Rocamar, Uma, Banana Beach, Blue Mist and Manzú at Nantipa compared for a day on a lounger in Santa Teresa: what a day bed costs, which days have a DJ, pool access, sunset timing, dress and the green season closures to know about.
Rocamar is the best beach club in Santa Teresa for a full day on a lounger: a $15 minimum spend gets you a bed on the sand, swings at the water's edge and the Sunday sunset party. Uma is the pick for a Friday DJ and Mediterranean plates, and Banana Beach is the easy, walkable option with day beds, nightly live music and a bonfire.
The short version
Santa Teresa's beach clubs are restaurants and hotel bars with beds on the sand, and none of them runs the Bali or Mykonos model of a big entry fee. The three that matter are Rocamar, on the north side with the swings and the Sunday DJ; Uma, at the Playa Cielo hotel, with a Friday night DJ set and the best food of the group; and Banana Beach, a kilometre north of the cruce, which is the most casual and the only one with live music every night. Blue Mist is the polished hotel beach club near Playa Hermosa, but its restaurant closes for September and October. Manzú at Hotel Nantipa is where you go when you want a proper lunch and a quiet beachfront deck rather than a party.
Rocamar
Rocamar is 500 metres north of Super Hacienda on the Santa Teresa side, then 50 metres east to the beach, and it is the only place in town that works like a beach club in the strict sense: loungers and beach beds on the sand, table service, and a minimum spend. The house rule is about $15 per lounger, which gets you a proper cocktail and the bed for the afternoon, per our own beach club listing. Hours are 12pm to 7pm Tuesday to Sunday and it is closed on Monday. The kitchen is seafood-led and Google has it at 4.6 from more than 500 reviews.
The swings at the water's edge are the photo everyone takes. Sunset is the busy hour: the crowd arrives around 5:30pm and the light is gone by 6:30pm. Sunday is the main event, with tables in the sand, a DJ, a beach barbecue and a bonfire from sunset, covered in our Rocamar late set listing; full moon weekends get their own DJ nights. The honest caveat comes from reviewers: ask the price of any off-menu special before you order it, because one review describes a bill at double what was expected, and the Sunday party is not as family-oriented as the word "bonfire" suggests.
Uma Beachfront
Uma Beach Club sits on the beach at the Playa Cielo hotel, reached by the Casa Zen beach access road in central Santa Teresa. It opens every day from 11:30am to 10pm, per its Instagram, and the setup is boho: low tables, cushions and beds under the almond trees, a Mediterranean menu of tapas, fish kebabs, whole fish and sweet and spicy peppers, and cocktails priced above the town average. Google has it at 4.6 from around 300 reviews.
Friday night is the DJ night, with resident house DJs and bigger line-ups on holidays such as New Year's Eve, per its Facebook events. There is no published minimum spend for a bed; a drink or a plate order holds it, and on Fridays in high season you should reserve by WhatsApp or Instagram for a beachfront table. The caveat is cost. Budget $50 to $80 a head for plates and two drinks, and more on a DJ night.
Banana Beach
Banana Beach Restaurant is a kilometre north of the cruce at the entrance to town, part of Banana Beach Hotel, and it is the beach club most people can walk to. Hours are 9am to 8:30pm most days and until 11pm on Wednesday. The pavilion is bright and open, with lounge chairs and day beds on the sand for the afternoon, a menu of burgers, bowls, seafood and smoothies, and nightly live music with a bonfire after dark, per bananabeachcr.com. With more than 2,100 Google reviews at 4.3, it is the busiest of the group, and reviewers describe it as fun and social more than refined. One thing to know: a fire on 27 January 2026 destroyed the beach club, per the hotel's own Instagram, and it rebuilt and reopened within the year, so the pavilion you see is new and some of the old menu has not returned.
A lounger is yours with a drink order; there is no published minimum. Who it suits: groups, families in the afternoon, and anyone who wants to be in the water at 4pm and on a bed at 5pm. The caveat is that it is the tourist magnet of the strip, so service slows at sunset in high season and the music is acoustic covers more often than a DJ.
Blue Mist Hotel and Beach Club
Blue Mist Hotel and Beach Club is the most polished beach club setup on this coast, on the sand in front of the Blue Mist resort at the north end of Santa Teresa toward Playa Hermosa. The beach club is open to the public daily from morning to evening, with table service, a full food and cocktail menu, a pool at the resort for guests, and live music and shows timed to golden hour, per bluemist.cr. Google has it at 4.8 from more than 230 reviews. It fills by 5pm in high season.
