Considered one of the most beautiful beaches in Costa Rica, Flamingo boasts the classic characteristics of a tropical beach paradise with pillowy soft white sand and clear blue waters. This crescent shaped beach houses the country’s largest marina and is a favorite among tourists.
In this Playa Flamingo guide, you will read about the town and beach to help you plan your visit.
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Playa Flamingo, Costa Rica Location
Flamingo beach is in the Guanacaste province, 41 kilometers (27 miles) and about a 1 hour drive from Guanacaste Airport.
Flamingo beach is 273 kilometers (170 miles) and a 4.5 hour drive from San Jose International Airport.
How to get to Playa Flamingo
Driving
From Guanacaste Airport, it is about a 1 hour drive. You can find the route on Waze. If you are not driving during the day, make sure it is the route through Huacas via Route 21 and Route 155 so you take the fully paved road.
If you are driving during the day, you can take Route 911 Monkey Trail which is a bit faster. This route goes through two river crossings but you can avoid the rivers by taking the bridge inside the Congo Trail Property which is open 8 AM to 5 PM everyday.
Get our Costa Rica car rental discount here!
Parking
There is no official secure parking lot for Flamingo beach but the main parking area is literally just street parking along the beach road.
However, it is not secure so if you park on the street, do not leave anything in your car, roll up windows and lock your doors.
There may be a man or woman wearing a yellow reflector vest, who will come up to you and tell you they will “watch” your car for you. They are not official parking guards but you may leave them a tip if you like. Tell them you will pay them when you get back and pay only in CRC if you want to give them $$.
On holidays and long weekends, this road gets extremely crowded and packed as lots of locals like to visit Playa Flamingo. It’s a narrow road, so if you are visiting over Christmas, New Years or Holy Week, go early to secure a spot if you plan to stay past sunset.
It may also take you awhile to get out since it’s a narrow road, so it’s hard for cars to turn around. We once visited on a weekend during Holy Week (bad idea) and it took us over an hour to get out.
This is only for peak vacation times (Christmas, New Years and Holy Week like Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday).
Another parking spot that is actually a secure parking lot is the Marina Flamingo parking lot. It is about a 10-15 minute walk to the beach. The parking costs around 1000 CRC per hour (~$2 USD) and they have a covered, underground parking garage. There is also street parking outside the garage.
Bus
There is a bus every day from Liberia to Flamingo at 430, 6, 8, 11 and 6 PM with Transportes La Pampa from the main bus station in the city. This is about 2.5 hours.
From San Jose, there is a bus every day at 8 AM, 1045 AM and 4 PM with Empresa Tralapa on Calle 20, Ave 1-3. This takes 6 hours.
Shuttle
You can take shared and private shuttles to Flamingo. From Guanacaste Airport to Flamingo, a private shuttle is around $135 USD for 1-5 passengers one way. Want to book a private shuttle? Contact us with your details and we’ll be happy to assist you.
For solo travelers, you can take a shared shuttle if you are coming from other destinations like La Fortuna or Monteverde. Get 10% off your Interbus shared shuttle here!
Getting Around Flamingo
To get around Flamingo, you can walk since it’s a small beach town. But to go to other beaches and towns, you will need to rent a car because it is difficult to get around this part of Guanacaste without one.
There are taxis to nearby towns but those will add up greatly since some beaches are far away. It will also depend on where you are staying in Flamingo because there are vacation rentals outside of town in the mountains and hotels right on the beach.
I have seen a couple of Ubers, not many, in Flamingo.
The Beach and Town
Although Flamingo is a well known beach, it still feels like you’re in your own paradise. There are plenty of trees to lay in the shade, the waves are soft enough for swimming and the scenery is beautiful.
If you’re looking for a white sand beach in Costa Rica, this is one of the best!
Flamingo has one main road that runs along the beach that has restaurants and hotels. It also has a small plaza with banks, convenience stores and other small businesses. There is a nice marina with shops, restaurants, a casino and condos.
Due to Flamingo’s excellent location and natural beauty, many wealthy foreigners and Costa Ricans choose this area to develop their projects or build their dream retirement home.
Because of this, you will find only mansions, luxury condos and high end hotels in Flamingo.
You may wonder where this beach got its name from. During some times of the year in the right weather conditions, the sand turns a very light pink like in the picture above. This is why it’s called Flamingo!
Things to do in Flamingo Beach, Costa Rica
Since Flamingo is close to many other beaches/beach towns, you can easily enjoy the activities in the area.
Here are some fun things to do in Flamingo.
Fishing
Flamingo is known for excellent fishing and will become even more known when the new marina is finished.
You can take a deep sea fishing trip to catch marlin, rooster fish, sail fish, grouper and other big fish. You can also do in shore fishing trips to catch snapper, tuna, jacks and wahoo.
Visit the Marina
Flamingo Marina has restaurants, stores, shops and waterfront condos. Although the marina is not the biggest, it’s nice to visit for a couple hours to check out the stores, grab a bite to eat and see the boats.
Snorkeling
Snorkeling is a MUST do in Flamingo! There are some great snorkel spots nearby and the best way is to take a sailing or boating trip as the snorkeling spots are not on shore.
For the best experience, a private snorkeling tour in Flamingo is a must, especially for families and friend groups who want an exclusive boating experience to see hidden white sand beaches and do excellent snorkeling!
Scuba Diving
Flamingo is also well known for incredible scuba diving since the Catalinas Islands are nearby. There are several dive shops in and around Flamingo where you can go on discovery dives (no certification required) or get your certification.
