Blog

Most guests flying in for a stay at Ocean Vista Tamarindo land at Guanacaste Airport in Liberia (LIR) — the closest international airport to Tamarindo. The drive to town is straightforward: expect roughly 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes depending on traffic and the season. Here is how to choose between the main options.

Option 1: Rental car — best if you want to explore

All the major agencies have desks at or near LIR. The route to Tamarindo is well signposted and mostly good road, and having a car makes day trips (Playa Conchal, Playa Grande, Rincón de la Vieja) easy. At Ocean Vista you get secure parking inside our gated complex, so the car is safe overnight. If you plan to mostly stay around Tamarindo, though, you may not need one — the beach and town are a short trip downhill from us.

Option 2: Private transfer — best for arriving relaxed

A private driver meets you at arrivals and takes you straight to the apartment door — the easiest option after a long flight, especially if you land in the afternoon and want to make our 3–6 PM check-in window comfortably. Message us on WhatsApp before your trip and we will help you plan the smoothest option for your arrival time.

Option 3: Shared shuttle — best on a budget

Shared shuttles run between LIR and Tamarindo and cost significantly less than a private transfer. The trade-off: fixed departure times and stops along the way, so the trip takes longer. Book ahead in high season (December–April).

Option 4: Taxi

Official airport taxis are available at arrivals without booking ahead. Convenient, but usually the most expensive choice for the Tamarindo run — if you know your flight time, a pre-booked private transfer tends to be better value.

Arriving at Ocean Vista

We are on the La Colina hillside just above Tamarindo — inside a gated complex with a pool and 180° ocean views, 5 minutes from the beach. Check-in is 3:00–6:00 PM with a self-check-in lockbox: we send your code on WhatsApp about 24 hours before arrival, so there is no waiting around for keys. If your flight lands late, tell us in advance and we will sort out the details together.

Planning your trip? Browse our 8 hillside apartments or ask us anything on WhatsApp — we usually reply within the hour.

Tamarindo has quietly become one of Costa Rica’s favorite remote-work bases: Central Standard Time keeps you aligned with North American teams, and the surf is waiting after stand-up. But a workcation lives or dies on boring practical details. Here is the checklist we give guests who plan to work from one of our apartments.

1. Fiber, not “good WiFi”

Ask for the actual connection type. Cellular backup and shared hotel WiFi buckle on video calls. Fiber-optic service reaches much of Tamarindo now – every Ocean Vista apartment runs on it, with a private workspace in the unit.

2. A real desk and a door that closes

Two weeks hunched over a kitchen stool is a chiropractor bill. Look for listings that show a dedicated workspace, not just a dining table. A door that closes matters if you travel with someone.

3. Air conditioning you can run all day

Guanacaste afternoons are hot. If A/C is metered or “fan only”, your 2 PM calls will suffer. All eight of our units have A/C and hot water as standard.

4. Quiet at 9 AM, not just at midnight

Beachfront stays are surprisingly loud on weekday mornings. The La Colina hillside above town gives you birdsong and howler monkeys as the soundtrack instead – and you are still a 5-minute walk from the beach for the after-work session.

5. A kitchen, because lunch adds up

Eating out three meals a day in a tourist town gets expensive fast. A full kitchen pays for itself within the first week of a long stay.

Thinking about a month?

Long stays are our favorite kind of guest. Browse the 8 apartments or message us on WhatsApp for a long-stay quote.

Type “Tamarindo” into any booking site and you get one long wall of prices with no sense of place. After hosting hundreds of nights here, we can tell you the town really has three or four “zones” – and picking the right one matters more than picking the prettiest photo.

The beachfront strip: convenient, loud

Hotels and condos on the main strip put you seconds from the sand, surf schools and restaurants. The trade-off is noise: bars run late, scooters run later, and you pay a premium for walls that rarely block either. If you plan to be out every night anyway, it can work.

Playa Langosta: quiet, but you will drive

South of town, Langosta is calmer and more residential. It is lovely – but most stays there mean driving or long walks for every meal and grocery run.

The La Colina hillside: the local secret

Just above town, the La Colina hillside is where a lot of long-stay visitors and remote workers quietly end up. You are still about a 5-minute walk from the beach, but you sleep to waves and howler monkeys instead of reggaeton. Mornings come with ocean views over the bay and birdsong in the treetops. This is where our eight apartments sit – a gated complex with a pool, secure parking and fiber WiFi.

So where should you stay?

Party trip of a few nights: the strip. A month of surfing and workdays: the hillside, no contest. Families: hillside or Langosta, with the hillside winning if you want walkability plus quiet.

See the hillside for yourself: compare all 8 Ocean Vista apartments (from $90/night, real Airbnb ratings), or ask us on WhatsApp which unit fits your dates.