Las Crestas Is Here | Real Estate Update
The Shoreline Club’s New Renders and Concepts
What Recent Airlift Tells Us About Guanacaste’s Destination Desirability
Building in Las Crestas | Senderos Homebuilding
Las Crestas is Here | New Listings and a New Neighborhood
Las Crestas is the premier residential enclave in Senderos. Named for the dramatic ridgelines of its varied topography, its gate leads to winding streets, large homesites, lush vegetation, and spectacular long coastal and jungle views.
Las Crestas is serene, buffered from the main road to town and the entrance to Senderos, but is still only minutes from the beach, amenities, and attractions that make Tamarindo famous the world over.
You can explore the video above for your exclusive look at this new neighborhood, and there’s more to discover online at the new Las Crestas homepage.
And The First Homes Of Las Crestas Are Available!
The Senderos Architect’s Guild has been hard at work to bring the first few homes of Las Crestas to life, and we’re delighted to be able to share six new home designs as we launch our newest neighborhood, with more to come soon!
We start with “Ridgeline Stunner”, Home 10-F. With 270 degree views of ocean and jungle, this 7 Bedroom, 7 and 2 Half Bathroom home boasts inspiring ocean views stretching from Tamarindo/Langosta all the way South to Playa Negra, and endless jungle views to the South and East.
Expertly designed by Master Architect Richard Hammond, this home was created for the discerning client seeking the perfect blend of indoor and outdoor living in paradise.
You can click here to explore “Ridgeline Stunner”
Next we have “Southern Exposure”, Home 11-F. This 6 Bedroom, 6 and 2 Half Bathroom modern hideaway was created by the amazing team at WR Architects with one thing in mind: Let’s match the perfect modern tropical home with the perfect tropical/jungle setting.
Cascading down the ridge and enjoying uninterrupted views to the Southwest towards the Playa Langosta Estuary and adjoining wetlands, this home enjoys whitewater views as well as jungle/canopy to the South East.
You can click here to explore “Southern Exposure”
At Home 12-F, “Ocean View Estate”, award-winning designer Richard Muller and team were tasked with creating an estate-like home on the largest and most expansive home site in Las Crestas.
This 6 Bedroom, 7 and 2 Half Bath home was built to live, to entertain, and to offer room to spread out, relax, and breathe in beautiful tropical air, and with its stunning and spacious courtyard entry yard, a huge gourmet kitchen, social/entertainment area, indoor dining area, and large outdoor terraces, we think they absolutely succeeded.
You can click here to explore “Ocean View Estate”
Home 13-F, “Tree Top Retreat”, is a 4 Bedroom, 3 and 1 Half Bathroom home by WR Architects, who created a spectacular design for the Senderos Community on this jungle view home site that also features a “sneak peek” Ocean View from the rooftop terrace!
The glass-front infinity pool is the jewel of this stunning home, with a gorgeous living wall and cascading water feature, and the well-appointed rooftop terrace is set up perfectly to enjoy views of the beaches to the south and the jungle canopy below.
You can click here to explore “Tree Top Retreat”
For Home 14-F, “Jungle Boogie”, award-winning Architect Richard Hammond was tasked with an efficient valley view home that still maintains a premium finish and impactful modern design…and the team delivered in spades with this 3 Bedroom, 3 and 2 Half Bathroom home.
Among its many features, the lower level boasts an outdoor kitchen and unique circular infinity pool, closer to the natural elements of the forest. Also, the vertically louvered exterior shell can be opened and closed to control lighting, breezes, and temperatures giving the house a distinct design aesthetic that truly sets it apart.
You can click here to explore “Jungle Boogie”
Home 15-F, “Valle Verde”, was conceptualized by Richard Muller and team with the tranquil green backdrop of Las Crestas as the inspiration. The home is situated above the canopy of trees that stretches out towards the east with an open layout + an expansive array of windows connecting nature from the valley directly into the home.
