[Sean]

I used Budget Car Rental.

You definitely need an SUV if anywhere off the highway.

[Leonard]

We used Adobe Car Rentals.

There were no suprise charges and they accepted our Chase Sapphire Preferred for CDW without any issues.

[Keagan]

I’ve rented from Alamo and Avis with no issues from SJO.

You need to have the letter from the credit card that is in the drivers name and has the card number and states that they cover CDW.

You will still need to pay the other insurance that is required.

Plan on $15 per day added on top of whatever your quoted rate is.

[Beatrice]

We were so glad that we rented a car, we loved exploring.

We stayed in Airbnb’s in Cahuita, La Fortuna and Rio Celeste area.

Such an awesome trip.

There were a few times that driving was challenging, so it was great to have an extra set of eyes in the front seat watching out.

We did pay for full coverage, gulp, it was a lot but we decided it was worth the peace of mind.

We always video at pickup and drop off too.

Hope you have the best time!

[Lorena]

Obviously it’s going to depend on your dates, but I have a rental from Liberia airport starting tomorrow for $9/day for 5 days for an economy car.

Booked it on Priceline.

It’s with Nu.

I printed out the proof of insurance letter from Chase in English and Spanish so hopefully it won’t be a huge hassle like it was in Ireland.

[Lee]

Vamos car rental was great in Liberia.

Purchase their insurance.

I can’t remember the cost, but I do remember pricing it out against all other options, including the insurance. 

[Armando]

It’s typically cheaper and easier to just hire taxis and shuttles depending on your needs.

They kill you on mandatory insurance for rentals so if you find any kind of what looks to be a good deal, make sure to read all the fine print very carefully.

You (can) avoid some of the gouging by having your credit card write a letter that states you’re covered and for what specific amounts.

That’s what I did.

But it’s still a lot to deal with and you’ll still get taken to the cleaners on the mandatory insurances that you can’t avoid.

I went with Thrifty in Liberia if I remember correctly.

If you do rent, take a video of EVERY SQUARE INCH of the outside and inside.

I’ve heard of people even getting gouged on the back end for tire wear.

And once you drive off, you have to pay whatever they come up with or you can’t get out of the country.

The scam artists will call customs at the airport and they won’t let you leave

[Leanna]

Definitely book through “My Tan Feet”.

They also included a cooler, SIM card & trunk cover.

On the Costa Rica FB page, EVERYONE recommends them.

[Helena]

Honestly, if you’re staying in the general area around LIR it’s probably cheaper to just use airport shuttle to the hotel and taxis around town.

Shuttle is usually about $25 US per person one way and taxis are cheap (5-10 US).

I can’t speak for SJO but I imagine it’s just as cheap or cheaper.

[Lelia]

Adobe rental car was fantastic a couple months ago.

Straightforward pricing.

And they accepted my Chase car insurance no issue.

There is the ridiculous mandatory insurance you will have to get no matter who you rent thru.

[Elvie]

We booked with Alamo and we had an eight day rental of the large SUV with a $50 extra charge included for returning to a different location.

If we used our credit card coverage to decline the CDW our total was $510 or full coverage was $781.

We rented the week before Thanksgiving and returned it Thanksgiving afternoon, so not quite peak season.

[Monty]

It’s only expensive when you rent an SUV, cuz only tourists want those.

If it were needed, every local would be driving those.

A normal car can get u to 90% of the places unless you plan to really go offroad.

We drove A LOT all over the place and there was always a route that didn’t require 4wd.

[Becky]

We decided to pre-book our long airport transfer through Viator then just use UBER. It was definitely worth it.

Highway closures, limited cell service in the mountains, and roads that were in pretty poor condition.

Definitely not a situation I want to drive in.

[Gregoria]

They ARE all expensive.

We were there last month.

I filled out the quote form on MyTanFeet website and they returned with a quote from Adobe, the agency that they primarily work with.

We needed a full size SUV and the price they came back with was high.

I messaged them that was more than we were willing to do and they then quoted a lower price with Alamo.

We actually had an excellent experience with Alamo, we picked up in SJO and returned to Liberia.

Happy to answer any other questions.

The price does vary a lot depending on when you are going.

[Selena]

In November 2022 I had a 10 day rental of a midsize SUV with Avis for $280.

Booked through AutoSlash.com

I think paid $320 for the mandatory insurance.

Used my Chase Sapphire Preferred for CDW coverage.