The caveat is timing. The resort's own site says the restaurant is temporarily closed during September and October while staff take holiday, so in green season check before you drive up. From November it runs its usual hours (8am to 8pm in past seasons; confirm this year's). Prices reflect the beachfront premium.
Manzú at Hotel Nantipa
Manzú is the open-air restaurant on the beach at Hotel Nantipa, 150 metres northwest of Super Costa, open daily from 7am to 10pm. It is not a party beach club: it is a beachfront deck with misted canopies between the almond trees, a kitchen that reviewers rate for fresh fish and a tamarind margarita, and 155 metres of beach in front. Non-guests can eat and drink here, and the Nantipa deck listing sums up the move: buy one drink and stay through sunset. Pool and loungers are for hotel guests, and there is no day pass for sale, so the beach club experience here is a table and the sand. Who it suits: a long lunch, a quiet sunset, and anyone who finds Rocamar on a Sunday too loud. The caveat is that cocktails are priced for a luxury hotel.
Beyond the strip
Pranamar Villas at Playa Hermosa runs a Sunset Tiki Bar open to the public every evening, the only beachfront bar on Hermosa, with beers, sangria and bocas and far fewer people; confirm hours in green season. In Montezuma, Chico's Playa Bar is the beach bar in the centre of the village, open 11am to 10pm, with a mixed 3.4 Google rating that reflects slow service more than the setting. For the full sunset list, including the free options, see the sunset spots guide.
How to choose
| Club | Beds | Minimum spend | DJ or music | Pool | Hours | Best day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rocamar | Loungers and beds on sand, swings | About $15 per lounger | Sunday DJ from sunset, full moon nights | No | 12pm to 7pm, closed Monday | Sunday |
| Uma | Beds and low tables | None published, order to hold | Friday DJ, holiday line-ups | Hotel guests | 11:30am to 10pm daily | Friday |
| Banana Beach | Lounge chairs and day beds | None published | Live music nightly, bonfire | Hotel guests | 9am to 8:30pm, Wed to 11pm | Any night |
| Blue Mist | Loungers, table service | None published | Live sets at golden hour | Hotel guests | Closed Sep and Oct; from Nov | Sunset |
| Manzú | Tables on the deck | One drink | None | Hotel guests | 7am to 10pm daily | Weekday lunch |
Practical notes
Arrive early for sunset. Beds at Rocamar and Uma are taken by 4pm in high season, and the sunset crowd at all of them is in place by 5:15pm. In green season, now, you can walk in at 4:30pm most days.
Reserve on WhatsApp or Instagram for Friday at Uma, Sunday at Rocamar, and any beachfront table at Blue Mist from December to April. Nobody reserves a lounger on a Tuesday.
Cards work at all five, but the terminals drop in rain, so carry colones. Tip 10% if service is not already on the bill; see the tipping guide.
Dress is swimwear and a cover-up by day everywhere. After dark, Uma, Blue Mist and Manzú expect a shirt and something other than board shorts; Banana Beach and Rocamar do not care.
Get there without drinking and driving. Rocamar and Uma are off the main road down beach access tracks, and the getting around guide covers taxis and the shared shuttles. For what happens after the beds are stacked, read the best bars and cocktails guide and the nightlife calendar, and browse every bar in the /directory/drink hub.
FAQ
Do Santa Teresa beach clubs charge an entry fee?
No. None of them sells a day pass. Rocamar asks for about $15 minimum spend per lounger; Uma, Banana Beach and Blue Mist hold a bed with a drink or food order. Hotel pools stay guests-only.
Which beach club has a DJ?
Uma on Friday nights, with resident house DJs and bigger line-ups on holidays. Rocamar on Sunday from sunset, plus full moon weekend nights. Banana Beach has live acoustic music every night rather than a DJ.
What is the best beach club for sunset?
Rocamar for the swings and the Sunday party, Blue Mist for a reserved table with service, Uma for dinner with a set. Sun sets between 5:15pm and 5:45pm all year, so be seated by 5pm.
Are the beach clubs open in green season?
Rocamar, Uma, Banana Beach and Manzú run all year. Blue Mist's restaurant closes for September and October, per its own site, and reopens in November. Afternoon rain can shorten hours anywhere in October.
Can I use a hotel pool at a beach club?
Not without a room. Nantipa, Playa Cielo, Banana Beach Hotel and Blue Mist keep their pools for guests. The beach club part is the sand, the beds and the bar.
