Costa Rica

Transportation – How to get around Costa Rica

Transportation
the best ways to get around Costa Rica

If you’re wanting to travel around Costa Rica, I recommend pre-booking a shuttle or private driver. Renting a car is possible but depending on what part of the country you’re visiting, roads can be difficult to maneuver with faded or non-existent traffic signs and poorly paved roads.

When planning my trip, I knew I would be landing in San Jose at Juan Santamaría International Airport, which was roughly 2 hours from my treehouse hotel so I looked into booking a shuttle which was the cheapest option.

Unfortunately, the shuttle only departed from the airport once in the morning and I wouldn’t be able to make it to the meeting point (a hotel a mile down the road from the airport) in time to catch it. Since I didn’t want to wander around San Jose for 5 hours until the next shuttle arrived, my next option was a private driver.

private driver

Hiring a private driver isn’t the most affordable option if you’re traveling solo (as I was) but if you’re splitting the cost with a group of friends, it ends up being similarly priced to a shared shuttle.

I booked with Costa Rica Driver based on their Trip Advisor reviews that raved about the owner Danny.

At $150 I splurged, however, Danny was incredible! He responded to all of my inquiries promptly which was important as a solo traveler visiting a country (with limited transportation) for the first time.

In his e-mail, he wrote “We will be stopping along the way for you to take the best pictures and to have the best Costa Rican meals, besides all the information that we will tell you about us and our culture”

Private driver AND personal guide? I was sold on the idea and booked immediately! 

Personal Driver

Danny was on time and waiting for me when I landed at the airport. He helped with my suitcase to his van which was clean and well air-conditioned. I sat upfront as we discussed his family, being a business owner, the history of the country, and life in Costa Rica. 

We stopped for lunch at one of his favorite restaurants that serves deliciously authentic food. There was no industrial kitchen, but instead, a lovely woman cooking off a single four-burner stove that you would find in your own home. 

Before parting ways, Danny, knowing that I would be staying alone in a treehouse in the middle of the rainforest without a car, offered to drive me to a grocery store. It was helpful to have him there to shop with and to speak with the clerks who only spoke Spanish.

Danny felt less like a hired driver and more like a friend who had picked me up from the airport. If you’re looking for a private driver, I highly recommend booking with him.

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Shared shuttle
the most affordable option

If you’re traveling a longer distance, hiring a shared shuttle is more affordable than a private driver. 

When leaving my treehouse hotel in Northern Costa Rica, I used Interbus to travel from La Fortuna to my beach bungalow in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, a beach town in southeast Costa Rica, on the Caribbean coast.

For $62 I took a comfortable air-conditioned shuttle that departed La Fortuna at 6:15am and arrived at my beach bungalow accommodations six hours later. The shuttle was comfortable and well air-conditioned, and the diver stopped for a bathroom and snack break.

book here

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