Frequently Asked Questions
Planning your vacation
We are located on Playa Guiones North, in the town of Nosara on the Pacific Ocean in Costa Rica.
We experience Green season from May through October. There is always some variability, but mornings are usually sunny and warm, with rains rolling in during the afternoon and evening. The rains are warm, and can come and go quickly, so there is usually time throughout the day to enjoy different activities. Temperatures can range from 70 – 90 F (21-32 C). June, July, August are great traveling months since the rain is cooling down the temperature. October tends to be our wettest month, when rains can sometimes last the whole day.
Our dry season lasts from November to April, and you can expect consistently hot sunny days and warm nights with temperatures ranging from 75-95 F (23-35 C).
Green season is great for people who want to experience lush green vegetation, quieter beaches and town, and don’t mind the occasional rain storm. Dry season is preferred by those who are looking for consistent sun and an escape from the northern winters, and don’t mind the local environment being drier and a bit busier.
We welcome kids of every age and kids can freely move about in a secured environment. We have a shallow kids pool for toddlers and the main salt water pool has an easy access ramp. Ask for our first floor rooms that are more easily accessible with little ones and don’t forget to ask for a kids crib when booking. We sell kids toys and clothes in our hotel store, Iguana shop. The restaurant has special kid items on the menu and high chairs for seating.
We’ve partnered with experienced local nannies that provide babysitting for an hourly charge.
We offer mountain bike tours for kids starting age 16 and surf lessons starting age 6. Feel free to enroll your children to our Kid’s Club program at the hotel during your stay. For a full day outing, Nosara Day Camp offers day programs that include activities, transportation and a meal.
Playa Guiones North is just a five minute walk away from the hotel.
You can stop at our Surf Club, that is even closer to the beach, grab a smoothie and check surf tides. For a day at the beach, you can rent a “beach pack” including a beach trolley, 2 beach chairs and 1 umbrella at our front desk. Playa Guiones is part of the protected Ostional Wildlife Refuge, so you’ll notice there is no development located directly on the beach.
The Gilded Iguana is based in a vibrant part of town where you can find some small shops and a number of restaurant & bar options that are within easy walking or biking distance. The town of Nosara is about 20 minutes away, and has a few typical Costa Rican restaurants, a supermarket, and gas station.
No, our rooms are non-smoking. Costa Rican law prohibits smoking in any public place (including our property).
It gets hot in Nosara, so pack lightweight clothing. Casual and comfortable are key. In our on-site Iguana shop you find a wide range of beach and surf clothing as well as traveler necessities like sunscreen, bug spray, and other personal care products.
Don’t forget:
Passport: A valid passport is mandatory to enter Costa Rica. It is a good idea to look up the travel requirements from your particular country of residence.
Bathing suits
Hat
Sunglasses
Sandals
Walking/running shoes
Cool, light clothing (long pants and sleeves are useful for adventure activities and evenings)
Sunscreen + bug spray
Prescription medications
Camera (binoculars may come in handy as well)
A converter is needed for European electrical plugs: Costa Rica has U.S. style 110 volt outlets
The Gilded Iguana Cancellations Policy 2024
*Mid/Green Season: 16 Days before arrival.
Cancellations requested 16 days or more before arrival no penalization.
Cancellations requested from 15 to the day of arrival 100% penalization.
Pre-Payment: 15 days before arrival.
April – May – June – July – Aug – Sep – Oct.
*High Season / Easter: 31 Days before arrival
Cancellations requested 31 days or more before arrival: no penalization.
Cancelations requested from 30 to 16 days before arrival 50% penalization.
Cancelations requested 15 days before arrival: 100% penalization.
Pre-Payment: 30 days before arrival.
Easter Week: Minimum of 3 nights are required.
Jan – Feb – March – Nov – Dec. (Except Peak season).
*Peak Season: 91 days before arrival.
Cancelations requested 91 days or more before arrival: no penalization.
Cancelations requested from 90 to the day of arrival: 100% penalization.
Pre-Payment: 90 days before arrival.
