2025: Costa Rica | Five and No Moss

From March 10th to the 19th, we headed back to Costa Rica for spring break. This was our second time in the country (last time we were further down the coast in Nandayure), but this trip had a different rhythm. We met up with my cousin and her husband—who were there for a work perk trip—and we scored a major travel win: a direct flight from Denver to Liberia. A quick, non-stop hop from the Rockies to the rainforest is hard to beat.

Flamingo Beach & The View

We stayed in an incredible Airbnb right on the sand in Playa Flamingo, Guanacaste. This place was a fortress of comfort—huge bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms for everyone, giving us plenty of privacy.

But the real star was the upstairs deck. It had a massive custom table seating ten and offered 180-degree views of the ocean. We spent countless hours just existing in that space—eating, talking, and watching the sun dip below the horizon. Pictures truly don’t do it justice.

Dinner at the massive table on the deck with sunset views

The crew in the pool overlooking the beach

From the deck to the pool, the views never stopped.

The Chefs: Hugo & Luis

After our experience in Roatan, we knew we couldn’t go back to normal vacation cooking. We hired Hugo and Luis from Private Chef Costa Rica to handle breakfast and dinner every day. Having authentic, high-quality meals served right at the house transformed the trip. It turns out, the best restaurant in town was our own patio.

Hugo and Luis, our amazing chefs, with the kids

Hugo and Luis: The legends who made sure we never went hungry.

Dives, Shells, and Toucans

While the deck was hard to leave, we did venture out:

David’s Scuba Certification: Our middle son, David, finished his pool training in Denver and completed his certification dives here with Rich Coast Diving. His instructor (also named David) was fantastic, and they saw incredible wildlife on the four dives.
Conchal Beach: We visited this unique spot where the “sand” is actually millions of crushed shells.
Boating: We rented two different boats to cruise the coast and snorkel in open water.
Diamante Eco Adventure Park: We made a specific mission here for Caleb, whose one goal was to see a Toucan. Mission accomplished.
Llanos del Cortés Waterfall: A beautiful spot for a swim and a classic Costa Rican jungle vibe.

David and David after finishing the certification dives

Caleb finally spotting his toucan at Diamante

Adventures: Certified divers, toucan spotters, and boat jumpers.

Peaks & Pits

The Peak: The Deck. It sounds simple, but that upstairs patio was magical. Every night we had perfect weather, incredible food, and a front-row seat to the Pacific sunset.

The Pit: The Deflating Mattress. We brought an air mattress for Caleb, but it had a slow leak and went flat every single night. Eventually, he gave up and just crashed with his big brother.