• Blog
  • Destinations
    • Caribbean
      • Aruba
    • Central America
      • Belize
      • Costa Rica
    • Europe
      • England
      • France
    • South America
      • Ecuador
    • USA
      • Florida
      • Louisiana
      • New York
      • Tennessee
      • Texas
  • Resources
    • How to Get a Passport
    • How to Get the Cheapest Flights on Southwest Airlines
  • About Me
  • Work With Me

Renting a Car in Costa Rica: Everything You Need to Know

December 8, 2019 by alongforadventure 4 Comments

  • Share
  • Tweet
Renting a car in costa rica

This page may contain affiliate links, meaning that I receive a small percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting Along for Adventure!

Renting a car in Costa Rica is the easiest way to get around the country. However, there are a few things you should know before you go! All the pictures I’ve inserted throughout this post are photos I snapped while driving along the road in Costa Rica — things I would have never been able to stop and look at if I was stuffed in a shuttle bus 😉

Costa Rica countryside
Is Renting a Car in Costa Rica Safe?

The number one thing I’ve been asked about renting a car in Costa Rica is safety, especially for solo female travelers. This is a very understandable concern and I’m happy to report that nothing about driving around Costa Rica felt dangerous to me. Disclaimer: I was with my husband the entire time, but would have felt 100% confident driving without him.

Renting a car in costa rica

All the main roads are paved and marked in the same ways as American roads. The majority of Costa Rica is rural and the roads are lined with farmland (including cute cows!) with towering mountains and volcanoes in the distance. You will occasionally come across unpaved roads that are usually filled with pot holes. For this reason, some people may prefer to rent an SUV vs. a sedan, but it’s really not a big deal. The last 15 minutes or so leading to the resort we stayed at was unpaved and we just took it slowly, navigating around the potholes without a problem.  

Is it Expensive to Rent a Car in Costa Rica?

If you only take away one thing from this post, let it be this section! When you start browsing car rental listings online, the prices might seem so low that they’re too good to be true. I hate to break it to you, but they are. It’s common to see car prices for just $1 per day! What these listings don’t tell you, though, is that there are mandatory insurance fees and deposits that make renting a car in Costa Rica more expensive than you might anticipate.

Renting a car in costa rica

The country of Costa Rica has a rental car insurance requirement that can add a lot of money to your car rental fees. It’s common for these insurance costs to range from $250-750. In addition, you will be required to put down a deposit of $1,000 for the car. You will get the deposit back when you return the car, but it’s important to keep in mind that you will need a credit card with enough available credit for the deposit.

The Best Car Rental Company in Costa Rica

I recommend renting your car through Adobe, one of Costa Rica’s most highly-rated rental car companies. This is the company I used and we had a great experience all around. What makes Adobe stand out is their upfront pricing policies. When you reserve your car online, the complete costs including insurance options are quoted so you know exactly what you will be paying for. I found their prices to be very reasonable — we paid $400 for 8 days and received a four-door sedan with full coverage insurance.

97C60FD4 4C3E 466B 9B5D C76C83E9930D

When we exited the Liberia Airport, a representative from Adobe was clearly visible and drove us via shuttle to their off-site rental car office (about 10 minutes from the airport). When we arrived at the location, we were on our way with the car within about 20 minutes. It could not have been easier! The Adobe representatives spoke English and made everything very easy and understandable. 

Benefits of Renting a Car

Renting a car is great because it allows you complete freedom within your trip. Because I had a car, I was able to leave the resort for the day and go swim in a waterfall, hike through a national park, and see a volcano. It was also really nice to be able to drive directly to our resort once we landed and head back to the airport at the end of the trip on our own time — we didn’t have to leave when the shuttle bus was leaving. It’s also so much more comfortable to have your own car to relax in vs. being crammed into a shuttle or van for a few hours at a time. Renting a car in Costa Rica is the way to go!

oropendola waterfall costa rica

Dreams las mareas

Start Planning Your Trip
Book Your Flight: Kayak will save you an average of 20% on every flight! They have tons of data to show you where to find the best deal.

Reserve Your Car Rental: Use Adobe for the best and most upfront rates. By clicking through this link, you will save 20% off regular prices. 

Find Costa Rica Hotels: Use Booking.com as they consistently offer the lowest prices. Many of their listings also allow you to book now and pay when you stay, making it easy to plan ahead for travel.

Don’t Forget Travel Insurance: Travel insurance will protect you in case of injury, illness, theft, missed flights, and more. I have been using World Nomads for years and have had nothing but great experiences.

Get the Guide Book: I read the Lonely Planet guide book for my destination before every trip! Their guide books are full of great information.

Check out my Resource Page for the travel gear I use and recommend. I think you’ll love these things too!

 

pin for later

Renting a car in costa rica

Read This Next:  Costa Rica Waterfalls: Hiking to the Oropendola
  • Share
  • Tweet

  • Costa Rica

Comments

  1. Niharika Verma says

    December 12, 2019 at 8:23 am

    The view and the clicks ♥️😍 Thank you for sharing about renting cars there 🙂

    Reply
  2. prakash says

    January 14, 2020 at 6:57 am

    Hi, Lovely post I would like to share this beacause its very helpful for me keep it up please don’t stop posting, Thanks for share nice information with us.

    Reply
  3. Anna says

    October 26, 2020 at 5:02 am

    Hi Danielle, you can definitely visit the city by taxi or Uber. It’s actually better than driving because driving and parking in San Jose is a pretty big headache, so I recommend Uber!

    Reply
    • alongforadventure says

      November 5, 2020 at 4:47 pm

      That’s definitely true in San Jose! Thanks for reading, Anna!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.


I’m Danielle, a girl from Texas who wants nothing more than to explore every corner of the world. Follow along as I document my journey to travel as much as possible and help you do the same.

You’ll find destination guides and itineraries, my recommendations for the best places to eat and stay, and tips on how to make your next trip the best ever.

As Seen In

along for adventure

Book Now, Pay Later

Booking.com

search

Along for Adventure. Copyright © 2023

Designed by Cello Designs. Built on The Genesis Framework