The efficient layout of the home is expertly paired with premium finishes and design, so that this 3 Bedroom, 3 and 1 Half Bathroom home is at once large enough for a full-time family yet also perfect for a tropical getaway.
You can click here to explore “Valle Verde”
The Next Phase of Senderos
The future looks bright for Guanacaste, with Airlift shattering all-time records (more on that later), and the greater Tamarindo area growing better by the day thanks to both large-scale projects and thriving small businesses.
And with that in mind, we couldn’t be happier to move forward into this new neighborhood, which offers a concept not quite like anything else in the region, along with some incredible homes and opportunities that you won’t want to miss.
And we were happy to see our friends, local agents, and real estate insiders around the region thought so too at our Las Crestas Launch cocktail reception!
To learn more about Senderos and be a part of these new opportunities in Las Crestas, you can reach out to our team at info@senderos-cr.com.
The Shoreline Club | Brand New Renders and Concept!
And with the launch of Las Crestas, we’re also happy to announce some brand new designs for the Shoreline Club, the upcoming Senderos Beach Club. And with those designs, we can finally dig a little deeper into the concept of the Shoreline Club.
The Vision for the Shoreline Club
At their worst, beach-clubs can be a barrier between a community and the beach, or an intrusion onto nature. But at their best, they can be a beautiful space of transition that celebrates the surrounding community and the natural world.
And to suit a country like Costa Rica, where there is a strong personal connection between nature and the people (not to mention public access to all beaches), the Shoreline Club is designed to embrace both its role as a place of transition, and a place that is inherently valuable in itself.
We challenged our architects to create a space at the Shoreline Club suited to all of the various needs of a perfect day of discovery for our residents and guests, but that wasn’t the only vision.
The Shoreline Club also needed the ability to open spaces up to the community, for building the future of Tamarindo, hosting non-profit fundraising events, and offering education and learning about the regional ecosystem.
The Natural Modern design found throughout Senderos provided the unifying architectural vernacular for the Shoreline Club, and even the materials had to be distinctly Costa Rican, including our plan to source and display hardwoods from ACG’s (Area Conservación de Guanacaste) Research Nursery.
The Club’s Design and New Renders
And the result was a place we believe has something for everyone.
Like going out for an early morning surf, but then being able to grab a bowl of fruit and espresso, answer a few emails, and take a zoom meeting on the roof or in the second floor co-working space.
Planning an adventure for friends arriving at the experience/concierge desk, then laying by the pool or walking the beach to meet the kids coming from surf camp.
Savoring a delicious light lunch with guests, then spreading out across town for afternoon meetings, a few errands and a spa treatment, or a 3-minute Senderos skiff over to Grande for a surf session.
And to finish it off, a quick shower onsite to pull fresh-casual sunset attire from the locker room, and join for a sunset cocktail or grab a beach table for dinner, provided by Pangas, arguably the most popular dining in Tamarindo known for not only quality and cuisine, but an unmatched level of service.
From a bird’s eye view, the Shoreline Club will reference the many biomes of Guanacaste, transitioning from reef to mangrove to shoreline to coastal forest to mountainside.
However, the conceptual layers you see in the diagram above manifest subtly — through slight changes in materials and plant life, thoughtful art and information pieces — because the goal of the Shoreline Club is to blur these lines naturally, just like they are all around us in Guanacaste.
And just like those layers blend together, so too do the many different parts of life at the Shoreline Club. The Club allows for both private moments and energized public spaces. It’s a place to connect with the very best local providers, like Pangas. And it offers both a casual, relaxing daytime vibe alongside an elegant, inspired nighttime atmosphere.
The Day to Day at the Shoreline Club
As we mentioned before, the concept of Shoreline Club acknowledges that — by the very nature of its position between two world class surf breaks, a mangrove, and the thriving town — it has a duty to its neighbors, the surrounding nature, and the community.
