Camping on the beach in Dominical

An experience report from the vacation of volunteers in Costa Rica:

"Travelers who want to save money can also camp on the beach"....

We read this quote in one of Julina's travel guides and just four days later we had bought a tent and headed south to Dominical. A small town on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, popular mostly with backpackers, surfers and hippies. Right after our arrival we explored the place a bit and watched the sunset at the ocean. Afterwards, we saw a bonfire on the beach and learned that it was organized by a mostly German and North American hippie community based in Dominical. We watched people dance and have fun for a while before going to a small soda, a local Costa Rican restaurant. After dinner, it was time to find a nice spot on the beach and get ready for our first night in our tent.

The next morning we had to get up early to catch the first bus to the Cataratas of Nauyaca. After a short bus ride, we hiked on a beautiful trail that went through the mountains and jungle. We were lucky and got to see monkeys, agoutis and many butterflies. But the most beautiful thing were the two waterfalls that we reached after about an hour and a half of walking. We took a little break and jumped into the cold but refreshing water before heading back to Dominical.

As soon as we got back, it started raining and just wouldn't stop. We went to four different cafes and restaurants to find shelter from the rain and even started looking for hostel rooms, just in case sleeping in our tent would have been impossible. But we were lucky once again, it stopped raining and although there was a risk of getting wet during the night, we slept in our tent. Luckily it didn't rain again, instead we were just very cold.

But all the rain and cold were forgotten when we woke up in our tent with the view of the sea glistering in the sun. After a cosy breakfast in a beautiful café overlooking a river, we explored the beach a bit more. We found some really wonderful spots, but also got the first really bad sunburn of the year. Only a few hours later our little adventure in Dominical was over and we had to drive back to Bandera.