For many of the nations in Central The usa, there may be one airport that each global traveler flies into, fanning out from there to quite a lot of puts around the vacation spot. That’s now not true for the preferred nation although. You’ll be able to fly into two Costa Rica Airports: one within the capital of San Jose and one up north in Liberia.
This may make a large distinction for your holiday plans should you’re headed to one of the vital many luxurious Costa Rica accommodations which might be dotted across the Guanacaste area and the Nicoya Peninsula. Positive, you’ll get to these spots from San Jose since Costa Rica isn’t an enormous nation, but it surely’s going to approach hours extra in a automotive or van after you’ve already flown a couple of hours in a aircraft.
There are excellent causes to fly into San Jose for different portions of the rustic although, both as a result of they’re nearer to the capital or since you’re going to want every other flight to get to the place you’re going, comparable to to the Osa Peninsula within the south.
Here’s a rundown at the Costa Rica airports with which airways fly into them and the place you’ll pass after touchdown.
Flying into Liberia Airport, North Costa Rica
I’ve flown out and in of Liberia a number of instances now and it has at all times been a very easy, hassle-free enjoy. The true identify is Daniel Oduber Quiros World Airport, in honor of a former president who driven for it an supported building of the area for vacationers. Keep in mind, there’s a nation named Liberia so you’ll want to don’t e book a flight to Africa by way of mistake! (The associated fee will more than likely give it away anyway.) The logo is LIR.
Liberia is the capital of Guanacaste province and is round 200 kilometers (124 miles) from San Jose. From this airport you handiest need to shuttle round 30-40 mins to get to the 4 Seasons Costa Rica, as an example, on excellent roads. It’s a color much less to the Andaz Peninsula Papagayo. In case you flew into San Jose although, you’d have a three-hour power in entrance of you prior to you were given your welcome drink at check-in.
You’re additionally handiest about an hour and a part from Cala Luna Resort, W Costa Rica, and Tamarindo Seashore. You’d fly into right here to move to surf seashores within the Nicoya Peninsula or to stick on the low-key Florblanca Hotel.
It’s price noting that Liberia Airport has one different redeeming high quality you may want to try prior to coming back from your holiday: a close-by brewpub. As we highlighted in our article about craft beer in Central The usa, Numu Brewing is solely around the street from the runways. There’s just one eating place on the airport, plus probably the most terminal isn’t air-conditioned, so it’s now not a spot the place you wish to have to turn up too early in your flight and simply hang out until you may have Precedence Go or in a different way to get into the only living room there.
Who Flies to Liberia Airport?
As this newsletter used to be going up, there have been 18 direct flights to Liberia Airport, plus a pair extra from Canada which might be seasonal. That comes with 3 from Europe: from Amsterdam on KLM, from Zurich on Edelweiss, and a constitution flight run by way of TUI from London.
A complete of 4 Canadian airways fly from Calgary, Montreal, and other Toronto area airports.
All of the giant U.S. carriers fly to Liberia from no less than one in every of their hubs, so you’ll get there on United, Delta, American, and Southwest. It doesn’t prevent there although. No less than one or two days per week from other towns you may have choices on JetBlue, Alaska Air, and Frontier. Simply keep in mind that a few of these handiest run within the top season, so you may have fewer choices throughout the wet season when maximum North American households have faculty wreck holidays. Test out of your airport right here.
San Jose Airport, Costa Rica
San Jose is the capital of Costa Rica, however in fact there’s a couple of “Saint Joseph” town available in the market, so you’ll want to’re on the lookout for this one while you pass to Kayak or Skyscanner. The legitimate identify is Juan Santamaría World Airport and the airport image is SJO.
San Jose World Airport isn’t truly in San Jose itself. It’s nearer to town of Alajuela, within the province of the similar identify. So when you’ve got an early flight, you’re in reality at an advantage staying at an airport lodge or taking a large step as much as Xandari Hotel, an inventive lodge with a view. The airport is definitely above the center level of Costa Rica, a lot nearer to Nicaragua than Panama.
By means of street, it’s relatively simple to get to probably the most largest hits of Costa Rica. At the southern coast it’s a immediately shot out on highways to achieve Jaco, Quepos, Manuel Antonia Nationwide Park, and sooner or later Uvita. That ultimate one is the house of a few very good small inns perched at the hillside: Rancho Pacifico and Kura Boutique Resort. Heading north, you’ll succeed in the Monteverde Cloudforest and the journey playground of Fortuna/Arenal Volcano. Within the latter you’ll in finding probably the most nation’s perfect inland luxurious accommodations, comparable to Nayara Springs.
To succeed in extra far-flung spaces, you’ll wish to take a home prop aircraft flight and this items a complete host of headaches. Initially, those are small planes that may get stuffed up simply, so e book neatly forward should you’re now not on a Costa Rica excursion the place any individual else is dealing with the ones main points. 2d, they have got baggage and weight restrictions, so that you’ll wish to pack lighter than you could have sought after. Remaining, those Costa Rican home airways generally tend to come back and pass with alarming frequency, so that you’ll need to dig round to peer who’s serving which locations.
The biggest and longest-established home provider is Sansa, which covers probably the most far-flung spaces you can wish to get to. You’ll be able to even pass global with them, flying to Bocas del Toro in Panama. I will be able to’t promise that this map is proper (particularly taking into account the place they positioned Managua), but it surely’s immediately off their site:
One giant trouble of home flights is long gone now although: the wish to shuttle to another airport. The home terminal for Costa Rica is now subsequent to the global terminal, so that you don’t need to take a trip out of it after touchdown.
The San Jose World terminal, in the meantime, is a contemporary facility this is much-improved from once I first visited the rustic and it took an hour and a part simply to get via immigration, in a scorching hall and not using a amenities. I’ve had hit-and-miss enjoy with the WiFi, however there are a couple of puts to devour and drink and you’ve got 3 VIP living room choices by way of the departure gates. Not one of the 3 are affiliated with any explicit airline, however you’ll get into each VIP Living room Costa Rica and VIP Santamaria with a Precedence Go club.
Flying into Costa Rica: San Jose World Airport
In top instances there are 38 locations served by way of the biggest of the Costa Rica airports, now not counting the entire many others you’ll get to with a prevent or two.
The legitimate airport site lists 23 global and 3 home airways flying into Juan Santamaría World Airport (SJO). The global ones come with primary carriers from america and Canada plus Spirit, JetBlue, Alaska, and Frontier. Aeromexico and Volaris fly from Mexico, then there are a couple of huge and small from South The usa. Eu carriers flying to Costa Rica come with Air France, Arajet, British Airlines, Condor, Edelweiss, and Iberia, and Lufthansa.
As with Liberia, many of those flights are direct from the provider’s hub town or towns, however keep in mind that they don’t all run all 12 months. Those that do stay flying throughout the low season will incessantly cut back the collection of days every week (or month) that they fly the path with a view to modify to decrease call for. So it may possibly infrequently be inexpensive to fly to Costa Rica within the top season of December via April than it is going to be when it’s pouring rain on a daily basis in some places.
Seek flights right here to peer costs out of your airport to both of the Costa Rica airports:
