SURF
The Harmony is a stone's throw from the best break on Playa Guiones, home to the best surf in Nosara and for that matter, some of the most consistent year-round waves in the world.
Straight off the Harmony path is a beach break with lefts and rights. Warm air and offshore breezes make for great conditions. Swells vary from waist high to double overead. This break works on all tides but shapes up best at mid-tide. Even though it's becoming a popular longboard spot, it is good for short boards and great for fun boards.
Heed the howler monkey wakeup call for a quiet, early morning session. The most popular time is sunset. No wonder. The waves get glassy late afternoon and the colors are mind expanding as the sun dips.
Adventurers will have fun exploring other local surf spots: Playa Pelada for a reef break that's best with a north swell at incoming high tide, Playa Nosara for a great beach break with peaks and shallow rock reef lefts that get barrelling with a large south or southwest swell or Playa Ostional for a beach and reef break with rights and lefts that works on higher tides and south to southwest swells. In addition to these breaks, you will find Marbella, a little further north, and Camaronal, a little further south, both outstanding breaks.
The air water temperatures are warm year round in Guiones, so board shorts and warm water wax are the sum requirements other than a board.
Dry Season Conditions
(mid November to mid April)
- Generally 3ft to 8ft.
- North, northwest, south, southwest swells.
- Consistent weather and temperatures of 80 to 90 degrees during day and 75ish degrees at night.
- Sunrise - 10:00am/10:30am offshore wind, and then it will lay down for about an hour.
- 12:00pm - 3:00pm onshore wind that generally does not blow hard enough to cause white caps
- 4:00pm it glasses off.
- It's the tropics so weather can change fast.
Wet Season Conditions
(late April to early November)
- Less predictable weather, larger swells, significantly less surfers.
- May and June it may rain in the afternoons and at night.
- July can produce the Indian Summer and it may not rain at all.
- August can go pretty much like July.
The small planes that fly to the local cow field which serves as an air strip do not allow long boards, and getting a short board to Nosara doesn't guarantee space for it on your return flight. Surf rentals near the hotel abound and generally range from $15 - $25 per day for short and long. No need to reserve ahead.
AUGUST 2010
Day |
High |
Low |
High |
Low |
High |
Phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 01 | 12:14 AM 1.02 ft | 06:37 AM 8.59 ft | 12:45 PM 1.31 ft | 06:54 PM 7.67 ft | ||
| Mon 02 | 12:50 AM 1.36 ft | 07:16 AM 8.34 ft | 01:26 PM 1.55 ft | 07:36 PM 7.29 ft | Last Quarter | |
