How to Get to Santa Teresa, Costa Rica

When you book your flight to Santa Teresa you will first land at Tambor Airport (TMU) and then take a shuttle to Santa Teresa (the shuttle takes about 45 minutes). The land transportation fee is included in the airfare, given that you choose Santa Teresa/Mal País as your final destination. Sansa  Airlines operates flights from San José to Tambor/Santa Teresa. To book your flight, simply go to their website and choose San José in the "from"-dropdown list, and Santa Teresa/Mal País in the "to"-dropdown list.

If you fly in on Green Airways then you will have to secure transportation from Tambor to Santa Teresa via one of the private local taxi or shuttle services. 

Bus departure time from San Jose Airport is at 6 a.m., 8 a.m., and 2:30 p.m. from Juan Santa Maria International Airport Terminal arriving at Santa Teresa at 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., and 8:30 p.m. There is a daily shuttle service. Normally, this service is provided on a 10 to 15 passenger minibus. The price per person is 50 USD, including ferry fees.

This service is sometimes operated by third party companies. (Normally our vehicles are branded with the Tropical Tours Shuttles logo). Bus stops are provided along the way on specific locations.

Our door to door minibus shuttle service will take you safe and directly from San Jose International Airport Airport SJO Terminal to Santa Teresa beach, Costa Rica.

The departuretime from Santa Teresa is at 6:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. arriving at SJO Terminal area at 12:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. There is a daily shuttle service. Normally, this service is provided on a 10 to 15 passenger minibus. The price per person is 50 USD, including ferry fees.

Remember that surfboards are allowed at no extra charge in our minibuses. We set a departing time for each destination, however, the minibus has to go through the town picking everyone up and that takes a few extra minutes.

The direct bus from San José leaves from the terminal in Santa Teresa from 7 - 10. This bus takes about 6 hours and leaves San José at 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. As of July 2017, the cost is 7545 CRC, which includes the cost of your ferry ticket of about 800 CRC. If you are a senior, ask for the seniors price. Surfers will pay an extra 2000 CRC for your surfboard.

If you are near the airport you don’t have to head all the way to the 7-10 terminal. Instead, have a taxi take you to the Villa Bonita Bridge in Alajuela. The bus to Santa Teresa, Mal Pais, and Montezuma passes this spot at about 6:20 a.m. and 2:20 p.m. after leaving downtown. This time could be a bit longer. 

If you do choose this route please be confident and comfortable driving in Costa Rica and know your routes well. Costa Rica is a beautiful country, but the infrastructure is uncertain and our geography doesn’t help either, that’s why in some sections of the route you will have to go through bumpy and dusty roads on your way to or from San Jose city or anywhere else in the country you may be traveling. The longer driving route takes you all the way around the Nicoya Pennisula and depending on weather, road conditions and traffic can easily take a whole day or more. If you choose to take the ferry route then your drive will be shorter but you can still expect about 8 hours or so of travel time.