Bodhi Family: 7 Night Family Surf Camp

Bodhi Surf + Yoga is a small, family-owned and operated business that offers a smaller, more intimate vacation setting. The owners (and their children) and staff are the ones that share in your Costa Rica surf experience with your family. Our lodge is located in a small town that is still relatively untouched by large-scale tourism, and we work together with our fellow community-members to keep Bahia Ballena beautiful and have it serve as a positive example. We are committed to sustainable tourism: community involvement and environmental awareness are part of your experience with Bodhi Surf + Yoga. Finally, we are the first ever surf camp in the world to earn B Corp certification!

One week of Bodhi Family Surf Camp includes: 

• 5 surf lessons
• 6 nights of accommodation at the lodge and one night of accommodation in San Jose
• 3 dinners and 5 breakfasts
• Round trip transportation (SJO-Bodhi-SJO)
• A waterfall visit
• Local transportation to camp activities
• Snacks during surf sessions
• Guided walking tour of the community of Bahia Ballena
• National Park entrance fees for the days there are surf lessons

Click here for our Ultimate Guide to Preparing for the Bodhi Family Surf Camp week.

The food at the Bodhi Surf + Yoga lodge aims to check all of these boxes: filling, nutritious, healthy, locally-sourced, home-made, fresh, and delicious. The Bodhi Surf + Yoga team members are also avid foodies and strive to serve food that exceeds guests’ expectations — including kids! Bodhi Surf + Yoga is able to cater to specific dietary restrictions such as vegetarian, pescatarian, vegan, gluten-free, lactose-free, nut-free, etc.

The Bodhi Family Surf Camp is seven nights, yet it can be done back-to-back. If your family has the ability to stay for the full two weeks, it will offer you the best opportunity to really delve into surfing. After 7 days, students are just starting to catch green, unbroken waves, so dedicating another week offers a great opportunity to master that skill set. After a week, your family will have relaxed into the pace of life in this small, coastal Costa Rican town. Having another week allows you all to go deeper into the place you’re in, but also the vacation version of yourselves (AKA too blessed to be stressed!)

Check out our full packing list here.

There are a ton of activities and tours you can participate in — our area really is a playground for the adventurous and outdoorsy types — yet there are also plenty of cultural activities as well. Our area has so much to do for all budgets, travel styles, and levels of desired activity. You can read more about some of the most popular activities here. Needless to say, your family will absolutely not get bored here.

While it is not required to have a car for your stay at Bodhi Surf + Yoga, if you have very young children, or want to participate in tours and activities that will take you further than the Bahia Ballena - Uvita area, we would recommend renting a car. We would suggest you do that once here in Bahia Ballena, as transportation from the airport and back is included in your vacation package price. 

Again, it is not required: transportation to all scheduled activities is included, and most everything else you need is accessible by foot (restaurants, shops, banks, etc.). Bike rentals and taxis are also available for those families for whom walking will be a bit too complicated.

There are many restaurants in the Bahia Ballena - Uvita area, with several delicious options within a 10-minute walk. There are also more places to eat popping up every year. If you don’t feel like walking, you can also look into renting bikes or take taxis.

The Bodhi Surf + Yoga lodge is located approximately 15-20 minutes walking-distance from either the Punta Uvita (Whale Tail) or Playa Chaman (Bodhi Surf + Yoga’s surf beach) park entrances. For surf lessons, we drive all together, which takes about 5 minutes. 

Costa Rica is a very safe country indeed. As a more developed country than its other Central American neighbors, it does not struggle as much as its neighboring countries with issues such as poverty, crime, and other problems that often coexist with the development stage.

Costa Rica is a very safe and family-friendly country with plenty of family activities, child-friendly accommodations, and more. Moreover, it is very clean and the water is potable in much of the country (such as in Bahia Ballena!) which greatly helps prevent food-borne illnesses.