Playa Mina / playa Zapotillal | Wild Camping

March 29th, 2024 by wilde tour

Arrived cycling. Busy beach on weekends/semana Santa. Waited until the crowd left, set up our tents at the east side of the beach. During the evening people walk the beach looking for turtles. We witnessed 3 ladies laying their eggs + a baby turtle on his way to the ocean while eating breakfast. Be careful where you put up your tent as there are many turtle nests around the ends of the beach. Overall a beautiful spot but not secluded enough.

March 28th, 2024 by currentpartner26

Beautiful little beach - not as crowded as Playa Iguanita during holy week. The way to the beach was super tight in some spots due to people parking on both sides.. Beach access is for people only / you can't drive up to the beach front with overlander since there are huge pillars blocking the way. We stayed on the parking lot. No amenities.

March 25th, 2024 by tortugando_

it's is not possible to reach this area by car anymore, they put some concrete stuff to block, you can park before this area and go walking, it's very close, but not anymore that super good spot as I read in the comments. There is a guy at this parking lot who charges to park, but it Isa public place, so just get here early, before if comes, we got here around 7am and the beach was pretty empty until 9am on a Sunday! beautiful beach, Caribbean style 😎

January 18th, 2024 by Anne

Beautiful location, but be aware. We hear other people being robbed.

October 2nd, 2023 by poudredescampette.com

Superb almost deserted beach! A real little paradise! There is a lot of location under the trees, unfortunately no location with sun for the solar panels. The water is calm and transparent, on the rocky sides, there are beautiful snorkelling possibilities, we saw a turtle swam. The ride on the west promontory is pretty and it is possible to continue to the beach Nombre of Jesús where there are many turtle nests. We were there overnight and we found 3 turtles laying eggs there, it was incredible! Access nevertheless requires a 4x4 (water hole of about 50cm, mud and track damage by water), access by the east track is much easier. We highly recommend!

EDIT: We came back here one month later, it is still so beautiful. This time we have seen 7 green turtles laying directly on this beach from 8PM to midnight! We have also seen a raccoon trying to find some eggs for his dinner.

September 2nd, 2023 by chasing.vida

Tried to come here after a heavy rainfall. Just a few km out, there were two giant pools of water. I walked them and the first one was mid thigh, rocky-ish bottom. Second one had some very sticky/muddy parts and was almost to my knee.

Decided not to take our AWD Ford Transit van through it. Had to reverse out a good ways and then went to Los Piratas. Beautiful there, too!

Note: We are 2.8 meters high and baaarely made it under some thick trees and electrical cables. Anything 3m+ might have difficulty.

April 5th, 2023 by vidadekombi

Wasn't easy to arrive here by VW Kombi, but we got it!
Fantastic beach!
Good for snorkel and fishing.
You can do a nice walking up to the hill.
Lots of nature! 😀
We got biolumincense plancton! Just try swimming during the night.

Busy during the weekend and crazy during a easter holiday.

About turtles you must know: *Don't use a flash light if you want take a picture
*Don:t use a any white or yellow light
*You can use only a RED light 👍
* Don't do a fire
* Don't touch a female turtle and also a babies little turtles
* Avoid take a selfies animal (it's not cool and also its not allow in Costa Rica)
☹️During the morning we saw some local people stilling some eggs. It's a crime in Costa Rica. You can call a police (911) and do a report if you want.

April 4th, 2023 by vetlestore

Parked with rooftop tent just a meter or two from the beach proper, under lush shade. Place extremely packed during the day - most likely more than than normal due to Semana Santa. Beach perfect, and there’s a nice mirador you can climb to at the south end of the beach (10 minute walk or so). Howling monkeys woke us up in the early morning hours, but we didn’t mind. Couple of guys selling drinks and crushed ice around.

March 20th, 2023 by Overlandsite

One of the nicest places we ever stayed at.

Busy at weekends (still OK though) but deserted during the week. It’s fantastic.

When you arrive there is a parking lot of some sort but it’s best to camp on the right, through a sandy patch (about 10 meters). Lots of space to camp once you’re on the other side of the sandy part.
You need speed&power or 4wd to get through.

The beach is fantastic. Very clean and warm water.

February 28th, 2023 by ticket2ride.de

Definitely one of the most incredible beaches we visited in Costa Rica. Free public parking, during day done visitors, only few in night. Shady trees and clear water make this a perfect spot for camping and swimming.

Highly recommended!

