The Guanacaste Province is home to a plethora of beautiful beaches and one of those is Playa Rajada.
Located on the Pacific Northwest coast very close to the Nicaraguan border, this beautiful beach still retains a pristine, tranquil vibe and has become a favorite among Central Valley Costa Ricans when they want to escape the hustle and bustle of the cities.
If you want to hop in your rental car and explore Guanacaste to see some lesser known beaches and off the beaten track places, then you have to head up to Salinas Bay and visit Playa Rajada.
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Location
Playa Rajada is in the Guanacaste province, 66 kilometers (41 miles) and a 1 hour and 10 minute drive from Liberia. It’s located near Jobo Bay and Salinas Bay.
How to Get To Playa Rajada Costa Rica
Driving is the best way to get to Playa Rajada. There aren’t any public buses or shuttles that go directly there.
It is on Google Maps and Waze so you can use that as GPS, it is quite easy to find with it. The easiest way is to go via La Cruz.
From Liberia, drive up north on the Interamericana highway 1 and turn left when you see the sign for La Cruz. Signage is very good and you’ll see this sign above when you get to the beach.
On Google Maps, you may see two Playa Rajadas. Make sure you go to the one that is near El Jobo (the one in the map above). The other one that says “Rajada Beach” near Hotel Bolaños is actually Playa Rajadita.
4×4 required?
No. The beach is right off the main road so it’s not necessary to have a 4×4 as the entire road is paved coming from La Cruz. The parking area is dirt but it is fine to drive with a sedan.
Parking
There is a lot of parking spaces at Rajada beach. Once you turn to the beach, you’ll drive through the trees and you can park anywhere there. No parking fee.
Just make sure not to leave valuables visible in the car and roll up your windows.
Rajada Beach
This beach reminds me a lot of Conchal Beach in Guanacaste except without the shells. They have similar color water, waves and both have a mangrove!
Playa Rajada is undoubtedly the most beautiful beach in the Salinas Bay and La Cruz area with white sand and clear turquoise water.
As this area isn’t super touristy, you will find mostly locals and just a few tourists here and there.
Swimming waves
Yes. The waves are Rajada Beach are fairly calm and great for swimming and bathing. It is also good for families, just be careful with babies and toddlers because there are still some little waves but this beach is wonderful for swimming.
Snorkeling
You can try snorkeling on the right hand side of the beach where the rocks are in front of the island.
Facilities
None. Bring water, sunscreen, towels, drinks, cooler and food. Sometimes on long weekends or holidays, there may be locals selling snacks and cold drinks but this is not every day.
Photos
Here are some photos we took of Playa Rajada.
If you walk towards the most southern part of the beach (to the left when facing the water), you’ll see kind of a trail that goes up to the right into the forest.
If you go up that trail and head right when you get to the forest clearing, you can walk out to get the view of Rajada beach (picture right above).
Continue on this trail down and you can reach the beach right next door which is just as gorgeous.
It is a bit smaller and we saw one family at that beach. You can also get to that beach by walking on the rocks but I recommend to go up the trail as it’s a lot easier and is like a 3 minute walk.
Rajada is a gorgeous beach as you can see and it’s perfect for those looking for a less touristy one.
When we visited in September, there were only a handful of people there, mostly locals. This area is more off the beaten path and a ton of fun to explore!
Read about other beaches like this one.
Playa Coyote: Long, dark sand beach in the Southern Guanacaste area
Bejuco: Dark sand beach in Central Pacific, small local town, has surfing waves
Playa Iguanita: 4×4 access only beach in Gulf of Papagayo with calm bright blue waters and tan sand
Cabuyal beach: White sand beach in Gulf of Papagayo with turquoise water
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Maria says
Today I was talking with someone about this beach.
A couple of years ago someone I know went to a beach in La Cruz and somehow he ended up in Nicaragua’s territory.
He said that the police were very polite and drove him and his companion back to their car
in the Costa Rica side.
I wonder if it is this same beach.
Sammi says
He might have accidentally went to the Conventillos (one of the border patrol points) and then accidentally went to a beach near there
Rajada is still a bit far from the border, like a 40 minute drive
Nicci says
Is it okay + safe to camp on the beach here? We live in Guanacaste but haven’t tried camping on the beach up this way.
Sammi says
A lot of locals like to camp here – there are 0 facilities so bring everything.
Rose says
I think we’re going to check out this beach. Coming from Liberia area. Are there any updates to this post? I’m wondering if any road signage has changed. When you mention to go left at the sign for La Cruz- can you give more detail? On google maps it looks like it’s out of the way to go up to the town of La Cruz, and then go left to the beach.
But I also can’t tell what the road conditions are by google maps either. I can’t get Waze to work here for some reason.
Thanks for any advice! I know it’s been a couple years since you posted this.
Sammi says
The route is the same and the road is flat and mostly paved, you can use Google Maps or Waze, they both work to Playa Rajada
Rose says
Thank you Sammy for your quick reply!
I don’t know why Waze isn’t working for any of us on this trip. I like it better than google- which just took us through the monkey trail the other rainy day while the river was flowing pretty good!
Sammi says
You’re welcome, oh yes that route is actually a registered main road if you can believe it and right now the river should be big.
Have a great time at Rajada