Part of this responsibility is expressed through the design — which feels welcoming and hospitable to those who enter, but is also intentionally designed to have both private, intimate spaces and areas set up for larger groups to energize the experience.
The other aspects of the Club come to life in the day to day. Access will be offered via monthly or yearly memberships, which includes all of the amenities of the Club, ranging from onsite Concierge and valet to simple, elegant conveniences like storage and changing rooms.
And as a space for the larger community, we have made it our mission to partner not just with local businesses to make food, drink, and adventure 100% local, but also partner with local organizations like ACG, ADIT, Las Baulas and MINAE in our private event space.
With their presence alongside those of our Senderos residents and visitors, the Shoreline Club isn’t just a beautiful space. It’s a shared gathering place that fully embraces all of the aspects of the nearby nature and community that makes Tamarindo so unique.
Stay Tuned for More Information
It’s exciting to see the Shoreline Club moving from an idea to a realized concept, and we’ll be sure to keep you informed as this project comes to life.
What Recent Airlift Tells Us About Guanacaste’s Destination Desirability
As we reached the end of high season, we were surprised to see April’s numbers in and out of Liberia Airport. We had to look twice as airlift not only recovered completely to pre-pandemic levels, the numbers far surpassed any April we had ever seen.
Then, we saw May 2022 numbers, traditionally a slower month, and knew we needed to start looking more carefully at potentially a new trend taking shape.
Using International Airlift to Measure a Destination Market’s Desirability
The economic health of a vacation destination market can never be measured by a single statistic. However, using “airlift” (the number of arrivals and departures in a specific region) is an excellent indicator of a destination’s desirability.
In markets where the economy is driven by tourism (Hotels, Restaurants, Recreational Activities, Transportation), airlift is typically highly correlated with employment, income levels and quality of life.
While Guanacaste’s economy is much more than tourism (Agriculture, Technology, Building Materials and Real Estate) in this newsletter we often report the airlift numbers at Liberia International Airport (LIR) as a quick way of looking at the direction the health of our area is trending.
Our Seasons Have a Distinctive Shape
Ask any local about seasons and they will tell you we have a “high season” that runs from sometime towards the end of November all the way through Semana Santa (Easter Holy Week). There are many predictable reasons we see more traffic in high season. Looking at average international airlift numbers from 2014 to 2019, reveals the same repeated “shape” of our tourist calendar.
Guanacaste Popularity Has Long Been On the Rise, Pandemic Cuts the 2019/2020 Season Short
Looking at airlift over several years shows the steady increase of traffic, the repeating seasonal shape gaining amplitude each year indicates a trending growth in popularity over time. After a record-setting 2018/2019 High Season, the 2019/2020 season was first muted by cautious cancellations and then entirely shut down when borders closed in March 2020.
Post-Pandemic, Desirability Drivers Go Beyond Beaches and Sunshine
The existing momentum of Guanacaste certainly helped the market to recover from catastrophe.
But whether it was the Covid-19 vaccine or the fatigue of being locked down, once the borders opened to international arrivals, visitors came flooding back to Costa Rica. After hundreds of conversations with visitors to Senderos, it became clear that the reasons they were visiting, investing and relocating had evolved beyond looking for their “piece of paradise.”
They continue to tell us:
- They are looking for a healthier, outdoors lifestyle
- They are looking for a peaceful place to raise their kids
- They are looking for reliable, affordable healthcare
- That office rules have changed and the remote working option is nearly universal
- That housing inventory is sparse and expensive in most popular North American and European locations
- That “life is too short” and it was time to pursue a dream.
As the world worked to get control of the pandemic, Guanacaste returned to something close to pre-pandemic International Airlift, with 2021 and 2022 numbers getting close to the record setting 2019 year. The reduction in airlift in January, February and March of this year is likely a lagging effect of the Omicron strain that started in November 2021 and more recent economic uncertainty keeping people at home.