Minimum of 3 nights from Dec 20th to Dec 26th
Minimum of 7 nights from Dec 27th to Jan 04th
Español.
* Temporada media / verde: 16 días antes de la llegada.
Cancelaciones solicitadas 16 días o más antes de la llegada: sin penalización.
Cancelaciones solicitadas del 15 al día de llegada: 100% de penalización.
Pago por adelantado: 15 días antes de la llegada.
Abril – mayo – junio – julio – agosto – septiembre – octubre
* Temporada alta / Semana Santa: 31 días antes de la llegada
Cancelaciones solicitadas 31 días o más antes de la llegada: sin penalización.
Cancelaciones solicitadas de 30 a 16 días antes de la llegada: 50% de penalización.
Cancelaciones solicitadas 15 días antes de la llegada: 100% de penalización.
Pago por adelantado: 30 días antes de la llegada.
Semana Santa: se requiere un mínimo de 3 noches.
Enero – febrero – marzo – noviembre – diciembre (Excepto temporada alta).
* Temporada alta: 61 días antes de la llegada.
Cancelaciones solicitadas 61 días o más antes de la llegada: sin penalización.
Cancelaciones solicitadas desde 60 días hasta el día de llegada: 100% de penalización.
Pago por adelantado: 60 días antes de la llegada.
Mínimo de 3 noches del 20 al 26 de diciembre.
Mínimo de 7 noches del 26 de diciembre al 04 de enero.
Travelling to Nosara
Staying at The Gilded Iguana
Our rooms are ready from 3pm on. Check-out is expected to be by 12pm. Our front desk is occupied 24/7.
We have high speed fiber optic at the entire hotel property and the Surf Club.
We accept Visa or Mastercard etc.
Major credit cards, mainly VISA and Mastercard, are accepted by many places outside the hotel. U.S. dollars are accepted by most places in the area, and it’s a good idea to have some cash on hand for smaller purchases.
There is an BCR (Banco di Costa Rica) ATM at the Nosara gas station (10 min drive). It is best to come to town with some cash even if the majority of restaurants and stores accept credit cards.
We love animals but unfortunately can’t accommodate pets.
No, we encourage visitors to spend time exploring the beauty of Nosara and participating in the vast array of activities on offer.
Yes, we have a wash and fold service available that uses biodegradable detergent. No dry cleaning.
Please check out our website under Experiences. You can also book special packages directly while you are booking your hotel room. Watch out for the Adrenaline package, our favorite! Our front desk staff will provide you with more in-depth information and will help you with bookings and reservations.
At The Gilded Iguana we offer a range of in-house activities managed by our own certified professional team.
We are running a Surf club & school where you can get surf lessons for all levels and rent boards. Please check out our Special “Puro Surf” and “Learn how to Surf” package. Our Mountain bike team is expecting you with a wide selection of Mountain bikes and Beach Cruisers. We organize bike tours in the area. Please check out our Special Mountain Biking Pro package.
You can buy personal care items at our onsite Iguana shop.
Playa Guiones offers over 350 surfable days each year that offer ideal conditions for surfing, surf coaching, for all levels, throughout the year.
It very rarely gets prohibitively big or small. Costa Rica offers more consistently surfable conditions, even at the worst times of year, than most places do at their best.
In Nosara, the dry season months of December to March can be more crowded as international tourists escape the winter. We recommend planning your stay in June, July and August. These months offer the most consistent swell window of the year and the pleasant afternoon showers keep the heat down and mean that the jungle is at its most beautiful, lavish green. A typical season sees knee to head high surf from November to March, then shoulder to overhead surf between April to September. This is a mean average however, so it is perfectly possible for any given week in August to be smaller than any given week in December.
The wind, which blows mechanically off shore every morning from November until May, usually turns on shore mid morning and then offers an evening glass off about 50% of the time. In the greener months of June to October the wind is less predictable but the surf is glassy in the morning an incredible 75% of the time and a lunch time shower will often cause the wind to die off in the afternoon, giving us smooth conditions once again. This is another advantage these months have over the more arid months of December to April. In the greener months, when it doesn’t ‘glass off’ in the afternoon, then we still have fun beach break surf, offering plenty of opportunities for maneuvers.
