How to Travel to Costa Rica on a Small Budget

Costa Rica is well known as an expensive country compared with others in Central America and even with the United States and Europe. However, traveling to Costa Rica can be 100% worth it if you are able to manage your expenses. This is made possible by keeping yourself organized in terms of lodging, transportation, dining, and avoiding guided tours by visiting places and attractions by yourself.

At the moment of looking for a place to stay, the best option for you is to rent a room for a short-term if you are coming by yourself, on the other hand, if you are coming in a big group the best option is to search for a multi room property for short-term. There are many options to choose from.

Travel method inside San Jose and its surroundings

You can reach Costa Rica by airplane, by car/bus or even by ferry. The main airport in Costa Rica is the Juan Santamaría International airport located in the city of Alajuela about 10-15 min from San Jose. The cheapest option for you to go to San Jose, Heredia, Alajuela or any other places from the airport is by bus. Prices normally start around $1, the bus stop is just in front of the airport and it is convenient as well as comfortable. Once in San Jose transferring to other buses is really easy. You won’t get lost but if you do you only need to get off the bus and cross the street and take another bus to your destination. If you don’t like buses the other economic way to travel is by taking UBER, and drivers are friendly and usually take no more than 5 minutes to reach your location.

If you are planning to go to other cities in Costa Rica you can go to the bus terminal and you will find several buses that will go to every destination in Costa Rica. Being a small country, the bus takes you from San Jose to the border of Nicaragua in only 2-3 hours, from San Jose to Jaco (on the pacific ocean) only 2 hours, and prices are cheap. It can cost you around $30 to the border and $5 to Jaco.

Sightseeing and the weather in Costa Rica

There are many gorgeous things to see in Costa Rica that you will enjoy. Costa Rica is well known as a natural place to visit. My favorites are National Parks. The government of Costa Rica protects a lot the nature.

The weather in San Jose is awesome, it is fresh, you can wear a simple t-shirt and you won’t feel warm or cold, you just will feel fresh. You can visit museum, volcanos, beaches (you can choose between going to the Pacific side or the Caribbean side). The cheapest way to get to these places is by bus, where prices start from $4 return. Prices for entrance to the places start from $7 to the volcanos, with some museum being free of charge.

People in Costa Rica and its Typical Food

People in Costa Rica are friendly, they will help you at every time when you need something. Most of the people here speak English, so if you don’t speak Spanish don’t worry, most of them will understand you at the time when you ask them for direction.

The typical food in Costa Rica it is called Casado, which contains rice, black beans, eggs, salad, and any meat of your preference such as chicken, beef and pork. It is delicious, and you can buy it for as low as $7. Costa Rica is famous for its delicious coffee. Eating in Costa Rica is not as expensive as in other countries, and the best thing here is that everything is fresh, sometimes completely organic, and delicious to eat. And it goes without saying that it is always hand crafted, so you actually will end up paying a good price.