Week Long Travels: The Beach Movement Balance Retreat in Costa Rica

Costa Rica has been on my bucket list for quite some time. My boyfriend and I went to Belize last year and I have been wanting to see more of Central America ever since. So after our first retreat in Tulum last year, we were looking for something a little different. We were looking for more jungle, something quaint, and a new town to explore with the rest of the our guests.

Santa Teresa is pretty hard to get to, especially with a group of people you are worried about getting there safely. Coming from Denver, we had to make a stop before getting to San Jose airport. Then we took a little shuttle flight to Tambor airport before an hour car ride to our resort for the week. It was a long travel day but well worth the trek to Hotel Nautilus Boutique. 

The retreats we lead have a yoga and fitness offering everyday of the retreat, but they are totally optional. We lead these retreats so that people can have whatever they need to create a balance between a healthy lifestyle and total relaxation during their vacation. We always have at least one outing that is included plus all food and drink. We have been so lucky to have incredible food at both resorts throughout our stays.

 

STAY

I stumbled upon Hotel Nautilus through a girl I met through Instagram years ago. I had never met her in person but we connected about retreats and was so excited to go to this resort. The whole place had seven villas, a yoga room, a restaurant, and a pool. We didn’t have the whole place completely to ourselves, but the staff always made us feel like we did. It was about a five minute walk from the beach, and right next to one of my favorite little cafes in town. The staff was incredible and always willing to give us the extra feel of home for the week. The yoga room was perfectly slated right above the restaurant and the pool was tucked in to the back of the resort. The rooms were spacious with kitchens, couches, and full bathrooms. It was the perfect spot for our little group.

ADVENTURES

We always do one adventure with the group for our retreat guests. This time we did a Tortuga island tour. They picked us up at 8:00am and drove us to the other side of the peninsula. Once we got there, we hopped on a catamaran and it took about 45 minutes to get to a little island called Tortuga. We snorkeled around a couple spots then hung out on the island for the day stand up paddle boarding, swimming, and having a fish lunch. It was such an awesome day for a great price and a small group! 

In the middle of our week, we rented ATV’s at the resort for $50 until 5:00pm. We got the ATV’s and headed straight for Montezuma. Parked them and hiked to the three waterfalls. It was so beautiful but definitely not an easy feat as they rocks were pretty steep. The Costa Rican jungle is so full of beautiful green trees and plants, waterfalls, and animals galore. Renting ATV’s was a great idea for the group and not to mention — so much fun! 

Surfing lessons! I’ve only been surfing one time before. I was in Hawaii and rented a board with a friend. I tried so hard to get up and couldn’t figure it out. It was time to try it again, this time in Costa Rica. I got up! A lot! But I will say, I’m sure it was a lot easier on this MASSIVE surfboard than that of a regular board. ;) It was $50 for a two hour lesson with a local for myself and one other. I think I really need to live by the ocean one day, don’t you?

RESTAURANTS

Olam: The restaurant and cafe in Hotel Nautilus. Fresh vegan and vegetarian restaurant that was yummy every time we ate it. They always offered things to spice things up and we were able to try almost everything on the menu. Highly recommend.

Zwart Cafe: I actually stopped at this spot every single day. From the delicious smoothies to the coffee drinks to cute artwork to the fresh bowls. I loved everything about this place. Please go here and support them so that whenever I go back, I can visit them again.

Kuji’s: the best sushi in town. We ordered enough for the table and was able to try some amazing fresh fish on the island.

Habanero: This restaurant was so good that we went here twice for our three nights out for dinner. The drinks were great (5-6pm Happy Hour 2 for 1s) and the food was consistently amazing. The seared tuna appetizer and mahi-mahi tacos were to die for. My mouth is watering reminiscing about how great the fish was there. 

Banana Beach: Talk about happy hour. Everything all day and night was two for one. So we went a little all out here while we watched the beautiful sunset. Which by the way, I would come back to Costa Rica just for the sunsets. So dreamy.

I didn’t have many expectations for Costa Rica but boy am I glad I was able to go, especially with such an incredible group of people I am so grateful to call family. Jillian and I hold yoga and fitness retreats once or twice a year in a different location, our next one is in Tulum, Mexico this November.

all photos by our lovely and extremely talented friend Julia Morgan of J.Mo Studio.