Our Story

Thirty years ago, a couple of surfers heard about a wave at the end of a dirt road. They're still here.

It Started with a Wave.

A true ground-up project, Tumbo was born in the minds of a couple of brothers and a few lifelong friends in search of the perfect surf break. When the call came in that one had found the spot, it didn't take long until they were all making their way deep into the Costa Rican jungle. After hours of travel and the use of just about every mode of transportation available, they stepped out onto a beach with a perfect wave peeling off in the distance and knew they were home.

They never really left. What was once simply a tent and a hammock has transformed — slowly, intentionally, with bare hands and a lot of love — into what Tumbo is today. Not a hotel chain's idea of paradise. Not a developer's blueprint. Not a resort built by committee. Something real. Something that grew out of the ground because a handful of people fell in love with a place and couldn't imagine being anywhere else.

A devotion to the area and its people has kept Tumbo thriving for the past 30 years. The jungle has grown around it. The waves still break the same way. And the feeling you get when you arrive — that you've found something most people never find — hasn't changed since day one.

Surfer riding a large wave in the ocean, wearing a white shirt and black shorts.
Four men in casual shorts posing indoors
Unfinished house with concrete walls and no roof, surrounded by trees
Two people sitting in front of liquor store shelves.
Man holding a yellow surfboard in a tropical garden.
Garden path with lush tropical plants and a stone wall labeled 'El Tumbo Las Olas' in an outdoor setting.
Man in a wetsuit near water, holding an object to his mouth.
Indoor space with a small boat suspended from the ceiling, a woman standing, and a ladder leading to a storage loft with boxes.
Group of people standing in front of partially constructed concrete building in a rural area, surrounded by trees and construction materials.

This is the best way to travel. No walls between you and the wild. No barriers between you and the people who call this place home. No itinerary designed by a corporate office. Just the jungle, the ocean, the food, the waves, and the kind of people who remember your name, your coffee order, and the story you told at dinner. That's what 30 years of doing this the right way feels like. It's rare. And it's real. And it's waiting for you.

Meet the people who make it all happen →
Read what guests have to say →

Come Find the Wave.

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