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San José

Costa Rica

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✈️ Getting there

SJOAeropuerto Internacional Juan Santamaría
📍 18 km⏱ 25 min🚌 Bus🚕 Taxi🚌 Uber

Uber is by far the best option — cheaper than official taxis, widely available at arrivals, and the app shows the fare upfront. Expect to pay around $10–15 USD for the 20–30 minute ride to Barrio Escalante or Los Yoses. Official taxis (orange Marías) are metered and legitimate but cost roughly double.

Juan Santamaría is a modern, busy international hub handling significant European traffic via Madrid and Amsterdam — KLM, Iberia, and Air Europa fly direct, and the airport is efficient and well-signed, though the taxi-to-rideshare transition area can be chaotic on arrival.

Don't Miss

Hidden gems and local experiences in San José — beyond the tourist trail.

☕Go to Café Britt's original farm in Barva de Heredia (40 min from SJO) for a morning tour — they grow, roast, and brew on-site, and the highland coffee garden walk puts the flavour of what you're drinking into immediate physical context.
🎭Get a ticket to a performance at the Teatro Nacional on Plaza de la Cultura — built in 1897 with gold-leaf interiors that outshine most European opera houses, it costs almost nothing to attend a weeknight recital.
🌋Leave San José by 6 am for Poás Volcano (90 min drive) — the crater viewing area opens at dawn and the clouds that usually obscure the view roll in by 10 am. You want to be at the rim before 9 am to see the turquoise acid lake.
🛒Visit the Mercado Central in downtown San José on a Saturday morning — a covered market labyrinth of spice stalls, juice bars, and cheap casado lunch counters where working-class San José eats. The fresh heart-of-palm salads are unmissable.
🦥Book a half-day tour to La Paz Waterfall Gardens (90 min north) rather than a zoo — five waterfalls, a cloud forest walk, and a wildlife sanctuary housing sloths, toucans, and poison dart frogs, with most animals recovering from injury rather than bred in captivity.

Travel Plans

Suggested itineraries for San José — tap a plan to see day-by-day details.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a visa to visit San José?▾

Visa requirements depend on your passport — check your government's travel advice for the latest entry requirements before booking.

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