Playa Tamarindo Raft Up Fundraiser

Nature Air is proud to announce sponsorship of this year’s “Raft Up” fundraiser party benefiting the Playa Tamarindo and Playa Flamingo communities. Local hotels, restaurants, shops, and agencies pulled together to sponsor the event, sell tickets, provide boat transportation, and ensure the success of one of the most important charities in the area.

All proceeds from the annual fundraiser event went toward supporting the police departments, schools, roads, beaches, life guards, beach cleanups, unforeseen emergencies, road projects and Dengue eradication efforts in the area.

This year, the Raft Up was held at the isolated Playa Minas, just a few miles outside of Tamarindo, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. With over 300 people in attendance, it featured live music, a catered lunch, a cash bar benefiting the Surfrider Foundation (which is renowned for its social and environmental projects dedicated to protecting the world’s “oceans, waves and beaches”), round-trip boat transportation and a complimentary t-shirt. Beach games like volleyball and tug-of-war were organized, as were banana boat rides and SUP (Stand-up paddle boarding) lessons.

Throughout the course of the day, a pair of round trip tickets on any Nature Air flight within Costa Rica was raffled off to the highest bidder. Between attendance fees – tickets cost $40 for adults arriving by boat, $25 for adults arriving by car and $20 for children – and local business sponsorship, much-needed funds were raised for the betterment of the Tamarindo and Flamingo communities. Residents of Playa Tamarindo and Playa Flamingo, Nature Air and the rest of the Raft Up sponsors are already looking forward to next year’s celebration.

The 2010 Raft Up party was organized by Captain Chris Watkins and Peter Heidenreich of Go Fish Sport Fishing and Keri and Lee Keidel from King Pin Sport Fishing.

Photos courtesy of Sean Davis
Video courtesy of Tamarindo Beach