I did a discovery dive and got my PADI open water at the Catalinas Islands! If you want to go diving or want more information, please contact us.
Sunset Sailing
Go on a sunset cruise from Playa Potrero to see beautiful views of the coastline and snorkel. Companies like Lazy Lizard offer nice family friendly sunset catamaran cruises.
ATV Tours
Take an ATV tour to go around Flamingo and nearby beaches. Most tours go up to an awesome view point of Brasilito and Flamingo.
Visit Other Beaches
Flamingo is close to some of the nicest beaches in Costa Rica and it’s worth venturing to one or two.
Some great beach towns and beaches are Brasilito, Potrero, Mina, Danta, Penca, Prieta and Conchal. You can also drive 30 minutes to Tamarindo for a surf lesson!
Flamingo Beach Day Trips
You can also take day trips from Flamingo since it’s an excellent home base in Guanacaste.
Do the Guachipelin adventure tour in Rincon de la Vieja to go ziplining, horseback riding and white water rafting, learn to surf at Tamarindo, see turtles at Ostional Wildlife Refuge or go ziplining and see sloths at Diamante Eco Adventure Park. If you like hiking, visit Rincon de la Vieja National Park or Rio Celeste.
All these day trips are a 1-2.5 hour drive one way from Flamingo.
If you want to visit some less touristy beaches in the area, check out Punta de Pelencho, Puerto Viejo Conchal, Playa Mina, Playa Lagartillo and Playa Prieta.
Flamingo Beach, Costa Rica Hotels
Since Playa Flamingo is a high end beach town, you will find mostly luxury condos, apartments, hotels and house rentals.
For those on a budget, you will need to stay in Potrero or Brasilito since there are more budget friendly options there.
Luxury homes are very common in this area. If you’re looking for long term rentals, you can find a gorgeous 3 bedroom villa with ocean views. Check VRBO or Airbnb. Massai Apartments, The Palms, Flamingo Marina Condos and Oeanica are popular options.
For hotels, check out Margaritaville and Dunama Hotel.
Playa Flamingo Restaurants
Flamingo has some great places to eat, though cheap eats are fewer. Here are some of our recommendations.
Surf Box: burgers, smoothies, breakfast and sandwiches at the marina.
A’lo Nico: a small cafeteria like place with local and international food.
Coco Loco: bar-restaurant on the beach, great spot for happy hour drinks and sunset. Also good seafood.
Angelina’s Restaurant: a good choice for a nice dinner with gourmet Italian and local food.
Gracia Mar Vista is in the Mar Vista community and they have a really nice infinity pool guests can also use. More of a fancy place, not cheap but you get a gorgeous view of the beach and sunset.
Flamingo, Costa Rica Weather
Flamingo is in northern Guanacaste, one of the hottest and driest places in Costa Rica. This area experiences longer dry seasons and average temperatures do not really vary throughout the year.
Dry season is from beginning of December to end of April and rainy season is from May to end of November. The rainiest month is usually October and hottest months are March and April.
Highest temperatures in Flamingo are 90°s to 100°s F in dry season (32° to 38° C) during March and April. Make sure to bring plenty of sunscreen and mosquito repellent as well as a hat and sunglasses!
Read About Other Beautiful Beach Destinations in Costa Rica Below!
Gulf of Papagayo: Also in Guanacaste and a luxury destination, about 30 minutes from Liberia International Airport.
Puerto Viejo: Laid back, small beach town in the South Caribbean.
Manuel Antonio: Small beach town in the Central Pacific famous for the national park and beautiful white sand beaches
Costa Rica Vacation Checklist
- First time to Costa Rica? Read our First Time in Costa Rica guide.
- Not sure how to move around Costa Rica? Read our How to Get Around Costa Rica guide to find the best transportation method for you.
- Click the link to get our detailed Costa Rica Packing List so you know what essential items to bring.
- Do not forget to purchase Travel Insurance for your trip to Costa Rica.
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- Save money with Mytanfeet Deals for tours and hotels. Save more money with our Costa Rica Car Rental Discount.
Heather Piazza says
Are there any horseback riding on the beach near Flamingo? Can you recommend good places to eat?
Sammi says
Hi heather, this guide has our restaurant recommendations (there is a section around the middle/end of the blog post). We’ve seen locals with horses on Brasilito beach all the time, they will ride on Brasilito/Conchal you can check with them.
Andrea says
Hi! Love your website. Such an awesome resource! We are based in Potrero. Heading to Flamingo today. Are there places that sell boogie boards in this area? Looked in Walmart in Liberia but no luck. Thank you!!
Sammi says
Try the Super Compro in Huacas or SUper Massai in Flamingo
David Schudda says
Hola,
First of all my family of three would love to go on the private snorkeling trip next February. Do you have pricing? Second of all can you do the rain forest/ sloth reserve from Playa Flamingo?
Thanks
Sammi says
Hello David, you can fill out the booking form on the respective pages and we’ll send you a quote via email: Playa Flamingo snorkeling excursion and Heliconias + Sloths Tour from Guanacaste
Dennis says
We have an old Rough Guides book that refers to Playa Flamingo as a “gringo ghetto” which leads to believe that it might not have much of a CR feel to it. Is this still the case?
Sammi says
I’d say it’s more like gringo Beverly HIlls – Playa Flamingo is now known for luxury houses and a more upscale community, especially now that they have just completed a brand new fancy marina with condos/shopping/etc.