Yes, for Central America, Costa Rica is expensive. By the World Bank's measure of price levels it is the priciest country in the region, a hair ahead of Belize, though still well below the United States. The good news is that the biggest number on your trip, where you sleep, is also the one you control most. Here is what things actually cost, with real prices, and where a group can save serious money.
What visitors actually spend
Costa Rica's tourism board surveys travelers at the airports as they leave. Visitors from the United States who flew out of San José spent about $1,543 per person over nine nights, roughly $171 a day. Those who flew out of Liberia, the airport for Guanacaste's beaches, spent about $2,041 over seven nights, closer to $287 a day.
Those are averages across everyone, from backpackers to honeymooners at the fanciest resorts. The rest of this guide breaks the spending into pieces so you can see where your own trip will land.
Where you sleep is the whole game
Accommodation is the largest line on almost every Costa Rica budget, and it swings more than anything else, by area, by season, and by how many people share the bill. Here is what we found, per person per night, for two people sharing a room:
| Where | Green season | High season |
|---|---|---|
| Simple hotel, Manuel Antonio | About $43 | About $94 |
| Upscale hotel studio, Manuel Antonio | About $102 | About $127 |
| Luxury beachfront hotel, Manuel Antonio | About $274 | About $769 |
| Simple hotel with breakfast, Tamarindo | About $45 | About $121 |
| Luxury resort, Hacienda Pinilla | About $105 | About $617 |
| All-inclusive resort, Guanacaste (food and drinks included) | About $98 | About $249 |
The green-season prices are what booking sites listed for a night in mid-October, taxes and fees included. The high-season prices are the same sites' averages for the most expensive month, or the hotel's own published high-season rate plus tax. The same luxury room can cost six times as much over Christmas as it does in October.
Why a full villa can beat a hotel
A villa is priced for the whole house, not per room, so the cost per person falls as more people share it. These are real totals the owners quoted us for real dates, with every fee and Costa Rica's 13 percent tax included:
| Group and dates | House | Per person per night |
|---|---|---|
| 32 people, a week in June | Three-villa estate with 17 suites, Hacienda Pinilla | About $87 |
| 30 people, Fourth of July week | The same estate | About $125 |
| 10 adults, a week in June | Five-bedroom right on Playa Flamingo | About $175 |
| Three people, Thanksgiving weekend | Two-bedroom with an infinity pool, Manuel Antonio | About $226 |
| 14 people, three nights in January | Seven-bedroom beachfront home, Hacienda Pinilla | About $242 |
Look at the top row. Thirty-two people sharing a 17-bedroom estate with three pools and a rancho paid less per night than two people in a mid-range hotel room in high season. Now look at the three people over Thanksgiving: a small group in a whole house pays luxury-hotel prices. The rule is simple. Fill the house and a villa is the best value in the country. Rattle around in it and you are paying for empty bedrooms.
One honest caveat: a villa price is for the house. Food, transfers, and extras are on top, where an all-inclusive bundles them in. Our guide to all-inclusive resorts versus a villa with a chef runs that comparison in full.
Eating and drinking
Food is where Costa Rica can be cheap or expensive depending on where you sit down.
- Sodas, the small family-run restaurants, serve a casado, the classic plate of rice, beans, salad, plantain, and a meat or fish, for about $6 to $10 in Manuel Antonio.
- Tourist restaurants in Manuel Antonio charge around $10 for a burger and $18 for a seafood main.
- Beer costs about $1.75 at the supermarket and $2.75 to $4 at a restaurant.
- A nice dinner at Tamarindo's better restaurants is listed at $50 and up on reservation sites.
Know the 13 plus 10 rule. Restaurant bills carry 13 percent sales tax and, for table service, a 10 percent service charge. The law says menus must show the final price with both included, but inspectors keep finding restaurants that leave them off, so ask or read the small print before you order.
Cooking at a villa saves real money. Groceries in Costa Rica run cheaper than in the US overall, though imported brands, dairy, and especially sunscreen cost more: a bottle that is about $16 online at home can be close to $30 here, so pack your own. A private chef costs less than most people expect when the group is big. One Guanacaste villa manager prices dinner for ten at about $500, roughly $50 a head; ask whether groceries are included, and plan on a tip.
Getting there and around
- Airport transfers: a private shuttle from San José airport to Manuel Antonio runs about $207 for up to five people, or $450 for a group of 11 to 22, plus tax. From Liberia airport to Tamarindo it is about $135 for up to eight people. For a full van, that is $20 to $40 a head.
- Short flights: the short hop from San José to Quepos costs roughly $70 to $180 each way depending on the airline and fare.
- Rental cars: a sedan runs about $200 to $650 a week depending on season, plus mandatory liability insurance of $13 to $25 a day and a deposit hold of $1,000 to $2,500. For groups, a private shuttle is often cheaper than two rental cars.
Our guide to getting from San José airport to Manuel Antonio compares the options in detail.
Things to do
- Manuel Antonio National Park: $18.08 per adult and $5.65 per child, tax included, bought online in advance. A guided tour with entry runs about $53 per adult plus tax, and is worth it for spotting sloths.
- Ziplining: about $85 to $90 per person.
- Catamaran and snorkel sail: about $86 to $98 per adult.
- Whitewater rafting: about $120 to $130 per adult for a full or half day.
- Half-day sportfishing: about $850 to $1,200 for the boat, so it gets reasonable when you split it four or six ways.
Costs people forget
- The exit tax is $29 per person. Most airlines include it in your ticket; if yours does not, you pay it at the airport.
- Resort fees can stack on top of the 13 percent tax at some resorts and gated communities.
- Holiday weeks carry their own prices. Christmas, New Year, Easter, and the Fourth of July can double a normal rate or more.
How to make Costa Rica cheaper
- Travel in the green season, May to November. The same rooms cost a half to a sixth of their high-season price.
- Fill the house. If you are traveling with family or friends, a villa that sleeps your whole group is the best value in the country.
- Eat at sodas for lunch and save the nice restaurants for one or two special dinners.
- Cook some meals, or split a private chef across the group.
- Share transport. One van for the whole group beats a car per family.
When a hotel or all-inclusive is the cheaper choice
We book villas for a living, so weigh this part accordingly. For two people, a hotel is almost always cheaper than a house, and a green-season all-inclusive in Guanacaste can come in under $100 per person per night with food and drinks included, which is hard to beat if you plan to stay on the property. The villa math wins when the group is big enough to fill the bedrooms. Send us your dates and group size and we will tell you straight which way your numbers fall.
