Build your own route · Airport to airport
From airport to airport: rainforest lodges, volcano views, cloud forest, the Pacific coast and Corcovado, ending in the Turrialba highlands. Switch stops on or off and the route updates.
A classic circle of Costa Rica, built from modules. Tick the stops you want, choose the number of nights and the hotels, and the route and distances update at once. Swap Monteverde for Manuel Antonio, skip the last stops and drive straight back to San José, or do the whole circle the other way round: Irazu and Turrialba first, Sarapiquí last.
Switch stops on or off and choose the nights. The route and distances update at once.
Pick a hotel and the tours you like at each stop, or leave it to us.
We send the price and the full day-by-day plan as a PDF, within one day.
Tap a stop to add or remove it. The start and the end of the trip stay fixed. Grey places can be added.
Distances and times are estimates for the road, without stops. Open any leg in Google Maps for the exact route. Between stops you can drive yourself, hire a private driver or use shared shuttles where they exist.
Choose one hotel at each stop and add the tours you like. Leave it empty and we suggest the best option for you. “Details” opens in a new tab.
Land at San José airport (SJO) and rest after the flight. Alajuela is a short drive from the airport, so the first night is only about sleeping and getting ready for the road.
Hotel to be chosen with you; we can arrange the airport pickup.
The lowland rainforest east of the central volcanoes: a cacao and chocolate tour, the Tirimbina reserve with its hanging bridges and a night in the forest. The next morning you can go white-water rafting on the Sarapiquí River.
La Fortuna sits at the foot of Arenal Volcano. Stay two to four nights for the national park and volcanic trails, hanging bridges, hot springs, the La Fortuna waterfall and day trips such as Río Celeste.
Misty cloud forest high in the mountains. Walk through the Santa Elena reserve, cross the hanging bridges and ride the ziplines at Treetopia or Selvatura. Two nights is the minimum, three gives a quieter pace.
A national park where rainforest meets the beach, with sloths, monkeys and white-sand coves. Spend a day in the park, join a catamaran cruise or paddle the mangroves. A good alternative to Monteverde, or an extra Pacific stop.
Hotel to be chosen with you.
The first stop on the Pacific side and a good place to break the long drive south. Walk the Whale's Tail sandbar, swim at the beach or visit the Nauyaca waterfalls.
Reached by road to Sierpe and a one-hour boat ride. Drake Bay is the gateway to Corcovado National Park, with day tours to Sirena and San Pedrillo, snorkelling at Caño Island and whale and dolphin watching.
A quiet lodge on the slopes of Turrialba Volcano. Visit Irazu Volcano on the way, Guayabo National Monument, the largest pre-Columbian site in the country, and the Botón de Oro coffee, banana and vanilla farm. You can also go white-water rafting on the Pacuare River.
The last night near the capital. In the morning the gold and jade museums and the central market, then the transfer to the airport.
Hotel to be chosen with you (San José centre or Coronado / Cascajal).
There is no fixed price: we build it from the stops, hotels, nights and tours you choose, and from how you prefer to travel between stops (own car, private driver or shuttles). Send a request with your selection and we reply within one day with the price and the full day-by-day plan as a PDF.
Yes. Switch any optional stop off and the route is recalculated. The start and the end of the trip stay fixed, so you always arrive and leave from the same place.
Where it makes sense we offer an alternative, for example Manuel Antonio instead of Monteverde. We do not offer swaps that would create an unrealistic route.
Where the route allows it, yes: use the direction buttons above the stops. The map and the distances follow.
You can rent a car, hire a private driver or use shared shuttles and boats where they run. We arrange the transfers for you.
They are estimates for the road without stops, increased for mountain and coastal roads. A long day is flagged on the page; we plan with a safety margin.
We quote for your group size, from two travellers up to small groups. Children are welcome; tell us their ages.
