Costa Rica car rentals - San Jose airport

[Maple Leaf]

Hi all - I'm hoping I can get some thoughts on car rentals at the San Jose airport in Costa Rica. Does anyone have any car rentals recommendations for there? Any insights into your experiences and any watch outs including driving in Costa Rica. I read that you need to be mindful of the insurance costs. I still need to do more research about this topic and any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[curitiba_tapley]

Our family rented a vehicle from Dollar when we visited Costa Rica back in 2021. The vehicle was exactly what you might expect in Central America - but good enough. The rental location was a few miles off-airport and the shuttle drivers were courteous.

The costs were double due to the lost damage waiver and other coverages that I purchased. Not knowing the terrain and roads very well I opted to pay rather than risk an accident. We went to some crazy places and road conditions were rough in a number of places. The highway down to the resort - near Jaco - was pretty good , but some twisty two lane roads made it interesting. A few places - a bit off the beaten path - had one lanes, pot holed gravel roads, and poorly marked roads. GPS is so helpful.

I can’t recall all of the rules, but the list of things I could be charged for due to damage caused me to buy all the extras. The rental office lays it on thick - enough to make me purchase (and I never purchase when I’m renting in the states). Thankfully, for my families safety nothing happened while driving.

 

[Maple Leaf]

Thanks Curitiba. I hear you need to get a vehicle with good ground clearance due to the bumps, potholes etc. I'm like you and may get all the additional insurance to avoid any charges at the end. Did you stay at MVC Los Suenos, near Jaco? If so, how long was that drive. I'm planning to get there during daylight hours for that drive. Thanks again.

 

[curitiba_tapley]

Thanks Curitiba. I hear you need to get a vehicle with good ground clearance due to the bumps, potholes etc. I'm like you and may get all the additional insurance to avoid any charges at the end. Did you stay at MVC Los Suenos, near Jaco? If so, how long was that drive. I'm planning to get there during daylight hours for that drive. Thanks again.

Yes. We stayed at MVC Los Suenos. I think the drive down was about 1.5 hours. There were some cool roadside markets to stop on the way down - I love that about Latin America. We also took some day trips - but I don’t recall the name of the city. Having a car to get around was totally worth it. Parking at Los suemos was great and the full service Marriott next door was tremendous Beaches near Los Suenos and Jaco were not impressive. We did a day trip to Isla Tortuga - via the tour group at the hotel - and that was a great day - lots of fun. Good luck - it’s a beautiful country.

 

[Maple Leaf]

Thanks Curitiba!!!