“Sustainable living.” You hear that phrase a lot in Costa Rica. And yet, so often, it doesn’t go beyond much more than a short six syllables and a few surface-level efforts. Luckily, the Senderos gated community is a wonderful exception.
Perched atop awe-inspiring vistas overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Playa Grande National Marine Park, the Tamarindo Estuary, and Tamarindo’s vibrant downtown area, Senderos is one of the region’s most distinctive and prestigious communities – not only for its large homesites and coveted downtown location (there are only three gated communities within Tamarindo proper), but also for its luxury amenities and genuine dedication to sustainable living.
Enter a realm where compromise is merely a notion, not a reality. Senderos has been meticulously designed by globally acclaimed architects, prioritizing environmental responsibility and offering some of the best amenities along the coastline – a truly unparalleled combination.
Here, nature, wildlife, and your lifestyle take center stage.
The Senderos Trust
Senderos Tamarindo isn’t just a place to reside; it’s a sanctuary that nurtures genuine well-being – with oneself, with the community, and within our natural surroundings.
Living within the Senderos gated community is about more than breathtaking views and luxury living. This is a chance to both be a part of a community and give back to your community. That’s why the Senderos Trust was created: Rooted in community support and with 1% of Senderos sales directed towards it, the foundation is overseen by the homeowners themselves.
In return, the trust plays a vital role in enriching both our local community and the wider Tamarindo area through two key avenues:
Community Endeavors: Half of the trust’s annual funds are allocated to our town of Tamarindo, bolstering projects that enhance the town’s welfare, with a focus on safety, conservation, and sustainable development. For example, the trust has helped fund security cameras downtown, via the Tamarindo Association for Comprehensive Development (ADIT, from its acronym in Spanish).
Social Engagements & Amenities: The remaining half of the trust’s yearly funds are dedicated to enriching residents’ lives. This goes towards social events and amenities that not only benefit residents but also cultivate a sense of shared interests with the larger community.
Sustainability in Action
Senderos has partnered with Green Roots Consultants (from Costa Rica’s own EARTH University), as well as with local sustainability experts, to truly understand what sustainable development really means.
This is more than a community promise; sustainability permeates every aspect of life at the Senderos gated community. And that means that you can feel good about living here. Here’s what Senderos’ sustainable lifestyle entails:
A Pact with Nature
Senderos’ 110 acres hold value far beyond the future communities it will host. This is a vital corridor for wildlife, a significant carbon sink, and an essential contributor to Guanacaste’s diverse ecosystems.
With this in mind, each new phase, home, road, or community amenity with the Senderos gated community is designed to either enhance or safeguard the land’s intrinsic value. As of 2022, every home in Senderos comes with a guarantee that its ecological worth – be it in carbon capture, biodiversity, or its role in the local ecosystem – remains preserved.
Meticulous Documentation
The “eco-contract” process begins with meticulous documentation on the community’s various elements – tracking water patterns, assessing soil quality and depth, mapping terrain, and surveying flora and fauna.
This data, paired with expertise, helps to preserve the community’s ecological value – for Senderos as a whole and for each individual lot and/or residence within the development. More importantly, it informs proactive measures to nurture and “lifescape” the area, ensuring that Senderos retains its natural integrity amidst development.
“Lifescaping,” Not Landscaping
EARTH University uses the term “lifescaping” to describe the Senderos vision: Rather than isolate from wildlife and the elements, the community strives to support and integrate with nature. This philosophy guides the community’s many practices, ensuring that every next step is in harmony with nature.
When you live in the Senderos gated community, this means:
Preserving Topsoil: Natural topsoil is teeming with microorganisms that have been alive for centuries; it’s a precious resource. To preserve the community’s precious topsoil, they carefully manage rainwater and store the topsoil during construction, replenishing the site once work is complete.
Strategic Planting: From trees to shrubs, plants play multifaceted roles in our ecosystem. Senderos purposefully selects what to plant, in order to enhance ecological value while enriching the beauty and experience of each homesite.
Embracing Life-Cycling: The community implements comprehensive waste management and composting to keep vital nutrients onsite and replenish natural resources. Fallen trees and plant debris are repurposed into biochar, enriching the soil and perpetuating the cycle of life.
Enduring Education: The key to ensuring the longevity of sustainable practices begins with educating ourselves. At Senderos, the community works to educate its team, homeowners, and visitors, fostering a deeper appreciation for the community’s unique “lifescape.”
Senderos Architecture and Biomimicry
One of the first things you’ll notice at Senderos is the community’s striking topography and mountainside homesites.