Health & safety
Yes, you do. You should always have medical insurance whenever you travel abroad. Your medical insurance must cover you while you are doing an activity. It must also cover you in the event that you require emergency evacuation or repatriation.
Yes. 10 min away from The Gilded Iguana location is a medical emergency room that is open 24/7. The doctors are speaking fluently English and are well versed to treat you.
A pharmacy is a 15 min drive away from the hotel in the town of Nosara, close to the gas station. We are carrying a couple of first necessity items at the IGUANA shop (anti-inflammatory, disinfection, etc).
The water in our area is completely safe to drink. The water is coming from the local water company. On our property we have a state-of-the-art filtration and treatment center. However, the hotel offers to guests filtered water in water coolers outside of each room that can be refilled at your convenience.
The entire Gilded Iguana hotel property is equipped with a natural anti bug misting system that creates a natural barrier. In addition, we carry organic bug spray at our hotel store and recommend to bring a pair of light weight pants and long sleeve t-shirt. There is a limited risk of Mosquito transmitted illnesses including Dengue and Zika in all of Costa Rica.
The vast majority of our guests do not get any shots before visiting Costa Rica however you can read the latest US governmental advice here: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/costa-rica
Yes, our town is safe, and there is a local police station. We advise against leaving valuables, particularly electronic goods, on display and/or unguarded when travelling around Costa Rica particularly on the beach while you are swimming.
At the Gilded Iguana we have our own security guards that watch the hotel and Surf Club property 24/7.
There hasn’t been a recorded shark bite on Northern Beaches.
Costa Rica
In general, it’s customary to tip in Costa Rica, but not required. A 10% gratuity is automatically included in all restaurants, but customers typically add an extra 5 -10%, especially if the service exceeded expectations. In hotels, a good rule of thumb for tipping housekeeping is $5 – 10/ night. Drivers typically receive a few extra dollars for short cab rides, more for longer trips, and tour guides/instructors are customarily given around $10 per individual on the tour. You can leave a tip upon check-out that will be divided amongst The Gilded Iguana staff members.
May, June, July, August & September all typically see afternoon showers. It’s usually only October where the rain can be prohibitive but even then the waves are more consistent than most other countries, even at their best times of year.
Occasionally we have a big weather system that covers the whole of Central American for a few days with rain. This can happen any time between May and October. Even if that does happened, it’s only a few days out of your week and it doesn’t affect the surf, only the sunbathing.
June, July & August are the months where the swell is incredibly consistent (which you can see from the historic surf data on Playa Guiones on Surfline). We typically have sunny mornings followed by just an hour or two of rain in the early afternoon. Actually, the rain can have the effect of cooling as well, meaning that the midday winds often drop. It is also the time when the jungle is lush and green, and Costa Rica is at its most beautiful. The term “wet season” is really just comparative because we have no rain at all from December until May.
Howler monkeys are a daily appearance although you will hear them before you see them. Coatis, armadillos and iguanas are all common as are hundreds of thousands of other species. We are surrounded by some of the most bio diverse jungle in the world.
We are located adjacent to the Ostional beach with a status of wild life refugee in protection of the sea turtles. While the mass nesting events occur on the beaches of the North (Ostional), we do have regular single turtle nesting and turtle hatches for most of the year. Ostional beach is a 10 km drive. The peak nesting season is September through November. During these months, the mass arrivals normally occur a few days before the new moon. The hatchlings pop up from the sand about 45-54 days later to make their way to the sea. We have packages available for an eco-tourism experience.
You can ask the front desk to put you in contact with Veronica Monge, our Community Manager, who is happy to inform you about the initiatives that are the most impactful for the local Tico community.
Please also visit our “Making A Difference” page for more volunteer opportunities.
You do not need to be able to speak any Spanish for your stay at The Gilded Iguana. Our staff speaks English. In fact, most people who live around Playa Guiones do speak at least a little English.
