Nicoya’s beaches require a month to sample in earnest. One week to 10 days should be sufficient to sample two or three of the best beaches. In the north, Tamarindo makes a good base for exploring farther afield, but the poor state of coast roads is not conducive to round-trip travel. It’s perhaps best to keep moving on, north or south.

If white-sand floats your boat, head to Playa Flamingo or nearby Playa Conchal, which is backed by the country’s largest resort hotel, complete with golf course and water sports. Montezuma, a charming little community on the southern tip of Nicoya, also has a superb white-sand beach.

There’s no shortage of options for accommodations for any budget, although reservations are highly recommended for holiday periods.

The most complete services and range of accommodations are found at Tamarindo, a surfing center with a wide range of other activities, plus several fine restaurants. Playas del Coco and adjacent beach resorts of Ocotal and Hermosa, while less attractive than other beaches, are bases for sportfishing and scuba diving.

Surfers can choose from dozens of beaches: the best begin at Playa Grande and extend south to Malpaís and Playa Santa Teresa; many are remote and have few, if any, facilities. Playa Camaronal to Manzanillo, with several superb and lonesome beaches—almost all favored by marine turtles for nesting—is a fabulous adventure by 4WD.

Two nature experiences stand out: a visit to Playa Grande Marine Turtle National Park to see the leatherback turtles laying eggs, and the Ostional National Wildlife Refuge during its unique mass invasions of olive ridley turtles. These are, for me, the most momentous guaranteed wildlife encounters in Costa Rica. Curú National Wildlife Refuge and Cabo Blanco Wildlife Refuge offer their own nature highlights, as does Nosara, another prime surf destination.

Don’t leave Nicoya without calling in at the village of Guaitíl, where Chorotega women have kept the spark of a nearly dead culture alive by making pottery in the same fashion their ancestors did one thousand years ago. Nearby, Barra Honda National Park is the nation’s preeminent spelunking site.