices are descent there too, about $8 for a fantastic dinner.

My sister raved about her Cashew Chicken so much, we had to eat there twice. We also enjoyed the crepes at an open-air corner café that has a view of the beach and the best prices in town.

We ate at the only other soda in town, which served typical local cuisine with an artistic presentation–but since the owner over-charged me, I will not recommend her place.

(This is a normal “accident” in beach towns…well, maybe all over the country). Still, we relished every dish in town. It appears that this MonteFuma place has a high standard for good food.

There are several places to catch an hour or so yoga class in the “L” shaped beach town. We wanted to try Los Mangos, where for $13 you can do your poses in an open rancho while viewing the ocean.

Unfortunately, even though they have classes most days, twice a day, we just couldn’t squeeze a class in with all our other goings-ons. So, my sister hosted her own little class on the wide porch in front of her cabina.

She didn’t intend to hold a class, but the Swiss girl next door was interested, and I was game, and so a class was held. The exotic birds sang in the green that wrapped around the wooden platform, and the bugs pardoned us an hour (thanks to my California Baby bug spray-muha!).

If you are visiting the area, I highly recommend making some time for yoga in Montezuma. It is such an ideal and relaxing setting for the art.

Three of us grown-ups booked a four hour horse back ride to one of Montezuma’s waterfalls.

This was a journey along the beach, and without any exaggeration, it was the most exhilarating, life-actualizing, add-years-to-your-soul kinda horse trek.

I get misty-eyed just thinking about it. The ingredients of picturesque beaches, great weather (it’s not very hot in the rainy season!), and a pack of beautiful Pintos add up to make one sweet piece of pie.

We had complete freedom to race ahead of our guide, eighteen year old Jiméz. My nephew and I charged ahead, feeling the switch from cantering to full-on galloping with the purest, loudest laughter.

We cut a whole hour out of the ride, splashing along the long stretches of open beach. It was hold-onto-your-hat wind that we cut through, and even though I’ve never ridden this fast on a horse, I was completely comfortable.

Something just clicked, like this was the only place I was meant to be in this moment, and my soul was filled with light and freedom. Ok, so I’m getting a little too open here–it was a very nice horse back ride.

Even though we brought back more bug-bites than one can imagine, we returned to the Central Valley with rejuvenated spirits and recollections to last us through the rainy season (which really isn’t so bad).

This trip was a real success with the kids as well, and I have deemed them “beach-worthy” from this day forth. If you are bringing kids to Costa Rica, and have time to spend a few days in honest-to-goodness paradise, and you don’t mind an “organic” breeze while in town, go to Montezuma. Just go.

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Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.