TRAVEL

TRAVEL - INTERNATIONAL: AIR: The Costa Rican national airline is Lineas Aéras Costarricenses LACSA (LR). LACSA flies direct to Costa Rica from Miami, New Orleans, Los Angeles, New York, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela and Panama. For routes via the USA a change of plane is necessary. Flights with one or two stops which do not go via the USA are available from Iberia in Madrid and KLM in Amsterdam. They take longer but the need to change planes is eliminated. The Visit Central America Pass is available from LACSA and is an economical way to travel to Costa Rica from the USA and from Costa Rica to other Central American countries.  Approximate flight times: From San José to London is 12 hours (including stopover time),  to Los Angeles is 11 hours and to New York is 7 hours.  International airport: Juan Santamaría (SJO) 17km (11 miles) northwest of the city. Coaches depart every 20 minutes 0500-2400; return pickups stop at various hotels. Buses depart to the city every 15 minutes 0600-2200; return is from Alajuela Station 14th Street, 1/3 Avenue, every 20 minutes (travel time – 35 minutes). Taxis are also available to the city.  Departure tax: US$35 (or equivalent in colóns) payable if staying more than 48 hours by all passengers leaving Costa Rica.  SEA: Lauro Lines run regular services to Puerto Limón from the Mediterranean (Genoa, Barcelona). Costa Lines run cruises which call at Puntarenas.  ROAD: The Inter-American Highway runs through Costa Rica from La Cruz on the Nicaraguan border through San José to Progreso on the Panamanian border.

TRAVEL - INTERNAL: AIR: SANSA, a national airline, operates services between San José and provincial towns and villages. A bus is provided from the airline offices in San José to the airport. A number of smaller airlines also provide internal flights. Reservations cannot be made outside Costa Rica.  ROAD: The standard of the roads are generally very good. There are 35,583km (22,110 miles) of all-weather highways including 663km (412 miles) of the Inter-American Highway and highways linking San José with the other principal towns. Traffic drives on the right.  Bus: Regular services to most towns, but buses are often crowded so pre-booking is advisable. Costa Rica offers a wide variety of sightseeing tours. Most tour companies feature bilingual guides and round-trip transportation from hotels. For full details, contact the Costa Rica National Tourist Institute. Taxi: Numerous and inexpensive in San José. The taxis are coloured red (except those serving the Juan Santamaría International Airport which are orange). Fares should be negotiated before starting the journey.  Car hire: Hertz, Budget and local firms have offices in San José. Distances are measured in kilometres. A speed limit of 88kmph (55mph) is enforced on most highways.  Documentation: Drivers must have a national licence or International Driving Permit.  URBAN: San José has privately-run bus services, charging fares on a 2-zone system.  JOURNEY TIMES: The following chart gives approximate journey times (in hours and minutes) from San José to other major cities/towns. Air Road Alajuela - 0.30  Cartago - 0.30  Heredia - 0.20  Puntarenas -  1.00  Liberia 0.25 3.00  Quepos 0.30 3.30  Limón 0.25 2.00

ACCOMMODATION

ACCOMMODATION: HOTELS: There is a good range of reasonably priced hotel accommodation. Most proprietors speak English. San José has many hotels, from the extravagant to the smaller, family-run hotels in the less fashionable districts. There are several good hotels out of town near the airport. Larger hotels have swimming pools and other sports facilities. The majority of the hotels have their own restaurants which are generally good and reasonably priced. Hotel tariffs are liable to alteration at any time. A 10% sales tax plus 3% tourism tax is added to hotel prices. Outside the capital, charges and the standard of comfort are lower.  Grading: These are graded from A to D according to price range. The A-grade category accounts for 20% of all hotels and costs from the equivalent of US$100. About 20% of hotels are in the B-range and cost US$50-70. C-grade hotels cost US$30-50 and D-range hotels, about 30%, cost US$10-30. For further information, contact Camara Costarricense de Hoteles (Costa Rican Chamber of Hotels), PO Box 8422, 1000 San José. Tel: 224 6572 or 253 3086. Fax: 224 6572.  CAMPING/CARAVANNING: Facilities exist at San Antonio de Belen, 8km (5 miles) from San José. There is also a camping and caravan site close to Alajuela. Most, but not all, national parks allow camping at designated sites.