14 ReviewsWe took taxis infrequently - they were cheap, but most of the time we took local buses which were even cheaper. At that time we always asked the price before getting in. Now I understand the cabs have...
10 ReviewsFor local trips to San Jose from our hotel, we took the local bus. We got the van shuttle to the airport and got the bus there into the city. The only problem was understanding where the bus was going...
6 ReviewsWe flew in to Juan Santamaria International Airport on Sunday 1996 Feb. 18. We did not have to pay for our tickets because we got passes from our daughter who was then a flight deck officer at a major...
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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members
Rent a 4-WD SUV
by BLewJay
Our trip was a fly and drive vacation which we purchased through Gate 1 Travel, so we flew into San Jose, got on the shuttle, headed to the Adobe Airport Office, rented a Hyundai Tucson AWD/SUV and drove it to our destination(s). There are a few highways in Costa Rica, but most of the roads are divided (with traffic in each direction) and many of the places you will want to visit are reached by taking dirt roads. So get the SUV!!! Also, most of the places you will want to visit in Costa Rica don't have a street address (as you are use to in North America, Europe, etc.), so I highly suggest that you rent a GPS with the your car/SUV rental. Believe me, you will definitely use it and it will be your best friend. Well worth the investment.
Driving around San Jose and the rest of Costa Rica
by MsJAG
This is only about the driving:Don't forget about the toll roads especially all around and going in and out of San Jose. Not expensive as it's less than a US dollar, but if you are short on cash and only have a credit card or ATM card, it's a pain in the butt.As well, even if pay to buy the extra insurance on a rental vehicle, and have it covered for loss or damage (provided that you credit car company does not cover such incidents) you will NOT get the tires insured for damage or flats. Seriously, there is no coverage that you can buy on the tires!GPS is always extra (but necessary) and starts at $10/day.There are pothole, and speed bumps that you won't see until you are on top of them, so drive carefully.Have a calculator ready to figure out the cost of filling up your gas tank, because the attendants feel no way about keeping a $2-5USD tip without telling you. They simply keep the...
Bus from Airport to La Fortuna
by Amanda8oP
If you are taking a "bus" from the airport to your hotel, you will probably be in a van. I would recommend getting picked up and dropped off at the airport because the roads are long, fairly dangerous, and are poorly marked. The drivers can also be very helpful, especially in pointing out landmarks and animals that you may miss on your own! (Our driver took a detour to show us the energy producing wind turbines and stopped to point out toucans, monkeys, and a badger-type animal specific to the region!!)**If you get motion sickness AT ALL, make sure to pack dramamine!!!
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Getting to Downtown San Jose from Airport
by starship
Arriving at the new and modern Juan Santamaria Airport, we quickly cleared immigration and got the cherished stamp for Costa Rica in our passports. The airport is approximately 30 - 45 minutes from downtown San Jose, allowing for traffic. Originally we planned to take the free airport shuttle provided by the hotel we had booked for 2 nights in downtown San Jose. Although we would have to wait around the airport a couple of hours for that shuttle to arrive based on their pre-set schedule, we could have passed the time comfortably enough. However, we didn't do this. Previous research on how to get to San Jose from the airport warned tourists not to take unauthorized, unlicensed taxis from the airport --- licensed taxis are bright orange/red. However, upon exiting the airport, we were swarmed by "taxi" drivers and tried to bypass them which was almost impossible. A man approached us wearing...
Juan Santamaria International Airport
by Jefie
This airport is located about 20 km away from San Jose and it's the biggest one in Costa Rica. Several American and Canadian companies offer regular flights to San Jose - if you're flying in from Europe, direct flights are available from Madrid with Iberia. With only 17 gates it isn't exactly a huge airport so it's very easy to get around, but it can get pretty busy so you do need to show up a couple hours before your flight if you want to have enough time to pay your US$28 departure fee (cash or credit card, the counter is located next to the check-in area), check in, drop your luggage, and go through security. The terminal is nice and modern, there are several souvenir shops (the Britt shops offer free chocolate-covered fruit and nut samples!), a food court and a couple of restaurants, including one where you can order nice, healthy meals (something I usually look for before hopping on...
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Hiring a private driver to tour Costa Rica
by ralopate
Danny Jiminez - www.costaricadriver.com - This is the very first time I have written any review, and we have traveled many places. I wanted to make sure I wrote one about Danny, because we had an awesome vacation, and a lot of that was because of Danny. First of all, I would like to say that we enjoyed Danny very much. He has a gentle, humble personality, and that is very refreshing, coming from the United States. He is honest, friendly and has a great sense of humor. We were able to leave him in charge of our things in the van, while we explored the beautiful parks and sights in Costa Rica, and didn't have to worry about it. We could also sit back and enjoy the scenery on the many drives that we took with him. We hired Danny for the entire 9 days we were in Costa Rica, and paid a daily flat rate (well worth it, and he has competitive rates too.) He took us wherever we wanted to go, and...
Paying Departure Tax with Credit Cards
by ZeekLTK
To fly home from SJO in San Jose you have to pay a $26 departure tax.The counter where you pay this indicates that they accept VISA, among other credit cards. However, they DO NOT actually swipe it as a regular credit card. Instead, they charge it as a CASH ADVANCE. They don't tell you this either, they just swipe it and give you the paper that indicates that you have "paid" so that you can get on your flight.You will have to pay off your card immediately when you arrive back home in order to negate any finance charges that will begin to grow from the cash advance. I caught mine early and it only got up to $0.30 (30 cents) but if I hadn't paid attention it could have gotten a lot worse.So try to pay the departure tax in cash (they accept both USD and Colones) if you can. If not, pay off your card as soon as you get home to avoid the finance charge from the cash advance that they will...
Dollar Rent A Car In Costa Rica
by sffd101
Whatever you do, do NOT rent from Dollar Rent A Car in Costa Rica. First, they rented out the car that I had reserved, then the car breaks down on the way to the airport. After I hitchhiked back to the rental office, they apologized and offered me a refund, of which I have not received, even after contacting the regional manager. I would advise anyone to rent a car anywhere other than Dollar Rent A Car.
renting, or not
by bulldogtwo
OK, I read these before, and to be honest, and yeah my opinion, I have no idea what they are all talking about. I rented a car for 10 days and I thought the roads were just fine. We drove from Bahia Drake in the south all the way to Guancaste with ZERO problems. Were the roads perfect, no, but more than fine, and we even went off road, and no, we did not have a 4x4 or SUV, but a small economy car. Been to many US cities where the roads are a lot worse.We spent the first 4 days thinking that we would not need to rent a car. We could just hop on a bus or tsake a taxi. Buses, we waited 3 hours for a local bus to show up. In most countries like CR, local buses are at least on the hour if not the half hour to and from local towns. Not the case here. Also, again we thought, how much can taxis be, this isn't New York. One taxi wanted 50$, yeah, US$ to go 13 kilometers. And it wasn't like he...
Transportation between San Jose & the Arenal area
by TheTravelSlut
I decided to visit the Arenal volcano area and Tabacon Hot Springs area from the San Jose area.THE TRAVEL SLUT TIP: Rather than booking transportation North to these areas, for the same price you can book a one-day bus tour to these resort areas and then make arrangements (at no additional costs) to have the bus leave you at the last stop and then pick you up a couple days later for your return to San Jose. I did this and I not only saved some money, but I received a commentary on Costa Rica history & culture, visited a farmer's market, gift store and had a nice lunch in addition to spending an afternoon at the hot springs.
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