How hard is it to rent and drive a car from San Jose?

You can get a car right at the airport but you will be charged an airport tax.  There are four rental agencies 1 block from the Holiday Inn Express which is a two dollar cab ride from the airport.  The first time we rented a car we also rented a GPS which was a life saver.  We have been back four times and now own a Garmin Nuvi GPS with the Costa Rica software.  Some rental agencies include a GPS at no charge, others charge up to $10 per day.
Cheers .... Terry

Thank you so much! 

Your post led me to do a quick google search and came up with this:  http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g2919 … Rica.html.

It sounds like what you are quoted in the US on the website is not nearly what is charged once you get there. 

We are also gonna download the CR info onto our garmin GPS too!

I will post a good reply tomorrow, am in transit on the way home after a family visit.  Will send you a PM

San Ramon is not very far,maybe 45 minutes. Are you staying there the entire visit? We found a great driver in April. He lives around San Jose and took us all over. He is reasonably priced and saved us lots of time by showing us the highlights of the area. He speaks excellent English. His email is  [email protected] and his name is Daniel Campos.
Also it may be worth your while just to get to San Ramon and rent a car there for touring.Save the headache of the airport. They do charge extra to rent from the airport.

Thank you!  Yes we are staying in San Ramon the entire time, as a home base at least.

That tripadvisor link said that there are extra fees to renting a car that aren't mentioned by the major US companies when placing a reservation online.  (Mandatory insurance, etc.) 

Is that others' experience?  TIA

fgmom
I sent you a message, check your inbox

And tire insurance. Some roads can be wicked with rocks and bumps. Also check the rental car out very thoroughly for dents and cracks on the windshield. I used PayLess and Hertz. Hertz had nicer cars.

There are great little bakeries and restaurants in San Ramon.

Thank you!

shasta2001 wrote:

There are great little bakeries and restaurants in San Ramon.

That's great to know!

First of all I would never drive in San Jose unless absolutely necessary. I'm a pretty brave person and great driver and I find driving in San Jose' frightening - in part due to poor signage and in part due to poor / insane drivers.

If at all possible pick your car up at the airport. From there it is an easy drive to San Ramon. If you have to be in San Jose then take a taxi to and from the airport. If you really are tight on budget then okay drive from the car rental in San Jose' to San Ramon but personally I avoid it.

Take photos of the car showing every little dent and problem. I take 8-10 photos showing any problems at all and spend some time checking everything to make sure you note anything at all that does not work right or is damaged. I've never been charged for dings etc but they CAN and MAY do so.

Do some research on google as to what to do in case of an accident in Costa Rica and/or ask them at the rental agency. If you get in an accident you MUST NOT move your car even if you block traffic. You must call the police and have them arrive and see the cars before you move them. Again, your camera is your friend; take photos of what happened.

Traffic fines for things like u-turns and speeding, etc are SUPER HIGH in Costa Rica as of a couple years ago. They are equal or more than the highest fines in the U.S. in some cases. Crazy but true! Be SUPER CAREFUL not to get a ticket!

The insurance cost is what kills you. It's VERY high and so your car will run you a lot more than the quotes - but my advice is pay it because if not and you cause an accident or police SAY you caused the accident, you could be responsible for buying a car you will never get to use or pay thousands of dollars in repairs.

All this is not to scare you, just to warn you. Renting a car and driving in Costa Rica has become one of the main things I hate about it.

If you have any questions about San Ramon pm me if you wish, I have property there so am pretty knowledgeable.

That's some great advice.  Thanks.  I appreciate the honest input, and yes, of course it's a bit scary, but it's better than going into it blindly.

btw, slightly off-topic, how far is it to get to the beach from San Ramon? A nice family-friendly one?  Or different lengths for different recommended beaches along the coast?

TIA!

Hi, as to getting to the beach I can't answer that one, I usually go to the forests and to Arenal, not the beach. Maybe someone else can field that one.

Puntarenas would be the closest of course but if I'm not mistaken it would be very dirty due to it being a harbor. I know a Tico friend who has mentioned going to a beach that is up and around Puntarenas. The closest well known beach would be Jaco but I hate it - the water there is said to be very dirty (as in fecal matter) and it's very crowded.

I hope someone will answer this question that knows because I too would like to know what the nearest GOOD, CLEAN beach is to San Ramon.

One beach I am familiar with because I lived there for some months, is Montezuma but it's a long trek - albeit a fun one.

You go to Puntarenas, take the ferry across the Gulf, then grab a bus to Montezuma. Takes several hours but it's a very interesting trip and once there Montezuma has great restaurants and a nice beach, bars, etc. A great hotel there - if it's still there - is Sano Banano which has some great little cabins right on the beach, but you have to walk a half mile or so (that makes it nicer imho!) - the hotel in town brings your suitcases out and back for you but otherwise you walk back and forth along the beach to town. My wife and I loved it there! They also have a small pool. We had white faced monkeys right outside our cabin sometimes and a hammock, and just steps to the ocean - although the ocean right there isn't great for swimming as it's rocky. You can trek about half a mile or so away from town from the cabin to get to a great empty beach for swimming.

Also there is Cabo Blanco forest a taxi ride away which is pretty nice for a day hike if you want to see jungle/rainforest. What we really enjoy in Montezuma are the restaurants and scenery. There's a beautiful waterfall a mile or two up the shore as well though it can be a long HOT hike!

The only one I have been to is Manuel Antonio which is nice but may be too far away.

There is a ferry that leaves from Puntarenas that might be fun.
nicoyapeninsula.com/general/boat.php

Manuel Antonio, if I'm not mistaken, is Costa Rica's #1 tourist attraction so it does get somewhat crowded at times. But it's worth seeing if you have time. Not sure if there is a bus to get there from San Ramon though. Driving is do-able for sure.

You will definitely see wildlife there in the forest but a lot of the animals are very tame, as people feed them. The hikes through the forest there are nice, with beautiful overlook sites, and some very nice beaches - which may be a bit crowded depending on the day. Some very nice restaurants around there, one is called el Plinio if it's still there, at least that's what it was if my memory serves. Nice hotel there called Hotel California. Quepos is the nearby town which is - how do I say this? - not my favorite town by any means. But Manuel Antonio is worth a look for sure.