What Nobody Told Me About Traveling Around Costa Rica Without a Car

This post is part of my Central America series, following a three-week trip through Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and El Salvador. I share what we did, how I handled transportation and planning, and what I’d do differently next time. You’ll find related guides in the Explore Central America section at the end.

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By the time I got around to transportation, I thought most of our Costa Rica trip was planned. I’d booked flights and hotels, researched activities and restaurants, and worked out where we wanted to spend our week. What I hadn’t figured out was how we’d actually get between those places.

I’d also run out of planning energy. Comparing shuttle schedules and transfers felt like one task too many, so when my friend offered to handle that part, I happily handed it over. I was grateful to share the work, but it also revealed a weakness in how I’d approached the itinerary: I’d chosen our stops before understanding the journeys connecting them.

Traveling around Costa Rica without a car was absolutely doable, but transportation needed to shape the plan from the beginning. Shuttle departures affected what worked after our arrival flight, hotel locations determined whether we could walk to dinner, and activity bookings sometimes required separate arrangements to get there.

We had a fantastic trip using shared shuttles, a private transfer, taxis and Uber. I’d happily travel this way again, with one change: I’d research transportation alongside destinations, before committing to hotels and activities. Here’s what our experience taught me about putting those pieces together.

Crossing Lake Arenal was part of our transfer from La Fortuna to Monteverde, and the views made it one of my favorite journeys of the trip.

Check Transportation Before Choosing Your Costa Rica Stops

Before getting too attached to a destination, I’d spend a few minutes checking how it connects to the rest of the trip. Photos can tell you why you want to visit a beach or mountain town, but they won’t tell you whether reaching it comfortably fits the time and budget you have.

Start with the journey you’d actually need to make. If you’re arriving at an airport, check whether shuttle departures work with your flight time. If you’re moving between towns, look for a direct transfer and confirm whether pickup and drop-off cover the accommodation you’re considering. A service connecting two destinations is only useful if you can make its schedule work.

At this stage, I’d want a rough answer to four questions:

• How will I get there? A shared shuttle, private transfer, public bus or a combination?
• When can I travel? Does the departure time fit my arrival or onward plans?
• What is the full cost? Include any transportation needed to reach the pickup point or your hotel afterward.
• How much of the day should I reserve? Consider waiting and connections alongside the journey itself.

You don’t need every transfer booked before choosing your route. I’d simply want enough information to distinguish an easy addition from a stop that needs more time or money than I’m willing to give it.

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Allow Realistic Travel Time Between Destinations

Once you know how you’ll connect your stops, look at what those journeys leave you time to enjoy. A transfer might fit neatly into a morning on paper, but you still have to pack, check out, be ready for pickup and settle into your next accommodation. I’d account for that whole process before deciding how much sightseeing belongs on the same day.

The distinction I’d pay more attention to is nights versus full days. Two nights somewhere may give you only one full day to explore. If you arrive in the afternoon and leave the following morning after your second night, those arrival and departure days offer much less flexibility than the itinerary might initially suggest.

That doesn’t mean a travel day is wasted. Our transfer from La Fortuna to Monteverde included a boat crossing of Lake Arenal, and I genuinely enjoyed the journey. But I’d still leave room around it rather than assume we’d arrive ready for a packed afternoon.

For transfer days, I’d plan something flexible: lunch, a walk around town or time at the hotel. If there’s an activity I’m particularly excited about, I’d give it a full day or a generous buffer rather than book it close to our expected arrival.

Before adding another destination, I’d ask how many usable days it leaves in each place. An extra night at an existing stop can give you more time to enjoy Costa Rica than another hotel change, especially on a trip of only a week.

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Shared Shuttles vs. Private Transfers: When I’d Use Each

Shared tourist shuttles were our main way of traveling between destinations in Costa Rica, and I’d happily use them again. Pickups were straightforward, the drivers knew where we were staying, and we could leave the driving to someone else. When the departure times suited our plans, they worked well.

Our arrival day showed me when paying for a private transfer could make more sense. We flew from Panama City to San José that morning, but landed too late for the morning shared shuttle to La Fortuna. Our next shared option meant waiting several hours before we could even begin the journey.

The comparison wasn’t simply a cheaper seat versus a more expensive ride. It was spending a substantial part of our first day waiting for transportation versus getting on the road and reaching the place we’d come to enjoy. We chose the private transfer.

That decision gave us time to settle into our hotel, admire the clear view of Arenal and enjoy an unhurried lunch before heading to the hot springs later. Those extra hours became part of our vacation, rather than a gap we had to fill before it could begin. With only a week in Costa Rica, I was glad we’d paid more to use that afternoon.

I wouldn’t book every journey privately. For transfers between hotels, where we could arrange our day around a scheduled departure, shared shuttles suited us. But after a flight, or whenever the shared schedule would mean a long wait, I’d compare both options.

If you’re traveling with someone else, compare the total price of your shared-shuttle seats against the full private-transfer quote. Then consider the waiting time and what you’d realistically gain at the other end. For us, the arrival-day upgrade was worth it, even though shared transportation remained the right choice for much of the trip.

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Where to Stay Without a Car: Walkable Town or Secluded Hotel?

Without a rental car, your hotel’s location affects more than how you reach the attractions. It also determines whether dinner is an easy walk or another outing you need to arrange and pay for. I’d think about those everyday journeys before choosing a property for its views or amenities alone.

In La Fortuna, our hotel was about a ten-minute walk from the main plaza. Being able to choose a restaurant and walk there was something I appreciated after a day of organized activities. We still needed transportation for excursions, but we didn’t have to arrange a ride every time we wanted a meal or a look around town.

