Balance & Connection

with Lucia

For me, Pilates is my life.

Costa Rica is known around the world as a destination for health and wellness retreats. Whether it’s yoga, surfing, or healing spa treatments, our Pura Vida culture embraces anyone and everyone seeking a healthy and active lifestyle. 

Our vision at Florblanca is to create a haven for our community and our guests that provides whatever outlet you’re seeking for health, wellness, and rejuvenation.  We offer daily yoga and Pilates in a gorgeous, unique, and inspiring environment.  Spa Bambu is here for refreshing the body and skin and at Nectar Restaurant, we’re serving fresh, delicious, and nourishing meals sourced from local ingredients.

All of these services are brought to you by our amazing and dedicated staff, people who embody the very Pura Vida spirit that draws people to Costa Rica.

As program director for our Pilates studio, Lucia is one of the most beautiful examples of this Pura Vida energy and spirit.  Her dedication and love of Pilates shine through her instruction.  She teaches us that Pilates is all about connection between the mind and body.  And out of that connection comes balance and coordination, leading to better posture, better breathing, more strength and flexibility and, overall, better health both physically and mentally.

Reflecting these principles, Lucia lives a balanced and connected life both in and out of the studio.  Her daily routine is one that embraces nature and the outdoors, healthy food, and positive actions that energize her body and spirit and, in turn, help to energize our community.

“Costa Rica is a very healthy country.  It’s a green country that is concerned about nature and that makes you feel like you want to take care of your body.  Costa Rican life is also slower and less stressful. People have that Pura Vida vibe inside of them and you can feel it.”

She starts each day early and with a healthy smoothie to help get her going.  She heads to the beach for a short stretch and to take in the waves.  She always has her surfboard handy for a session.  Lucia started surfing as a young adult.  She enjoys the challenge of learning the sport, the feeling of accomplishment when she makes progress, and, most of all, the connection with her friends out on the water.

Pilates and surfing are perfect complements to each other.  They both require strength, flexibility, balance, and a strong mind-body connection.  They are both fun and challenging and bring people together to practice.

With Pilates and surfing in her daily routine, Lucia maintains a strong connection to the environment with great respect for the ocean, the beach, the landscape, and the wildlife that is all around us here in Santa Teresa.  She rides her bike or motorcycle to work and loves the wide open views of the ocean and landscape from the Florblanca Pilates studio. Everyday, she takes time to practice Pilates, to meditate, or walk – activities that fuel her spirit and energy so that she can give so much back to her students, to the staff at Florblanca, and to our guests.

Three years ago Lucia went back to the books to study Osteopathy and today incorporates her love of Pilates, Physiotherapy and Osteopathy into all that she offers her clients.

We are so grateful to have Lucia here at Florblanca, bringing a spirit of balance and connection to all of us everyday.  We invite you to explore our oceanfront Pilates studio and visit us to experience all the benefits from this amazing practice.

Lucia Festa: Physical Educator UNLP; Pilates Instructor PYP; Physical Therapist UAI; Master in Osteopathy EOM  

Other stories in our Where We Belong Series:

• Life in the Moment – a Story of Surfing, Family, and Lasting Youth
• Awakening – A Story of Yoga and Rebirth
• An Artist’s Retreat