Most recently we were surprised (and delighted) to see April and May of 2022 airlift numbers breaking the usual trend and far and away outperforming 2019 comparable months. Do these new numbers suggest future High Seasons will be extended? It is too soon to tell, but as always, we will be watching for new trends and reporting them here to you.
Building in Las Crestas | Senderos Homebuilding
The topography and layout of Las Crestas offers a different character to the classic, luxury village atmosphere of El Norte (Phase 1) and the striking and dramatic topography of Las Verandas (Phase 2). And with that different character come some interesting considerations for our architect’s guild and homebuilding team.
Homebuilding Throughout Senderos
El Norte (Phase 1) is a classic, luxury village. With a lush lake and gardens at its center, and the premier shopping, restaurants, and amenities of the area at its fingertips, El Norte effortlessly bridges the cool peace of natural modern living with the color and character of the region’s most lively beach town.
For our design and homebuilding team, El Norte presented the opportunity to truly refine the Natural Modern Design that defines Senderos, and prepare for the challenges of Phase 2.
Las Verandas (Phase 2), is striking and elegant. The neighborhood embraces the breathtaking views and dramatic terrain of the highest peak in the area, with homes that are bold in their design and execution, but delicate in their footprint and artistry, as they take flight over the natural beauty of Playa Grande, Playa Tamarindo, and Las Baulas.
It’s in Las Verandas that the key principles of biomimicry and cutting-edge homebuilding are most apparent. These are gorgeous homesites with astonishing views, but more traditional builders would simply call them impossible to build on. Our team has shown that not only are these homesites buildable, but they create truly inspiring homes.
The New Opportunities of Las Crestas
And now as we enter into Las Crestas, the premier residential enclave in Senderos, there are a new set of exciting challenges facing our designers and homebuilding team.
The mountainside topography is less dramatic than in Las Verandas, allowing for larger homesites, but Las Crestas is by no means flatland. Ridelines and valleys comprise the majority of Las Crestas, creating pockets of privacy, surprising view corridors, and offering a diverse texture to the landscape.
So the question for our architects becomes this — on the larger ‘canvas’ of more sizable homesites, how do you maintain the careful consideration, efficient use of space, and breathtaking natural modern design that we’ve refined through our first two phases?
It’s a challenge that our architects are happy to rise to, and the results have already begun to show in the new concepts from Las Crestas.
The Homebuilding Perspective
Interestingly enough, from the perspective of any homebuilding team, the gentler slopes and larger homesites of Las Crestas would typically be a more standard task than the sites in Las Verandas.
And while this is certainly a consideration for our homebuilding team, the most important challenges they face come from their dedication to making sure your homebuilding process is as inspiring as the first visit to Tamarindo.
A Word from the Homebuilding Team As Las Crestas Arrives
For many of us, the first trip to Tamarindo is nothing short of a dream. It’s a place where the tropical forest meets the ocean, and nestled just between is a lively and colorful town filled with friendly and interesting people from around the world, all here on one adventure or another.
And building a home, whether it’s your first home, your second home, or an ultimate fantasy home, should be an inspirational process. Anything else wouldn’t be doing justice to the wonderful town of Tamarindo that we call home, and inspired us to build lives here.
We know choosing to build a home is a big deal. And we love that our clients trust us with their dreams. But over years of builds, we’ve learned that success is really about a million small details. That’s what makes this project a success. Luxury construction is really about data management, information flow, and customer service.
— Managing Partner Curtis Peart
What Does That Look Like?
Well, it starts with a welcoming team who share the same love of this place that you do, and take pride in helping you pick the right lot or home designs, and it continues with a world-class Architect’s Guild, a group that we can comfortably call true artists of architecture, who are here to help bring your dream to life.
From there, the process can be as simple as picking a design you love, then enjoying some time off surfing, sailing, and adventuring before returning to a completed vision.
Or if you’d like, you can delve into the details, and track each of the countless steps involved in bringing your home to life.