A secluded property could work just as well for a different kind of stay. If I were booking somewhere specifically to enjoy its pools, grounds or hot springs, I might be perfectly happy spending most of my time there. That was our approach to the final night at the Waldorf Astoria: we wanted to settle in and enjoy the property, so being away from town suited our plans.

Before booking, I’d check:

• Can I comfortably walk to restaurants? Look at the actual route, including sidewalks and hills, rather than distance alone.
• Will my transfers and tours collect me here? Confirm whether the property is within the pickup area and whether extra charges apply.
• What happens when I want to leave? Ask the hotel how guests without cars arrange local rides and return journeys.
• Am I budgeting to eat on-site? If nearby alternatives require transportation, include that in the accommodation comparison.

For our trip, a walkable base during the active days and a secluded hotel when we wanted downtime worked well. I’d happily use that combination again, choosing each location around how I intended to spend that part of the trip.

Rainforest walks and hanging bridges filled our active days. Without a car, checking how we’d reach each activity was part of choosing what to book.

Getting Around La Fortuna and Monteverde: Uber and Taxis

Once we reached each destination, we still needed to get between our accommodation and the activities we’d booked. What worked in La Fortuna didn’t work quite as smoothly in Monteverde, so I wouldn’t assume one transportation app will cover every stop on your route.

In La Fortuna, we found Uber relatively easy to use, including for our evening at the hot springs. Combined with staying within walking distance of restaurants, that made getting around straightforward during our visit.

In Monteverde, rides weren’t as easy to find through the app, so we asked our hotel to call a taxi. Another guest was heading to the same place, and we shared the ride. We got along well, exchanged travel recommendations and ended up meeting again for dinner later that evening. It became a lovely part of the trip, but the practical lesson was how useful our accommodation was in helping us get where we needed to go.

For each destination, I’d have a backup to the app and think about the return journey before leaving. Ask your accommodation how guests usually reach your chosen activity, whether they can arrange a taxi and how you should organize the ride back. If you need to arrive for a timed tour, I’d sort that out ahead of time rather than start looking for a driver when it’s already time to leave.

We managed comfortably without a rental car, but that flexibility came from using different options as needed. Walking, Uber and hotel-arranged taxis each had a place in the trip.

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Check Hotel Pickup Before Booking Tours and Activities

When comparing activities, I’d look beyond the admission price to understand how I’d actually get there and back. Some bookings include transportation, while others cover only entry or the guided experience. Without a rental car, that difference belongs in both your budget and your schedule.

A cheaper activity isn’t necessarily cheaper once you add a return taxi ride. Before booking, I’d check whether pickup is included, whether it covers my specific hotel and whether the return journey is included too. If transportation costs extra, I’d compare the complete price with an option that already includes it.

It’s also worth distinguishing between an attraction ticket and a tour package. Booking directly might give you more freedom to choose your arrival time, while an organized outing could make transportation easier. I’d choose based on the full arrangement rather than assume either option is automatically better.

If I were combining two activities, I’d also confirm how I’d travel between them. Two places that look convenient to visit on the same day still need a workable connection, especially if the second booking has a fixed start time.

The easiest time to resolve these details is while you’re choosing the activity. Knowing the pickup arrangements and total cost upfront makes it much easier to decide what comfortably fits into the day.

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Planning Separate Activities When Traveling With a Friend

Traveling without a car didn’t mean we had to choose the same activities every day. In Monteverde, my friend booked a coffee tour while I went ziplining. She could skip the heights, and I could enjoy something I’d been looking forward to without asking her to come along.

If you’re splitting up for part of the day, plan transportation for each person rather than treating it as one shared outing. Check whether each booking includes pickup, how you’ll return and whether either person needs help arranging a taxi. It’s also worth comparing costs individually, since a fare you might normally split will become one person’s expense.

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Leave Time to Enjoy a Destination Without Going Anywhere

After several days of transfers, excursions and early starts, I appreciated finishing our Costa Rica trip somewhere we were happy to stay put. Our final night was along the Pacific coast, where we relaxed by the pool and watched the sunset without another activity to reach or a return ride to arrange.

That was part of what made the stay worth including: once we arrived, we had everything we wanted for that afternoon right there. Traveling without a car had worked well throughout the trip, but it still involved coordinating pickups, checking departure times and figuring out local rides. Having a stretch of time that required none of that felt especially welcome.

Our one-night stay gave us an afternoon and the following morning to enjoy the property. If I were planning again, I’d consider two nights so we could have a full day between arrival and departure. That would give us more time to settle in before packing up again.

You don’t need a luxury hotel to build this into your itinerary. It could be a quiet morning at your accommodation, lunch within walking distance or an afternoon by the pool. I’d simply leave some time when enjoying Costa Rica doesn’t depend on getting into another vehicle.

Our final stop on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast gave us an afternoon to settle in, enjoy the views and leave the transportation planning alone.

Would I Visit Costa Rica Without a Rental Car Again?

Absolutely. We reached the places we wanted to visit, enjoyed the activities we’d been excited about and used a mix of shared shuttles, a private transfer, Uber and taxis to make it work. I never came home wishing we’d rented a car.

What I would change is the order of my planning. I’d check connections before committing to each stop, choose accommodation with everyday journeys in mind and confirm transportation when booking activities. Those decisions would help me understand the full cost and schedule earlier, while I still had room to adjust the route.

Traveling this way involved trade-offs. We worked around shuttle departures and sometimes paid more for convenience, particularly after our arrival flight. But we also avoided driving ourselves, and our boat crossing of Lake Arenal became a memorable part of the trip.

You don’t need a rental car to enjoy Costa Rica, but you do need a plan for the journeys a car would otherwise cover. Once those pieces are in place, you can spend less time figuring out your next ride and more time enjoying where it takes you.