Luxury and sustainability used to live on opposite ends of the travel spectrum. One was about indulgence, the other about restraint. But we’ve never seen it that way at Kalon Surf. For us, the question has always been: can we deliver the best possible experience with the least possible impact?
The answer, over and over, has been yes — but only when you refuse to compromise on either side.
Better products, not just greener ones
We were inspired early on by Finisterre, the UK brand that makes outdoor gear for cold water and rough weather. Their philosophy is simple: if you want people to choose the more sustainable option, it has to be better than the alternative. Not just greener. Better. Because in reality, people want quality. They want things that work, that last, that feel good. If the eco-friendly option is worse, they won’t choose it — and you can’t blame them for that.
That thinking shapes everything we do at Kalon.
We don’t swap something out for a more sustainable version unless it’s at least as good as what it replaces — ideally better. We’re not going to hand you a scratchy recycled towel and tell you to feel virtuous about it. We’d rather find the towel that’s both excellent and responsibly made. And if that option doesn’t exist yet, we wait until it does.
This might sound like a small distinction, but it matters. Because when sustainable choices are also the best choices, they stop being sacrifices. They become the standard. And that’s how you actually change behavior — not by guilt, but by raising the bar.
Design that works with the environment, not against it
Kalon sits at 1,200 feet elevation on Costa Rica’s south Pacific coast. We have a natural breeze, mountain air, and a microclimate that’s warm but comfortable. So when we designed the resort, we designed it open-air. No air conditioning. Not because we wanted to make a sustainability statement, but because at this altitude, open-air design is genuinely more comfortable. You sleep better with fresh air moving through the room. You feel more connected to the place. The experience is better.
We installed high-efficiency fans — Big Ass Fans and others — that move serious air with minimal energy consumption. We researched this carefully. The result is rooms that stay cool, feel luxurious, and use a fraction of the energy a sealed, air-conditioned box would require.
That’s the pattern: the sustainable choice and the better experience happen to be the same thing, if you design thoughtfully enough.
Surfboards that last
Our board quiver is from Firewire Surfboards and Slater Designs. Firewire is a company that’s been working for years to reduce the environmental impact of surfboard manufacturing. You can’t make a surfboard today with zero impact — the materials and processes don’t allow it yet. But what you can do is minimize the impact during manufacturing and build boards that are stronger and last longer.
That second part is critical. A board that breaks after a month has twice the environmental cost of one that lasts a year, no matter how “green” the materials are. Firewire’s construction methods produce boards that are more durable, more consistent, and perform at the highest level — which is why the world’s best surfers ride them, and why we chose them for Kalon. The sustainability is real, but it follows from the quality, not the other way around.
Local first
All of our staff are Costa Rican — except me. Our coaches, our chefs, our guest services team, our drivers — they’re from the communities around Dominical. This isn’t a corporate social responsibility line item. It’s how we built the business from day one.
We source our food locally. Our chefs work with farms and producers in the region. The ingredients are fresher, they support the local economy, and they taste better than anything we could import. Again — the sustainable choice is also the better product.
We work with local tour operators, local guides, local service providers. And we try to help them grow. Because here’s what we’ve learned over the years: when you invest in the people and businesses around you — when their core needs are met and they’re growing — they naturally start making better choices themselves. They invest in energy-efficient equipment. They improve their operations. They raise their own standards. Progress creates a cycle that benefits everyone.
This is something people sometimes overlook about sustainability. It’s not just about what you do — it’s about what environment you create for others to do better. When a community is thriving, sustainability follows naturally. When people are struggling to meet basic needs, asking them to invest in LED bulbs or solar panels is tone-deaf.
What we actually do, specifically
Rather than listing buzzwords, here’s what’s real at Kalon:
No air conditioning — open-air design at 1,200 feet elevation with high-efficiency fans. More comfortable, better for health, dramatically lower energy use.
Locally sourced food — our chefs work with regional farms and producers. Fresh, seasonal, and it supports the communities around us.
All local staff — Costa Rican team from the surrounding communities. We invest in their growth and development.
Firewire and Slater Designs surfboards — chosen for durability and performance, manufactured with reduced environmental impact.
No single-use plastics — refillable toiletries, filtered water stations throughout the property.
Recycling — standard practice across the property.
Continuous improvement — we’re constantly researching better solutions. When a better option exists that matches or exceeds the quality of what we have, we switch. When it doesn’t, we wait and keep looking.
The honest version
We’re not perfect. No resort is. We use energy, we generate waste, we have guests flying in from around the world. We’re not going to pretend that staying at Kalon is carbon-neutral or that surfing has zero environmental footprint.
What we will say is that we think about it. Constantly. And we believe the most effective approach isn’t performative sustainability — it’s building a business where the highest-quality option and the lowest-impact option are the same thing. Where doing right by the environment isn’t a sacrifice the guest makes, but a benefit they experience.
That philosophy came partly from working in energy before Kalon — understanding that you don’t change behavior by making people feel bad about their choices. You change it by offering them something better.
And partly it came from Finisterre, and from Costa Rica itself — a country that generates over 98% of its electricity from renewable sources and has set aside more than 25% of its land as protected areas. Living here, you see what’s possible when sustainability isn’t treated as a marketing angle but as a way of life.
Experience it yourself
Kalon Surf is an all-inclusive surf resort on Costa Rica’s south Pacific coast. Five days of personalized surf coaching, gourmet meals, yoga and wellness, and a setting designed to feel as good as it looks — all with the philosophy above built into every detail.