February 15th, 2023 by hihosilver.van

Beautiful beach spot, quiet at night (no dogs, no roosters, no fireworks, no loud music, no people) with the best turtle viewing we have seen. Only the sound of waves crashing on the sandy beach. There are turtles laying eggs at night (10pm-5am) during January-March, and we got to see a turtle hatch as well (around 10pm) with many baby turtles. Please do not use bright white lights such as a flashlight or headlamp - only red. And please note that beach fires can cause the baby turtles to get disoriented. Case in point: we helped a panicked Costa Rican couple to put out their fire when a bunch of eggs hatched right next to their beach fire and the baby turtles started to walk toward the fire instead of going toward the ocean! The road to the beach is not too bad (we saw 2WD sedans make it) and if you don’t have 4x4, you can park under the shade of the trees in the flat spots and avoid the deep loose sand section altogether. Vehicles taller than 2.7 meters will struggle with the large branches overhead on the trail past the loose sand to the right as well. We spent three nights. Everyone leaves at night except for a few overlanders/tent campers, and during the week, there was nobody around asking for a parking fee. The beach is very clearly marked and signed as public beach access. Pack it in, pack it out. No toilets or services so top up before boondocking here. Decent LTE Liberty service here: 2 bars from the main parking area.

February 1st, 2023 by wenke.e

We loved this beach! We stayed 3 nights, longer than planned. It can be busy during the weekend but quite at night. Please respect this area is a sea turtle nesting area! Don’t go with flashlight at the beach at night and don’t leave trash and don’t disturb the turtles!!!!!!!

November 23rd, 2022 by ylzelindeboom

We stayed here for one night. Really close to the beach, a beautiful spot! During the that there are several other (local) guests and some quadtours that are driving over the beach and area. At night we were almost alone. We even saw a turtle at the beach!
And a coati (nose bear) tried to steal our food.
We saw no guards, but at 3:30 am some locals arrived with quads. It woke us up

September 15th, 2022 by mathi

One of the best wild camping spots in Costa Rica! Very peaceful and lots of animals. Turtles laying eggs at night, Howler Monkeys and wales in the bay. Great spot! Be aware if coming from the south there are some river crossings.

November 11th, 2021 by franklunenburg

Absolutely breathtaking! We stayed here on a Monday night and we were the only ones camping. The rest of the visitors left right after sunset.

In the morning the "guard" arrived and told we had to pay a fine. We gave him a beer and sent him on his way.

August 29th, 2021 by Maelle

Beautiful and quiet wild beach !

We arrived on Sunday afternoon and there were a lot of Costa Ricans enjoying the beach.
A « guard » wanted us to pay to camp on the beach, we refused and parked our car on the left side of the beach, the guard came back and harassed us to pay he was trying to frighten us but a local Guy told us that it is a public beach and there is no need to pay, he talked to him in Spanish, threatened him to call the police and the guard left so DON’T PAY, if you don’t talk Spanish ask locals to help you. (The guard left before the sunset)

After the sunset we were alone on the beach it was very quite and we saw a lot of hermits and crabs.
If you want to swim be aware of the strong waves don’t go to far.
4x4 needed, it rained a lot the days ago so the road was bumpy and full of big water holes.

August 20th, 2021 by theodore.bourquard

Nothing to add about the beauty of the spot... just some advices about the "guard".
He asked us 20$ to keep an eye on the car. We said no, then he kind of became mad and aggressive. We ignored him and parked at the end of the beach to be away from him. But he went and kept harassing us for its 20$. The police was patrolling around so I asked them. The beach is public, ok for camping and safe at night. But they didn't tell anything about the "guard".
Then the guy cam back, still harassing us for its 20$, and he had now a sharp stick. Happily, locals came and made him go away. We then talk with them, and they said he was drunk and just illegally trying to get money from tourists.
Then we had apero with the locals and they showed us a view point above the beach on a rock surrended by the see (go through a path in the forest 100 m before the south end of the beach). Most beautifull sunset in Costa Rica.

To summarize, best spot on a beach.
Ignore the guard, if he asks, don't say you stay for the night, if he harreses you, make a fake police call ;)

October 31st, 2020 by eric_on_the_road

Arrived lunch time on Saturday and it was packed. The “guard” leaves a sign “private property’ at the entrance of the public parking, so you think you must pay.
As he was approaching the car, I drove right towards the river. It was a shallow creek today.
Right after crossing the river, there’s curve with a branch of a tree, that will keep some bigger rigs away.
Next morning at 7 the “guard” walked to me and introduced himself, asked if I had arrived after 7PM (didn’t recognized the car), and demanded a “propina”.
I said I didn’t have cash on me. He didn’t look happy and left, but insisting I would pay him next time I come here.
Harmless intimidation as most guards.
I had been here during the week before, and he’s isn’t here, of course.
Didn’t see any turtles, but there were other people camping and not as discreet, maybe that made a difference.
Nice view from the Mirador, and if walking further, you can see the other beach to the other side as well.