While building a conventional house on a slope as steep as 40% might seem unattainable (and you’d be correct), you’re not constructing or living in an ordinary residence. Instead, the community crafts masterpieces of biomimicry – essentially, a single-family skyscraper, nestled into mountainscapes where conventional homes dare not tread.
The outcome? Unrivaled seclusion, breathtaking vistas, minimized environmental impact, efficient material usage, and competitive construction costs compared to traditional dwellings. It’s why the Senderos gated community turns to nature for inspiration.
What is Biomimicry?
The simplest explanation is that biomimicry is the process of drawing inspiration from the oldest design manual on Earth: the natural world itself.
Biomimicry isn’t anything new and you’re probably already well aware of its uses and implementations: scientists dissecting spider silk for durable materials; shark skin inspiring streamlined designs; and avian anatomy informing lightweight aircraft construction. The list goes on.
Biomimicry at Senderos integrates nature’s wisdom into architecture, especially as it relates to environmental impact and the community’s rugged terrain. By studying nature’s blueprints, which predate humans’ existence, Senderos sees these slopes as canvases for unparalleled architectural marvels.
To do this, your home’s architecture looks to the trees: Deeply rooted, trees thrive on mountainsides without first laying concrete foundations. For Senderos’ mountainside homesites, biomimicry informs two key strategies: establishing secure foundations (tiebacks” or anclajes – steel cables anchored to bedrock) and selecting lightweight, resilient materials (lightweight steel and Panelco walls).
Your home at Senderos is a true architectural and natural marvel, designed for safety and longevity while preserving natural landscapes and protecting vital wildlife corridors.
A Suite of Luxury Amenities
The beauty of life at Senderos is that you can preserve, support, and even fund everything you hold dear – nature, wildlife, and your community – without sacrificing your lifestyle.
Unfolding against breathtaking ocean vistas, the community offers large, often half-acre homesites (a rare amenity of its own) and some of the best amenities in town, including:
Safety, Security & Convenience
Enjoy round-the-clock gated security, well-paved roads, ample water supply, and secure entrance gates.
Senderos Beach Club (Under Construction)
Senderos will soon unveil its exclusive Beach Club, which provides access to a bespoke and idyllic oceanside (and poolside) retreat, complete with a resort-style pool, a chic cocktail lounge, convenient lockers and showers, dedicated surfboard storage, a co-working space, and tantalizing gourmet offerings from Tamarindo’s premier beachfront restaurant. The Beach Club’s grand opening is slated for 2024.
Walking Trails
Experience the outdoor lifestyle right at your doorstep – practically in your backyard! Venture into Senderos’ kilometers of scenic walking trails, winding through lush greenery, captivating art installations, organic gardens, and charming playgrounds. These trails offer both escape and connection within your community.
Senderos Valley Club (Planned)
Dynamic action and thrilling adventures await at the upcoming Valley Club, located at the Senderos gated community. Beyond convenient beach shuttles, this hilltop retreat is poised to offer residents top-notch amenities, including a refreshing swimming pool, a state-of-the-art gym and juice bar, facilities for racquet sports and tennis, and a dedicated dog park.
Senderos Rec Center (Planned)
For families, Senderos warmly welcomes all ages to its planned Recreation Center, featuring football, table tennis (ping pong), and a packed events schedule brimming with organized activities.
Sculpture Parks
Art enriches the Senderos Tamarindo experience, with several sculpture parks scattered throughout the community, showcasing captivating art installations.
Gourmet Market, Shops & Restaurants
The beauty of downtown living? Everything you need is within walking distance at Senderos. The main entrance hosts an upscale supermarket, restaurants, medical services, ATMs, and other amenities, ensuring convenience at your fingertips.
Senderos Gated Community Guide
Interested in Living within the Senderos Gated Community?
If you’re researching sustainable living in Tamarindo or other gated communities in the area, and you think Senderos might be a fit, then you’re in the right place!
At Blue Water Properties, we’re experts in Senderos and the greater Guanacaste province. In fact, we live and vacation here! We know exactly how rare this kind of community is and we can point you in the direction of everything – the restaurants you have to try, the surf spots within walking distance, and where to buy that one thing you’ve been looking all over for.
We’re happy to talk, one-on-one and from personal experience, about what it’s like to live here, raise families here, retire here, and explore every facet of life at Hacienda Pinilla. We’ll discuss pros and cons, whole truths and hard truths – all the details you need, with the honesty and transparency you deserve.
Because at Blue Water Properties of Costa Rica, we’re more than a real estate team. We’re good neighbors and, we hope, future friends. We’re also bilingual, bicultural, and seriously experienced. We’re sticklers for responding within 24 hours. And we put you first. Get in touch.