| Tue 03 | 01:30 AM 1.71 ft | 07:58 AM 8.08 ft | 02:13 PM 1.79 ft | 08:25 PM 6.95 ft | ||
| Wed 04 | 02:17 AM 2.02 ft | 08:48 AM 7.86 ft | 03:07 PM 1.95 ft | 09:23 PM 6.76 ft | ||
| Thu 05 | 03:13 AM 2.23 ft | 09:48 AM 7.76 ft | 04:09 PM 1.95 ft | 10:30 PM 6.80 ft | ||
| Fri 06 | 04:20 AM 2.25 ft | 10:54 AM 7.85 ft | 05:15 PM 1.71 ft | 11:38 PM 7.15 ft | ||
| Sat 07 | 05:31 AM 1.98 ft | 11:59 AM 8.17 ft | 06:18 PM 1.24 ft | |||
| Sun 08 | 12:40 AM 7.76 ft | 06:37 AM 1.46 ft | 12:59 PM 8.67 ft | 07:15 PM 0.63 ft | ||
| Mon 09 | 01:35 AM 8.52 ft | 07:36 AM 0.78 ft | 01:54 PM 9.22 ft | 08:06 PM −0.02 ft | New Moon | |
| Tue 10 | 02:26 AM 9.31 ft | 08:29 AM 0.10 ft | 02:46 PM 9.72 ft | 08:55 PM −0.58 ft | ||
| Wed 11 | 03:14 AM 9.98 ft | 09:20 AM −0.46 ft | 03:34 PM 10.06 ft | 09:42 PM −0.96 ft | ||
| Thu 12 | 04:02 AM 10.46 ft | 10:09 AM −0.80 ft | 04:23 PM 10.18 ft | 10:29 PM −1.09 ft | ||
| Fri 13 | 04:49 AM 10.65 ft | 10:58 AM −0.87 ft | 05:10 PM 10.03 ft | 11:15 PM −0.95 ft | ||
| Sat 14 | 05:36 AM 10.55 ft | 11:47 AM −0.67 ft | 05:59 PM 9.63 ft | |||
| Sun 15 | 12:02 AM −0.54 ft | 06:25 AM 10.17 ft | 12:37 PM −0.23 ft | 06:51 PM 9.05 ft | ||
| Mon 16 | 12:52 AM 0.08 ft | 07:17 AM 9.59 ft | 01:31 PM 0.36 ft | 07:46 PM 8.37 ft | First Quarter | |
| Tue 17 | 01:46 AM 0.81 ft | 08:12 AM 8.91 ft | 02:30 PM 0.98 ft | 08:47 PM 7.73 ft | ||
| Wed 18 | 02:45 AM 1.52 ft | 09:15 AM 8.29 ft | 03:36 PM 1.47 ft | 09:57 PM 7.29 ft | ||
| Thu 19 | 03:55 AM 2.06 ft | 10:23 AM 7.85 ft | 04:48 PM 1.72 ft | 11:09 PM 7.15 ft | ||
| Fri 20 | 05:09 AM 2.28 ft | 11:32 AM 7.69 ft | 05:57 PM 1.69 ft | |||
| Sat 21 | 12:16 AM 7.31 ft | 06:19 AM 2.19 ft | 12:33 PM 7.77 ft | 06:55 PM 1.47 ft | ||
| Sun 22 | 01:12 AM 7.64 ft | 07:15 AM 1.91 ft | 01:25 PM 7.98 ft | 07:42 PM 1.18 ft | ||
| Mon 23 | 01:57 AM 8.03 ft | 08:01 AM 1.55 ft | 02:09 PM 8.24 ft | 08:21 PM 0.88 ft | ||
| Tue 24 | 02:37 AM 8.40 ft | 08:40 AM 1.19 ft | 02:49 PM 8.47 ft | 08:56 PM 0.63 ft | Full Moon | |
| Wed 25 | 03:13 AM 8.72 ft | 09:16 AM 0.87 ft | 03:25 PM 8.63 ft | 09:29 PM 0.46 ft | ||
| Thu 26 | 03:47 AM 8.96 ft | 09:50 AM 0.64 ft | 04:00 PM 8.69 ft | 10:02 PM 0.40 ft | ||
| Fri 27 | 04:19 AM 9.08 ft | 10:24 AM 0.52 ft | 04:34 PM 8.62 ft | 10:33 PM 0.45 ft | ||
| Sat 28 | 04:52 AM 9.07 ft | 10:58 AM 0.53 ft | 05:09 PM 8.42 ft | 11:06 PM 0.62 ft | ||
| Sun 29 | 05:25 AM 8.94 ft | 11:33 AM 0.66 ft | 05:44 PM 8.12 ft | 11:39 PM 0.89 ft | ||
| Mon 30 | 05:59 AM 8.71 ft | 12:09 PM 0.90 ft | 06:20 PM 7.75 ft | |||
| Tue 31 | 12:15 AM 1.21 ft | 06:36 AM 8.40 ft | 12:49 PM 1.21 ft | 07:00 PM 7.37 ft |
To learn how to keep our oceans healthy and beautiful please visit www.surfrider.org or www.wetsand.com for green surf products and more.