January 26th, 2020 by Zazoo

Beautiful and serene. The waves are so close you could almost feel them under your tent. Very deserted at night, very crowded very fast during the day. We left at noon the next morning as the whole place got swarmed with families.

The road to get there is brutal. Make sure you're equipped for rough terrain.

December 23rd, 2019 by rieke.vermue

Beatiful place! We spotted some monkeys, hermit crabs, coati's and some fishes. It's also a seaturtle nestling area so make sure you put down your fire at night, otherwise they don't come to the beach. Very much not guaranteed that you see the turtles though.

the spot is busy during the day, but after sunset everybody leaves. There were only 2 other groups that stayed overnight.

There is a parking guard during the day. He was telling us something about a walk you can do to see turtles and have a nice view. It's on the west side of the beach and you have to climb the hils to the other side. Since we don't speak Spanish we couldn't understand it totally, but it could be a nice thing to do!

September 8th, 2019 by ninsche1

awesome spot. the drive in is a bit bumpy, but we made it with 2wd, high clearance probably a good thing to have.
nice snorkling and swimming. no waves here, but veeeeery clear water.
no phone reception.

February 7th, 2019 by facebook.com/2MsOnTheRoad

It's also called Playa Zopotilla. There were busy and not so busy days, but usually only day trippers, very few stayed overnight. I would say it's less busy than Pirates. We saw a guy perhaps collecting a fee, but he never asked us. Maybe he was just offering to watch the cars?
Hide your garbage away for the night because racoons will scatter it. The waves looked intimidating, but it was ok to swim. It's a very pleasant beach.

December 20th, 2018 by mereldezoveelste

In addition to my last review: a local came to warn us today, because he had caught a yellow-bellied sea snake. There were several more floating on the water near the shoreline. The’re venomous, but the symptoms are normally mild (fatalities have been recorded according to our wildlife book). They come and go according to the local.

December 20th, 2018 by mereldezoveelste

Such a beautiful place! A lot of shade under the trees. We went to the right, drove around the little pond. No problem the first time, the second time we did that, we got totally stuck in de deep, soft sand. We were helped by a local guide and his group of tourists who came for a dip in the sea, and a very friendly american couple. We came out with a lot of digging and bouncing the car. It’s beter to go straight trough the river crossing, and afterwards steer around some low hanging branches, instead of driving around. So close to Christmas, it was pretty crowded during the day (lucky us this time..!), but at night there was only one other car all the way to the other side. We saw a sea turtle nesting!! We have only used red light and the light of the moon, to not scare the turtles away. That complicates cooking a bit, but that’s totally worth it, when the turtle does come out of the sea! When making a fire or placing a chair, remember that there are turtle nests, in the first few meters behind the flood line. We saw a lot of turtle tracks and baby turtle tracks. The waves were big and there was a lot of sand in the water, so no good for snorkeling when we were there. At the left side of the beach, the sea looks more calm.

December 3rd, 2017 by lbruetsch

Great not crowded spot! Some fallen trees block the beach to the right (and a pretty deep river to cross). Just go left ;). During the day someone stole 3 big backpacks from backpackers... so just take care. But we recomend the place anyway!

March 9th, 2017 by sunny

Just adding on to my last post. Bonuses about this wild campsite that have been really fantastic - you can see bioluminescence in the water at night!! Even with a really bright moon, you can still see them and if you stomp around in the sand next to the shoreline, you can see the little glowing specks in the sand. Also, there is a mirador to hike up to and a decent snorkeling spot next to the rocks. And as previously noted, HUNDREDS of hermit crabs - so if you're into setting up crab races, this is your place. We slept like babies against the sounds of crashing waves and had a very nice breeze at night. Also to note: you will not get phone service of any kind here.

March 8th, 2017 by sunny

Wild beach camping. Best at the end of the beach - there are flat areas under patches of trees for shade. So far, completely quiet and we are totally alone. Earlier there were some atv tours that came thru at sunset but that's it. GORGEOUS beach!!! We did have to use our lockers to get through some very soft sand on the way in. Amazing spot. Feels safe but it's only about 730 now. I will update if that changes.

February 27th, 2017 by home2homeamerica

A beautiful secluded beach which you will probably have to yourself at night. access road has just been graded - just the last 1km after turning off road to piratas is a bit bumpy and narrow but we had no problems in our 7.5m long/ 3.3m high large Euro camper.

August 2nd, 2016 by Overland The Americas

Free wild camping in gorgeous Playa Minas; a tucked in gem of a beach. Not many people during the day and we had it all to ourselves at night except for the howler monkeys, raccoons, turtles and hundreds of hermit crabs. Please keep it low profile and remember that most likely you'd be alone at night. Some nearby beaches have reported robberies. It's close to Playa Conchal and Tamarindo. 4x4 recommended for a short stretch of loose sand.