Why Green Season is Costa Rica’s Best-Kept Eco-Luxury Travel Secret

Most people planning an eco-luxury travel escape to Costa Rica instinctively look at the dry season calendar, and we totally get that. Blue skies, guaranteed sunshine, and a classic itinerary of beach days and sundowners. What’s not to love? But after welcoming guests to The Point Luxury Villa through every season this coast has to offer, we’ll let you in on a secret: the people who visit in September and October often leave having witnessed something the dry season crowd never gets to see.

Green Season in Guanacaste is a unique experience all its own, one that happens to suit a certain kind of traveler rather well. Yes, it does rain; sometimes, quite a lot. But for the right guest, that matters far less than you’d expect.

Love verdant nature, low tourist crowds and the feeling of having a piece of paradise to yourself?

Then this guide’s for you.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE RAINS ARRIVE?

The name says it all, and the transformation happens from one day to the next. The moment rains become a daily occurrence along the Guanacaste coast (usually in short afternoon bursts), the landscape responds. The parched hillsides flush green almost overnight, the trees around the villa fill out, and the air is cool and smells wonderful. Rivers that slowed to a trickle by the start of the new year surge back to life, and the waterfalls that are pretty in January become drop-dead-gorgeous by October.

Mornings here during Green Season are often dry and bright, with the kind of warm light that makes the Pacific look particularly stunning from the villa’s terrace. The rain that tends to roll in after lunch usually clears by evening, which, if you think about it, is a perfectly civil arrangement. If you love your siesta time on vacation, the Green Season delivers the perfect timing.

More importantly, you have the chance to plan your surf session, beach morning, town outing, and ATV tour through the jungle before the clouds even arrive. By the time sunset hits the ocean’s edge, the clouds turn the colors into the most iridescent array of reds and oranges. And you’re in the best spot to admire the spectacle, cocktail in hand.

Having the chance to experience Tamarindo year-round, we also notice the peace and quiet of the Green Season. The dry season attracts big crowds down our beaches, with Californians, Texans, and East Coasters filling restaurants and lining up at the popular surf breaks. That’s why Green Season belongs to a different kind of luxury eco traveler, one who’s done their research and knows exactly what they want. National parks feel more intimate (the roads to Rio Celeste are less congested), and dinner reservations at the best spots in town don’t need to be made weeks in advance. 

For a property like The Point, where privacy is central to the whole experience, the season amplifies what you’re already here for.

WHEN THE RAIN COMES, THE VILLA IS YOUR COCOON

Here’s the honest part: some afternoons it does rain for a long time, and that’s just what this season is all about. We’d rather you know that than arrive unprepared. What we can also tell you is that on those afternoons, the villa becomes the place to be.

The in-home experience at The Point is one of the most convincing arguments for eco-luxury travel in this part of the world, and it’s comprehensive enough to fill an afternoon without stepping outside. The private chef can prepare a long lunch with local ingredients while you settle in around the infinity pool (swimming in the rain is AMAZING!) Our spa treatment menu covers everything from deep tissue massage to facials, delivered in-suite by our team. The gym is right there when you want it, the cinema room gives everyone a good excuse to gather, and the terrace, with its deep overhangs and ocean view, stays usable even through most afternoon showers. Sundowners don’t need to be sacrificed in our neck of the tropical woods.

THE REAL BENEFIT IS THE WILDLIFE

Costa Rica protects more than 25% of its land as national parks and reserves, a statistic that says everything about the country’s relationship with its natural world. During Green Season, that protected world becomes dramatically more active.

An amazing example of this happens practically at our doorstep. Ostional Wildlife Refuge, 38 miles south of The Point along the Nicoya Peninsula coast, hosts one of the most astonishing wildlife events on the planet: the arribada. That’s when tens of thousands of Olive Ridley sea turtles emerge from the Pacific simultaneously to nest on the same volcanic black sand beach. September and October are peak months for the largest arribadas, timed to the darkest nights just before the new moon. There are only a handful of places on earth where this happens, and Ostional is arguably the most dramatic of all of them.

Closer still, Las Baulas National Marine Park, which encompasses Playa Grande and Playa Langosta (the beach that begins where The Point’s garden ends), marks the start of the leatherback nesting season in October. The leatherback is the largest sea turtle on earth, and this stretch of Guanacaste coastline is among the most important nesting sites it has. 

Our Concierge team can arrange guided night tours to witness nesting firsthand, managed with the care and respect this exceptional event deserves. For anyone drawn to eco-luxury travel, there are few experiences anywhere in the world that come close.

Back at the villa, Green Season brings its own daily wildlife sightings. Howler monkeys are more vocal and more visible, the garden fills with birds that aren’t here in the dry season heat, and scarlet macaws have been spotted from the terrace (usually eyeing our guests’ breakfast leftovers). Several guests have stepped out of their outdoor showers, five suites at The Point have them, to find a monkey watching with great curiosity from a nearby branch. 

WHAT IS THERE TO DO IN GREEN SEASON?

There’s so much to do in this luscious season, and our Concierge team arranges all of it. These are the excursions that are made for this season specifically:

• Rio Celeste at Tenorio Volcano National Park. The river runs an extraordinary turquoise blue year-round, but when Green Season water levels are high, the hike through the national park is even more spectacular. Includes private transport, bilingual guide, lunch, and beverages. 
• The Guachipelin Adventure Combo at Rincón de la Vieja. Zip-lining, river tubing, volcanic mud baths, and hot springs in a single full day. One of the funnest days out from The Point.
• The Mangrove Boat Tour through the Tamarindo estuary. A slow, absorbing two hours where crocodiles, iguanas, and exotic birds live together in a dense and beautiful ecosystem. Dry season visitors often skip it, but our Green Season guests always call it a highlight of their trip. 

One guest put it well after their stay: “We were honestly a little nervous about the rain. By day two, we didn’t want it to stop.”

What makes this season so rewrading for eco-luxury travel is that the quality of your stay doesn’t change at all. The full-service experience at The Point, from the private chef and butler to the Concierge managing every detail, remains exactly as it is year-round. What changes is the whole atmosphere around it.

→ ask us about our activity & excursion brochure

ONE MORE REASON TO SAY YES TO GREEN SEASON

September and October also happen to be when special Green Season rates apply, which means the same seven oceanfront suites, the same fully staffed villa, and the same private beachfront between Tamarindo and Langosta, starting from $4,250 per night. This is a brilliant combination for anyone looking for a luxury eco travel experience. You get a world-class property, rates that reflect the season, and full availability for both months right now.

Around Earth Day in April, we often hear from travelers who want their trips to mean more than the experience itself. Costa Rica makes that easy, given how well it protects its natural treasures. More than a quarter of its land is protected, and communities like Ostional have built their entire livelihoods around conserving the turtles rather than exploiting them. Coming here, spending time in that environment, and supporting the people who maintain it is about as straightforward an expression of conscious travel as we can think of.

If September or October is on your radar, we’d love to help you make the most of it. The full team is here year-round, from your private chef and butler to the Concierge handling every detail of your stay, and the Green Season package has everything covered from the moment you arrive.

Both months are currently open. If you’d like to talk through dates or get a feel for what a week here actually looks like, get in touch with our Concierge team. 

After all, we know the season better than most 🙂